Bachelor Recap Week 6

From the very beginning of this season’s, The Bachelor, I mentioned that I was excited that Arie was given a second chance at love. I felt he really got the “short end of the stick” with Emily the first time around and maybe all he needed was his own experience.

Since then, it’s been a rollercoaster ride of emotions between liking him & being turned off by him with each passing episode.

After thinking Arie had no backbone on week 4, he turned things around a bit with his approach to Krystal’s little tantrum during week 5.. that was a rough one. I didn’t write a recap (sorry about that..things got busy around here!) but it was a juicy episode.

Last night’s episode began with me feeling optimistic (always, lol) and I couldn’t wait to see what happens in Paris..

via Nashville Scene

I was excited about this episode primarily because they are in Paris.. my favorite city! Paris is the city of love.. hopefully for these girls. The greatest part? They are staying on the Seine.  The ship is modern and chic.

Cut to Chris Harrison & Arie having a one-on-one convo. This little ‘talk’ is a little strange,  I’m not going to lie. All Arie talks about is the fact he’s worried he won’t  be able to make up his mind in the end…  It’s so far away from the finale and he’s still worried about this? Hmm… This subject has been brought up twice on the show so far. He keeps saying he’s worried he’s going to fall in love with more than one girl. Are we being forewarned?

via Entertainment Weekly

On this topic: before the season started, Arie went on some promo interviews to discuss the show and I remember him telling Jimmy Kimmel that he “falls in with two girls” when asked about how happy he is. He did the same with Mario Lopez (Extra!) and Mario starts the interview by saying: “I heard you fell in love with 2 girls.”  Coincidence? I think not. I’m grabbing my popcorn.

via YouTube

There are a few dates this week.  Two one-on-ones, one group date, and the first two-on-one date. This show keeps giving Krystal more & more airtime, which boggles my mind. (Why am I surprised?) The Bachelor needs it’s villain front & center. She loves every minute of it. Krystal has enough self-awareness to know that she’ll be on the two-on-one and she lets all of us know…

 

First Date

Lauren B. and Arie. Not sure whether I should grab a pillow & fall asleep or sit on the edge of my seat. I think we have heard Lauren speak a few lines up to this point and on this date she said a few more. She was sooooo cute though. Surely there is more to her?

The two jet down the Seine in a little boat and explore Paris together. Arie talks about his physical attraction towards her (even though he knows nothing about her..) and he seems hopeful about a connection being there. At first I felt there was nothing between these two… It was obvious Arie was into her but Lauren B seemed soooooo checked out. (I have been there myself on certain dates)

They proceed to walk around Paris… and I hear nothing. I find that I’m more excited about the people in the background since the two of them together = crickets. You know things are bad when the producers edit in the other girls talking about what they really think of Lauren as Arie and Lauren B walk around silently. I can’t imagine being in Paris & walking around the streets with someone that I’m interested in and not having anything to say..Even if I didn’t want to get personal yet, I still would comment on the beautiful sights and scenes around me. All she continued to say was, “Wow” and “Mmm Hmm”….

As Arie and Lauren sit down to have a little chat on a bench, Arie said that he couldn’t tell if Lauren was into him.  I really think that Arie loves “the thrill of the chase”.  Why am I surprised? Maybe because he’s 36 and claims he wants to be married, yet still acts like an insecure, awkward 25 year old with the girls.

Arie vocalizes to Lauren that he wants her to like him, and all she says in response is, “Mmmhmm.”  As I’m watching the show for the 2nd time for this recap (when I watch with my friends we are often talking and distracted), I’m noticing things that I didn’t really see the first time around. Lauren doesn’t give Arie any sort of validation at all and I feel like the majority of girls in the situation would have said something like, “I like you!” or “We’ll see.. *winky face*” or “No I don’t like you.. bye!” Lauren not talking at all comes across as so weird… disinterested?

