With Casa Amor behind us, here's my final pick to win Love Island USA season 6
Unless JaNa and Kenny manage to do more to win me over.
After a stressful Casa Amor stint, one that had me ready to pull out my hair, all is right in the Love Island USA season 6 world as my favorite duo is back together and officially closed off in their coupledom. I'm of course talking about Serena and Kordell.
I've followed the two members of the Love Island USA season 6 cast since the start of the season, and it's just beautiful to see them overcome so much to be stronger than ever. I'm so impressed that I've chosen them to walk away as this season's winners, something I said nearly two weeks ago, but wavered on after Daia was introduced in the picture.
Now there are a few reasons why I think Serena and Kordell are the obvious winners. I'll start by highlighting their romantic journey. Admittedly, things between them didn't get off to the best start as Serena claimed to be a "slow burner," and she didn't seem that happy to be paired with Kordell. In fact, she told him she wanted space and encouraged him to explore things with other women as she was starting to see him as just a friend. Then after Nicole came into the villa and turned Kordell's head, Serena began to reevaluate her feelings for Kordell and eventually came to realize she liked him more than she thought.
It looked like the pair would sail through less choppy waters at that point, but then came the hiccup with the dance challenge, where Serena left Kordell on the dance floor by himself, declaring she was very open to exploring things with one of the new bombshells. That exploration ended quickly though, and following that, the two literally became my favorite people to watch on the show. Their banter is incredibly adorable, they share more laughs as a couple than anybody this season and their chemistry is through the roof.
As I already stated, Casa Amor and the introduction of Daia proved to be the biggest hurdle for Serena and Kordell. For a moment I doubted they would recover. That argument at the dock was not pretty to witness, and yet it felt like it came from a place of two people who really liked each other and were hurt. Thankfully, after a few conversations where Kordell apologized for what he did with Daia and Serena owned the fact that she could have done more to let Kordell know how much she does care for him, the two recommitted to their relationship. I was so happy to see this, you would have thought I knew them personally. Talk about a love story that seems genuine. I can’t help but root for them.
Moving beyond just history on the show, I also think they'll win season 6 because most of their competition seems lightyears behind them. Aaron and Kaylor may have been early favorites to win, but Casa Amor and his gaslighting antics really didn't play well with fans who were tired of his lying and tired of Kaylor crying only for her to quickly dismiss his hurtful actions.
While Leah is popular on her own among viewers, the same can't be said for her partner Miguel. He originally came off as a bit of a "player." While that demeanor is shifting a bit, I'm not sure if his change is a little too late.
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Kendall and Nicole, although adorable with chemistry, took a hit because of Kendall's mouth during Casa. It did him no favors among viewers who watched him encourage Kordell to get close to Daia while trashing Kordell's connection to Serena. Kendall claims to be Serena's friend as well, so the optics weren't great. He also pretty much did the same thing when it came to Aaron, Daniella and Kaylor.
Caine and Sierra are a new couple, who I don't know could even make it past another elimination, and Rob and Daniella just don't seem like they're on solid ground after he witnessed her feelings for Aaron play out during movie night. So I'm left with the only couple I think could challenge Serena and Kordell for the win — JaNa and Kenny.
JaNa has been a fan-favorite all season and has had a rough go of it in the villa after her attempts at developing connections with Coye and Connor failed. So when Kenny came into the villa and he and JaNa went on a date, with her claiming it was the best one she's been on while on the show, the Love Island USA audience was hopeful she found her person. Unfortunately, Casa Amor rolled around and Kenny wound up pairing with Catherine.
Even though Kenny coupled with another girl and JaNa swore to be done because of it, once he shed tears for hurting her and she came to realize that he still had an interest in her, Kenny and JaNa somehow managed to lock in. They may not be Serena and Kordell, but they do have some pretty cute moments together, and it's playing well with fans. With the season ending on July 21, JaNa and Kenny still have some time to impress viewers and win them over. I'll just say, that sans Serena and Kordell experiencing another hiccup in their relationship, I'll be supporting them, hopefully in first place across the finish line.
Episodes of Love Island USA season 6 air on Peacock.
Terrell Smith has a diverse writing background having penned material for a wide array of clients including the federal government and Bravo television personalities. When he’s not writing as Terrell, he’s writing under his pseudonym Tavion Scott, creating scripts for his audio drama podcasts. Terrell is a huge fan of great storytelling when it comes to television and film. Some of his favorite shows include The Crown, WandaVision, Abbot Elementary and Godfather of Harlem. And a fun fact is he's completely dialed into the TLC 90 Day Fiancé universe.