For those Northwestern students who watched Hospers Coffeehouse last semester, they may be aware of the TV show called “Farmer Wants a Wife.” For those blissfully unaware, “Farmer Wants a Wife” is a reality TV show in which four farmers look for a wife among women who sign up to look for love with a farmer of their choice. At the opening of the season, eight women from those who signed up for each farmer are brought in for speed-dates with the farmer who chooses five to come back to his farm. As the season progresses, there are solo dates between one chosen woman and the farmer. The farmers must choose who leaves the farm, with the season ending with one woman that the farmer intends to pursue a relationship with.
This current season, the four farmers are Brandon Rogers from Colorado, Mitchell Kolinsky from Tennessee, Nathan Smothers from Florida and Ty Ferrell from Missouri. The first episode consists of the farmers meeting the women who signed up for him, speed-dating all eight, and choosing five to come back to the farm along with selecting one to leave with him, allowing for 24 hours of time together before the rest arrive. Episode two features chores on the farm, and the first solo dates between a farmer and one of the women. Episode three is a mixer, where all farmers and women meet up and go to a football game.
If someone has the unfortunate experience of having experienced both seasons, then they are sadly equipped to analyze its unique quality. Speaking frankly, from season one to season two, the quality of production is about the same. Though season two has yet to go beyond three episodes at the time of writing, the trajectory seems to be terribly similar to that of season one. The farmers, too, look to act similarly to those of season one. Especially with the fact that they have several women staying with them who are there to date him. One must imagine the production crew of cameramen and mic operators and such feel like third wheels to the others when going on dates.
The music that the show uses is simply sublime. It is very good at informing the viewer of how they are meant to feel when paired with the on-screen actions. Which is to say that it is like a sign in a live studio audience which reads “APPLAUSE” and lights up to signal their captive actors. The comedy of the show is similarly amazing, using the traditional definition of amazing. There is nothing so funny on this show as watching city-slicker women try to chop wood, or lasso a stationary target or pick out bad potatoes.
Moving on to criticism without the one-pound sugar coating from the previous paragraph. No one is an objective reviewer. The experience of watching this show again has markedly decreased the quality of the past few days. Like all reality TV, the focus of the program is more on the drama the situation gathers than its supposed purpose. This is not a good show to watch, and the Twitter takes agree with this stance. Some ask if it’s a result of the writers’ strike, another expresses joy at the filming being over 1,000 miles away from them. The most enjoyment that could have been wrung from this…experience was when an impromptu watch party occurred when watching episode three. The final piece of criticism to give this show is one of the worst that a show can receive: it was a waste of time to watch, and a waste of a free trial to be able to watch it.
