I experienced this when I first tried out online dating. One of my first dates felt more like our 3rd or 4th so it really was hard to break the ice.
I dunno, in my experience OKCupid profiles (the best available online dating site the last time I was single) were just a thin veneer of bullshit designed to sell only the best qualities. Nothing wrong with that per se but I never felt like I learned anything real about a person other than a few facts sprinkled in here and there.
The same could be said about meeting people in real life.