Conversations with real singles navigating modern dating culture and relationships — cutting through dating-app noise to build connection and compatibility.
In this episode of Last Date, I sit down with Ashley to talk about something many of us do when we really want someone to like us: we try to be the version of ourselves we think they’ll want.
Ashley and I talk about what happens when we do the opposite—when we let someone see the silly, playful, quirky parts of ourselves that we might normally hold back. Those little moments can feel risky, but they can also become the things that make someone uniquely attractive to us and create a kind of connection we don't have with everyone else.
We also discuss:
The on-and-off relationship Ashley couldn't seem to let go of
Why becoming a mom young has actually taken some of the pressure off dating in her 30s
What it’s like to talk to someone every night only to discover the chemistry felt completely different in person
The difficulty of meeting men organically when your routine puts you around almost exclusively women
Her three-year crush on her “Barry's boyfriend”—whom she's never actually spoken to, and our plan for finally getting her to talk to him
Her mom's unsuccessful attempts to get her married
What if the parts of yourself you’re tempted to hide are actually the parts someone else is going to fall for?
Follow this channel for future conversations about modern dating and relationships.
Follow on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@lastdatepodcast
Follow Danny on Instagram for clips and insights:
https://www.instagram.com/lastdatepodcast
https://www.instagram.com/cruxcompatible
Follow Ashley:
https://www.instagram.com/ashleyseibold
https://www.tiktok.com/@ashley_seibold
29 Sept 2026
A Relationship Scientist Explains Modern Dating
For the past year, I've been sitting down with singles and talking about how they're navigating modern dating.
And the same questions keep coming up.
Why does someone come on incredibly strong, only to suddenly pull away? Why do people behave like they're in relationships but refuse to define them? How much should we trust the “spark”?
So I traveled to New York to sit down with Dr. Marisa Cohen, a relationship scientist, psychology professor, and licensed marriage and family therapist, to find out what the research actually says about the things my guests have been experiencing.
We discuss:
Why people “love bomb”
Why situationships are so difficult to navigate
When to have the “what are we?” conversation
Where our dating preferences and dealbreakers come from
Whether there is truth behind “if he wanted to, he would”
The growing backlash against coffee and walking dates
What you should really be looking for on a first date
How to give the “spark” a nudge
Vulnerability versus trauma dumping
Why people prefer to stay “pen pals” on dating apps instead of actually meeting
What people lie about on dating apps
How dating-app filters may cause us to eliminate people we'd actually be attracted to in real life
Modern dating comes with no shortage of rules, theories, TikTok terminology, and conflicting advice. But what does relationship science actually tell us about how attraction, compatibility, and relationships work?
Follow this channel for future conversations about modern dating and relationships.
Follow on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/@lastdatepodcast
Follow Danny on Instagram for clips and insights:
https://www.instagram.com/lastdatepodcast (https://www.instagram.com/lastdatepodcast)
https://www.instagram.com/cruxcompatible (https://www.instagram.com/cruxcompatible)
Follow Dr. Marisa Cohen:
https://www.instagram.com/marisatcohen (https://www.instagram.com/marisatcohen)
https://www.marisatcohen.com/ (https://www.marisatcohen.com/)
22 Sept 2026
Why Is It So Hard to Leave a Situationship?
In this episode of Last Date, I sit down with content creator Madi Marotta to talk about situationships and why it can be so difficult to walk away from them—even when you know the person you’re with isn’t giving you the relationship you want.
Madi tells me about a guy she met while living in Nashville who became a recurring character in her life for the next year and a half. There was immediate chemistry, ghosting, reconnecting, exclusivity, a breakup—and eventually another attempt to see if there was still something between them.
We unpack the difference between being attached to someone and being attached to the idea of them, why potential can make it especially difficult to let someone go, and what Madi is beginning to recognize about her own relationship patterns.
We also discuss:
- Why Madi would rather double-text than sit around wondering if a guy is interested
- Getting ghosted without closure—and why that can make it harder to move on
- “Menu Man” and the most elaborate at-home dates she's ever been on
- Why we sometimes keep going back to a situationship even after someone has repeatedly shown us they don't want a relationship
- Dating as a content creator and what happens when the person you're dating becomes part of your content
- “Gnats”: The exes and former situationships who never quite disappear
- Rose-colored glasses and getting attached to someone's potential
Madi is refreshingly candid about something a lot of us experience in dating: knowing what you should do and actually doing it are two very different things.
Follow this channel for future conversations about modern dating and relationships.
Follow on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@lastdatepodcast
Follow Danny on Instagram for clips and insights:
https://www.instagram.com/lastdatepodcast
https://www.instagram.com/cruxcompatible
Follow Madi:https://www.instagram.com/madimarotta
https://www.tiktok.com/@madimarotta
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Apple Podcasts (US)
3.7 / 5
3 ratings
Spotify
3.1 / 5
9 ratings
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