Season 8 of “Love Is Blind” has arrived, and after six episodes multiple couples have already found love and heartbreak in the pods.
In the latest season of the hit Netflix dating series, which arrived on Feb. 14, 32 singles from Minneapolis met and mingled with each other, hoping to find their soulmate on the other side of an opaque wall.
As “Love Is Blind” fans have come to expect, quite a few love triangles popped up that caused some contestants to declare their feelings and others to doubt their connections.
Speaking to TODAY.com, Vanessa and Nick Lachey, who host the U.S. version of the show, explained why so much of this season unfolds in the pods.
“They didn’t just come in guns blazing going, ‘We need to get engaged,’” Vanessa Lachey said of the cast. “They really pulled back the curtain, if you will, and peeled back the layers of themselves and the couples to really get down to it.”
Nick Lachey said this season's geographical location impacted the vibe of the cast and couples, too.
“Minnesota is totally Midwest,” he said. “It’s just a different pool of people here. So, every season’s different. And I think what people will find in this particular season is that it’s very, very ... I don’t want to say sweet, but it’s more, it’s more heartfelt.”
By the end of Episode 6, five couples agreed to get married, sight unseen, while two pairs realized that they weren’t ready to move onto the next part of the experiment.
So, who got engaged and traveled to Honduras for their couples trip?
Read on to learn more about the Season 8 couples who are still together, as well as the relationships that didn’t make it out of the pods, below.
Season 8 couples who are still together
Devin and Virginia
Devin Buckley and Virginia Miller hit it off in the pods after learning that they both attended the same Minnesota high school. But, Devin, a 29-year-old youth director and coach, was a student at the school a few years after Virginia, a 34-year-old healthcare recruiter, graduated and the two had never crossed paths.
While in the pods, Devin also formed a connection with Brittany Dodson, but the relationship fizzled out when she realized he was too “rigid” and didn’t seem like the ideal partner. He agreed and continued to pursue Virginia, who had been reserved and skeptical during many of their conversations.
In Episode 6, Devin wrote a sweet letter to Virginia expressing his feelings. “Virginia, you are the most kind, loving and genuine person I’ve ever met,” he praised. “I know that in your past relationships, they made you feel insecure and undervalued. But I promise to always make you feel valued, loved, and to make you feel like the queen that you are.”
At the end of his letter, he told Virginia he loved her and asked her to marry him. “Yes, I will,” she softly replied. She later told the cameras through tears, “I haven’t felt like this ever. I just feel amazing. Today’s a good day.”
Daniel and Taylor
Daniel Hastings and Taylor Haag matched each other’s energy from their first conversation. He joked about proposing a few minutes into their chat and she playfully went along. When she returned to gush with the girls, Taylor, a 32-year-old colonoscopy nurse, said she appreciated that Daniel, a 30-year-old sales account executive, repeatedly spoke about searching for the mother of his kids.
They also bonded over their love of Christmas. In Episode 5, they gifted each other Christmas ornaments and stockings and marveled over their similarities. “The Christmas thing means a lot to me,” Daniel said. “But even if it wasn’t Christmas stuff, I feel like we were meant to find each other.”
Taylor replied that Daniel made her feel “very special, very loved and very important.” She then told Daniel that his words to her were the nicest things anyone has ever said to her.
In Episode 6, he read her a letter explaining why he loved her. “All I want to do is make you feel safe and make you happy for the rest of your life,” Daniel said. He then knelt on one knee and proposed.
“I would love to marry you!” she cheered.
David and Lauren
David “Dave” Bettenburg and Lauren O’Brien were one of many Season 8 contestants who were involved in a love triangle. Dave, a 33-year-old medical device salesman, couldn’t determine if he had stronger feelings for Lauren or Molly Mulaney. When Lauren, a 31-year-old education saleswoman, realized Dave was undecided, she revealed to him that she didn’t have any other connections.
Meanwhile, Molly anxiously waited for Dave to call it quits with Lauren and solely pursue her. But in Episode 5, Dave cried as he told Molly that he wanted to “see things through” with Lauren instead. Molly was hurt but said she knew if he didn’t want her then it wasn’t meant to be.
Dave then met with Lauren. She said although they had some tough conversations she appreciated that they were open with each other and were able to move past everything.
He agreed and said, “You easily could have bailed. I just can’t thank you enough for your patience because it helped me come to terms with a lot of other things. And not being afraid to go after the girl that I really want to be with. I’m so in love with you.”
He proposed and she quickly accepted. “I love you so much, too. I’m excited to just start a future with you,” she said.
