Common Sense Media Review
By Joyce Slaton
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Delicious parody of dating shows full of innuendo, drinking.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 15+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
Burning Love
Parent and Kid Reviews
What's the Story?
Even if you've never watched dating shows like The Bachelor, BURNING LOVE's delirious takeoff of televised dating games will likely strike your funnybone. On the first season, virile hunky fireman Mark Orlando (Ken Marino) looks for love from a cast of female contestants; on the second, Julie Grisselwhite (June Diane Raphael) does the same with a bunch of gents. On each episode, contestants go on ridiculous dates such as making puppets and putting on a puppet show, guzzle booze, participate in one-on-one interviews with avuncular host Chris Harrison (Michael Ian Black), and hope that they'll make the cut and stick around next week.
Is It Any Good?
If you've watched Party Down, Wet Hot American Summer, The State, Veronica Mars or Children's Hospital, you will recognize many familiar faces on this absolutely hysterical series. The Burning Love cast apparently likes to work with the same people over and over and we're the happy beneficiaries who get to see much-beloved comedic actors like Paul Rudd, Adam Scott and Martin Starr working together again.
The subject being parodied -- televised dating competitions -- are ripe for mockery, and the Burning Love cast finds it, from hilariously dead-on contestant interviews with candles burning in the background to rejection ceremonies in which a woman kisses a South Asian man and says in surprise "You kiss normal! That's nice!" If you're not laughing at the many absurdities delivered by some of the funniest people alive, you must be either dead, or asleep. As for teens, if they enjoy poking fun at reality TV and can handle the edgy stuff, they'll find just as many laughs as parents.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about whether you've seen any of the shows that Burning Love is parodying, such as The Bachelor or The Bachelorette. Must you have watched these shows to appreciate Burning Love?
Watch The Bachelor and then watch Burning Love. How closely does Burning Love parody various aspects of The Bachelor, such as the candles burning during one-on-one interviews?
Why are dating shows so popular on television? Why do viewers enjoy watching singles find potential matches? What about this concept is appealing or interesting to viewers? Would it be as interesting if the contestants were unattractive?
TV Details
- Premiere date : February 25, 2013
- Cast : June Diane Raphael , Ken Marino , Michael Cera , Michael Ian Black , Rob Huebel
- Networks : E! , Yahoo
- Genre : Comedy
- TV rating :
- Last updated : December 8, 2025
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