S26.E05: Week 5

[Real4real]

I think it must be so boring to sit around waiting for your 2 minutes to talk/make out with the lead—I’m imagining that they’ve turned getting rid of Shane into a game of Taboo!  Can you get Colton to realize she’s evil without using certain key words?  “Crazy B”!  “Wrong reasons”!  “Manipulative”!

[SallyAlbright]

45 minutes ago, JenE4 said:

Either they keep adding more scandalous detail to the dramatic coming up season preview—or I’m finally just recognizing people enough to make sense of it. Somehow the girl he said he was falling in love with last week—the blonde who got this week’s date rose—isn’t even amongst the three he’s in love with toward the end of the season. Soooo… I guess he falls “in love” with more than 3 people? Or in love differs from falling in love on this show?

That's all just editing in the promo. He "fell in love" with the final three, and you can see their backs, but then they cut in clips of all the remaining girls to throw the viewers off. It's annoying every season! 

[leocadia]

Maybe we've got Shenae all wrong.  She called herself an activist who fights for the things she believes in!  She's standing up for all the unappreciated trophy-throwing, lying, manipulating, bitch/ho evictors our there!   Could someone point out to her that she hasn't sent anyone home?  She has convinced Clayton to send others home instead of her, but that's only because Clayton has zero ability to see what's going on around him.  

Also regarding Mara at the roast - I didn't even know you were a bitch!  Last week they had the women attack each other physically, this week verbally.  It's like a crash course on misogyny.

[chocolatine]

Not to be cruel, but losing a grandparent in one's 20s is hardly a tragedy. It's natural. Many of us don't even get to have our grandparents around for that long. Serene was really reaching for a sob story there.

There should be an SNL skit about the Bachelor ignoring every single warning about an obviously wrong-reasons contestant. Clayton looks more and more like an idiot with every episode that he keeps Shanae around.

I thought roasts were supposed to be mean *and* funny. Most of the ladies only got one out of two.

I just noticed in this episode how beautiful Genevieve is. Gorgeous hair, skin, and natural curves. Reminds me a bit of Vanessa from Nick's season. Of course she'll be toast on the 2:1.

At this point I'm watching purely to see how much more unpopular Clayton can get.

[nlkm9]

8 hours ago, JenE4 said:

Either they keep adding more scandalous detail to the dramatic coming up season preview—or I’m finally just recognizing people enough to make sense of it. Somehow the girl he said he was falling in love with last week—the blonde who got this week’s date rose—isn’t even amongst the three he’s in love with toward the end of the season. Soooo… I guess he falls “in love” with more than 3 people? Or in love differs from falling in love on this show?

Oh i thought the girl who was laying on the stairs saying “ she has never felt such pain” was rachel the pilot?

[nlkm9]

5 hours ago, chocolatine said:

Not to be cruel, but losing a grandparent in one's 20s is hardly a tragedy. It's natural. Many of us don't even get to have our grandparents around for that long. Serene was really reaching for a sob story there.

There should be an SNL skit about the Bachelor ignoring every single warning about an obviously wrong-reasons contestant. Clayton looks more and more like an idiot with every episode that he keeps Shanae around.

I thought roasts were supposed to be mean *and* funny. Most of the ladies only got one out of two.

I just noticed in this episode how beautiful Genevieve is. Gorgeous hair, skin, and natural curves. Reminds me a bit of Vanessa from Nick's season. Of course she'll be toast on the 2:1.

At this point I'm watching purely to see how much more unpopular Clayton can get.

Yes but shena isbt the first- he was like that with cassidy.the man is fickle his head is turned every which way. He would be such a bad boyfriend as he would fall in love worh every woman he talked to and he is so passive !!!!! 

[LBS]

I was cracking up at Rachel (I think. A blonde anyways) was struggling to think of nice things to tell Clayton after the roast:

”I like your smile”

”Um… I like the dimple when you smile”

Me: 

 

[Amy Beth]

Does the “show vulnerability by sharing trauma” requirement seem especially awful this season?

They all follow the exact same pattern:

Clayton does V/O about needing the woman to open up.

Woman spills gut about life trauma.

Clayton barely changes expression and thanks woman for being vulnerable.

Makeout session.

[seacliffsal]

So, adios to Sierra (I think) who was the one who told Clayton about Cassie and the current villain.  She suffered the fate of being eliminated after telling the lead that his "chosen" one is actually a snake in the grass.  Loved her attitude when she left.

I think a lot of the women really don't care about Clayton but they want to ensure that they get to go to Europe and continue their screen time.

[Ms Blue Jay]

9 hours ago, leocadia said:

Also regarding Mara at the roast - I didn't even know you were a bitch!  Last week they had the women attack each other physically, this week verbally.  It's like a crash course on misogyny.

Wait Mara was attacked first and simply stood up for herself.  What else was she supposed to do?

