If you’re into shows that make you cringe because of their awkwardness, then you’ll probably love watching TLC’s “Virgin Diaries.” Perhaps you can remember when the show first aired in 2011, with Ryan and Shanna. They were a couple who were virgins and hadn’t even experienced their first romantic kiss until the day of their wedding. Fans of “The Office” who could sit through the hijinx that would curl your toes are the most likely to find this series the most entertaining. For some of us, the more you want to run out of the room and hide, the better the entertainment. Here are 10 things about the older series that you probably didn’t know.
1. The first kiss of Ryan and Shanna was disturbing
While at most weddings, the kiss is something that makes the audience ooh and ahh, but this wasn’t the case at Ryan and Shanna’s. They’d never kissed anyone in their lives and to be quite frank, they didn’t know what they were doing. It made us wonder if it was for real or if it was staged simply for shock value. Some onlookers even described it as being “downright gross.”
2. The Houston Press suggests a deception
All the way back in November of 2011, just after the airing of “Virgin Diaries, the Houston Press wrote a short piece on the show. Their mini-review wasn’t very positive, in fact, they’re the group that pointed out the distastefulness of the wedding kiss. The writer went on to suggest that because of the way that the couple was kissing, and the fact that they were both doing the same thing, it had probably been rehearsed, so they’re calling BS on the claim that it was a “first kiss.” When you look at it from that perspective, the Press probably got that one right, but we’ll never know for sure.
3. The show returned in 2012
The year after “Virgin Diaries” made its debut, it returned for two more episodes. The second run featured Skippy, who was a 34-year-old virgin who was also a devout Mormon. He lived in the basement of his parents’ home. Karissa was also featured and she carried fears of the unknown, which added an extra dimension to the drama of the show. Ryan and Shanna also came back to give viewers an update on how things in their relationship had progressed since the wedding. Critics advertising the two new episodes vowed that it would bring yet more “awkwardness.”
4. “Virgin Diaries” was seen as a program on sex
Instead of focusing on purity, which is what the term “virgin” indicates, the show was more centered upon the first sexual encounter. Shanna and Ryan’s part in the reality series didn’t give us all of the fun details of wedding planning or talks about what their lives together was going to be like, it was more about what sex on the wedding night was going to be like. While it’s something that every virgin wonders about, it’s not what you’d expect to be the highlight of a reality television show.
5. It’s been referred to as a “Circus Freakshow”
We read an article posted about “Virgin Diaries” in 2011, shortly after the show made its premiere on The Learning Channel. Rewire News had some not so nice reviews to share and their take on the show is that it was “cringeworthy,” and the referred to it as being a part of TLC’s “circus freakshow form of reality television.” They found it disturbing that the channel would invite their viewers to “gawk at five not-so-young people who had never had sex.”
6. The stars are patronized
The producers of the show pretty much just made a spectacle of the couples by showing their most embarrassing moments. They also patronize them, because in a world where it’s rarer for couples to both be virgin prior to being married, they have a lack of knowledge about what it is really like. The show capitalizes on this aspect and some could even consider it to be a bit on the exploitative side, but hey, it’s all legal because the couples agreed to it.
7. Shanna and Ryan got the worst of the bad reviews
We actually felt bad for Ryan and Shanna when we read what others had to say about them in print. AV club went further to say that their public displays of affection on camera were “clunky” and “cringe-inducing.” While the others seemed to get a share of the negative attention, just for being on the show, these two were made the butt of most pieces we reviewed about the critical opinion on the show.
8. TLC had a different opinion about “Virgin Diaries”
Instead of focusing on the behaviors of the couples that some found “cringeworthy,” The Learning Channel stated that the show was a celebration of the people who maintained their chastity until their wedding day. This is a much more positive view of the couples than most reviewers were willing to give them.
9. “Virgin Diaries” was intended to be educational
People make a variety of decisions in their lives, and preserving virginity is one of them for the cast of this show. The show was intended to discuss the reasons why couples make this decision. It’s supposed to be educational, and instead of being a problem, it’s a celebration.
10. You’ll either love it or hate it
“Virgin Diaries” is one of those reality television shows that you either love or hate. If you’re thinking about watching it, then you need to be aware of one very important fact. It’s easy to get hooked and if you watch it for ten minutes, you’ll likely end up watching the entire episode, because even though it is cringeworthy, it’s about real people and lifestyle choices.
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