Tough Love 

A reality-show around a women's love boot-camp is hosted by matchmaker Steve Ward who is the son of successful matchmaker Joann Ward. His brutal honesty makes for an entertaining "tough ... See full summary »

Creators:

Jim Berger, Pamela Healey, Nancy Juvonen

Stars:

Steven Ward, JoAnn Ward, Taylor Royce

Cast

Series cast summary:
Steven Ward	...	Self - Host / ... 50 episodes, 2009-2013
JoAnn Ward	...	Self - Host / ... 50 episodes, 2009-2013
Taylor Royce	...	Self 32 episodes, 2009-2011
Leif Holt	...	Panelist 24 episodes, 2009-2011
Brandon Richardson	...	Self 23 episodes, 2011-2012

Storyline

A reality-show around a women's love boot-camp is hosted by matchmaker Steve Ward who is the son of successful matchmaker Joann Ward. His brutal honesty makes for an entertaining "tough love" advisory approach to helping these nine love troubled women deal with their issues. Classic character personalities earning titles such as "the gold digger" or "Wedding Obsessed." Watch as they learn how to change themselves in order to better themselves and attract good men. They will participate in dating 101 classes under the male matchmaker. See who has "daddy issues" to overcome. See them go through personal challenges as well as the ones setup for them. Who will leave and who will stay?

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Genres:

Reality-TV

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Did You Know?

Connections

Featured in Chelsea Lately: Episode #6.73 (2012)

User Reviews

Matchmaker makes ladies see the error of their ways.

They are pretty, they are successful, they are smart – and yet, some women just seem to fail in the dating world. VH1 Tough Love tries to show them what they are doing wrong, and what a man's point of view is.

Alleged "master matchmaker" Steve Ward is the host of VH1's latest dating show brainchild, who wants to teach eight apparently hopeless women how to date. All of the contestants seem to fit a different stereotype: There's the party girl who has never had a serious relationship, the marriage minded one who already has designed her wedding dress, the gold digger, the career woman, the stalker type, the motherly caring girl, the tough one and the picky one.

Steve is dishing out what they keep doing wrong – and he's not gentle doing it. They learn to build a relationship from ground up – from first impressions to sharing secrets in a positive way to trusting someone.

VH1 Tough Love was a topic of heated discussion even before it hit the airwaves in March. People worried it would have a misogynic undertone and try to form women after some male ideal that was impossible to reach.

It turned out differently: Yes, Steve Ward candidly tells contestants what their faults are, and yes, the tone of the show is not always amiable – but there's a reason it is called Tough Love.

As reality shows go, this one is definitely one of the most tolerable ones in recent history. The contestants seem like real people instead of drama queens who seek media exposure, and the objective of the show is always to help people with their issues.

And then, it even teaches the viewer a little about dating – the most comforting thing being that you never have to change who you are, just how you present yourself.

Details

Official Sites:

VH1 VH1 - Season 2

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 March 2009 (USA)

Also Known As:

Tough Love 2

Company Credits

Production Co:

VH1 Television

Technical Specs

Color:

Color Color (season 1)