On the nighttime portion of the date, they start off with a toast to their time in Paris. Arie begins talking about how ‘busy Paris is…”. What? He was clearly nervous and overcompensating for the lack of conversation on Lauren’s part. I hate dates like that. She finally starts loosening up and tells Arie she has a hard time with trust and puts people in the “friend zone” for 6 months or so before committing to a relationship. (that would make me run)

To make Lauren feel more comfortable, Arie tells her a story about his former girlfriend who became pregnant then misscarried…then left him while he was away racing. This obviously hurt him a great deal and he wrapped up by saying that he could relate to Lauren with the trust issues thing.  I was shocked when Lauren didn’t show any emotion or acknowledge anything about what he went through.. other than saying.. “That’s terrible”.  Instead all she talked about was her own trust issues yet again. ( I tell you… it helps watching this show twice)

The one thing I did like about their conversation occurred when Lauren talked about her parents and their difficult marriage. She felt constantly in the middle, which ultimately skewed her opinion on men. I thought that very insightful and it was sweet she opened up to Arie. (along with millions of people watching). She also admitted that she was engaged to her last ex and it ended poorly, and that was hard for her. I hope Lauren opens up more often. She seems so much more vulnerable and real.

Arie gives her the rose.
via Betches

 

Group Date

“My heart is about to fall out of my a**”  LOL. This elegant line was spoken while the group date card was read out loud. Jenna, Sienne, Chelsea, Tia, Becca K, and Bekah M were headed on the group date. This meant that Kendall, Krystal and Jacqueline were all that’s left for the remaining dates… the two-on-one and the individual date. Scary!

The group date takes place at the Moulin Rouge. I’ve been to the Moulin Rouge and love the show and it’s history. I knew the girls would love it as well… the costumes are crazy elaborate and tiny. Less material and more skin is the name of the game but don’t let the dancers fool you… Moulin Rouge is one hard gig. It’s not easy doing what they do so you can understand the girls nervousness when they were told that one of them… if lucky… would end up on stage with Arie. They all performed a little to see who would be picked… Arie states a little later on that the girl who gets to join him on stage for the show that night, is the girl he has a special connection with… not how good of a dancer they are. He ends up choosing Bekah M, who looks so different in a blonde wig. Maybe she should switch over to the fun side?  ;)

via ABC

Bekah M. got the rose.

 

Two-On-One 

 Taxidermy Girl (Kendall) vs. Krystal. 

I find myself beginning to like Kendall more, but she’s still a little blah for me in terms of personality. (sorry!) At least that’s how she comes across on the show. Krystal begins the date so confident that it hurts Kendall’s feelings. (Kendall needs more of a backbone at first) Krystal keeps throwing how much of a connection she and Arie have in Kendall’s face. I keep waiting for Kendall to throw Krystal down… ;)

As the girls leave on their date, Kendall lets the viewers know that she was nervous because she really felt like she and Arie had a strong connection before the two on one was announced. She feels it means he’s doubtful of her for some reason. Soooo Kendall goes into the date feeling insecure and Krystal comes across overconfident. She states that she and Arie have a connection like no other. (she conveniently forgets last week’s tiff)

They head off to a chateau where Krystal and Arie have the first private conversation. She finally apologizes about her behavior last week. He responds with ‘if you have something to say to me, say it… don’t tell everyone else”. He really hated the way she handled things last week.

Next up Kendall… Kendall tells Arie that she has never been in love before. (that’s a little concerning to me.) I personally think that if you’re thinking about getting engaged, you should have been in love at least once before. Arie then tells Kendall that Krystal told him (I feel like I’m back in high school) that Kendall wasn’t ready for marriage. (you think?)

Kendall is p#$*#!  She decides to have a conversation with Krystal to confront her on the whole “she’s not ready for love” thing. She tells Krystal that in fact she is ready, and that she has dated someone with a personality just like Krystal’s.. (Huh?) She then psychoanalyzes Krystal to Krystal. Such a weird moment. :O The entire conversation is so strange. After all is said and done, Krystal sums up the weird situation by saying, “I have no words.” Krystal could barely look at Kendall. I can’t blame her. Krystal is definitely in the wrong but Kendall acted like a scary girl by sitting closer to Krystal and grabbing Krystal’s hand, etc. all the while telling her she thinks she’s mental. Confused?

