If you haven’t been watching season six of the Peacock series Love Island USA, you’ve been missing out on one of the best reality television series in recent memory.
While it’s a series built upon the prospect of finding love over a few weeks in a ridiculously stylish and bright villa, it’s still a television show, meaning its sole purpose is to entertain by any means necessary.
And that’s precisely what this season did, though one could argue the drama outweighed the love.
(Ben Symons/Peacock)
The drama was at the forefront of the season, with many fights between islanders gaining significant traction on social media and turning this summer’s USA entry into its biggest season yet.
There were many tears and impactful and deserved lashings, but there was also joy. And most importantly, there was love.
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With the season finale almost here, we’re looking at the final four couples, who’ve all had different journeys to get them to the finish line.
Shows like this are subjective regarding voting, as everyone relates to things differently.
(Ben Symons/Peacock)
You may see yourself in JaNA and, therefore, can relate to her struggles in the villa and want to see her get her happy ending with Kenny.
Or maybe you’ve been in a relationship like Serena and Kordell, where the hiccups made you stronger.
It’s all subjective, but ultimately, one couple will prevail, so let’s examine the final four and see who’s most likely to take home the prize.
Nicole Jacky & Kendall Washington
(Kim Nunneley/Peacock)
Listen, on the surface, there is nothing wrong with the Nicole and Kendall pairing.
Kendall is an OG. First, he paired up with fellow OG Hanna Smith, and that relationship fizzled out rather quickly when he backed away from the thought of being in a love triangle with a new bombshell.
Those early villa relationships are hit or miss because there are so many unknowns and challenges ahead, namely bombshells, and he bided his time until someone came along that really excited him.
Related: 13 of TV’s Most Succesful (if Dreaded) Love Triangles
That person was Nicole, a bombshell that came at the end of the first week, and the two had an immediate connection.
They’ve weathered some storms, including Nicole’s head turning a quarter inch for fellow bombshell Miguel Harichi, but when presented with the ULTIMATE test of Casa Amor, they flew through it with flying colors.
(Ben Symons/Peacock)
That’s all well and good, and their pairing is a safe choice, but it’s also a boring one. And that’s NOT a bad thing, but it also doesn’t get you excited to vote for them.
Nicole seems like a perfectly kindhearted person, but Kendall has stayed being a messy man who lives for drama, especially during the guy’s stints at Casa, when he went above and beyond what was necessary to encourage his bros to forget about their girls and go buck wild.
It felt a little calculating, and I’m not saying Kendall is playing a game because only he knows his true intentions. Still, his overzealous nature and demeanor post-Casa when he leaned into the narrative that the OG girls were doing too much (spoiler alert: they WERE NOT) soured him to many.
At this point, Nicole and Kendall’s love affair doesn’t have the legs to pull out a victory.
Leah Kateb & Miguel Harichi
(Ben Symons/Peacock)
Leah has had a long Love Island journey, in the sense that the pairing she was perhaps most invested in crashed and burned fairly early in the summer.
Leah and Rob’s romance was an early front-runner, have social media tell it, with many fans gravitating to the pair’s quirky dynamic. However, it was fraught from the start when bombshell Olivia Walker came in and stole Rob on day two.
Rob and Leah found their way back to each other, but things were never truly the same after that. They both moved on to shortlived romances that didn’t stick, and then, out of nowhere, Leah and Miguel connected.
And to be honest, the pair work.
They’re both silly and vibrant and bounce off each other well. Miguel may be the “player” of the season, but he’s been true to himself and true to the women he’s pursued about where he’s at and what’s going through his head.
You don’t have to love his decisions, but he’s not lying to anyone.
(Ben Symons/Peacock)
After the Casa Amor bloodbath, Leah was the one OG who took a very diplomatic approach to the whole situation. She didn’t put much pressure on Miguel, which probably worked in her favor. It didn’t take him long to realize that she was the one he was more interested in pursuing.
They’ve been together ever since then, and you can tell they get along on a fundamental level, but the love part of their relationship is still to be determined.
They’re the only couple in the final not officially “closed off,” which is Love Island speak for exclusive but NOT boyfriend and girlfriend (obviously, that’s different, ya’ll), but they’re both popular islanders who will gather support just from that.
Voting for them could almost be considered a vote for what they could become outside the villa rather than what they currently are. And that may not be enough to eclipse the other couples.
