Netflix's 'The Later Daters' Fixes What 'The Golden Bachelorette' Did Wrong

When Joan Vassos’ season of The Golden Bachelorette premiered in September it was immediately clear that the show began with a terrible mistake. On the heels of The Golden Bachelor lead Gerry Turner’s April divorce filing from his season’s winner, Theresa Nist, Vassos looked to be headed for a similar fate.

Turner and Nist’s divorce, which was announced just three months after their televised wedding, was largely reported to be a result of their long-distance relationship and the challenges they faced while trying to merge their lives together.

“The thing that strikes me the most in our conversations, it’s been how dedicated both of us are to our families,” Turner told Good Morning America while announcing his divorce alongside Nist. “So we look at these conversation and we both think it’s best for the happiness of each of us to live apart.”

On Sept. 18, when Vassos greeted the men who would spend the next several weeks vying for her love, only one of them was from her home state of Maryland — he was eliminated on night one. It became clear that, as Slate’s Scott Nover put it, “someone on The Golden Bachelorette is going to have to put family second.”

In Netflix’s The Later Daters, a different approach is taken. The Michelle Obama-produced show is likely somewhat inspired by the success of The Golden Bachelor franchise, yet ditches some of the Bachelor-esque cheesy elements in favor of strategy. The Later Daters stars are not just looking for a connection in a competition-style lineup of singles, they’re bettering themselves in the process and prioritizing what is best for themselves and their families.

In The Later Daters, six golden singles in their 50s and 60s are seeking to enter the world of modern dating. Like The Golden Bachelorette, each cast member has a life as rich and layered as the next but, unlike the ABC franchise which relies on it’s tried and true structure across all of it’s spin-off, Netflix’s rendition is tailored to the unique challenges of dating in your 50s and beyond.

There are many things that make the show work, viewers are taken through multiple different storylines with no one-size-fits all approach to dating, the contestants work with dating coach and author of How to Not Die Alone, Logan Ury, to get to know themselves and their wants better.

Yet, by far, what sets it apart from The Golden Bachelor and The Golden Bachelorette, is the show’s family-focused approach — cast members are looking for someone who fits into their life, not rearranging their lives around a partner. The star’s lean on their loved ones throughout the experience. One cast member, Anise Martin, even has her best connection with a man her daughter picked out for her.

As the show’s dating coach, Ury, told SheKnows, “Family involvement was crucial because older daters are part of a family system. Their families reflect their priorities and challenges, and dating at an older age often involves integrating into each other’s family lives.”

“These people are not just individuals floating through the world,” she continues. “When you’re dating someone older, you’re really dating their whole family. And seeing that person in the richer context of their family really adds to the authenticity of the show. It’s more representative of what dating is actually like.”

There is almost no drama in the show and it’s better for it! Offering up a truly feel-good watch, Ury’s work with cast members definitely accounts for the nuances of dating after divorce, loss of a spouse and as a single parent yet offers is something in it for every age.

“Through the show I realized that many of the issues Gen Z and millennial daters face are also the problems plaguing old daters,” Ury tells us. “The show is really about the universality of love — how we all want to love and be loved.”

Before you go, click to see who fans think is the next ‘Golden Bachelor’ from Joan’s season.