[Alexander Pope]

13 hours ago, JenE4 said:

The deranged strings orchestra music! This is the part in the Lifetime movie where Shanae will escalate to murder if any girl dare step in her way.

I loved when Shanae cackled that sending other women home was BETTER THAN SEX.  Clearly this is why she is here--to torment and triumph over other women.  ClayN is just the means to that end.  I see a thriller in the making.  With Elizabeth and the shrimp it was Single White Female.

[Alexander Pope]

26 minutes ago, seacliffsal said:

So, adios to Sierra (I think) who was the one who told Clayton about Cassie and the current villain.  She suffered the fate of being eliminated after telling the lead that his "chosen" one is actually a snake in the grass.  Loved her attitude when she left.

I think a lot of the women really don't care about Clayton but they want to ensure that they get to go to Europe and continue their screen time.

Sierra was amazing when she left--don't be stupid!! I give her serious props.  I don't think anyone has been that blunt with the Bachelor before--and her tone was perfect.

[Ms Blue Jay]

I was 50% thinking they should have had Shenae at the roast, so that everyone could lay into her, and 50% thinking maybe it's a great decision, because Shenae would be so awful and they were scared?  LOL.  I kind of wish Gabby was there too, because she actually seems fun compared to the rest.

People in my neighbourhood were posting cute things about when The Bachelor came to visit.  Apparently it was mid October which is shocking because Gabby and Clayton actually swam in that pool!  I assume it was heated.  I remember October being unseasonably warm but when I watched this I assumed it was the summertime.  

Edited February 8, 2022 by Ms Blue Jay

[JenE4]

2 hours ago, Amy Beth said:

Does the “show vulnerability by sharing trauma” requirement seem especially awful this season?

They all follow the exact same pattern:

Clayton does V/O about needing the woman to open up.

Woman spills gut about life trauma.

Clayton barely changes expression and thanks woman for being vulnerable.

Makeout session.

Clayton was leaned in and looking like he was going to try to kiss Serena WHILE she was giving her sob story about her emotional walls and dead grandmother and cousin. I was sitting there thinking, “Don’t do it, Clayton!” And then when she was finally done talking, he just sat there and didn’t say anything for what seemed like a full minute before he gave the basic, “Thanks for being vulnerable”—but no empathy or even follow-up questions or comments. So, yeah, I think Clayton  is just bad at normal human interaction. The sob stories themselves and the pattern of emoting/thanks for being vulnerable/kissing is pretty status quo—but just seems worse with robotic Clayton not giving any empathetic reaction before the kissing.

Edited February 8, 2022 by JenE4

[Rainsong]

One assumes that local chamber of commerce or film commission types work with production companies to show the good side of a city, to use John Fogerty’s famous lyric.  When the location is Houston it seems quite the challenge as our opening beauty shot is of freeway overpasses, blocks of apartments and a flat expanse of…flat expanse. Well, it is Texas. And this is another post with only coffee to fuel it. Must get back to nighttime viewing with something stronger.

Butter wouldn’t melt in Susie’s mouth but even she is joining in the Shanae slam sessions. Jill is still on this program for reasons unclear but maybe she’s an on-camera luggage porter.

Clayton is on a beach wearing another clearance-rack item from Marshalls, this time a peach t-shirt. The clothing budget must have been sacrificed in favor of Chris Harrison’s severance package.  He’s meeting up with Serene who is wearing cutoffs and not much else. In traditional Bachelor fashion they perform a docking maneuver before actually walking onto a real dock where there is an amusement park.  Beats fishing, I suppose.

Galveston (cue the Glen Campbell hit) was once struck by a fierce hurricane and the traumatized residents decided to effectively relocate the city inland which begat Houston.  Although we’ve got some rather rough Gulf surf today, no tropical cyclones are anticipated to make things interesting.  I’ll wager that ABC/Disney’s legal department were in two minds when they saw footage of a teacup ride that ripped off the REAL teacup ride at Disney World.  The rides & attractions’ names are double entendres if your mind works that way: Iron Shark, Sea Dragon, Sweet Scoops, Pirate’s Plunge, Texas Flyer.  There are even Galveston Juegos although most of the other Bachelorettes can top Serena in the juegos department. That’s a double-double entendre, by the way.  Two people alone in a park is a somewhat spooky Scooby-Doo vibe but it does provide freedom to mash at will.

Clayton’s dates all seem to culminate in some rather stilted conversations that sound more like job interviews with monotone I-was-glad-to-spend-time-with-you-today exchanges.

Serena brushes up well with a slinky black dress.  Clayton has been officially designated a fashion dead end with his speckled sweater that in no way matches his sport coat. He looks like he made a garment out of mom’s afghan. Clayton delivers a football pep talk in lieu of romantic overtures. Serena responds by closing her eyes as she claim to be ‘really happy too.’ Not according to that body language!  Clayton is still in interview mode even as the tears flow. ‘Thank you for sharing that. Now, let me show you our 401K options.’  The world’s most scripted, least convincing embraces follow. This could be your husband? He sounds like your CPA.

