When Inka Bause travels to the countryside once a year to give lonely farmers the illusion of true love, then it’s farmer looking for a wife again. The ratings hit is simply cult; The long-running hit has been on RTL since 2005. In recent years, however, it has become increasingly clear that after more than 20 seasons, the air has run out! The dusty dome format can no longer hide its signs of wear and tear. Behind all the pleasantly warm 2000s nostalgia, a precarious picture emerges. Farmer is looking for a wife has completely missed the leap into the here and now. Can RTL still save the show, or should it finally rest in peace?
Farmer looking for a wife is like visiting grandma
In 20 years of the Bauer sucht Frau story, the show has hardly changed. In 2009 the first female farmer sought her fortune, and in 2011 the first homosexual farmer joined – but the concept has remained the same. This pleasantly warm atmosphere has long been a strength of the show, because Bauer sucht Frau feels like visiting grandma. Year after year we return to familiar surroundings and reminisce about times long past.
But this nostalgia has its downsides. It blinds us to problems. In this context, the example of visiting grandma takes a tragic turn. What if, after 20 years of happy moments, you realize for the first time that grandma has become old and frail? How should we deal with the painful realization that something we love is no longer what we remember?
For many seasons, Bauer sucht Frau was able to hide its problems behind the cheerful 2000s facade, but even fans of the first hour can no longer ignore the biggest problem after over 150 episodes of pure stagnation: The former reality flagship has become completely predictable.
And the marmot greets you every day – farmer looking for a wife can no longer surprise you
With the current 20th anniversary season it becomes clear again. Farmer is looking for a wife is shot according to scheme F. The course of a season has now become so formulaic that even without clairvoyant powers, one can predict exactly what awaits us in the next season.
First, the nervous participants meet their dream farmers at the barn festival. In a sea of lederhosen and dirndls, Inka Bause sings her latest hit single (This year: Heart in Straw) and, as always, the farmers have to decide directly who is allowed onto the farm. Then the farm week begins.
The same “surprise” always awaits the chosen ones at the train station. The farmers pick up their candidates in a romantically decorated tractor – and occasionally the carriage is even allowed. Arrived at the farm, We then experience one déjà vu after another. The farmer presents the participants with a barren farmhouse, whereupon the completely overwhelmed candidates force a compliment despite the precarious living conditions. Then they anxiously inquire whether their mother-in-law also lives in the house. The rest of the farm week is then rounded off with a boring best-of of farm clichés. An unpleasant visit to the family, cleaning out the stable, petting the calves and a first kiss in the straw are not to be missed. What is really always there is that the chosen ones are allowed (or rather have to) drive a tractor for the first time – followed by the incredulous amazement of the farmers, who can hardly believe that a woman can actually drive.
Even when it comes to romance, everything goes according to the script. At the end of a farm week, the farmers invite their chosen ones to one last “spontaneous” discussion and, after less than 7 days, confess their big feelings. If they both like each other, RTL predicts a happy ending; if not, the tearful farewell follows. And the marmot greets you every day…
Farmer is looking for a wife needs a reboot: RTL, finally dares to be more real!
But why are these moments so similar (even within the same season)? The reason probably lies in production. Bauer sucht Frau presents itself as a reality format, but has relied on a tight script since the beginning. The production team decides which scenes will be shot strictly according to plan and can therefore control exactly what will be shown on TV in the end.
But why all this? Farmer Seeks Woman is about quotas; No wonder that the broadcaster wants to ensure a minimum level of excitement with ready-made storylines. Just stupid, that the audience now sees through this formulaic nature mercilessly. Instead of empathizing, you just wonder when the next well-known cliché will come around the corner. At no point is it about authentically portraying the farmers and their feelings. Rather, they are intended to serve as a projection surface for agricultural clichés.
What’s so unfortunate about this over-staging is that in Bauer sucht Frau, any potential to tell all the exciting stories that the production team has in front of them is wasted. How does it feel to live with 3 generations under one roof? How do the candidates deal with prejudices about farmers? And what hurdles do young farmers face when they have to assert themselves in a conservative environment? The answer These questions would provide enough material for really exciting reality TVwithout having to resort to carelessly cobbled together story clichés. Apart from superficial jokes, RTL does not dare to engage with the setting; all the potential disappears into nothingness.
In times when dating shows like Temptation Island present unfiltered drama, real sex and extreme emotions, a stiff format like Bauer sucht Frau seems out of date. Will the broadcaster ever have the courage to take off the tight corset of scripted reality and allow more authenticity in front of the camera? Questionable. One of the most iconic dome shows on German TV definitely deserved this radical new start. Otherwise the show will suffer a fate that it simply doesn’t deserve: Who wants to watch a legend die?