:O

After all this, Arie tells the two girls that he can’t make up his mind on who should stay and who should go (told you!) so they meet later for dinner at a gorgeous restaurant with incredible views of the Eiffel Tower. (I’m thinking the show needs the dramatic backdrop for the cut…)

They all speak – nothing exciting happens here except Krystal tells Kendall that she didn’t like being patronized earlier..  in the end Kendall gets the rose and Krystal finally goes home. I do think that Krystal and Arie had a genuine connection and she might have been able to get to the end a la Vienna & Jake Pavelka, however… she blew it with her outburst last week.  Kendall received the rose. zzzzzzz 

 

Last One-on-One 

via Accept This Rose

Jacqueline and Arie.

We haven’t seen much of Jacqueline before this date except for the times she’s seen talking to the girls… she’s cute! Nothing very exciting to tell, except they seem to have a genuine connection and I think he’s actually into her. The date was a Pretty Woman kind of date, where Jacqueline tried on dresses for their date. I loved that she was down to earth & goofy.. just like Arie. This is a couple I could actually see together down the road if it was the right time – which it’s clearly not. Arie talked about the fact that they were in 2 different places in their lives (when they were at dinner). She’s still finishing her education by pursuing a PHD and he’s looking to start a family soon. It will take 6 years for her to finish (her timeline) and by that time Aria will be 42. Jacqueline clearly likes Arie because she gets upset and cries at the thought of not continuing the relationship – he clearly likes her because he lights up and genuinely laughs around her.. he also talks often of just how smart she is and how he loves that.

He ends up giving Jacqueline the rose. 

I was so happy because (girl code) Jacqueline is hysterical and I just know we would be friends. :)

 

Rose Ceremony

First thoughts? Loved Tia’s black sequin jumpsuit!!! ;) I like her so much – if she doesn’t win then I hope she’s the next Bachelorette. She has so much personality & makes me laugh.. She also has a big heart.

Arie ends up sending Chelsea (single mom) & Jenna home. Totally saw this coming. They barely showed Jenna this entire season except for the few times she was all over Arie. I really felt that Arie liked Chelsea, but some of the other relationships seemed much stronger.

DRAMA –

Right after Arie sends the girls home and tells the remaining girls that they are heading to Tuscany next, he leaves. We, the viewers are shown some of the behind the scenes filming when Lauren is talking to a man who looks like a producer (or someone related to the show) about how frustrated she is. She says that she has a such a strong connection to Arie and she’s afraid that he’s going to choose someone else. Hmmmm… Once again this is shared with us.

Bekah M (pixie cut) is shown talking to the other girls about how someone said “Oooh you got a rose.. maybe not next week hon” and we’re lead to believe that the girl who said this is Lauren. Throughout this entire extra scene, the typical scary music is playing in the background… making me wonder what they are implying about Lauren. We aren’t normally shown behind the scene moments like this unless something is going on. There must be a motive… I guess we will see more as time goes on.

 

JUICY PREVIEWS OF THIS SEASON

They don’t usually show us this many juicy tidbits in the previews but… there seems to be so many things going on behind the scenes after the show. If you haven’t been “spoiled” or you don’t read Reality Steve, then all of this might not make sense to you. Can I just say that I’m dying and that the finale needs to come sooner rather than later!?

Everyone is shown crying including Arie.

The preview also shows some guy in a suit showing up on the show saying that he doesn’t want his face to be shown and he wants his “girl”. Who is he referring to?  He states he is going to propose to her. If that’s not enough… All the parents seem on edge during the hometown scenes, and Arie says in a suit “I just don’t know what to do.” Really Arie? I’m shocked… just kidding. Because that just might be the 100th time you’ve said that.