Someone in production must have heard our complaints about the paucity of rose ceremonies because here’s another one double quick. Unfortunately, the ceremonies appear to be airing in rapid fashion to subject us to more of the Shanae Sideshow including nervous hiking of dresses, desperate guzzling of wine and long faces all round. Hopefully candle holders have been secured to tabletops to avoid more hurling of projectiles. If Jill must return to her architectural history duties, she’s going down fighting.

Clayton makes another stealth entrance and is sorry to interrupt. On the other hand, maybe they’re not all that into him. Understandable. Clayton is less interested in romance than he is in conducting an inquest into the football game aftermath. Sierra is happy to witness for the prosecution (again). Mara doubts that Shanae is wife material but so far it sounds like living with Mara might necessitate hiding all the sharp objects in the house at bedtime each night as well as keeping those bank accounts and phone plans separate and sending the bills to a secret PO box.  On the subject of long(er) knives, Houstonian Lyndsey is feeling confident on home soil and gleefully sticking it to Shanae.

Superjock Clayton isn’t concerned about upset women, ruined parties or ongoing drama – he’s worried about the trophy, an inanimate object. One of his own kind, you might say. Clayton gives his version of a meandering tongue-lashing. Crocodile Shanae generates the only sort of tears a crocodile can generate. Incredibly, the other women, mad as hell five minutes ago, nod along and believe the world’s most insincere apology. As Paul Newman observed in The Sting: ‘They wouldn’t let you in here if you weren’t a chump!’

Shanae fairly skips back to the terminally naïve Clayton who just wanted to suck face. On-camera, in private, Shanae cackles over her ability to fake sincerity.

Clayton prefaces the rose ceremony by talking about ‘decisions.’ Thanks to some rather indiscreet video editing, we have a good idea what some of those decisions are already. Project Cleavage works in Genevieve’s favor. Eyes down there mean Clayton hasn’t noticed that Genevieve has yet to smile.  No need for the dropped jaws and pounding timpani – anyone with an IQ above room temperature knew that Shanae was going to be here another week. One can almost envision the producers throwing their hands up in exasperation at their comatose Bachelor. More footage of verbal catfighting is all they have left. Lyndsey will have a short limo ride home, at least.

Off to Toronto? Technically it’s international travel but still mainland North America.  Might I suggest the US Virgin Islands for seclusion and beauty? No passport headaches either. Scratch that – the USVI are my getaway and I’d rather not encounter any of this lot there.

Niagara Falls have been moved to Toronto?  Does the Canadian government know about this geographic outrage?  Is the establishing shot of Bridal Veil Falls on the American side a clever visual pun or are the producers not clever enough for such things?

Apparently the Falls aren’t first on the itinerary and we are, in fact, in Toronto. Clayton is wearing…a Mr Rogers zip-up sweater. I give up. The women enter a hotel suite and we see the obligatory shot of them collapsing onto a bed. Chris Harrison’s payoff must have been even larger than we think as this date begins with a $25 street hockey set.

‘Have you ever eaten beaver before?’ Clayton asks. There are two kinds of people – those who would snicker knowingly at that seemingly innocent line and those who would not. One’s reaction might hinge on age and/or gender or possibly on having been on a school bus before. ‘Nuff said. ‘Is that really beaver tail?’ asks gormless Gabby. Have you seen a beaver’s tail, love?  Not much edible there. And I imagine the aforementioned Canadian government would take a dim view of separating beavers, alive or dead, from their tails. I have some more shocking news for Gabby:  elephant ears at the county fair aren’t really made from elephants. They’re positively whacking the audience over the head with the priapic symbolism of the CN Tower right between the two love loonies.

A date card has arrived back at the suite. Genevieve has the thousand yard stare of post-traumatic stress. Or maybe she’s just bored. All but Genny and Shanae are on a group date, which means the return of the 2-on-1. Cue more ominous timpani sounds.

Speaking of vibrating membranes, Gabby is apparently determined to avoid the use of a brassiere for a full 24 hours. Clayton is in brown suede. Of course. It’s not easy wearing green, Gabby laments. Clayton is actively participating in a conversation and asking topical questions. Maybe he’s had a drink or two. A man with a suspicious turn of mind might ask why all his dates end up in floods of tears. It *is* easy for the slim Gabby to parade proudly in her barely-there swimsuit.

Heels and cobblestone are usually a bad mix but fashion needs must and the women are striding along confidently. Jesse makes an appearance along with, um, Russell Peters. Me neither. A roast emcee, they say. The unremarkable Clayton is an easy target for Peters who tells a few uncomfortable home truths along the way to nervous laughter as do the women, who obviously have had some help authoring their barbs. Mara fails to get into the spirit of the thing. Shocker.

