Host Arielle Vandenberg brings the heat to CBS' new reality dating show.
Love Island is here!
CBS' new reality dating show, based on the British sensation and hosted by actress Arielle Vandenberg, kicked off its five-week adventure on Tuesday. The first group of Islanders entered the oceanfront Fiji villa ready to heat up the summer -- or more accurately, experience torrential downpour -- with the first "coupling," a new arrival and an Islander's surprising revelation about a past relationship. The last couple standing wins $100,000 and a budding new romance! (Read ET's ultimate guide to Love Island.)
The premiere episode opened with five single women, Mallory, Caro, Alana, Elizabeth and Alexandra, lined up along the pool as each of the five guys -- Cashel, Yamen, Zac, Weston and Michael -- came through for them to couple up with in the season's first "coupling." Right off the bat, it was clear Caro would be one of the season's biggest personalities, with her declaring that she's only had "situation-ships," and not relationships, in her life.
While it's tough to get to know the person you'll be coupling up with in mere minutes, the first coupling could be compared to The Bachelor and The Bachelorette's first impression rose. The women were tasked to indicate their interest in a guy by stepping forward, but it was ultimately up to the guy to pick who he wanted to couple up with -- even if the girl they choose is already in a couple. If no girl stepped forward (awkward!), the guy was still able to pick who they want to be with.
So who ended up with who? Here is the rundown of the five couples:
Cashel and Caro: Though no one stepped forward for Cashel, who we're going to nickname Cash because it's just easier, he ended up picking firecracker Caro, who admitted he seemed "too shy" for her.
Yamen and Alana: Alana was the only one to step forward for Yamen, calling him "cute," which made his pick super easy.
Zac and Elizabeth: Three girls, including Caro, came forward for Zac, who works as a grocery store clerk, but he ended up choosing Elizabeth, saying she had "beautiful eyes."
Weston and Mallory: Like Cash, no one stepped forward for the Texas cowboy, but he chose to couple up with Mallory.
Michael and Alexandra: A vegan, Michael had several women step forward for him, including Caro, who made her interest known for her third guy. In the end, Michael didn't step on anyone's toes (how gentlemanly of him) and chose to couple up with Alexandra.
But of course, in classic Love Island fashion, a sixth girl came into the villa to shake things up for the newly coupled-up Islanders: Kyra. She already had her eye on a few men, including Weston, Cash and Yamen.
In a get-to-know-you conversation with Yamen, Kyra revealed that her last serious relationship was with a woman, a revelation that shocked him. "When I first started dating... [it was] two years. I was with a girl," Kyra casually dropped, prompting Yamen's jaw to literally drop. "You don't have to act crazy like that!" Yamen reacted in surprise: "You're going to slide that in? Completely out of left field!"
But Kyra's presence in the villa already ruffled feathers, especially for Cash and Caro, who get very close very quickly -- even though Caro said she didn't like him like that. Keep tellin' yourself that, girl... First, Cash planted cute forehead kisses on Caro in bed. Second, they shared unexpected first kiss outside the villa on Day 2. We're pretty sure Cash is already winning Caro over romantically, even though he seems to be into Kyra too. Messy, messy, messy...
When it came time for Kyra to make her decision over the guy she wanted to steal and couple up with in the first "recoupling" of the season, it appeared to be between the three guys mentioned before, with Cash potentially ahead of the others. But, which guy did Kyra choose and which girl did she spurn as a result? You'll have to find out on Wednesday's episode!
Fans were already counting down the hours until the next episode, which promises major consequences to Kyra's big decision, taking to Twitter to voice their opinions.
And others were already 'shipping the early couples and starting to pick out their favorite Islanders.
With the Love Island U.K. also airing its current season, it's a great time to be alive.
ET will host an official Love Island aftershow, Love After the Island, hosted by ET's Lauren Zima, where we will recap the series weekly with commentary, special guests and exclusive interviews with eliminated Islanders. Episodes will air Fridays at 9 a.m. PT on ETonline, ET Live and the ET YouTube channel.
Download the ET Live mobile app from the Google Play store or Apple App Store. Or stream ET Live on your Roku, Apple TV or Amazon Fire TV device.
Love Island airs weeknights at 8 p.m. ET/PT on CBS.
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