South Korea’s first ever lesbian dating show has seemingly lost the plot as former fans denounce the decision to edit one controversial cast member out of the show.
After the first episodes of ToGetHer dropped in April, contestant Kim Riwon quickly found her past working as a cam girl outed to the world. She was also accused of "queerbaiting" after it was discovered she had previously been in a relationship with a man she alleged was toxic and abusive, despite her insistence that she is, in fact, a woman who loves women.
As conservative tides turned against her, a fellow cast member also made confusing accusations that Riwon made inappropriate advances towards her by seemingly asking her to spend time together.
All of this led to the production company hitting pause on the episodes to regroup as they decided what to do. Some fans were demanding Riwon be cut from the show entirely, while others were furious this was even being considered a scandal.
On May 4, ThisPlay announced that the show would be resuming — with Riwon edited out as much as possible without losing the overall storylines.
The decision has sparked outrage and frustration on social media, particularly from international viewers. Posts from the official account have been met with repeated protests of "no riwon no views" and slamming ThisPlay for allegedly catering to misogyny and homophobia while failing to protect Riwon.
"Oh so yall decided to stand by the buillies, riwon is a victim not a criminals yall just token support women and always stand by the men and the patriarchal society i guess"
"You know damn well that no one will watch the reality show now, because you didn't want to protect Riwon, she really needed it, don't expect support of any kind and even less from the community to whom this program was directed, it's shameful."
"Don’t do another show next time. You don’t know what you are doing. Your lack of awareness, understanding and insensitivity around these women has been distasteful. This is a reflection of your failure to protect those women"
"I think riwon just agreed to whatever was discussed—like limiting her scenes—because she probably felt she had no right to demand anything. She’s been publicly humiliated simply because of her past. All she wanted was to find love and be out and proud. She didn’t sign up for this"
"The people you're pandering to will NEVER be accepting of us lesbians, no matter how hard you try to please them. This is a big mistake. Blaming doesn't help us advance our rights, but in this case you are to blame.You let down not only Riwon, but also the lesbian community."
"You did your own background checks. You wanted Riwon on your show. She's shown bravery by coming out & appearing on #ToGetHer despite the serious homophobia in your country. Now, you take the easy way out & just cut off the "controversy." Then, that's it for me, too. I'm out."
And as subsequent episodes have begun to air, the lack of Riwon has been painfully noticeable, which has added to the backlash.
"If Riwon is not there, then the program is not watched."
"and fuck you for editing riwon out tf"
"ToGetHer is boring and empty without riwon im sorry yall i’m out"
"Riwon and Seoyeon picking matching cards to go on a painting date, you see Riwon hand on Seoyeon shoulder, she is so happy about it, it's so tragic we didn't get to see the date, those two actually like eachother"
"Hard to watch now that riwon has been completely cut"
"the lack of riwon makes me sick so it’s so good to see her when we do"
"riwon brought so much heart to the episodes. sorry to say but it feels so empty and boring without her. selective allyship is the real stain on the show. BRING RIWON BACK"
No matter how you spin it, it's an unfortunate way for South Korea's first lesbian dating show to play out.