Has Hunter got scales under her clothes or something? Why is she being ignored? She’s a looker, a laugher and lighthearted. Way too good for Clunker Clayton. Susie is giving it both pageant-girl barrels now with her rehearsed gestures and wireless mic. A rose for Rachel? It’s half-commentary, half-question since my hand involuntarily fast-forwarded past her vapidity.

The 2-on-1 is alongside Horseshoe Falls and we hope that luck will be a lady tonight, meaning that Genevieve stays and Shanae crosses the Rainbow Bridge back to the States. Not a pet or death or pet death reference. The actual Rainbow Bridge visible behind them.

‘It’s no surprise where we are,’ reveals Clayton completely surplus to requirements. Even the self-absorbed Bachelorettes probably recognize one of the natural wonders of the world roaring down nearby.  Alas, the Bachelor won’t choose his Maid Of The Mist until next week.

Edited February 8, 2022 by Rainsong

[phlebas]

16 hours ago, JenE4 said:

I think your own mother not loving you and no longer being in your life is either going to get Gabby the Grand Prize in trauma—or maybe so sad that we’re past Vulnerability and into Issues. But she said she got a lot of therapy, so she gets First place in Vulnerability. Yes, it was enough for Clayton to possibly fall in love!

I like Gabby, so I was very nervous going into her TrauMontage. While her story was sad, I was prepared for something more horrific.  So... yay?

They need to give this a rest.  Sharing your Deepest Darkest is not first date chat.

[jade.black]

Hello, I would like to apply as a contestant on a Marlena Bachelorette season.

I'm glad the roast gave that comedian a chance to openly acknowledge Clayton's vanilla blandness.

Honest to God, one of those women walked through Toronto and said 'look at the fall FOILAGE.' I rewound and think it was Gabby.

[Bluesky]

5 hours ago, seacliffsal said:

I think a lot of the women really don't care about Clayton but they want to ensure that they get to go to Europe and continue their screen time.

I would bet some money that none of them are into Clayton.  I’d pretend too to go to Europe.   
shanae is so tiresome.  She’s overstayed her usefulness.   She’s not clever or witty or anything entertaining.  She’s a fast forward when’s on screen. 

[DEL901]

1 hour ago, Bluesky said:

I would bet some money that none of them are into Clayton.  I’d pretend too to go to Europe.   
shanae is so tiresome.  She’s overstayed her usefulness.   She’s not clever or witty or anything entertaining.  She’s a fast forward when’s on screen. 

Shanae is also an idiot.   Can you imagine Clayton watching this with his family and she’s acting like a d-list villain?    Of course, if she is F1, then I will laugh and laugh and laugh….but even Clayton isn’t that thick, right?

[Back Atcha]

On 2/8/2022 at 3:46 PM, DEL901 said:

On 2/8/2022 at 1:49 PM, Bluesky said:

I would bet some money that none of them are into Clayton.  I’d pretend too to go to Europe.   
shanae is so tiresome.  She’s overstayed her usefulness.   She’s not clever or witty or anything entertaining.  She’s a fast forward when’s on screen. 

Shanae is also an idiot.  

She MUST have some association or relation to some bigwig on the show or ABC.  HOW ELSE would she even be selected?  Anyone know a private detective ???    

Edited February 10, 2022 by Back Atcha

[Andyourlittledog2]

4 minutes ago, Back Atcha said:

he MUST have some association or relation to some bigwig on the show or ABC.  HOW ELSE would she even be selected?  Anyone know a private detective ???    

Yep. I'll bet anything she's someone's girlfriend.  She's definitely not for real. She's so bad at this.

I'm waiting for the woman whose terrible life trauma is that her goldfish died. And Clayton will stare blankly at her while massaging her thigh, say thank you for sharing that, and then stick his tongue down her throat. 

What a season.

Number one rule of sharing life traumas on The Bachelor: don't make it about how screwed up your family is. Bachelors never choose the bad family issues woman, they choose the Leave it to Beaver family woman, or close to it. Perhaps this is the reason the women are sharing these things: they want to get out of there.

[nlkm9]

7 hours ago, Rainsong said:

One assumes that local chamber of commerce or film commission types work with production companies to show the good side of a city, to use John Fogerty’s famous lyric.  When the location is Houston it seems quite the challenge as our opening beauty shot is of freeway overpasses, blocks of apartments and a flat expanse of…flat expanse. Well, it is Texas. And this is another post with only coffee to fuel it. Must get back to nighttime viewing with something stronger.

Butter wouldn’t melt in Susie’s mouth but even she is joining in the Shanae slam sessions. Jill is still on this program for reasons unclear but maybe she’s an on-camera luggage porter.

