Single’s Inferno (2021)

To escape the island with your love or leave alone?

Dating shows usually aren't very good. They feature superficiality and cringe flirting, but I guess that's why I like them. They're so bad, that I can't help but watch more.

Like everyone said, it's really interesting to watch how people flirt in real life. I would have enjoyed it more if these people were actually your average every day people, but most of these people seem to be rich or own businesses.

The beginning ep was really boring but the episodes soon picked up when we moved onto the spice of not knowing who someone would end up picking to go together to Paradise with. It's also interesting to see love triangles develop so quickly in real life! Luckily, South Korean shows are tamer so don't expect much catty slapping or drama here!

All the cast members were interesting, but I found the additional characters unnecessary. Netflix needs to stop doing that. It's not fair to the new people coming into the island when everyone already had started developing feelings and camaraderie. You're always going to get the same "They're new, I didn't establish a deep connection with them" lingo, Netflix! Netflix might think that was needed to spice up the show, but have faith in your cast! Se-hoon really carried the show, in my opinion. He sparked main character energy in this show, leading a whole k-drama of his own in here.

The panelists/commentators were funny and awesome. No one was overly biased and everyone was respectful and commented the right things that made the show all the more entertaining. It felt fun like you're cheering on the cast together with them!

I do hope in future seasons, instead of spicing up the cast, Netflix focuses on spicing up what happens on the island. Playing games and going to Paradise each night is eventually going to get repetitive.

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Singles Inferno on Netflix

Started watching mostly out of curiosity, but got hooked. Curios about how a Korean dating show would play out. The show is addictive and the contestants seem very nervous. Being first in a show that would be controversial must have been scary. The talking head commentators were useful at first, but by the 3rd episode were more annoying. More time focused on the contestants would have been preferred. Producers should have done more to show interactions between the contestants, like the mud wrestling. Two ep. to go. Really fun, more please.

Not really about acting*, more honesty. On that basis I give them all a ten.

*When Choi Si-hun walked down the sand runway my first thought was "K-pop Boy".

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Quite funny to watch...but...

I watched this series out of pure curiosity and find it much better compared to American or European dating shows because Koreans are just pleasantly reserved. The lack of inhibition in the Western world sometimes even disgusts me. The German translation is called "Raus aus der Single Hölle" and to be honest I can't find anything about hell there. The participants live comfortably on the beach and don't really have much to do between chilling, putting on make-up and cooking. For some that would be paradise. I would be interested to see how the participants behave under worse conditions. However, I find the development and behavior of some of the participants really exciting and it was still fun to watch. All in all, it's entertaining if you get involved in trash TV. I was happy when Moon Se Hoon found his smile back at the end.

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Soyeon you're my queen

This will have major spoilers, so be warned.

Honestly, I only watched this because I was out on a trip with friends and one of them suggested this show for us. I have to say I was surprised about how much Single's Inferno gripped my attention, even though there isn't nearly as much drama or hook ups as western dating shows, but maybe this is part of the charm.

The premise and format of the show are probably what I had more issues with and I think a lot of people seem to agree with this: first, the show should've been longer. Nine days is just not enough for the contestants to get to know each other properly, hence it felt like some of them stayed with a certain person because they didn't have time to interact with the others; second, they shouldn't have added more people later on. These participants (specially the girls) barely got to talk with the others and were always being pushed aside, I honestly felt bad for them. On the other hand, I liked that they had to compete in tasks to get the chance to choose someone to go to Paradise, and the Paradise/Inferno dynamic also served to spice things up a bit.

Now, onto the constestants. First and foremost I just want to state that Soyeon deserved so much better. She was the most mature person there by far and I trully appreciated how honest and straight-forward she was. It was a shame she wasn't even considered an option for most of the man there and I think it's porbably because she doesn't fit the korean beauty standard. I get the feeling she mainly just ended up with Jintaek cause she had no other option. He was kinda of a dick to her, like don't get me wrong, it's alright to want to meet other participants and be open to other possibilities, but he did it in the wrong way. He just hid everything from Soyeon and even talked shit about her in his date with Jiyeon. Not to mention his ridiculous chest hair, I mean if you're gonna shave, just shave everything dude, don't make drawings with your body hair.

