Let's Date: A Dating Game Show

Source: Loke Yek Mang | Dreamstime.com

I was watching a Chinese dating game show (我們約會吧/Let's Date!). I don't know all the rules of the matchmaking process. I just know that each guy gets to pick a woman out of the many female participants on the show. The woman he picks can either accept or refuse to date him. If the woman agrees to date the guy, they will leave the stage together. Otherwise, the guy will leave alone and the girl will stay on stage. The next guy will appear again and the whole process repeats. I keep seeing the same girls every time I watch the show. I'm not sure, but I think it has the same female participants for every season. 


Before a bachelor appears onstage, the emcee would ask him which girls he doesn't want to date. Without seeing the girls, he would then enumerate the things he doesn't like, such as very tall girls or girls wearing super short skirts. Those girls with those qualities would not be participating in that segment.

In one episode, this certain Mr. Bachelor enters the stage. After he eliminates girls that he doesn't like based on his enumeration, the remaining girls go to the stage. Each woman goes behind a podium. This bachelor has studied in the States and has a very successful career. He isn't very handsome, but most of the women on the show like him as indicated by the color of the light that appears on each of their podium. The emcee gives him a short interview where he talks about his career. He reveals that his job requires him to move to different countries every 18 months. He shares that one of his married officemates has children with different nationalities. That would be tough for his partner-to-be. No wonder that guy doesn't have a girlfriend. Most girls onstage get turned off. 

When the interview ends, the women are asked to press a button to indicate whether or not they would still agree to date him. The girls who choose "yes" become fewer. Then, from the remaining girls, the guy picks the one he likes best. The chosen girl is asked to stand on one side. Then another girl, whom the guy has picked in the very beginning of the show (right when he enters the stage and sees all the girls), would be revealed. Unfortunately, that girl is not among the participants who chose "yes". She is asked to stand on the other side of the guy.

The guy is given a few seconds to choose between the two women. Will he choose the woman who likes him? Or the woman whom he likes in the beginning? After some commercial, I was sitting on the edge of my seat. Who is he going to pick? He picks the latter. A short video about the girl is played on the monitor.

The girl is 29 years old. A pretty leftover woman. She bakes unsweetened biscuits for her diabetic mom. She has been in a serious relationship with a guy. Sadly, the boyfriend died in an accident four years ago. The girl becomes depressed, but somehow, she has come out from the dark tunnel. She takes care of the elderly parents of her dead boyfriend. She looks really nice.

Unfortunately, the girl refuses to go out with Mr. Bachelor. She tells him that she prefers a guy who would settle down in one place. The guy wishes her the best and leaves the stage.

Whew. The girl refusing him, that is a pretty brave thing to do. I don't mean to offend, but most participants look really desperate. I can't really blame them though because these women face stigma associated with being single. But this woman made decision based on what she really wants.

I agree with her and respect her for not being swayed by his good qualifications. In the end, it is she who will live her life. It's important to look at things objectively rather than think about what others will think. Like what the bachelor said, I, too, wish her the very best in life.