Clayton is on a beach wearing another clearance-rack item from Marshalls, this time a peach t-shirt. The clothing budget must have been sacrificed in favor of Chris Harrison’s severance package.  He’s meeting up with Serene who is wearing cutoffs and not much else. In traditional Bachelor fashion they perform a docking maneuver before actually walking onto a real dock where there is an amusement park.  Beats fishing, I suppose.

Galveston (cue the Glen Campbell hit) was once struck by a fierce hurricane and the traumatized residents decided to effectively relocate the city inland which begat Houston.  Although we’ve got some rather rough Gulf surf today, no tropical cyclones are anticipated to make things interesting.  I’ll wager that ABC/Disney’s legal department were in two minds when they saw footage of a teacup ride that ripped off the REAL teacup ride at Disney World.  The rides & attractions’ names are double entendres if your mind works that way: Iron Shark, Sea Dragon, Sweet Scoops, Pirate’s Plunge, Texas Flyer.  There are even Galveston Juegos although most of the other Bachelorettes can top Serena in the juegos department. That’s a double-double entendre, by the way.  Two people alone in a park is a somewhat spooky Scooby-Doo vibe but it does provide freedom to mash at will.

Clayton’s dates all seem to culminate in some rather stilted conversations that sound more like job interviews with monotone I-was-glad-to-spend-time-with-you-today exchanges.

Serena brushes up well with a slinky black dress.  Clayton has been officially designated a fashion dead end with his speckled sweater that in no way matches his sport coat. He looks like he made a garment out of mom’s afghan. Clayton delivers a football pep talk in lieu of romantic overtures. Serena responds by closing her eyes as she claim to be ‘really happy too.’ Not according to that body language!  Clayton is still in interview mode even as the tears flow. ‘Thank you for sharing that. Now, let me show you our 401K options.’  The world’s most scripted, least convincing embraces follow. This could be your husband? He sounds like your CPA.

Someone in production must have heard our complaints about the paucity of rose ceremonies because here’s another one double quick. Unfortunately, the ceremonies appear to be airing in rapid fashion to subject us to more of the Shanae Sideshow including nervous hiking of dresses, desperate guzzling of wine and long faces all round. Hopefully candle holders have been secured to tabletops to avoid more hurling of projectiles. If Jill must return to her architectural history duties, she’s going down fighting.

Clayton makes another stealth entrance and is sorry to interrupt. On the other hand, maybe they’re not all that into him. Understandable. Clayton is less interested in romance than he is in conducting an inquest into the football game aftermath. Sierra is happy to witness for the prosecution (again). Mara doubts that Shanae is wife material but so far it sounds like living with Mara might necessitate hiding all the sharp objects in the house at bedtime each night as well as keeping those bank accounts and phone plans separate and sending the bills to a secret PO box.  On the subject of long(er) knives, Houstonian Lyndsey is feeling confident on home soil and gleefully sticking it to Shanae.

Superjock Clayton isn’t concerned about upset women, ruined parties or ongoing drama – he’s worried about the trophy, an inanimate object. One of his own kind, you might say. Clayton gives his version of a meandering tongue-lashing. Crocodile Shanae generates the only sort of tears a crocodile can generate. Incredibly, the other women, mad as hell five minutes ago, nod along and believe the world’s most insincere apology. As Paul Newman observed in The Sting: ‘They wouldn’t let you in here if you weren’t a chump!’

Shanae fairly skips back to the terminally naïve Clayton who just wanted to suck face. On-camera, in private, Shanae cackles over her ability to fake sincerity.

Clayton prefaces the rose ceremony by talking about ‘decisions.’ Thanks to some rather indiscreet video editing, we have a good idea what some of those decisions are already. Project Cleavage works in Genevieve’s favor. Eyes down there mean Clayton hasn’t noticed that Genevieve has yet to smile.  No need for the dropped jaws and pounding timpani – anyone with an IQ above room temperature knew that Shanae was going to be here another week. One can almost envision the producers throwing their hands up in exasperation at their comatose Bachelor. More footage of verbal catfighting is all they have left. Lyndsey will have a short limo ride home, at least.

Off to Toronto? Technically it’s international travel but still mainland North America.  Might I suggest the US Virgin Islands for seclusion and beauty? No passport headaches either. Scratch that – the USVI are my getaway and I’d rather not encounter any of this lot there.

Niagara Falls have been moved to Toronto?  Does the Canadian government know about this geographic outrage?  Is the establishing shot of Bridal Veil Falls on the American side a clever visual pun or are the producers not clever enough for such things?

Apparently the Falls aren’t first on the itinerary and we are, in fact, in Toronto. Clayton is wearing…a Mr Rogers zip-up sweater. I give up. The women enter a hotel suite and we see the obligatory shot of them collapsing onto a bed. Chris Harrison’s payoff must have been even larger than we think as this date begins with a $25 street hockey set.

