Oh, mama!
TLC’s latest reality dating series, “MILF Manor,” premiering Sunday at 10 p.m., sends eight foxy moms between the ages of 40 and 60 to a boutique hotel on the beach in Mexico, shared with a crop of potential suitors half their age.
Beyond the giggle-inducing name, which further mainstreams a crude acronym standing for Mom I’d Like To — well, you know — the show is pushing the boundaries by choosing to focus on older ladies overlooked by the likes of “The Bachelor” and “Love Island.”
Kelle, 51 (TLC wouldn’t share participants’ last names), is a real estate broker and wellness coach from California, as well as a “happily divorced” mother of six. She told The Post that she wasn’t at all daunted by the prospect of dating a younger man.
“I don’t have an age range that I go for [when dating]. It’s more of a connection,” she said. “I’m a younger free spirit — younger guys I connect more with.”
And to her, being classified as a MILF isn’t offensive at all.
“My oldest daughter — her friends referred to me as that when she was in high school, and we embraced it,” she said. “It’s just a word, to me. I don’t take it in a literal sense. I think it’s just ‘hot mom.’”
News of the show has caused something of a stir on social media, where users with long memories couldn’t help but recall the 2008 episode of NBC’s “30 Rock” featuring a parody dating show called “MILF Island.” (The tagline: “20 super hot moms, 50 eighth-grade boys, no rules.”)
“I love ‘30 Rock’ and I thought it was absolutely hilarious,” another of the featured women, event planner Shannan, 51, told The Post. “But no — I’m not into 8th grade boys, if that’s the question!”
On the real-life show, the women partake in various challenges, from speed dating to a dance-off. If they win, they’re rewarded with a date with the man of their choice. The pool of single men hanging around the “manor” are all in their 20s and 30s.
“It was probably the best experience of my life,” said Kelle. “I was in paradise, unplugged, ready to fall in love. The show actually changed me — it showed me that it’s okay to be vulnerable.”
Off-camera, the MILFs were holding their cards a little closer, at least regarding the show’s teased “twist.” The recent Hulu show “Back in the Groove,” which also featured older ladies dating younger men, brought on one woman’s son as a contestant. Could that happen here? Possibly, since many of the mothers have sons in their late 20s.
Shannan, for example, who is divorced and lives in Atlanta, has three children between the ages of 21 and 30. She said she had zero qualms about mingling with men from that age bracket.
“At this stage in life, I really have been more open about who I date — I really don’t get caught up in age, I’m more focused on the person as an individual,” she said. “I think younger men, especially in this generation, are innovative, have lots of energy, are more fast-paced — life hasn’t bogged them down [yet].”
And the three kids of Stefany, 47, an LA realtor and paralegal, range in age from middle school on up to their 20s. She also promised “surprises” as the show unfolds, as well as an enthusiasm for younger men — but in her case, for a very specific reason.
“I believe that younger guys love to impress. So, when they have somebody older, they kind of step it up for you — a lot of them aren’t jaded,” she told The Post.
“They love the experience of dating [someone] older. From my experience, they value your knowledge.”