Love Is Blindseason 8 recently dropped, bringing a fresh batch of drama, a new cast, and, of course, new villains, and it’s time to rank them. Season 8 dropped on Valentine’s Day,marking the dating show’s fifth anniversary and introduced 32 singles from Minnesota. Hosted again by the power couple Vanessa and Nick Lachey, season 8 had a different format. Unlike the previous seasons, where pod sessions ended in episode four,Love Is Blindseason 8 plays lasted longer, with the engaged couple going on honeymoon in episode 6.
A lot went into those pod sessions,with many participants showing their red flags during those sessions.Love Is Blindseason 8 participants manipulated and twisted certain situations to fit into their stories—especially the male cast members. Many not only gaslight their partners but also exhibit problematic behavior, like presenting homophobic traits, sparking an internet outrage.
OneSuccessful-Yogurt–94Reddit thread called out the male cast members for their questionable remarks, with David Bettenburg topping the list.During his interactions with Lauren O’Brien, he joked about how she was no longer attractive after she revealed her age. Without further ado, here areLove Is Blindseason 8 controversial contestantswhose actions suggest they could have joined the show for other agendas.
8Devin Buckley
He Couldn’t Deal With Brittany’s Authenticity
Sparks flew when Devin Buckley andbasketball player Brittany Dodsonconnected in the pods. They both loved basketball, and their vulnerability late in the season quickly made their connection deep. As shown in the clip above, Devin was bound to leave the pods engaged. Brittany was understanding and empathetic when thisLove Is Blindstar shared how his past injury got him addicted to painkillers. Subsequently,Brittany confessed she had dated both genders in the pastbut always thought she would end up with a man.
However, Devin didn’t extendas much grace as Brittany had when he’d shared his addiction to painkillers.Instead, his energy started shifting immediately, and he started getting closer to Virginia Miller. In a recent Screenrant interview,Brittany expressed that she had expected to hearsomething comforting from Devin and also see some confidence in him and their connection, which was one reason the two broke up. Ultimately, he chose Virginia since he couldn’t handle Brittany’s authentic self.
7Sara Carton
She Chose A Man Who Didn’t Match Her Values
Sara Carton gave off plenty of green flags from her first interaction with the male contestants in theLove Is Blindpods. She skipped all the small-talk questions and got into serious business,discussing politics, LGBTQ+ community issues, and political stands such as Black Lives Matter, especially with her potential partner,Ben Mezzenga, with whom they shared the strongest connection. At one point, she pulled back when Ben said he didn’t pay attention to the social issues.
Still, the two got engaged—an ironic twist considering that she had previouslycalled Ben out for being privileged about politicalissues. This proved there was no point in having that political talk if thisLove is Blindstar wouldn’t stand on business. While she was mature enough to ask uncomfortable questions other couples didn’t discuss,settling with a man who didn’t care about social issues, which she genuinely valued, is a red flag and shows that she may not have been as principled as she initially seemed.
6Alex Brown
He Played Safe In The Pods
Alex Brown might have appeared as one of the best dudes onLove Is Blind, but his red flags were hidden in hindsight. While he was kind and vulnerableabout his past with Madison Errichiello, he’d pull back anytime she didn’t saythings that suited his definition of an ideal partner. Alex had some unrealistic qualities of a partner who would want to marry. TheLove Is Blindstar told Madison he couldn’t deal with any conflict in a relationship.
Someone who can’t deal with conflict in a relationship could either have an avoidant personality, lack conflict-resolution skills, or have had negative experiences in the past that push them to dislike any form of disagreement.
Alex displayed a lot of passive aggressiveness towards Madison once she talked about her past. TheLove Is Blindstar constantly questioned if her past relationships would play a part in their budding relationship. His past trauma affected their connection,as he constantly needed reassurance, thus shifting all the emotional labor to her. Ultimately, the two broke up, withMadison prioritizing her happiness over a forced connection, which she could have regretted, considering that Alex still had a lot of work to do.
5Lauren O’Brien
She Manipulated Dave Into Picking Her
Lauren O’Brien might have appeared as one of the realisticLove Is Blindseason 8 cast members, but she did a few things that showed a different side of her. Initially, Lauren was part of theLove Is Blindtriangle with Dave and Molly Rose Mullaney.When it appeared like Dave was leaning more towards his connection with Molly,Lauren threatened to leave theLove is Blindexperiment, saying:
“I don’t need to be here right now.”
That statement was a game-changer because it was like she played a mind game on Dave so he’d choose her. To be fair to Lauren, she wasn’t the firstLove Is Blindcontestant to pull this card onLove Is Blind. Season 7’s star Leo Braudy did it to Hannah Jiles, and although it didn’t work,he tried his best to manipulate her into picking him.
