Dating In The Dark Makes Us All Look Shallow

So ABC’s new show, “Dating in the Dark,” is weird. Like, really weird. Three girls and three guys meet in the pitch dark, often make out, and then get to see one another. They then have to decide if they want to go on actual dates with the people they have just seen.

Wait, that’s not so weird. It sounds like the same thing that happens nightly in college bars from coast to coast. Only on TV.

Much like the feeling of repulsion that has come over many of us after last call, the people on the show who really hit it off in the dark aren’t such fans of each other once the lights flip on.

Now, maybe it’s just me, but this doesn’t really cast people in the best light (no pun intended), right?

Maybe it’s because I’m most often attracted to a guy’s personality before I start to find him cute, but I can’t imagine rejecting a dude on the basis of looks alone if I’ve already felt a strong connection with him. I wouldn’t date a guy that I wasn’t attracted to, but personality totally takes a guy from zero to ten (OK, maybe 5 to 10). If I liked him in the dark, especially enough for a little tonsil hockey, I’d like to think I’d be happy in the light, too.

But that is not what’s happening here.

Last week on the show, a girl and guy were all over each other in the darkroom, then the chick totally rejected the guy once she saw what he looked like. (Rude.) Now, I know that this is probably happening for some serious shock value, but I still found myself jumping on my couch a la Tom Cruise and yelling at my TV. First, why would you make out with this dude in the first place? And, seeing that she was sober and enjoyed it, how did those feelings change so quickly with the aid of a light bulb? There was obviously some physical chemistry there before, sweetheart.

I’m not going to say it’s jerk-like to judge on the basis of looks, since we all do it to some degree, but just how important are they? If you know you have a lot in common with someone but they’re not exactly a 10 in the looks department, is that enough to turn you off? And if it is, can’t you always just date in the dark?

Kidding.