I think that when it comes to The Bachelorette there are a few things that we can agree on – Yosef is a tool, Clare only knows how to say the word Dale and is a narcissist, and you better have a good answer for why you are there.
We’re talking about last week’s episode – which was a s**t show – before tonight’s episode, and what I have determined personally is that I am hoping that we get rid of Clare and Dale soon – because they legit annoy me.
But the drama is all over the place on this show and we’re all in with this chaos. After all – it’s 2020 and it’s not like we’re gonna be out meeting anyone because #Covid.
Let’s break down this chaos.
The Bachelorette is back, and it has billed as the most dramatic season ever. Rate on a scale of 1 – 10 the drama in this episode and what was the most dramatic moment for you?
Erin: This was not dramatic – it was umm… a documentary on a bunch of narcissists who don’t know left from right. I would give it a 5 and the most dramatic moment has got to Clare being so offended that the guys didn’t jump to talk to her. Ummm, they are there to be Instagram influencers, not for you. Get with it.
Lizzie: Was it dramatic? I think the baseline for this show is SUPER dramatic, so yes. But the most dramatic season ever is a big claim, and I just don’t think we’re there. I’m going to give it a 6 for now. Clare wants a 10, she’s gonna have to leave or something. WHICH, HEY, MIGHT BE A THING. Especially as Clare continues to prove she isn’t really here to do the same things other Bachelorettes have done.
Lyra: I’m going to give it a 7 on the drama meter. And as for the most dramatic moment, when no one wanted to get up and spend time with Clare. At first I thought it was coronavirus jitters. They haven’t really spent time around people. But they went through quarantine and have been smooching her. So what’s the excuse? They really aren’t as committed as they say they are to her. And that is the sad sad truth.
Jessica: I definitely thought the most dramatic part of the episode was when Clare lost her mind over the guys not immediately jumping up and wanting to talk about her. This episode was about a 6 in terms of drama. I need more… like the guys walking out or Clare leaving.
Grace: This episode was definitely more of a let down as I didn’t find to be dramatic at all. There were only a couple moments that were a little dramatic which was when Blake decided to crash the group date and when Clare started drama herself. Not the most exciting stuff that’s ever happened. Granted, I think we’re an episode or two away from when this season is really going to get dramatic. But for now, this season is sort of a snooze fest so I’d give it a 5 thus far.
We already know Clare has a favorite guy – Dale! She’s made it apparent that she has feelings for Dale and the other men have picked up on this. Do you think Clare is giving the other men a fair chance? Or do you think Clare is leading them on.
Erin: Clare is not giving anyone a fair chance. But she sure is pulling a Pilot Pete and letting her mouth fall on anything. She’s playing the game – which kudos. Get your playa on. But you’re still annoying Clare and I don’t like your attitude and fakeness.
Lizzie: I don’t really think she’s giving them a fair chance, but a part of me always watches this show and thinks …how can you like so many people at once, or pretend to? So in that regard, a part of me kinda respects that she just doesn’t seem willing to play games. She likes this guy and she doesn’t need all the others.
Lyra: I don’t think Clare is giving the other men a fair chance. She’s obviously leading them on while she keeps mooning over Dale. And the other men have started to pick up on it. That’s part of the reason why they didn’t get up to spend time with her during their date. And even the editing can’t save what’s obviously apparent to everyone. She’s picked the guy that she wants and that she thinks will be her husband without even spending real time with him or the others.
Jessica: She’s not giving these guys a fair chance. I understand she likes Dale, and she should try to get to know him. But she should try to get some of the other guys, too. She might be surprised if she keeps an open mind. Like Lyra said, the guys are starting to notice how much she likes Dale, and she’s about to blow any chance she might have had with them.
Grace: The last thing Clare is doing is giving these guys a fair chance. Let’s be real, even when she’s trying to spend time with other men, she’s thinking about Dale. In her defense, I’d also want to spend more time with someone I was instantly connecting with. The problem is The Bachelorette isn’t made for that. You’re supposed to date 10+ men at the same time. Clare is stuck between a rock and a hard place and I’m not sure how she’s going to move past this rut.
Clare had a lot of interesting date choices, she seems to like dates that praise her character? Do you agree? Disagree? How did you feel about her dates and do you think that the dodgeball date was appropriate?
Erin: Can I just repeat everything Lizzie said – cause she took the words out of my mouth.
Lizzie: I’ve never understood who picks the dates. Does she pick them? Does she collaborate with the producers? Does she even get a say? Because I can’t imagine she gets final say, but maybe they let her have a choice? Either way I’m not sure her choices are what I would call ….eh …good.
The dodgeball game, in and of itself wasn’t problematic. But she isn’t going to pick who has the best abs, is she? Then what’s even the point? If we don’t do it for women because it’s inappropriate, we shouldn’t think it’s fine the other way around.
Lyra: Honestly, the dodgeball game was all sorts of inappropriate. And I’m not saying this because I’m a prune or something of the sort. I’m saying this because if the tables were turned and it was women playing strip dodgeball the internet would have exploded. But because it’s hot guys, or a couple of them are, no one seems to care. And that’s all sorts of messed up and disrespectful to the men she’s trying to get to know. As for praising her character, I think she’s been deprived of people saying nice things to her and is getting a little bit high on it. Nothing more, nothing less.
Jessica: The date where she had to touch and feel the guys was super awkward and cringeworthy. I wasn’t crazy about the dodgeball date. It was demeaning and weird especially if you consider the serious one-on-one she had. Clare definitely likes when guys praise her. I mean, I get it. It’s the bachelorette so they’re supposed to say nice things to her, but she seems like she needs praise more than most people do.