Joey and Monica
Joey Leveille and Monica Danus’ time in the pods was drama-free. Joey, a 35-year-old physician associate, and Monica, a 28-year-old digital marketer, seemed to only form a bond with each other. They quickly connected thanks to their bubbly and quirky personalities and their love for “The Sound of Music.” Joey also supported Monica when she revealed that she was between jobs because she needed to take time off to help her family.
By Episode 2, they already knew that they wanted to get engaged and leave the pods together, making them the first official couple of Season 8. “I’ve had an incredible time falling in love with who you are as a person, your laugh, your voice, and I would love to take the next step with you,” Joey said.
“Would you get engaged with me?” he asked.
She laughed and said “Yes!” She said she couldn’t wait to see him in person before running to share the news with her friends.
Ben and Sara
Ben Mezzenga and Sara Carton briefly struggled in the pods when they started discussing their values. In Episode 2, Sara, a 29-year-old oncology nurse, asked Ben, a 28-year-old developer, about growing up in a Christian household. He explained his beliefs before she revealed that she wasn’t religious.
“The main thing for me that’s really tough about religion is my sister, Lisa. She’s my best friend. She’s gay,” she explained. She asked if Ben would be comfortable around her sister and would go to Pride activities with them.
“Yeah, no discomfort around that community at all,” he replied. She felt confident in their connection, but when they met again in Episode 4, she had some more concerns. She mentioned Donald Trump’s first presidency and the Black Lives Matter protests in 2020.
“I’m kind of ignorant towards that stuff. Like, I didn’t vote in the last election. As long as I don’t know, it’s not going to do much, so…” Ben said. When she asked directly about BLM, he said, “I’m not one way or the other. I just kind of keep out of it.”
Sara replied, “I think it’s very valuable and important to think about those things.” She later said she didn’t like his responses to her questions. “Basic human rights, equality, I need someone to be on the same page with me about that,” she said.
Ben assured her in Episode 5 that their values aligned. “I don’t want you to have any burden or any weight on your shoulder thinking that you have to teach me because I do have that motivation to grow into that and that internal feeling that we do have the same beliefs in these things,” he said before proposing.
“I feel so at peace and accepted by you,” she said after accepting his proposal. “I honestly can’t imagine being with anyone else.”
Season 8 couples who are no longer together
Alex and Madison
Alex Brown and Madison Errichiello opened up in the pods about their difficult childhoods. Alex, a 29-year-old commercial real estate broker, and Madison, a 28-year-old artist, were both bullied in school and felt like outcasts.
The two seemed headed for an engagement until Madison revealed she had an avoidant attachment style. Alex suddenly became less talkative and their conversation ended abruptly.
When they met again, Alex voiced his concerns that Madison would run if they faced an obstacle. She told him that her still being in the experiment was proof that she was ready to go through challenging times with him. Meanwhile, Madison was also building a connection with Mason Horacen.
Mason told Madison he was “committed” to her. But when Madison decided to pursue her relationship with Alex instead, Mason regretted what he said. In Episode 6, Madison explained the situation to Alex.
Alex said he sympathized with Mason and wished him well. Madison didn’t appreciate that Alex wasn’t more comforting toward her. After their tense conversation, Alex said he could see a future with her but he was worried they would struggle with communication and disagreements. “I think at this point, it’s a pretty big jump. We’re not at a point to get engaged,” he said.
Madison tearfully departed the pods and left the experiment.
In an interview with TODAY.com, Alex said he had no regrets over ending the relationship.
"I was confident in the decision. If we could go back and do things again, I think it would have unfolded the same way. I’m glad that we got all of the issues out on the table the way we did so we could make that decision early on instead of moving forward and proposing and then going on the trip and then living together. I think it would have been a lot messier if that were to happen," he said.
His decision came down to attachment style and conflict resolution, as it appeared in the pods. "I think she has different ways of dealing with conflict than I do, and again, that’s totally fine. There’s nothing right or wrong with either way, but I think we just realized that we are both on very different pages and that communication wasn’t going to be easy," he said.
Read the rest of our interview with Alex here.
Mason and Meg
Mason, a 33-year-old cinematographer, gravitated toward Meg Fink, a 31-year-old oncology nurse, in the pods. She shared her conspiracy theories with him and expressed her strong feelings. But she knew that Mason also had a connection with Madison.
After Madison ended things with Mason, she told Meg what happened. Meg confronted Mason in the pods at the end of Episode 5. She questioned if she was only there by “default” because Madison rejected him.
He said he validated the “wrong person” because he was “confused” at the time.
When he said she was always his first choice, Meg replied, “I wasn’t yesterday, just to be fair.” She said he never affirmed his feelings for her until it was too late.
“I’ll never know if what you’re saying is true because we don’t get the opportunity for you to pick,” she told him in Episode 6. “I’m not going to be able to get past that.”
He said he understood her perspective and they said goodbye.