But Sehoon was the one that irritated me the most. He was such a spoiled brat. Soyeon was actually his ideal type (someone with attitude and who expresses herself), but just because she was the one to give him actually good advice about Jiyeon coming from a place of concern, that somehow offended him cause it hurt his fragile man ego, I guess. Also, his obsession with Jiyeon was NOT ok. The hosts kept praising him as if his persistency is a good thing, when in reality it was just creepy. She was giving him clear signs that she wasn't interested and yet he kept pursuing her. It just reminded me of the old narrative tha women actually mean yes when they say no, so you just have to keep pushing and that's just a red flag. Jiyeon was pretty smart, though, so I think the only reason she put up with Sehoon in the end was to get a free pass to Paradise.

Something that I still don't understand is why there were so many guys after Jia. She had the personality of an ice cube and couldn't keep a conversation going to save her own life. I guess they were into her because she kinda fit the korean beauty standard and cause they thought she had a misteryous personality, but it's not like that, she just didn't have anything interesting going on in her head to say or do. Also, she was kind of a bitch with Hyeonjoong. He was totally into her and they were basically already in a relationship, but she kept throwing herself at Hyunseung and never clarified anything untill the end. At least she was honest with Sihoon, although he didn't get the message at all. He was very stalker-ish and even followed her on her dates with Hyeonjoong, like what the hell???

There's not much to say about Junsik and Yeawon since they felt more like extras and barely showed up. Still, I sympathised with her and really hoped she would end up with Hyunseung.

Overall, a pretty good kick start for korean dating/reality show format, definitely recommend people to wacth it if they are into some tea and specially if they have someone else to watch with.

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CONTAINS SPOILERS. PLEASE READ AFTER WATCHING :)

STORY:
So much suspense with every episode, you never know what people are thinking.
As you begin to watch more, probs around ep 5, you begin to realise there are more coincidences than what seems normal. For example, the cast interaction with each other at certain times. I wouldn't be surprised if there was a director on set, telling the cast members to go to a certain cast member and talk about their feelings etc. Because that was what happened on a Japanese dating show called Rea(L)ove.
I feel like the director made a terrible decision of adding 3 new contestants half way through the show and the ending proves this point as none of the new contestants becomes a couple. Furthermore, Hyunseung knew two the cast members which defeats the purpose of having the rule where they can't disclose their age and profession. Nevertheless, all the twist and coincidences made the show really entertaining.
It would be awesome if netflix made a special episode where the cast members are followed up to see if they still remained a couple and their feelings etc.

CAST:
YeWon: My favourite cast member and definitely the most underrated. She is fricken beautiful, not sure what is wrong with the guys eyes. She has an amazing outgoing personality, and her accent is so cute. I hate the director for not giving her much screentime. She always comforts the other cast members and gives them advice when she's probably hurt and torn herself. ? I feel like she doesn't actually like Junsik, they just chose each other because there was no other option. She probably likes Hyunseung more because when they had a conversation I felt like they both had a spark, but Hyunseung didn't want to take the risk of choosing someone new.
Jiyeon: My second favourite cast member and the most intelligent person in the show. I hate the fact that in the start all the the contestants and host were commenting on her skin colour and calling her pale, which shows the toxic beauty standards in korea. I felt the most sorry for Jiyeon around ep 2-6 because Sehoon kept on pushing his feelings on her despite her not feeling the spark, but in the end all his hard efforts pulled through and she finally started to open up. Which literally sounds like a Boys Over Flowers plot, where the SML is Jintaek, lmao.
Sehoon: OMG to I have a lot to say about this guy. He was my most hated cast member up until ep 7. He has psychopath behaviour when he kept pushing Jiyeon to talk. And I hated the fact that the host kept on gaslighting this behaviour and feeling sorry for him, like they should be empathising with Jiyeon! Anyways, I stopped hating him when Jiyeon liked him. It turned out that Jiyeon was just really sentimental and wanted to get her thoughts straight before she tries to replicate her feelings with Sehoon. ?
Sihun: I don't understand why so many viewers dislike Sihun. He literally had to be honest and choose the girl he likes, hence why he chose Jia despite knowing she doesn't like him back. This is why I admire him, it would've been morally wrong to choose Sumin just because he want to be a couple.
[I know there are other cast members I didn't mention, but sis doesn't have all day to talk about everyone, so I'll just have to leave it here :)]

Rewatch value: I'd definitely watch a season 2 with the same cast for an update on how their doing. If there was another Korean dating show like this, I'd like it to be more realistic and more transparent with the viewers, because I felt that this was quite scripted.