Grace: I also agree that the dodgeball date was inappropriate. Dodgeball is fun and all, but when you turn it into strip dodgeball that you know is going to be shown in front of millions, that’s a little immature. It’s wild because she’ll go from having a date like that to one of the most serious dates I’ve ever seen on the show. While I get serious conversations have to take place during the show, to have it this early on feels weird. It’s like Clare is trying so hard to be deep that her date just turns into a therapy session.
There were a lot of cringe worthy moments this episode and a lot of great moments. Lets play a game of rose and thorns. What was your rose (best moment) and thorn (cringeworthy moment) of the episode?
Erin: Rose – when Clare threw her dress in the fire. I respect the symbolism and the way it let her feel free. The thorn… umm Brandon. Like I respect the fact that he doesn’t have preconceived feelings about Clare, but I also can’t respect the fact that he’s there cause she’s hot. Like it’s just gross. He coulda just said I’m here cause you turn me on or I wanna bone you. Cause that’s basically what he said.
Lizzie: Brandon totally blanking out when Clare was like but why do you want to be here. Like, dude, prepare that answer. Don’t just trust on the old you’re beautiful to get you across the finish line. You’re on a dating show, how were you caught so unprepared? SHAME ON YOU.
The rose goes to Dale. Look, do I love Clare and Dale together? Meh. Do I like that the dude is going for what he wants? I do. That’s the whole point of this show, isn’t. There really are no rules, despite what they try to tell you. So you do you, Dale. You do you.
Lyra: The best moment was when Clare threw her dress in the fire. Ignoring the fact the crew is going to have to check the fire afterwards to make sure that the dress is properly disposed of, it was a strong moment for her. She was letting go of her past and taking concrete steps to move on to her future. As for most cringeworthy moment, it was when what’s his face couldn’t think of anything else to say to Clare besides the fact that she was pretty. Make something up, bro. Everyone else has managed to lie through their teeth about getting to know her and you couldn’t think of anything else besides that she was pretty? Reminded me of The Swan Princess and when Derek couldn’t think of anything else to say besides how pretty she was. Hot mess.
Jessica: The most cringeworthy moment for me was the date where they all hugged and touched each other. Who wants to watch the girl they like basically feel up other guys? And when she said “I know who this is” to Dale…… yeah. The best moment? That’s hard considering that most of the episode wasn’t great. But I give the guy on the one-on-date credit for going along with basically a therapy session. At least he was willing to be vulnerable and list things that he wasn’t super comfortable with. So… props for being vulnerable. And he impressed Clare so good for him.
Grace: Anytime Clare speaks I cringe. I’m kidding…sort of. What has been annoying me about Clare lately is I find her to be kind of selfish. What’s making me cringe is that during every conversation she has, she has a knack in making the conversation about herself. She’ll ask what your childhood was like but then somehow turn it around to talk about her childhood. And somehow these guys find it charming and cute? Honestly, it just makes me roll my eyes.
Is Clare right to have sent Brandon home? What do you think of how she handled the situation with him?
Erin: I woulda sent him home too. It’s one thing Clare did right.
Lizzie: Oh, yeah, bye Brandon. You earned that one. Be better prepared next time. And, if we’re being honest, it’s not like he fell from such great heights. He was only still around because he has a pretty face, anyway.
Lyra: Ohhhh, that’s his name! Yeah, I would have sent him home too. It was so awkward watching him make a fool of himself over and over again. Who wants to spend time with someone like that? Not I. And even though I think Clare is leading them on I would have done the same thing she did.
Jessica: I would have sent him home. I don’t care that he didn’t know a lot about her or know about her history with the Bachelor franchise (actually, that might have worked in his favor), but he could have made something up. Or surely there was something he could say besides he knew she was from Sacramento.
Grace: 100% send him home. While I’m not sure if he necessarily knew that Clare was The Bachelorette when he signed up, he definitely knew it by the time quarantine was over and especially after the first night cocktail party. He had so many opportunities to find at least one characteristic of Clare that seemed appealing. Instead all he could say was her looks which came across as superficial. Good riddance if you ask me!
If you were The Bachelorette and had to choose your man now – who would you choose with who is left? Who would you immediately send home? Why?
Erin: I’d rather be single and invest in a good vibrator than take any of these fools home.
Lizzie: I’m not sure I would ever want to BE The Bachelorette. No, strike that, I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t. And it’s hard to pick from this crop of contestants because we’re seeing them from Clare’s POV. But, like …I might just go home empty handed if I had to choose from this group. Sorrynotsorry.
Lyra: Honestly, I still couldn’t care less for The Bachelorette or what she’s going through. This is just trash TV for the sake of it. As for who I would send home, everyone besides the guy who brought popcorn. I’m still firmly on the side of bringing food because that’s the way to my heart. Except Yosef. I don’t care what he brings because he’s a jerk.
Jessica: I don’t think I trust myself to pick the right guy. Case in point: for some reason I like Eazy, but there are some rumors floating around that he’s a terrible guy. And you never really know if these guys are good or not because how can you really know someone after dating them for a few weeks and basically living in a bubble with them? But I would definitely have already sent Yosef home. He creeps me out.
Grace: I think dating twenty men at once sounds great, but in practice it’s awful. Not that I would know or would ever come close to knowing. I don’t trust the producers in finding good men after Hannah Brown unknowingly walked away with the scum of the Earth, Jed Wyatt. I hope Clare finds a diamond in the ruff with these remaining men. As for me, I’ll just stick to watching the show on the couch with some wine.