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A potential partner threatening to leave theLove Is Blindstint is a tested and proven strategy, as people are naturally drawn to those who show less devotion. People value what they have to work for, and Dave valued his connection with Lauren more based on that.In a way, they used a subtle manipulative tactic, and Dave was willing to do whatever it took to keep her around. In the end, it worked—they left the pods engaged.
4Mason Horacek
He Led Meg On
Mason Horacek was involved in a love triangle with Madison and Meg Fink. At one point,he claimed to be fully committed to Madison, but as soon as she admitted to having feelings for Alex, he recanted the statement, saying he had confessed his feelings to the wrong girl. Madison had paid attention to Mason’s behavior and called him “elusive.” While he was upfront with both about connecting with each of them, he couldn’t decide who his main choice was until Madison rejected him.
What made things worse was that when his connection with Madison did fall through,he tried to circle back to Meg, seemingly hoping to make her his fallback plan,which she refused (viaLoveisblindnetflix). At that point, he was focused on securing a spot for the Honduras trip with the other engagedLove Is Blindcouples. If his feelings for Meg had been real, he’d have made his intentions clear much sooner.
3Madison Errichiello
She Tried To Get All The Females On Mason’s Hate Train
Madison faced a lot of scrutiny from the moment she stepped into theLove Is Blindexperiment to the extent of having an entireReddit thread byfoxyphilosophicthread explaining why most people didn’t like her. Some felt like she was calculative, manipulative, and also trauma-dumped on her connections to get sympathy. Madison intentionally sabotaged Meg and Mason’s connection and didn’t apologize. In fact, she tried to run a smear campaign in the women’s quarters against Mason by reporting some critical details they had discussed with the girls and also calling him a clown.
She further claimed their break-up tasted good, which was ironic considering that she later ranted to Alex about how Mason made her feel. Luckily, theLove Is Blindfemale contestants were reluctant to join the anti-Mason campaign and encouraged Meg to hear him out before making a decision. Sadly, the damage was already done.
Meg decided she wouldn’t be Mason’s second option.Madison used Mason as her fallback plan anytime Alex acted differently, thus ruining his genuine chances of exploring a connection with Meg. Madison showed no remorse when she dumped him, making her theultimate villain inLove Is Blindseason 8.
2Ben Mezzenga
He’s Part Of TikTok Drama
Ben Mezzenga showed how privileged he was when Sara askedhim about his take on different social issues. He had no clue about the BLM movement and remained noncommittal on certain topics. It took him an uncomfortably long time to assure Sara that he was okay with the LGBTQ+ community. However, Ben also kept on referring to the LGBTQ+ as “that community,” which came off as homophobic.
Even though Ben has a gay friend, he still seems reserved about the LGBTQ+ community. That could be because of his conservative ways and religious beliefs, and if that’s the case, it might be a problem later on in their relationship. While they got engaged before leaving the LoveIs Blindpods, a drama followed this contestant.
In episode nine, Sara found a TikTok video of a woman calling a man who matched Ben’s description “sh*tty.” Ben acknowledged he knew the woman whom he’d met on Tinder. However, they only dated for a few weeks before he ghosted her—another red flag.
1David Bettenburg
David “Dave” Bettenburg is arguably the biggest villain inLove Is Blindseason 8,especially after making a few remarks in the pods that could have been poorly received. The 33-year-old medical sales executive called his current fiancé old, during their interactions in the pods. He also shared that he was superficial with women, considering that he was “surrounded by Botox, fillers and tummy tucks.”
TheLove is Blindreality staralso admitted to mistreating women in the past, and his way of flirting was quite distasteful. Although humor and sarcasm can sometimes break the ice during conversations, Dave sometimes crosses the lines, making him sound entitled. There was also an incident where he told his other connection, Molly, how he’d cheated in his previous relationship—without an ounce of remorse.
What really solidified thisLove Is Blindstar’s villain status is his interesting relationship with his sister, which he fondly talked about. In the upcoming episodes, she might not support his relationship with Lauren. If Dave sides with his sister over his fiancé, it will raise the question of whether he’s ready for a long-term commitment, as he claims. Unfortunately, that would mean he was just wasting Lauren’s time.
Love Is Blindseason 8, episodes 10-12 drop on Friday, February 28 on Netflix.
Love Is Blind
Cast
Love Is Blind is a reality series where participants date and become engaged without seeing each other. The experiment examines whether emotional connections can outweigh physical appearances as couples decide if they will marry after meeting face-to-face for the first time.