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Amazing !!!!

Singles inferno was just amazing. I just finished watching it and I'm wondering why I took this long to watch it and was skipping it and putting it aside but I'm really glad I decided to go for it. Honestly I wished it was longer maybe 12 or 14 episodes but not something way too long.
This is the third Korean variety show I'm watching and it was just amazing. The hosts were amazing as well and were perfect for the show. They really knew how to analyze and explain the whole situation really well and their comments made it fun.
This show had me awwning and laughing so much. I was happy on their behalf and also felt awkward on their behalf and I had a really great laugh throughout.
For the cons, I didn't like how Si Hun was meddling when ji a and hyun joong would be having private conversations and some others that did that as well all in the name of going for who they want thereby bringing tension but what really turned me off about this show was how some of them were saying if they liked someone they 'must' date the person. This statement was not made just once and that really annoyed me, like that's straight on a red flag and shows obsessive, bad traits. The fact that they felt it was good to show it out there didn't go well with me and I would blame the producer, director and whoever more for this one cos you could literally crop that out and not promote such but then again it left to the viewers to know that this is bad.
Finally I'm so happy that ji a and hyun joong ended up together especially that ending part were he carried her... I don't know if this is late but congratulations and good luck to all the couples on this show... Didn't intend to make this long but I hope this review helps someone.. don't listen to the rating of 7.9 but go watch this show everyone

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good, but one dumb thing.…

first of all i’d like to say that it was pretty good entertaining and a bit addictive, but there was SEVERAL dumb things that happened in this reality TV show. first why is sihun always going back to jia? like i think it was pretty abvious who she wanted to be with since day one because she wanted to pick only one man…HER PUPPY so why is he still trying…second, why did the 2 girls and 1 boy come SO EXTREMELY LATE?!?! they can’t get to know each other at that rate like you can’t call it a love show where they are getting to know each other?!? that’s absolute bullsh*t. THIRD. WHY ARENT YALL REALISING 2 EPISODES A DAY??? it’s so much better and it’s just killing time so much faster if you did! like i won’t watch one episode then the next day i’ll watch another then NEXT WEEK i’ll repeat? FOURTH and LAST. if season 3 isn’t better than this i’m leaving the WORST review ??‍♀️

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Bummer at the end

I have watched many international dating shows and it was my first time watching a Korean dating show . The international dating shows are all about the physical attraction and lust. So what I liked most about the show was how they focused on getting to know each other slowly rather than jumping on each other right away.?
I liked how it started with expressing the first impression of the person and then matching for dates later. And cooking with each other was the best part as it gives a lot of time to interact with each other in a natural setting rather than going on fancy dates right away.

But what I didn’t liked was that how the new members joined soo late and they didn’t got the chance to built anything with anyone. And the worst part is tht all the couples who left together at the end are not together. Yes, not a single one of them are together. It all starts to look fake like how they shared beautiful moments and never dated in real is just soo weird to me.
Like what’s the purpose of these reality dating shows if no one sticks together or even tries to date after leaving the show. Makes it all pointless. I was hoping better from a Korean dating show.

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A bit too fake

It was interesting to understand the dating culture of another country. But in the end is all too fake. Key figures:
Song Ji A: she clearely don't like no one on the island.
Kang So Yeon: she don't like at all Oh Jin Taek. You can tell from her jokes. At least she tried too know other people.
Shin Ji Yeon: she don't like Moon Se Hoon. She tried to know more people, but after the guy confessed for the 100th time, she was forced to accept, trying to not be the bad girl. Feel bad for her.
Choi Si Hun: Song Ji A show no interst in him from the first times, but for some reason he fall "crazy love/stalker" for her. Too much fake, he wanted to play the part of the rejected guy for the memes, 100% he is not like that in real life.
Moon Se Hoon: Lvl simp 100. The example of the dating culture in Korea. A "real man" need to like only one girl, also if the girl clearely don't like him back. All that because Shin Ji Yeon says that she liked his pink shirt. C'mon man.
Oh Jin Taek: maybe the only guy that don't play a part. He tried to know more people, but to not becoming the bad guy, he settled with Kang So Yeon, also knowing that she don't like him at all.