‘Have you ever eaten beaver before?’ Clayton asks. There are two kinds of people – those who would snicker knowingly at that seemingly innocent line and those who would not. One’s reaction might hinge on age and/or gender or possibly on having been on a school bus before. ‘Nuff said. ‘Is that really beaver tail?’ asks gormless Gabby. Have you seen a beaver’s tail, love?  Not much edible there. And I imagine the aforementioned Canadian government would take a dim view of separating beavers, alive or dead, from their tails. I have some more shocking news for Gabby:  elephant ears at the county fair aren’t really made from elephants. They’re positively whacking the audience over the head with the priapic symbolism of the CN Tower right between the two love loonies.

A date card has arrived back at the suite. Genevieve has the thousand yard stare of post-traumatic stress. Or maybe she’s just bored. All but Genny and Shanae are on a group date, which means the return of the 2-on-1. Cue more ominous timpani sounds.

Speaking of vibrating membranes, Gabby is apparently determined to avoid the use of a brassiere for a full 24 hours. Clayton is in brown suede. Of course. It’s not easy wearing green, Gabby laments. Clayton is actively participating in a conversation and asking topical questions. Maybe he’s had a drink or two. A man with a suspicious turn of mind might ask why all his dates end up in floods of tears. It *is* easy for the slim Gabby to parade proudly in her barely-there swimsuit.

Heels and cobblestone are usually a bad mix but fashion needs must and the women are striding along confidently. Jesse makes an appearance along with, um, Russell Peters. Me neither. A roast emcee, they say. The unremarkable Clayton is an easy target for Peters who tells a few uncomfortable home truths along the way to nervous laughter as do the women, who obviously have had some help authoring their barbs. Mara fails to get into the spirit of the thing. Shocker.

Has Hunter got scales under her clothes or something? Why is she being ignored? She’s a looker, a laugher and lighthearted. Way too good for Clunker Clayton. Susie is giving it both pageant-girl barrels now with her rehearsed gestures and wireless mic. A rose for Rachel? It’s half-commentary, half-question since my hand involuntarily fast-forwarded past her vapidity.

The 2-on-1 is alongside Horseshoe Falls and we hope that luck will be a lady tonight, meaning that Genevieve stays and Shanae crosses the Rainbow Bridge back to the States. Not a pet or death or pet death reference. The actual Rainbow Bridge visible behind them.

‘It’s no surprise where we are,’ reveals Clayton completely surplus to requirements. Even the self-absorbed Bachelorettes probably recognize one of the natural wonders of the world roaring down nearby.  Alas, the Bachelor won’t choose his Maid Of The Mist until next week.

Rainsong you are the best . Omg 💙❤️

[Ms Blue Jay]

3 hours ago, Andyourlittledog2 said:

I'm waiting for the woman whose terrible life trauma is that her goldfish died. And Clayton will stare blankly at her while massaging her thigh, say thank you for sharing that,

It's ALWAYS THANK YOU FOR SHARING THAT!

My grandmother died

.........thank you for sharing that

Then my cousin died

........ Thank you for sharing that

 

Has the man not heard of the phrase "I'm so sorry?"  HE'S SO AWKWARDDDDDDDD

[b2H]

20 hours ago, chocolatine said:

Not to be cruel, but losing a grandparent in one's 20s is hardly a tragedy. It's natural. Many of us don't even get to have our grandparents around for that long. Serene was really reaching for a sob story.

Hell, I lost my paternal grandparents a year and a couple of weeks apart from each other while I was in college.  Never knew my maternal grandparents.  I guess that must be on the level of ‘Macbeth’ or ‘Hamlet’ tragedy.

[Hip-to-be-Square]

All of the 1 on 1 dates look like they're going to cry as soon as they sit down to dinner with Clayton- 😆 I bet the producers say, "I'll give you 4 bites of your shrimp scampi and then it's onto childhood dyslexia and your dead uncle!" 

[DA6988]

21 hours ago, chocolatine said:

Not to be cruel, but losing a grandparent in one's 20s is hardly a tragedy. It's natural. Many of us don't even get to have our grandparents around for that long. Serene was really reaching for a sob story there.

While this is true, Serene mentioned her mom was a single mom. I lived with my grandparents due to a similar situation until I was 6 and losing my grandmother three years ago when I was 30 sometimes still hits hard. Some days the feeling of grief still feels like too much and it’s three years later. I will randomly start crying. I imagine depending on their relationship and the affect losing her had on her other relationships with family members it could have been really tough. I also got the sense that it was the compounded loss of her grandmother and then her cousin which is as tough for her. 

[ECM1231]

2 hours ago, b2H said:

Hell, I lost my paternal grandparents a year and a couple of weeks apart from each other while I was in college.  Never knew my maternal grandparents.  I guess that must be on the level of ‘Macbeth’ or ‘Hamlet’ tragedy.

Heck, at least you had 2 grandparents. I only had one grandparent, my maternal grandmother. She was the best! 

