Why Barnett From ‘Love Is Blind’ Is Just Like Chandler From ‘Friends’
Love Is Blind has quickly become one of the most talked-about reality shows on television; following in the footsteps of The Circle, Netflix has entered the reality TV space with an agenda — a mission to prove the streaming platform can compete with the likes of ABC’s The Bachelor and the gamut of TLC phenomenons.
Love Is Blind features a group of individuals — all unrealistically attractive — who dare to enter an engagement without ever laying eyes on one another. Once engaged, they meet for a destination honeymoon in Mexico and then move in together to test their relationship under real-life stressors and uncontrollable environmental factors. While the show takes off as a lovey-dovey exploration, it quickly spirals into a dramafest, which is exactly what all viewers crave.
Spoilers for the first few episodes of ‘Love Is Blind’ below
As for some of the drama, one guy, Barnett, finds himself in a bit of a love triangle, as he convinces two girls that he is in love with both of them. Then, must detract his words for one, while following his heart and vying for the other. While on the surface, this fact may make Barnett seem like a Joey — the lady’s man on Friends with a knack for romancing woman — Barnett is a lot more like Chandler (for a few obvious reasons).
What Barnett from ‘Love is Blind’ and Chandler from ‘Friends’ have in common
First off, Barnett is a jokester; he always has a sly comment up his sleeve, and a cheesy (often inappropriate) joke tucked in his pocket. And, for a family-friendly show, Chandler pushed the envelope as much as possible when it came to his humor style on Friends.
Both the real-life Barnett and the character Chandler rely on their funny bones in social situations. They rely on their sense of humor to foster sympathy and build connections. Rather than delving information about their inner lives — turmoil, stressors, family drama, and more — they resort to humor as a means of escape, as a way to clear the air of any tension that may be lingering. They use humor to draw people in, as opposed to sincerity or sobriety (two traits often intimately tied to the depth of a connection).
Barnett seems uncomfortable with emotions like Chandler
Chandler in Friends made fart noises during sincere embraces; remember when Jennifer Aniston’s Rachel Green was getting ready to leave for Paris, and Chandler couldn’t hug her without turning it into a “fart hug?”
Barnett seems equally uncomfortable with this depth of emotion; he seems equally uncomfortable with ultra tense moments. Thus, he often cracks a joke to put a smile on everyone’s face — changing the overall tone in a situation from one of pensive reflection to one of casual conversation.
The question is: Can Barnett grow? Can he become like Chandler towards the end of Friends — the funny man who (sort of) knew when to let a moment boil, as he entered a successful relationship with Monica? Or, is Barnett destined to use humor forever — to dodge more difficult subject matters?