JaNa Craig & Kenny Rodriguez
(Kim Nunneley/Peacock)
JaNa Craig had a full Love Island experience.
She was in multiple couples with men who were not worthy of her, at the bottom of a vote and almost sent home, only for the man of her dreams to walk into the villa the very next day and whisk her off on the kind of date us regular folk will never have.
JaNa has worn her heart on her sleeve, putting her all into Love Island, trying to find meaningful connections while protecting her heart and knowing wholeheartedly what she’s deserving of.
Related: How Behind-the-Scenes Drama Influences How We Watch TV
When Kenny entered, he set his sights on JaNa, and there were fireworks there, even if they both were a bit timid initially and were easing themselves into their summer romance.
Kenny’s reserved nature was a nice contrast to JaNa’s outgoing and warm personality, and the two had the makings of an endgame couple before Kenny went to Casa, drank the trifling koolaid that was flowing there, and came back to wound JaNa’s heart.
(Ben Symons/Peacock)
Listen, the debates about whether Kenny was in the wrong or JaNa overreacted are water under the bridge considering where the couple is at now, but at the moment, JaNa was hurt and was entitled to those feelings.
Kenny was also entitled to his, and what was nice about the two of them was that in the aftermath of their drama, they took time apart and then came back to one another once their emotions weren’t as high to decompress and move forward.
They ultimately decided to move forward together, and with each day spent with them in the villa, you could see their connection grow, and both sides became increasingly comfortable around one another.
The final days leading into the finale were perhaps the most expressive we saw Kenny his entire stay in the villa, and it’s clear that with time, the friendships he’s made, and his blossoming romance with JaNa, he’s been able to be himself.
The two have had some of the most romantic Love Island moments of all time, including Kenny’s recoupling speech, tantamount to wedding vows.
(Ben Symons/Peacock)
Their fluffy, fun, and light romance has endeared them to so many who can see themselves in the introvert and extrovert who find their perfect partner.
Should JaNa and Kenny win Love Island USA Season 6? In my opinion, yes. But this season is full of fan favorites and other couples that are just as relatable and appealing, so the odds may not be in their favor.
Related: What Losers in Love Could Learn from These Successful TV Couples
It’s corny and cliché to say they’ve won anyway since they’ve found each other, but it honestly feels right regarding these two.
Serena Page & Kordell Beckham
(Ben Symons/Peacock)
Serena and Kordell are the one final couple who’ve been together from the start, which sets them so far apart from everyone else.
While Kordell has been all about Serena since the first second he saw her, it took Serena a bit longer to let her guard down with Kordell. A slow-burner to a tee, Serena isn’t a “typical” Love Island participant ready to go from 0 to 100 in the blink of an eye.
She took her time getting to know Kordell, even pulling back from the relationship at one point, and that action alone should tell you how genuine of a person she is. She wanted to allow both herself and Kordell to pursue other connections.
But neither one found that spark with anyone else, and when they came back together after their brief estrangement, there was a shift in the air. So, heading into Casa, they were in a good place, which made Kordell’s actions so tricky for Serena to reconcile.
Much like the JaNa and Kenny situation, feel free to have your opinions about Kordell’s dalliance with Daia McGhee. I certainly have mine, but again, Serena was justified in his disappointment in how Kordell chose to explore a new connection while coupled up with Serena!
She was upset, embarrassed, and hurt and had every right to express that. Their dock argument will go down in the Love Island history books, with Serena reading him for filth and Kordell letting her feel every single emotion.
(Ben Symons/Peacock)
When the men conferred with Kordell about the situation, he never put Serena down, only owning up to his actions, and he showed a tremendous amount of care for what she was feeling.
Serena, in all her glory, stood on her principles and was true to herself and the myriad of emotions she was feeling. This is what made their reunion so special. They both let it all out, knew what the other one felt, and worked from there to repair their connection in the healthiest way possible.
Love Island has had all kinds of winners, from day one couples to those who’ve had rocky roads and ones that are much smoother. Serena and Kordell’s journey was a rollercoaster, with a very difficult drop at one point, but they made it back up, and they’ve earned their place amongst the final couples.
Their story will be remembered for a long time, and let’s not even get into the Odell Beckham Jr. of it all because even without his looming presence and support of his brother, fans have rallied behind the pairing and the feelings there.
Serena and Kordell have the best chance of winning this season, and that win would be beautiful and earned.
Let me know in the comments who you voted for and who you think will win this fabulous season!
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