After a whirlwind season in which Love Island USA became one of the most popular reality shows of all time, the islanders ditched their bikinis and sunglasses for their pajamas as they partyed in New York City.
Many of the islanders have life updates and feuds to resolve, but in just one hour and twenty minutes the producers decide to let things snowball, leaving us with a messy ending.
It’s heavy, rarely funny, and ends in a way that makes me think this is definitely the last time we’ll see all these people in the same place.
If you watched the series this summer (and if not, what are you waiting for?), you already know the players and the game.
So let’s dive into some of the things we learned during this time (twenty minutes max).
PPG still leads the way
One of the best parts of this season of Love Island USA has been the friendships, especially between Serena Williams, Jana Craig and Leah Kateb.
The three affectionately call themselves “PPG” (Powerpuff Girls) and are the OGs who have formed a close bond in the villa. If you’ve been paying attention on social media, you know that the connection is stronger than ever.
This season’s top three players all took home titles because of their long-lasting friendships and solid supporters.
It’s great to hear that three couples made their relationships official in the gap between the finale and the reunion.
Serena Williams and Cordell Beckham, the winners of this whole damn thing, looked the cutest and more lovable in the little video they shared the news with fans.
I smile every time Serena smiles, so seeing her and Cordell so happy was one of the highlights of the reunion.
Leah and Miguel Haric are one of the few couples who haven’t closed on the villa, but that doesn’t matter. The real world is what matters, and it’s clear that in the real world they’re ready to commit to each other.
JaNa and Kennyyyyy Rodriguez’s love story went viral on social media after the show, and their boyfriend-girlfriend status feels right.
Seeing their genuine concern for each other throughout the entire hour and twenty minutes (even when playing Islanders, who always had them sitting six feet apart), felt like just watching an extension of their time on the show .
I personally wish all couples lots of love and success!
Some things are better off the screen
Nicole Jacky and Kendall Washington were the season’s fourth-ranked couple, and everything seemed to be fine when the two left the island. But we learn early in the reunion that things take a turn for the worse once they get their phones back.
I won’t reveal the details here, but shortly before the finale aired, a personal video of Kendall was shared online. We now know the footage was filmed when Kendall insisted on being on the show, and that he actually lied to Nicole when he explained the situation after the show.
Nicole was understandably upset about being cheated on, and equally upset that Kendall hadn’t communicated with her since leaving the villa.
In this passage, there’s a lot of arguing between the two in a very tense and emotional situation that, frankly, is none of our business.
Sometimes I feel like I’m intruding into a conversation that should be taking place in someone’s living room, rather than on a stage with lights, a camera, and a group of friends listening, ready to pass judgment.
While people will certainly have their own opinions on the situation, it’s understandable that both parties are uncomfortable, and there’s still a lot of in-depth dialogue needed between them.
But I wish we could get a shorter version of the situation rather than having to hear the whole thing because there are so many.
Bring a receipt, or don’t come at all
Jana, you queen.
I don’t want to see another reunion where no one is fully prepared, with pages full of notes, so that they’re ready to shout out any and all bullshit they’re forced to listen to during these things.
The interesting thing about Jana and her pages of receipts is that she uses them more to protect her friends than herself.
The notes came in handy during a segment involving Andrea Carmona, as she struggled to defend her many actions behind the villa, which involved a lot of TikTok life and humdrum observations.
Jana secures Leah’s support and all her ducks in a row as she makes her case.
Unfortunately, the reunion didn’t give Jana time to read through all of her notes, and honestly, the show was the worse for it. She did nothing but make sure people were held accountable for their actions and words.
I’ll let Jana spend another half hour reading these pages to make sure every islander who’s ever been nasty to her, her daughters, or her man understands what she’s thinking.
Let this be the last we hear of Caleb and Aaron’s drama
There’s a reason Kyler Martin and Aaron Evans didn’t make it to the finals despite being boyfriend and girlfriend and the first couple in love; America was tired of their drama.
So the production decided to let America suffer one last time, giving them a part that accomplished absolutely nothing.
Aaron lied to Keller in the villa. Gaslet Keller took action every chance he got. And this trend is apparently happening outside the villa as well, except now, Keller has shed all her tears and she’s just angry.
There’s a weird tendency for heterosexuals to not talk before blowing it off at a party, and I don’t know why the spirit of honesty floods in when all the cameras are on, rather than when he and Caleb can talk privately. Lun’s heart, but it happened.
The two had a typically on-again, off-again relationship, but Keller seemed hell-bent on ending it all. Considering what she said about Aaron, he should probably pack his bags and see what Rob does for the rest of his trip to New York.
I will never ask for an extended edit on anything again
There are certain moments this season that really put Love Island USA Season 6 on the map. One of the scenes featured Andrea’s focus dumping, the consequences of which reverberated through the villa for days.
So, I understand why they decided to show the unedited fire pit dialogue. The conversation between Leah, Serena, Caleb, and Olivia Walker is an entire storyline in itself, but fifteen minutes is too long and does nothing but make an already low mood even lower. Didn’t do it either.
What’s the point? It’s awkward, and it just goes to show that there’s no one in the driver’s seat. If anything, they drove that car together to pick up Andrea and drive her outside the villa walls.
We often complain that we don’t watch enough Love Island, even though we get five new episodes every week. But there was still a lot of editing required to squeeze the content down to an hour.
Sure, we would have missed a lot of things and gotten abbreviated versions of a lot of conversations, but they could have kept the fire pit chat.
You can’t go back in time and keep Andrea, so nothing is accomplished, but valuable time is spent on past events when we could have been shown some interesting unseen footage or something.
Well, that was a reunion, guys. This is a very disappointing thing. But maybe it’s just me.
Let me know your thoughts on this in the comments!
You can watch Love Island USA seasons 4-6 on Peacock.