But yeah, idk how these contestants think that sharing their traumas/tragedies, is a good thing. Yes, it shows vulnerability and openness, but as far as the lead is concerned, as Tayshia says "It's a LOT!" Nobody wants to be dating a Debbie Downer.

53 minutes ago, DA6988 said:

While this is true, Serene mentioned her mom was a single mom. I lived with my grandparents due to a similar situation until I was 6 and losing my grandmother three years ago when I was 30 sometimes still hits hard. Some days the feeling of grief still feels like too much and it’s three years later. I will randomly start crying. I imagine depending on their relationship and the affect losing her had on her other relationships with family members it could have been really tough. I also got the sense that it was the compounded loss of her grandmother and then her cousin which is as tough for her. 

Fair enough. I'm sorry for your loss. As far as Serene's cousin, though, I didn't get the sense that they were all that close. She was her contemporary, but it seemed as if they were closer as children. That one seemed a stretch.

[chocolatine]

2 hours ago, DA6988 said:

While this is true, Serene mentioned her mom was a single mom. I lived with my grandparents due to a similar situation until I was 6 and losing my grandmother three years ago when I was 30 sometimes still hits hard. Some days the feeling of grief still feels like too much and it’s three years later. I will randomly start crying. I imagine depending on their relationship and the affect losing her had on her other relationships with family members it could have been really tough. I also got the sense that it was the compounded loss of her grandmother and then her cousin which is as tough for her. 

I'm not saying it wasn't sad for Serene, but she played up it to be something extraordinary that she doesn't like sharing with people and had to work up the courage to tell Clayton. That's what felt fake to me, not her sadness over the losses.

But really I can't even blame Serene, she was just following the script. Apparently this show has decided that, in order to build a genuine connection, a contestant has to tell the lead a sob story and the lead gets to show how empathetic they are (by giving a canned response and initiating a make-out session).

[JenE4]

I think the sob stories are intended to be a way to build intimacy. I trust you enough to tell you something that I’ve never told anyone that helped shape who I am today. It just loses the entire punch of baring one’s innermost struggles when you realize she’s not just telling the lead, but the 15 other crew members on set, and the 7 million viewers watching at home. 

[Kerri Johnson]

On 2/8/2022 at 5:02 AM, nlkm9 said:

Oh i thought the girl who was laying on the stairs saying “ she has never felt such pain” was rachel the pilot?

Yes, it's Rachel who is crying on the stairs with a missing fingernail

[tinkerbell]

21 hours ago, DEL901 said:

Shanae is also an idiot.   Can you imagine Clayton watching this with his family and she’s acting like a d-list villain?    Of course, if she is F1, then I will laugh and laugh and laugh….but even Clayton isn’t that thick, right?

I don't understand Shanae's game plan.   she's trying to "WIN"  a competition, where the prize is a man who will then get to see all her comments on tv, about how she was acting, how she was the one deciding who goes home, how the other girls were bitches, how she didn't mean her apology, deserves an Oscar/Emmy for her performance. 

 What's the plan?  If she's in it to "win" - that means getting the final rose, and a proposal.   Would she turn it down, saying "SUCKER! I was playing you!"  Or would she agree to be engaged, then let it all unravel when Clayton saw it all on TV?   It's not like all her ugliness was hidden in underhanded behavior - she talked to the camera each step of the way, about how she was playing a game to beat everyone else.   There's just no way that she comes out looking good to anyone - except maybe the producers looking for a villain to go on Bachelor in Paradise. 

[Adeejay]

The look on Clayton's face when Sierra told him, "Don't be stupid", was priceless.  Unfortunately, it's a little too late for that.  Sierra had to go.  Couldn't have her leading the charge against their plant; not with several more weeks left to produce.  

[Arkay]

53 minutes ago, tinkerbell said:

I don't understand Shanae's game plan.   she's trying to "WIN"  a competition, where the prize is a man who will then get to see all her comments on tv, about how she was acting, how she was the one deciding who goes home, how the other girls were bitches, how she didn't mean her apology, deserves an Oscar/Emmy for her performance. 

 What's the plan?  If she's in it to "win" - that means getting the final rose, and a proposal.   Would she turn it down, saying "SUCKER! I was playing you!"  Or would she agree to be engaged, then let it all unravel when Clayton saw it all on TV?   It's not like all her ugliness was hidden in underhanded behavior - she talked to the camera each step of the way, about how she was playing a game to beat everyone else.   There's just no way that she comes out looking good to anyone - except maybe the producers looking for a villain to go on Bachelor in Paradise. 

It’s all in your last sentence. I don’t think Shanae has a molecule of interest in Clayton and she doesn’t care what he thinks when this is showing on TV now. 
 

I’m of the opinion that she’s just trying to become a Bachelor “name,” with an eye to seeing whom she can tear into on Bachelor in Paradise.

