RTL Boulevard editor Tim van Rodijnen (28) reads and writes about the Dutch television and entertainment world. In Tim’s Tele-visie he writes down what strikes, surprises and moves him.
“In Buying without Looking, Martijn Krabbé and his team absolutely do not fall into a rut”
If a TV program has been successful for a long time, there is of course a chance that the makers will repeat themselves. This makes a program boring, or at least less fun than at the beginning. For Buy without Looking that does not apply. The house program continues to renew itself and is anything but boring, even after seven seasons.
That’s not nearly that easy. For example, look at The Voice of Holland. A huge success in the first few years, but just before the talent show was cancelled, critics mainly wondered: should we still want a new season? Or take Help my husband is a handyman!a program that is more like Buy without Looking. I feel like this has become increasingly repetitive: a couple with a dilapidated house, John Williams who presents it and is also a relationship therapist, the house is renovated and that’s it.
In Buy without Looking Martijn Krabbé and his team definitely do not fall into a rut. This is how the first single candidate became a reality in the seventh series. We kicked off with Myra, who was looking for a house with her son. Then we also had the first rainbow family: Berend, Melle and Sanna. I also thought the makers’ choice to follow them was good for the representation of the LGBTIQ community. This way people see that things can be done differently and that things will go well.
In addition to families with ‘other’ compositions than the usual man-woman-child(ren) image, the seventh season also had room for couples with a special life story. Take Rens and Cristine for example. The couple are in the prime of their lives when they hear that he suffers from MS. Despite everything, the couple continues their difficult search for a house. As a viewer we see that Rens in particular is quite affected and his hair loss also contributes to the realization that he is not doing well. It all does something extra for you as a viewer.
In the last episode of this season, Marlou and Ferdos shared a story that made many viewers, including me, cry. You felt the sadness when they told you that their lives have been at a standstill for 3.5 years because they are in a fertility process and are unable to get pregnant. A vulnerable story, but oh so good that they share it. Because getting pregnant is often taken for granted, while having a child is certainly not a given. I also sincerely hope that Marlou and Ferdos will be able to see a child grow up in their new home in the not too distant future.
After these nine episodes, I am convinced that Martijn, Alex, Bob and Roos will surprise us again in the eighth season. I don’t doubt that for a second. But what I especially hope is that Martijn, who announced that he had cancer in March of this year, will be involved as much as possible in the new series. Because no other presenter is as good at presenting residential programs as Martijn. As far as I’m concerned, it can last another twenty seasons.
The team of Buy without Looking misses Martijn:
Tags: amazing season Buying Watching innovative RTL Boulevard
