Love Island’s most recent love triangle came to an end last night after Casey O’Gorman finally told Claudia Fogarty that he’s more interested in getting to know Rosie Seabrook, calling quits on their three-week coupling.
After three dry episodes, the conversation felt a long-time coming. As viewers have seen from Casey’s private conversations with Will Young and Tom Clare, Casey was always leaning towards Rosie but conscious he didn’t want to upset Claudia. It’s something Claudia pulled him up on in their chat last night, but Casey insisted he didn’t actually know he wanted to pursue Rosie solely until then.
Watching the scenario play out, you can see Casey was in a difficult position. It would be harsh to call things off with Claudia so soon after meeting Rosie, especially not knowing if they would actually be compatible so soon. But equally, Claudia deserved honesty so she could move on – something she begged him for the night before, with Casey asking her to wait a bit longer for him to make a decision.
That honesty finally came last night, but the way in which it was delivered had us wondering – is honesty really enough to rid someone of all responsibility to be kind? Casey was up front with Claudia for sure, but there was something about their conversation that just felt… mean.
‘I’ve been totally honest with you from the start, what have I said to you that I haven’t been honest about?’ Casey said. ‘You’re jumping to conclusions… I’m honestly sorry if you felt pushed aside but for me there is more of a connection there with Rosie. ‘
Perhaps it was Casey’s insistence that he didn’t know how he felt when we already know he was leaning towards Rosie, or perhaps it was Casey’s excuse that he was ‘honest’ all the way through, but watching Claudia yearn for some sort of empathy from Casey given she has genuine feelings invested in him, it was hard.
Honesty is always important in a wildly convoluted dating show like Love Island, but empathy is too. Casey’s reaction felt as though he wasn’t really seeing Claudia’s hurt, but just wanted to void himself of any transgressions through the guise of honesty. He could’ve simply apologised for upsetting her, noted that what they had was genuine and he wishes it would’ve worked, but he’s just found someone he’s more compatible with. As it stands, all Casey’s tried to do is make Claudia feel like she doesn’t have a right to be upset with him, when in actual fact that doesn’t matter. She is upset, and he’s caused that upset, so regardless of whether it was intentional or not, kindness is essential. The world – or rather, other Islanders - need not come down on Casey for upsetting Claudia, it’s simply part and parcel of dating that sometimes someone gets hurt, but he can still feel sorry for her and comfort her in this time of pain.
Of course, we don’t blame him for being defensive – being on a show like Love Island puts you in the firing line of harsh public opinion that anyone would seek to avoid. Casey seems intent on being seen as ‘the nice guy’ and this storyline could easily have derailed that for him, but nice guys are also able to see when they just need to accept someone is upset and whether it’s their fault or not, that person needs comforting.