All in all, is a good show. It's all feel too fake to me. 10 days are just too few maybe. I think the authors needs to let the people know more about each others. Instead all of the guys settled for 1 girl from the beginning for not real reason, fearing the public judgement.

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Refreshingly wholesome reality dating

9/10 is my rating. This is a 2021 South Korean reality dating show with 8, 57-68 minute episodes.

First I will provide a synopsis then a review

Synopsis

To start, 5 men and 4 women are brought to an island, called inferno, to live for 9 days while interacting with each other and potentially forming romantic attachments. The island they are on is primitive and they sleep in dorm like tents, the males in one tent and the females in another. Food is brought in but in limited variety and they have to transport water from a distance. Their restroom facilities are camping style. So they are basically glamping. Periodically there are competitions among the men or women where winners get to select a date. Those that select each other or are picked for dates get to go for the evening to another island called Paradise where they stay in luxury hotel suites, get to order off a gourmet menu and can spend time getting to know each other on a one on one basis. About five episodes in new participants are added with 2 more females and 1 more male which really mixes things up.

Review
I was not sure I would like this show format but find it very compelling and see why it is so popular.I should not be surprised as the relationships have the innocent and wholesome nature I have come to appreciate so much in South Korean culture. Similar American shows are trashy and over sexualized but this was true to the sweet, slower paced interactions I have observed from dramas where full sexual encounters are rare and mostly among those headed for marriage. In this, even though it is a dating show, skin ship is a big deal. Fans of survivor will get some of those vibes. Others say it also has Bachelor/Bachelorette aspects but I can't speak to that as I have not watched that show. They are well fed and have shelter and food so it is not equivalent to survivor but the deserted island and having to carry water has echoes of survivor. The rules for inferno are they cannot ask age or occupation but they can try to "charm" the others and reveal their personalities. It seems the show keeps them busy though as you don't see them spending much time with the opposite sex on Inferno outside of community dinners and brief meetings in the evening. On Paradise not only are they treated to luxury for food and lodging, they can ask each other age and occupation. I watched "Love is for Suckers" prior to this and notice, although I have never seen it explicitly stated, that series used this reality show as inspiration for the reality dating show in that romantic comedy series and even mirrored some of the participants' personalities and occupations. And the commentator/host for singles inferno plays the female lead in "Love is for Suckers." If you watch both you will see those parallels.

The commentators are a very engaging part of the show. I find what they comment on about what is going on with the singles on the island is often very similar to what I am thinking. It is like sharing the 4th wall and it is really a neat addition to the show to have a group of commentators.

*spoilers

I was disappointed Choi Si-hun could not see through Song Ji-a and was one of the three men vying for her attention in the end. To me Ji-a enjoyed the male attention and would string them along even if she had no intention of dating them. Kim Hyeon-joo said, when he returned from a date with Ji-a that there were good things and bad things about her but when Si-hun went ga ga over her suddenly Si-hun forgot those things he did not like and he was all in. Then, when Cha Hyun-swung shows up and us also into Ji-a it suddenly becomes a competition and she is the trophy. There were better options for him even he seemed very enamored when he spoke with Ahn Ye-Won and they had some cute chemistry but then he decided he would rather diss his friend and go for Ji-a. My daughter said Ji-a was just a “basic beotch” and I get that. Under her caked on makeup, her eyelashes would “stick” sometimes her makeup was so heavy, and false everything there was not much substance to her personality and she was cruel to string the men along and to the other women who may have been interested in the men she had no intention to pursue anything with. Still they all sort of made their own bed. I did not like that Ji-a demeaned Si-hun by calling him puppy but he was the one that said pick me and I will do whatever, I think it was scripted because I think given a completely free choi ce she would have chosen Hyun-seung because she was so obviously into him. I also think she was set up to be the villian and the show manipulated that. These shows are always a little bit reality and a lot of manipulation, careful editing and some scripting.

It seemed cruel when Si-hun acted like he was going to Kim Su-Min but merely thanked her then headed to join the other two professing their interest in Ji-a. That interaction also seemed scripted because he did not seem to be the type of person that would do something like that.

