About this episode

Emma Gray and Tess Higgins discuss the first four episodes of Season 4 of 'The Ultimatum' and the cultural implications of its casting and themes.

Season 4 of "The Ultimatum: Marry or Move On" has dropped, just in time to help fill the cavernous void left by the finale of "Love Island" season 8, and the vibes are worse than ever. "The Ultimatum" has an inherently fraught premise: It brings together six established couples who disagree about whether to get married. They "break up," date the other people in the experiment and choose one to have a three-week "trial marriage" with, and then return to their original partner for another trial marriage. The show ends with each person deciding whether to get engaged, leave alone, or leave in a relationship with someone they met in the experiment. It's never a feel-good show, given that it carries so much deeply rooted pain and disappointment from each relationship – and the potential for such a great betrayal – but this season is taking it to another level. Tess Higgins, aka Reality Scholar on Instagram, joined me for a lively recap of the first four episodes of this season (the first half of the first drop). We have so many questions about this season, starting with casting: Where do they find these people, and specifically, where do they find these men? Reality dating shows have…

People in this episode

Host: Emma Gray

Guest: Tess Higgins

Topics covered

• reality TV
• relationships
• gender roles
• marriage
• dating shows

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: The Ultimatum: Marry or Move On, Love Island

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