Warning - This article contains possible Married At First Sight season 18 spoilers.
DuringMarried At First Sightseason 18, the experts Dr. Pepper Schwartz, Dr. Pia Holec, and Pastor Cal Robinson are stumbling, and Emem Obot may be too opinionated for her partner, Ikechi Ojoré. WhileIkechi comes off as a more obvious villain, there are signs that Emem has some sketchy tendencies too. In fact, Ikechi already considers her too"aggressive."
Right now,Married At First Sightseason 18is on a short hiatus - soon, a new batch of episodes will be released. The most recent episode wasHe Said/She Fled, which aired on July 28, 2025. As fans gear up for more high-octane action (the series returns on Tuesday, January 7 at 8 p.m. EST),it’s time to talk about how Emem’s flaws may indicate a healthy ego. There’s nothing wrong with having confidence, but Ikechi’s responses to Emem’s words and actions may point to trouble for the pair.
Is Emem Too “Aggressive” As Ikechi Said?
Maybe They’re Not Meant To Be
Ikechi wasn’t happy while the two attended a housewarming party together, in a scene from the ongoing season. He seems to think Emem is a high-strung woman. Unfortunately, when he described her conduct, he chose a term that offended her, describing the Black woman as"aggressive.“He said:
“I’m from the south so I’m used to something a little different. I mean I feel like you have to be aggressive to do the things you doing.”
Black women have been fighting stereotypes for a long time, and using a term like"aggressive"to describe a Black woman expressing her views seems to play into outmoded tropes. However, Ikechi seemed to genuinely feel that his partner wasn’t relaxed enough, and this could be a legitimate gripe. Not everything between the duo is shown onscreen. During that fraught scene, with its heightened emotions, Emem took issue with how she was being portrayed by Ikechi, saying:
“Y’all gotta stop calling Black women aggressive, there’s this negative connotation.”
While it’s a distasteful way to describe a Black woman, which led to fan backlash, everyone has their personality, no matter their ethnicity, and Emem may in fact be too bold for her partner. He may prefer a docile woman who fits some type of Southern Belle archetype, as he indicated. Maybe he’s wrong to prefer that type of calculated femininity, but it’s his life, and he has his own checklist of traits that he wants a partner to have.
AtReddit,Married At First Sightfans do not mince words. Some strongly disagree with Ikechi’s portrayal of Emem, with an OP,Thin_Marionberry5209wondering if Ikechi was too:
combative
during a scene featuring"her cousin and his wife.“However, someone else on the thread defended Ikechi’s right to say how he felt at that moment. That Redditor wrote:
If Ikechi feels violated or Emem is aggressive then thats HOW HE FEELS…. yet another Double standard . If a woman said that and u dismissed her feelings like you did his, then u would say things like “she’s not being herd, validated, that’s how she feels”
That person appeared to believe that Ikechi was right to share his opinion about Emem. That commenter believes that men should be able to share their emotional worlds without being judged. It’s always possible that his partner really is too forthright for his tastes - is he wrong to tell the world what’s going through his mind?
That’s why he’s on the show. He’s there to have a romance and talk about it.
The word"aggressive,“in relation to Black women, is a loaded term that’s problematic, and he should have chosen another word, but if these are his true feelings,rather than a crass attempt to stir up drama on the show, then his feelings are valid, just as Emem’s are. He wants a softer type of partner, and this is why this marriage is probably doomed.
Okechi May Find The Successful Woman Too Confident
Does He Feel She’s Dulling HIs Shine?
If Emem wants her relationship to last, she may need to put her ego aside and listen to what her partner says, even if it’s offensive. The last thing she should want is a man who doesn’t tell the truth because he’s afraid of the repercussions. That kind of dynamic can lead to disaster. Everyone has flaws, and these imperfections don’t go unnoticed in relationships. Above, in aLifetimeclip from YouTube, Okechiseems rattled by the fact that he’s with a confident and successful woman.
Spoilers indicate that the couple may have split up. That’s not so surprising. As perStylecaster, they are"likely done,“based on an unconfirmed spoiler from@mafsfans. In fact, aside from the two reportedly divorcing, Emem is wearing an engagement ring from another man. Their split may be for the best, but it’s possible that taking Ikechi’s criticism onboard and trying to be gentler with him would have helped.
On the other hand, he might have crossed a line, using language that inflamed her and pushed her away.
Relationships are complicated. Things that appear to be ego-driven may not really be that bad - sometimes, people are misunderstood. So, Emem may be getting a bad rap. Likewise, Ikechi may have been trying to improve their relationship instead of offending his partner. All of this is really open to interpretation. Who is “good” or “bad” is not always so clear-cut.
What is clear, based on the spoiler, is that theMarried At First Sightexperts aren’t exactly hitting the target. Based on other spoilers from the same source, only one duo remains together after the show -Karla Juarez and Juan Franco. This dismal record points tothe inherent fragility of pairing complete strangers based on some mysterious algorithm, and expecting them to make it work.
Are The Married At First Sight Experts To Blame?
They Could Be Mismatching Many Couples
Of course, all of this incompatibility drives the drama that people tune in to see. So, in a sense, there is little motivation to create truly lasting matches. In fact, it could be argued that the experts, including charmingly named Dr. Petter, mismatched people just to spark heated interactions onscreen. If so, thecontroversialMarried At First Sightexpertsdeserve some criticism, perhaps more than the show’s cast members do.