The show is giving her more airtime than anyone because the drama is their pot of gold. 

[ljenkins782]

6 hours ago, Kerri Johnson said:

Yes, it's Rachel who is crying on the stairs with a missing fingernail

LOL, that missing fingernail drives me crazy every time I see it. I have to point at it every time and that preview has now played a million times, it just never gets old for me.

Quote

 

It's ALWAYS THANK YOU FOR SHARING THAT!

My grandmother died

.........thank you for sharing that

Then my cousin died

........ Thank you for sharing that

Has the man not heard of the phrase "I'm so sorry?"  HE'S SO AWKWARDDDDDDDD

 

Based on his hand on thigh positioning, I think he doesn't even hear what they're saying, he's just waiting til they're done talking to make his move. I get really irritated by the tiresome opinion so many men have that the best time to make a move on a woman is when she's "vulnerable." Personally, if I just got done talking about my dead grandfather, the last thing I feel like doing is making out. 

This season is such a dud for me. These 1-1 dates seem interminably long because Clayton is so aggressively dull. No matter what the setting, it seems like being with him would just suck the life out of it. Maybe he's better in person or without cameras, but he is so, so boring on TV. And none of these women seem truly interested in him. The show is back to traveling, so there's motivation to stay for the next destination, but if this season had happened during peak pandemic "trapped in a midlevel hotel" times, I think most of these folks would have self-eliminated. If Clayton can make a helicopter ride/amusement park/whatever dull, just imagine him with cardboard taxis and truth or dare in the Courtyard Inn parking lot! 

The group date with the roast was the closest thing I've seen to entertainment, I'd rather have watched the full thing of that and skipped all the rest.

[Back Atcha]

4 hours ago, ljenkins782 said:

This season is such a dud for me.

Eight words to describe an entire season!  Thanks, LJenkins!

4 hours ago, ljenkins782 said:

These 1-1 dates seem interminably long because Clayton is so aggressively dull.

Every sentence gets better!  I love the use of "interminably" and "aggressively dull."  Fangirl, Fangirl, Fangirl.

4 hours ago, ljenkins782 said:

No matter what the setting, it seems like being with him would just suck the life out of it.

And...he's sucking the life out of it in CLOSE-UPS!   Close-Close-Close-Ups!!!   AND STILL...every pathetic male wannabe will stand in line to try to be The Bachelor.

[Back Atcha]

19 hours ago, chocolatine said:

But really I can't even blame Serene, she was just following the script. Apparently this show has decided that, in order to build a genuine connection, a contestant has to tell the lead a sob story and the lead gets to show how empathetic they are (by giving a canned response and initiating a make-out session).

If I cared, I'd watch the next season--to see if (hopefully) a new production staff with "new and exciting ideas" would come up with a unique angle. I'm tired of these "being VUHN-erable" games. They're truly humiliating--whether true or not.  One way it would work for me is if the women are sitting in a circle--taking turns.  Each contestant would try to outdo those before her.  Ugly cry-faces are encouraged. The Bachelor sits on a type of throne to demonstrate his benvolence superiority.

[EllenB]

13 hours ago, Kerri Johnson said:

Yes, it's Rachel who is crying on the stairs with a missing fingernail

There needs to be a Bachelor/Bachelorette version of Clue.

[Pj3422]

:::::sigh::::  This will never happen, but I can dream:

Clayton: “The final rose goes to someone who will never be my final pick, will never be The Bachelorette, and will be lucky to make it through Paradise with just a case of the clap. She’s been an embarrassment to herself and her family. But the producers want her around for “DRAMA.” So, Shenae, if you want this rose, it’s here on the table.”

 

[Andromeda]

On 2/7/2022 at 6:19 PM, DEL901 said:

And I love how they got the CN Tower into almost every shot

LOL, I know. Reminds me of getting the Space Needle in shots of Seattle. I visited the CN tower, rode up the elevator... I remember the lobby being much like old World's Fair things in Seattle -- kind of run-down. 

I was in Toronto during winter. I loved the underground shopping mall that went for miles...

They sure did make the city sound exotic. 

Are they on Maid of the Mist, or another ferry? I didn't see it mentioned, or any signs.

[DEL901]

1 hour ago, Andromeda said:

LOL, I know. Reminds me of getting the Space Needle in shots of Seattle. I visited the CN tower, rode up the elevator... I remember the lobby being much like old World's Fair things in Seattle -- kind of run-down. 

I was in Toronto during winter. I loved the underground shopping mall that went for miles...

They sure did make the city sound exotic. 

Are they on Maid of the Mist, or another ferry? I didn't see it mentioned, or any signs.

Main of the Mist company lost the contract a few years ago and they the boats have another name now, but no one uses the new name. maid of the Mist is too famous.     As for the underground PATH system, it is 30 kilometres or about 19 miles long.   Very useful in the winter.  

Edited February 11, 2022 by DEL901