When I watched the Sweden version after watching the US and Japan versions I noticed one common thing and that was women, cross culturally are really harsh critics of men in general. Having expectations is okay but having unreasonable expectations is unreasonable. None of the women were perfect but they failed to see fault impn themselves only in the men.
Spoilers
Krisse-ly and Rasmus
Once they adjusted to being physically around each other outside of the pods, they were solid. I wasn't surprised they went through a rough patch within that first year of marriage that is actually very common for married couples. Just adding that extra legal and spiritual layer takes some adjustment even for those that have known each other and lived together for a long time. When they did the reunion, I was surprised the dogs were so good with each other. Last we saw they weren't getting along great. Rasmus must be a super trainer with dogs. Krisse-ly being so upset that Rasmus missed some "couple" questions before the wedding was a bit over the top. It was clear too that Rasmus's friends were not 100% onboard with the couple and I think he introduced that quiz intentionally knowing Rasmus would not know everything to show him that he didn't know her as well as he thought he did. They thought he was rushing into things. Or at least his one, highly tattooed friend did. I don't think he intended it to make Krisse-ly have second thoughts. I think she was just being sensitive and nervous about the wedding. There is an old show "The Newlywed Game" and they asked newlyweds similar questions and what was so funny about the show was how often they thought they knew each other but got so many questions wrong. Even eye color. Especially if you have those type of eyes that look different colors based on what you are wearing. She was really hard on him about that and he wasn't any different than most people would be. So she was looking for things. Out of being nervous.
Meira and Oskar
I had a hard time with Meira because she was so critical and finding fault with Oskar in the beginning of their time out of the pods. But she acknowledged that she was being that way and changed her behavior. She even embraced their cultural differences and realized that not everyone is going to reject her automatically up front just based on the differences as she assumed. When you become a good couple it is sort of like an averaging of all the things about the individuals. He was an extrovert she was an introvert and they learned how to meet in the middle yet also respect those times when each needed to fully express their natural inclination. I think they will do well. They have that formula of coming from a place of love and mutual respect.
Christof's comments about Oskar being whipped by Meira were ironic. The same behavior he criticized Oskar for was what Christof had done with Catja. I guess it is easier to see when someone else is caving in too much to someone else's requests. You do have to give a little in a relationship but you should not have to change the core of who you are and the things you like. And the other person should not be so arrogant to think they are perfect and shouldn't change at all. Having a healthy relationship means you care enough about someone to change those little things that make them happier. You like the toothpaste in a cup rather than on a shelf. Okay I can do that. Little things. But change your entire wardrobe? Really depends on how much that means to you. It's all about balance and not changing so much you lose yourself.
Emilia and Lucas
What surprised me the most was commenters were fine with Catja not being into Christof in that way and him not being fully her type but they were hyper critical of Lucas for not being able to force physical feelings for Emilia. Is love blind? I think it depends on how important the physical aspect is to each individual and not in a superficial way but in a how love is expressed kind of way. It was clear to everyone that, on a rating scale, Emilia and Lucas were on different levels physically. And studies have found that people, for the most part, do not select long term partners too far outside of their own level. In general. Wealth, power, an amazing personality can sometimes bridge the gaps but not always. It isn't all about scales and looks it also has to do with intimacy styles. I think they were completely mismatched in the way the approached physical relationships and she came onto him way too strong in the beginning. Some people are fine with kissing a stranger for example, others would be creeped out by that. If you are the type of person that needs to be around someone physically for awhile and let the attraction slowly build then it would be an absolute turn off for someone to get all touchy feely with you. I think Lucas knew, from the way people responded to Sergio's comments about appearance, that he would get castigated if he put any emphasis on his lack of attraction so I think he tried really hard to overcome it. He also really liked Emilia as a person and tried to overcome that barrier for that reason as well. I am glad he found someone after they broke up and hope Emilia will find someone that can love her completely. She may have felt hurt and angry with Lucas but he did her a favor. Rather than allowing her to be the one who was more into the relationship and head more feelings than he did, he broke it off. Let her go on to find the right person for her. People do not realize it sometimes but that is a gift.
Catja and Christof
I think the problems with Christof and Catja started the minute she saw him and he wasn't her type. I don't think she could get past that. I had no problem with her feeling that way any more than I did with Lucas not having physical attraction to Emilia. You cannot force chemistry any more than you can force love and the two don't always work together. But, from everything I could see as a viewer, Christof was extremely nice, showered her with affection and did everything he could to win her heart. To me they were matched in attractiveness level. He was a little more on the boho side for sure but I think most would rate him close to her in appearance. She found fault in everything he did. If he was being nice, then he was too nice. I respect that she tried for the purpose of the show to see if she could get past it but, in that case, I think it would have been better had she cut it off earlier. Because she couldn't be nice. She made the most sarcastic and cutting remarks simply because he did not suit her style. If you watched the reunion show you would see that no one was very critical with her for the way she acted. It was in poor taste of both her and the show to rub in the fact that she was dating Adde and to even bring him on. How hurtful. It was like rubbing salt in his wounds. When I saw the way Christof was with her and her response and what she said she wanted I thought well, she just has bad taste in men. When they reviewed the clips with her and Adde and how arrogant he was and, to me, not as attractive that just verified what I thought. She has poor taste in men. But it is her life and her choices so that is okay for her. I hope she finds her happiness and Christof is able to recover and find someone that can appreciate him for who he is.
Sergio and Amanda
His comments about her being bullied and concerns about what that might mean in terms of her physical appearance were completely out of bounds. It had to be hard for her to hear later. I was pleasantly surprised how well their relationship developed after and think she must have saw through all that and realized it was a lot of insecurity on his part. Her patience and kindness made her a great pair for him who needed a lot of grace.
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