Thursday, July 28, 2016

The Bachelorette 12x09 and 12x10 Roundtable: And Then There Were Two [Contributors: Rae Nudson, Alisa Williams, Rebecca, Chelsea]


JoJo makes some crucial decisions this week and chooses her final two contestants to battle for her ring finger. Also this week, the men came back to tell all, which once again turned into everyone yelling at Chad. See what Rae, Alisa, Rebecca, and Chelsea had to say about this week's episodes of The Bachelorette.

Well, Robby and Jordan are in the final two. What do you think about JoJo’s picks?


Rae: We all think Jordan’s going to win, right? I do not think JoJo has good taste in men. She seems drawn to guys that are bad for her, but Jordan does seem more in line with JoJo. They’ll have a great few months of going on talk shows and being C-list celebrities together.

Alisa: Of course Jordan is going to win! I mostly think this because I only started remembering Robby’s name on a consistent basis maybe ten days ago. Jordan’s been the frontrunner from the beginning. Plus, during the Men Tell All, some vaguely memorable former contestant named Leah tweeted that she was watching MTA with Robby and Chase. And if Robby is getting cozy during MTA with a lady that’s not JoJo, then that only solidifies my guess that JoJo chose the more famous of her two former pro athletes.

Personally, I don’t like either of the final two men. Between Robby With the Dead Eyes and Jordan with his ridiculous swagger, the final two make me question JoJo’s decision-making abilities. There were literally dozens of better guys for her to pick from over these two clowns.

Rebecca: Honestly I don’t feel one way or the other about either of the final two. I guess I like Robby more, although I’m similar to Alisa in that I would forget about him every week until he went on a date with JoJo and I was like, “Oh yeah, that’s the other one who is still on.” Jordan has given me bad vibes from the beginning. He doesn’t come across as very genuine to me and there’s just something offputting about him I can’t really put my finger on. But I think Robby moved into this relationship waaaaay too quickly. At one point, he told JoJo he had broken up with his ex “a couple of months ago,” and this show was filmed... a couple of months ago. So he probably had only been single for a month or so before coming on the show, and a couple weeks later he’s in love. I’m worried JoJo may be a rebound. I don’t think he stands a chance against Jordan, though.

Chelsea: Jordan has been the frontrunner since his first moment on screen. I’ve had no doubt he would win this thing and that they’re both there for similar reasons. They do have a great chemistry and are a solid fit for one another. I think if JoJo was looking for husband material then she would have kept James Taylor or Luke around. Those guys were ready to settle down in Texas and make her happy. Both are too sweet for this show, so of course they wouldn’t win. I do like Robby though and he’s shown growth since his one-on-one date earlier this season. He would be the perfect Bachelor for next season and I think Luke is his only real competition for the spot. Robby seems to be more fun and would be more entertaining to watch. I don’t expect him and JoJo to end up together because he came on a little too strong early on.

How do you think the overnight dates went?


Alisa: Thinking too deeply about the overnight dates makes me squeamish. I mean, it’s really no secret anymore what goes on when the cameras, mics, and producers are taken away and a king-sized bed in a romantic locale is added. Obviously things went well for Robby and Jordan because they’re still standing and JoJo seems more confused than ever, even if the rest of America knows she’ll be choosing Jordan. I rolled my eyes so hard I almost gave myself an aneurysm when the next morning JoJo exclaimed excitedly, “we’re eating our first breakfast together!” to BOTH men. Come on, JoJo. Did the producers tell you that you had to use the exact same lines on both men? Because it seemed a little more forced that second time around.

Rebecca: (Quick side note: I had to laugh when JoJo referred to these dates as “the exotic overnight dates,” because my friends and I just call them what they are — ”the sex dates.”) Obviously Robby and JoJo, and Jordan and JoJo had some good times with one another because they made it to the final two and will meet her parents.

Chelsea: We just need to address the fact that JoJo wasted a night with Luke for the boring mess of a night that was Chase. I’m not even the biggest Luke fan and even I would keep him around for the fantasy nights. I do get why Chase was upset though. She’s been pushing him all season to open up to her and right after he does, she turns him down like that. It’s been pretty obvious that he’s just a Jordan lookalike that the producers are keeping around because he’s sweet and harmless. He never had a real chance at winning.

Rae: Has there ever been a season when all the remaining contestants looked so much alike? After JoJo kicked off Luke, I feel sort of checked out. I am not really into Robby or Jordan, and watching JoJo get worked up over these lackluster guys is sort of predictable and not that exciting. Chase’s date was at least interesting, even though it definitely did not go well. JoJo has said she’s never broken up with someone before this show, and she does not seem at all comfortable with letting the guys go, or good at letting them down easy. Maybe none of us are good at breaking up with someone, but JoJo is, well, extra not good at it.

What did you think were the biggest surprises from Men Tell All?


Alisa: They really should have just changed the name this season to Chad Tells All for all the time that was spent on him. I don’t know that there were any big surprises for me. Everyone stayed in character: Chad the villain, Chase the confused, Luke the brokenhearted (but ready for love again!), Derek the misunderstood Jim Halpert impersonator. I thought it was hilarious that they let Vinny’s mom into the audience and gave her a chance to plead her case for her son. I didn’t even remember Vinny, but I will remember his mother forever. Someone should have duct-taped Evan’s mouth shut before they allowed him on stage. I just can’t with that guy. I’m shocked he was allowed onto The Bachelorette in the first place and now he’s going to be on Bachelor in Paradise, too. Gross.

Rebecca: I didn’t think there were too many surprises; like Alisa said, everyone was who they were when they were on The Bachelorette. Chad... I don’t know where to start. I do feel bad for him in the sense that the other guys clearly egged him on and antagonized him. But he did kind of deserve it. He is so rude and disrespectful, but I have to admit that he was pretty entertaining. I caught myself laughing out loud at things he said more than once — sometimes because what was coming out of his mouth was so absurd and ridiculous, but sometimes because it was seriously funny.

I found Evan seriously annoying this time around but did feel a little embarrassed for him when they showed the clip that outed him pushing Chad. As much as I don’t care for either one, I am looking forward to seeing what kind of drama they bring to Paradise. Echoing Alisa about Vinny’s mom: she was the highlight of the show for me. She injected some humor and unpredictability in an (in my opinion) otherwise bland men tell-all. It was two hours of the guys arguing with Chad, which is basically what the show was when he was still around.

Chelsea: I’m very glad that right from the top they addressed the fact that Alex is really terrible and was always picking fights with others. They didn’t let him slide with being just as terrible as Chad. Also, the grin on his face when Chad walked into MTA just proved that he’d rather fight him than spend time playing the love game. Wells asking Chad what a luxury real estate agent does in Tulsa gave me life. Overall, the focus on Chad was way too much. I liked guys like Grant and Wells that used their words to try to talk about how the way he conducted himself was wrong. Otherwise, it was just too much focus on letting Chad argue and insult the other guys, and give him a platform to gossip about Jordan and Robby.

I like that we got to see more of Luke, Derek, Wells, and James Taylor. Looking at the ladies in the audience, something tells me Luke will find love soon. He’ll probably be the next Bachelor. Like, Chris isn’t being subtle about it when asking if he’s ready for love again.

P.S. When will Evan go away?

Rae: I do think they were totally setting up for Luke to be the next Bachelor. All that talk about how he loved JoJo and was brokenhearted but is totally ready and open to love! The biggest surprise to me was how great Bachelor in Paradise looks like it’s going to be. Except, why does it always seem like they pick the worst men to be on it but the best women? At least Wells will be there to save us from Evan and Chad.

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