A ‘Love Island’ Primer for the Confused and Curious
¿Mamacita?
Today we’re learning about Love Island so that we can be better allies. Eric Adams launched his reelection campaign, which is funny, sad, scary, and absurd all at the same time (as usual.) Also, Viagra seems to be bad on the whole. —Emily Gould
A NEW BOMBSHELL
‘Let’s Go Back to the Villa!’ Or Perhaps Go There for the First Time Ever!
A beginner’s guide to Love Island, which many people swear is the best reality dating show of all time. I wouldn’t know since I have still never seen it.
Recently I realized that there were a ton of conversations going on all around me that I couldn’t understand a single word of. My colleagues were speaking English, but also, they weren’t? They were talking about Love Island, a show that I have never watched, not because I’m a snob but because I like my trash TV scripted. (The exception to this is Mormon Wives. I don’t know what it is about those gals. They’re just so pretty, and I appreciate their dedication to soda.)
So I convened an interdisciplinary panel. Vulture TV critic Kathryn VanArendonk, features writer Rebecca Jennings, the Cut blogger Lizzy Gulino, and editorial assistant Brooke LaMantia all worked together to fill me in. After doing this, I’ll probably watch one episode. My interest is piqued.
I’m trying to become conversant in the lore and cultural ramifications of both Love Island U.S. and Love Island U.K., which I have just recently learned are two different things. I’m so sorry, please bear with me in my ignorance. Imagine that I’m at a party and people are talking about Love Island. I just want to be able to understand their conversation on the most basic level. For starters, what are the rules of the show?
Rebecca: The mechanics change from year to year, but the general gist is that there are a certain number of boys and a certain number of girls, and if you’re not “coupled up” with someone — that is, you sleep in the same bed, participate in challenges together, and are, at least in theory, “building a connection” — you’re at risk from being dumped from the titular island. Every few days, “bombshells” (i.e., new people) enter the villa and shake up the dynamic, leaving others “vulnerable” (not coupled up). Meanwhile, the public is voting on their favorite islanders and couples, because the best part about Love Island is that it’s basically happening in real time — episodes, which air six nights a week, are only a few days removed from the action. The couple left standing at the end of the season, which is usually 50 episodes long (!), wins a cash-prize pot. It is the greatest dating show in the history of reality television.
Lizzy: Something that I’ve seen chatter about is that bombshells don’t usually couple up with one another or explore their connections. That’s not their job. Sometimes it happens and I feel like the public doesn’t usually like that. Their main goal is to break up OG couples, or at least couples that have one OG in them. Bombshell on bombshell action feels … incestuous.
The "challenges" aren't physically demanding like the ones on, say, Survivor (which is also currently being filmed in Fiji). They’re usually really weird — every season there’s at least one where the couples have to transfer food between their mouths? — and involve a lot of making out and strange outfits. My favorite ones are when the islanders are able to learn what they’ve been saying about one another. They used to read out mean tweets. I haven’t seen that happen in the U.K. version in recent seasons, but I think they did in last year’s U.S. season.
Who are some of the most notable couples who have emerged from the show?
Lizzy: Molly-Mae and Tommy Fury, for sure. I love them so much, and I’m rooting for them. I’m also obsessed with Camilla Thurlow and Jamie Jewitt, who are two perfect, beautiful souls that I can’t believe met on this trash show. They talked about books!!! They have three kids!!! I also love Serena and Kordell, Leah and Miguel, and Jana and Kenney from last year’s U.S. season.
Rebecca: Molly-Mae and Tommy Fury are the quintessential Love Island couple to come out of the U.K. — she was one of the first stars who was already a professional influencer going into the villa, while Tommy was already a well-known boxer. They both have remained insanely famous in the six years since they’ve been on the show, and they also happened to be on one of the most iconic seasons (Maura Higgins! Amy and Curtis! Hurricane Anna!). I’d argue season three is the superior one, when we got the weirdly charming insanity that was Olivia and Chris, as well as his bromance with Kem, which involved shaving each other’s initials into their pubes. (Chris also managed to brute-force his way back into 2025 relevance by dating JoJo Siwa, which, okay!)
Do you follow any Islanders on social media, and if so, who and on what platforms? Umm, also .. defend your choices.