Moon Se-hoon and Shin Ji-yeon finally getting together was a highlight. His single focus on her was nearly a concerning obsession but tge fact that she did eventually reciprocate made me think there had been something there all along we simply did not see.

Oh Jin-taek and Kang So-yeon were a cute couple. It was a bit heart breaking in the beginning when he went to Paradise with Shin Ji-ye on rather than picking someone unlikely to pick him like So-Yeon did. Her strategy was not to get picked so she could stay back on inferno with Jin-taek. When he did not do the same she was hurt and jealous and eventually told him so. She did waver, after Jin-take went to Paradise with and seemed to lean toward Ji-yeon. So-yeon expressed feelings for Se-Hoon who many of the women found sweet and engaging. She even tried to convince him to consider someone other than Ji-yein and I was surprised that hurt his feelings. I think she was right. It is never good to be the one that loves someone more. Equal love is best. But Se-hoon’s laser focus on Ji-yeon had So-Yeon put aside any feelings she had for him and re-focus on clearing up the misunderstanding with Jin-taek. It was interesting to me that se-Hoon brought up So-yeon‘s confession on the last day as it made for an awkward moment. It was cute that So-yeon offered to have Jin-taek sleep in the same bed with her and he was beside himself with joy that she was going to let him sleep by her. He checked multiple times that it was okay. When he told the other guys they seemed surprised and envious. When he asked for the kiss on the cheek as a reward for winning their bowling match, it was so cute. Perfect examples of the wholesome innocence of South Korean dating.

As I see more and more South Korean shows produced and hosted on Western platforms I fervently hope they do not let Western “values” taint them. Many are turning their backs on Hollywood because it is way too sexualized, violent and vulgar. I hope the wholesomeness of South Korean shows does not change. I also like that they are not “woke“ and wish the social justice warriors never sink their tentacles in as it is literally ruining what little good remained in Western world shows. We love you all just the way you are.

Commentators/Hosts
Lee Da Hee- Model, singer, and actress
Cho Kyu-Hun - Actor and singer (idol). He is a member of Super Junior.
Hong Jin-Kyung - Model, comedian, singer and actress. She owns her own food company.
Jung Han-Hae - Rapper and singer.

Singles

Female participants
Shin Ji-yeon born March 26, 1997 (age 25) - she is a neuroscience major at the University of Toronto.
Kang So-yeon born May 23, 1988 (age 34) - she is a boxer and represents a brand of clothing. A former JYP/idol trainee.
Ahn Ye-won was born in 1995 (age 27–28) - she is a model and a fitness and Pilates instructor
Song Ji-a was born April 30, 1997 (age 25) - she is a YouTube beauty influencer/model
Kim Su-min was born December 10, 1998 (age 24) - she is a model for Advertisements
Seong Min-ji was born April 1, 1998 (age 24) - she models beauty products and apparel

Male participants

Kim Hyeon-joong was born November 26, 1994 (age 28) - he is a model and a fitness trainer
Moon Se-hun was born in 1995 (age 27–28) - he is a chef and owner of a Gangnam restaurant
Kim Jun-sik was born in 1994 (age 28–29) - Developed and represents a health food brand
Choi Si-hun was born October 27, 1992 (age 30) - Web series star and apparel brand representative
Oh Jin-taek was born in 1992 (age 30–31) - he is the CEO and founder of a tailor shop specializing in suits.
Cha Hyun-seung born May 2, 1991 (age 31) - he is a dancer who has danced with many singers/idols most notably a back up dancer for Sun-mi

#singlesinferno
#leedahee
#chokyuhun
#hongjinkyung
#junghanhae
#ahnyewon
#songjiya
#kimsumin
#seongminji
#kimhyeonjoong
#kangsoyeon
#shinjiyein
#moonsehun
#kimjunsik
#choisihun
#ohjintak
#chahyunseung

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This isn't a show I would usually watch, but I would recommend watching it with other people, because everyone's reactions watching it together it was makes this show.

I don't usually like watching these kinda love island shows, but I think the reason I liked it is, because it's a little more real, like you actually get to hear everyone talking to each other, and cooking together, and seeing who cliches with each other better. It's not like kissing, bed scenes, but it's more realistic!

I do feel like the games could have been a little better, instead of just running and fighting each other, the games seemed a little awkward, but I think like seeing them like interact and who liked who better and paradise scenes were good!

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