The Cringiest Dating App Encounters This Week (September 6, 2023)

Ally Perry • Writer and Editor

Sep 6, 2023 3:00 PM EDT

There have always been people out there who treat dating like some kind of messed up personal strategy game. There have been those using every single bargaining chip to barter the best arranged marriage, and others who have a go-to script for every person that they choose to woo. God help us, there are even individuals who have unironically used It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia's D.E.N.N.I.S system to pick up and discard eligible singletons.

In short, I don't believe that any time period has treated getting partnered up as the true love fantasy that we've been sold all our lives. It's just an unfortunate fact that the misery of dating apps makes this seem all the more stark and unavoidable. While they do produce some success stories, many users just seem to end up lonelier than they started. If they're behaving like the examples below, it's not that surprising.