Lizzy: I follow all of PPG — Serena Page, Leah Kateb, and JaNa Craig — on TikTok.
Rebecca: I follow all the biggies from U.K. seasons three, five, seven, and eight, plus U.S. seasons six and seven (the current one) on Instagram. It’s fascinating to watch their careers evolve the more removed from the show they are, and they are all my beautiful babies.
“The people on Love Island don’t even know [x]” is a popular meme. What are some notable things people on Love Island have been spared knowing (temporarily)?
Kathryn:
They don’t even know what’s going on on The Gilded Age.
They don’t even know Zohran is Mira Nair’s son, but also they wouldn’t know that if they were off the island either.
They don’t even know about season three of The Comeback.
Do you plan to watch the spinoff, Beyond the Villa?
Lizzy: I guess? Why not. I don’t really love the cast beyond PPG, but I’m curious what their lives are like post-season-six craziness.
What’s a sentence I could say at the imaginary Love Island party that would make people think I know way more about the show than I actually do?
Rebecca:
“I was coming back here to tell you that I loved you” — Amy, U.K. season five
“Sit down.” “I’m sat.” — Chris and Olivia, U.K. season three
“FUCKKKK, AARON!!!” — Kaylor, U.S. season six
“I know, and I also want to make everyone a coffee so everyone’s ready for the morning.” — Curtis, U.K. season five
“This isn’t fucking Friendship Island!!!!” — Aaron, U.S. season six
Lizzy:
“I licked her tit or whatever.” — Andrew to Tasha, season eight
“Let’s go back to the villa!!!!!” — something producers used to make someone scream after challenges. I heard it once or twice this U.S. season.
“You’re a LIARRRRRRRRRRRR!!!” — Davide to Ekin-Su, season eight
Brooke:
“Girls take friendly as flirty. Shut it down. Go on and say ‘babe.’ Don’t say ‘babe.’” Ella to Ty, U.K.
EARLY AND OFTEN
Eric Adams Relaunches Campaign in Very Eric Adams Fashion
“This is not a city of handouts; it’s a city of hands up.” Okay!
“With Zohran Mamdani as the presumptive Democratic nominee, Adams spoke in grind-set koans about how to stop a socialist candidate from becoming mayor. “This is a city not of socialism — this is a city where you can go from becoming homeless to building homes,” he said. “This is not a city of handouts; it’s a city of hands up.”
It was a message similar to his Fox News hit on Wednesday morning, when he called Mamdani a “snake-oil salesman” offering impossible promises. At City Hall, Adams promised to be a mayor for business owners, the middle class, and small landlords. “I don’t work for special interests; I work for the people,” he said.
Less than one hour later, he was across the street at a bank turned event space where he was speaking to his favorite special interest — the cryptocurrency world.”
Matt Stieb reports from Adams’s first reelection campaign rally, held yesterday on the steps of City Hall as people chanted “Free Luigi” loud enough to drown him out. A former aide and a fundraiser whose homes were raided as part of the scuttled federal corruption probe were there as well as his spokesperson. No official campaign manager was to be found.
ANNALS OF PHARMACOLOGY
Revenge of the Horrible Zombie Boner
Some older women — and men — are actually not that crazy about Viagra.
“Other drawbacks for Dan included headaches, low blood pressure, and the issue of timing. He’d gauge the possibility of sex, take the drug so that he hoped the timing was about right, and then sometimes, if intercourse didn’t happen, he’d be stuck. “It just was not ideal.” A few times while using the pill, he tells me, he felt like he might actually “drop over dead” during some especially strenuous CrossFit classes. Ultimately, he weaned himself off what he referred to as his chemical dependency because the drug had begun to affect how he thought about sex. “Once you take it, you’re then stuck facing a headache and with this particular window where it does its thing. It inclines you to think, Okay, I just took this. I should probably use my penis.”
Hannah Pittard goes deep (ew, sorry) on how the “little blue pill” has changed sex for better and worse.
Click Your Way Out
Now it’s “the summer of Gap pants.” Okay, should we pair them with some water shoes? (Buys them anyway).
Rebecca Jennings talks to the sex workers on OnlyFans who are doing numbers by doing numbers.
Miranda July’s perfect summer outfit.
I’m going to be here through next Thursday, unlike all the good planners who took next week off, so see you then!