10 Best Reality TV Shows to Watch Instead of The Kardashians
Real love, real life, real everything.
While reality shows may be nothing more than a guilty pleasure for many viewers, that does not take away from the fact that they are more than exciting. There is something about them that makes you want to watch the drama unfold on screen.
The Kardashians are the undisputed leaders of the reality genre, but there are a number of shows that will keep you glued to the screen, too.
1. The Circle
This Netflix reality show was created specifically for young viewers who cannot imagine life without a phone. All the participants live in the same house, but cannot leave their apartments or see each other in person.
They communicate through the social network Circle, where they create real or fake accounts and share their thoughts and feelings. Participants can like or dislike each other and raise or lower ratings. People with the highest ratings become "influencers" who can block other members' accounts. This continues until there is only one winner.
2. Transit Love
Transit Love is a South Korean reality show. Couples who have separated for various reasons get back together to revisit their past love or find a new one. During the show, the former partners have to pretend that they do not know each other, which adds a new level of drama to the show.
Even before its release, the show attracted viewers with its unusual format. We see not only the start of new relationships, but also the experiences of former partners.
3. Selling Sunset
This is a show about employees of a prestigious real estate agency in Los Angeles – the women try to sell houses to wealthy residents and dress in ridiculously expensive clothes.
The reality has gained such popularity because it shows the luxurious life that everyone loves to follow, but adds the spice of very hard and competitive work. Essentially, the project shows the real life of career women who have to put their families on the back burner in order to succeed.
4. Single's Inferno
Single's Inferno is the first Korean reality show to enter Netflix's top 10. Twelve attractive singles arrive on a deserted island in search of romance and can only leave the island as a couple.
The show owes its enormous popularity not only in Korea but around the world to its incredibly attractive contestants. Even before the show, they managed to become famous actors, models, and bloggers.
5. Love & Hip-Hop: New York
A reality show that became a springboard for Cardi B and her music career. This project has spin-offs in Miami, Hollywood and Atlanta.
Under the cameras are different men and women who have one thing in common – they make music in the genre of Hip-Hop and R&B. Viewers see not only their work and musical careers, but also family dramas, problems with friends and colleagues.
6. Love Is Blind
Love Is Blind became an overnight hit for Netflix. The show brought together 30 participants who went on 10-day blind dates where they could only communicate without seeing each other. After 10 days, each person had to either choose a partner and propose, or leave the project. Only after the engagement do the couples meet face to face.
The final decision to marry is made right at the altar. The creators of the show wanted to conduct an experiment and show that people can fall in love despite their looks. Whether they succeeded or not, you can see for yourself.
7. Too Hot to Handle
This show is definitely not for children. It begins as your ordinary reality – a group of young and beautiful people are taken to a luxury resort. There is only one rule – no physical intimacy.
The participants fall in love with each other and keep breaking this rule. The problem is that after that money is deducted from the main prize of the show – $100,000.
8. The Bachelor
This reality show needs no introduction. The Bachelor is 21 years old and still one of the most dramatic projects on television. It also has spin-offs, such as The Bachelorette.
Viewers watch as women try to win the heart of a bachelor. They try their best, but once a week one or two contestants leave the show. In the end, the man chooses the winner or remains a bachelor.
9. Temptation Island
This reality show has a long history. FOX originally produced an adaptation of the Dutch show Blind Vertrouwen – Temptation Island premiered in 2001. The first season of the show attracted a large audience, but the second and third seasons received low ratings.
In 2019, the show received a second chance and an incredible wave of popularity. Four couples whose relationships are in limbo test their love by giving single life a chance. They move into separate houses, each with an attractive bachelor or bachelorette living with them.
10. Love Island
Love Island is one of the most popular dating show franchises ever. Its roots are in the UK, where the show first aired in 2005, but did not become popular at the time. In 2015, it was given a second life and this version has become a hit.
The contestants live in isolation from the outside world. Each of them must be paired with another islander, regardless of the nature of their relationship. Anyone left alone is forced to leave the island.