The latest antics on Farmer Wants A Wife between Miranda and Farmer Zac‘s other women have drawn unflattering comparisons to Married at First Sight from fans.
But for this reality TV superfan, I think they should be so lucky!
The MAFS-level drama kicked off in episode 5 of FWAW, as Zac’s suitor, Grace, admitted she had been ‘rubbed the wrong way’ by Miranda, before telling Maya that Miranda had said she was ‘desperate’ at the Country Ball for pulling Zac to the side for a chat.
This led to Maya confiding in Zac’s twin sister, Isobel, about the drama, and then Miranda told Isobel the other women were “jealous of her”. As a result of these chats, Isobel told her brother Zac that she saw ‘red flags’ in Miranda.
In turn, Miranda confronted the other women about claims she was ‘not genuine’, telling Maya she should have had a private conversation with her before speaking to Zac’s sister about her concerns. In response, Maya told her, “You’ve said things, calling me desperate, I’m not going to let that slide, Miranda.”
The scene ended with Grace and Maya leaving the table in tears, as Miranda reiterated (for the 100th time?!) that the other women were simply ‘jealous’ of her.
It was a scene that could have been swiped straight from a MAFS dinner party, which was not lost on FWAW fans who have slammed the show.
“While I am the first to admit I do love a bit of drama to keep things interesting, I do hope they don’t start going down the Married At First Sight Australia route,” one fan wrote on FWAW’s Instagram.
“Producers, please get the show back to its original format when it first started, this is beginning to look more like MAFS each season and after this year I am over MAFS,” wrote another.
I understand these concerns, but ultimately, is it such a bad thing that FWAW is making a MAFS-pivot in 2026?
Why can’t Farmer Wants A Wife be like MAFS?
The main criticism from fans is that FWAW should stand apart from other dating reality shows for being driven by wholesome love stories, but why does that mean we can’t have MAFS-level drama too?
In the eternal words of the Old El Paso little girl: por qué no los dos aka why can’t we have both?
Since debuting in 2015 (eight years after FWAW’s first Channel 9 iteration), MAFS has become nothing short of a reality TV juggernaut.
There’s a reason that MAFS is more watched than ever before, with the 2026 season drawing in over three milliion viewers in ratings. Given just how chaotic the latest season of MAFS was — between Gia Fleur and Bec Zacharia being constantly at war — it’s clear that people love drama, especially between two strong women made for reality TV.
Farmer Wants A Wife has seen a huge surge in ratings this season, a season which has put drama front and centre of its trailers. According to the reported ratings, the drama-filled Monday night episode, which saw all the women and Farmer converge for a Country Ball, had a national reach of 1.6 million.
The editing of this season’s FWAW has leaned heavily on the kind of drummed-up suspense that MAFS is best known for, with swirling dramatic music to pinpoint the episode’s most dramatic moments. And guess what? It works. Look no further than how furious everyone is getting online about Miranda’s behaviour.
I haven’t seen a reaction this big since Gia made her debut on MAFS.
Farmer Wants A Wife will always be about wholesome love stories, but a little drama never hurt
The entire structure of Farmer Wants A Wife is vastly different to MAFS, ensuring that wholesome love stories will always dominate the show. Between the dates and dinners between the women and their chosen Farmers, a huge slice of every episode is dedicated to showcasing blossoming love.
This means that the rare moments when some genuine drama unfolds aren’t something we should be turning away from — we need it! Sure, some of the drama on MAFS can start to feel icky when it’s giving oxygen to some disgusting opinions, namely from Tyson Gordon on this year’s season, but these controversial scenes also kickstart important conversations.
Platforming bad behaviour is why we need reality TV: it holds a mirror up to society and it’s not always pretty. This has been the case with the ‘mean girls’ storyline set to dominate Zac’s farm. Miranda might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but women like her do exist, and at least with FWAW, we will get to know her as a fully fleshed-out person and not merely as another MAFS villain.
But rest assured, I still have confidence that this year’s FWAW will end in another set of storybook love stories. When it comes to dating reality shows in Australia, there is nothing that matches the success rate of FWAW. The popular series has resulted in 11 marriages and close to 30 children. A little extra drama isn’t going to change that!
A bit of MAFS chaos should be welcomed but ultimately, I could see FWAW moving closer to looking like The Bachelor, which at its peak managed to delicately balance the show’s drama with the kinds of fairytale love stories that inspired an entire nation to get behind.
On this season’s FWAW, as Farmer Zac’s women are imploding around him, I’m just as invested in Farmer Dylan’s adorable romance with Ally and Farmer Jarrad’s cute connection with Carly.
Yes, you can enjoy both and FWAW leaning into a bit of MAFS chaos is something I am wholeheartedly behind.
TV WEEK is counting down Australia’s top 70 TV shows of all time, and we want your vote! You can vote for your top 10 Australian TV shows of all time HERE. Get in quick — voting closes on June 21!
Related stories
Native ad body.
Native ad body.
Native ad body.
