I’m not excited for the next episode of the Bachelorette
When it comes to the Bachelor Universe, 2 on 1s are my favorite episodes. It takes the stakes of the show to the highest it can, in what’s generally a low-stakes show. We get a literal coin flip, and you can tell the producers have forced so much drama into the scenes that it’s the perfect amount of “extra”. The episodes usually also have great sound editing, setting, and incredible camerawork. Except after last week’s episode, the revealing of past tweets from Lee, and the trailer for next week’s episode, it feels like we are moving towards something bad.
2 on 1s are usually a time for villains to make their stake in Bachelor history, a moment where we get to see if they’re real, or if they were there for only television (most go for television, but some are 100% in on fame as the goal).
Famous 2 on 1's:
Ashley I vs Kelsey: This was an incredible moment. Watching the two on the beach be left as Chris Soules leaves, the Kelsey craziness and Ashley crying, it was amazing. The memes that came out of this were the best.
Olivia vs Emily: Her mouth was so big and always open. I remember cheering against Olivia once she referred to Amanda Stanton as “Teen Mom”. In retrospect, she wasn’t a bad character, and had a heavy edit. One of the weird things about this 2 on 1, is that really felt like Ben didn’t care for Emily, he just thought it would be better for Olivia to no longer be there.
Alex vs Chad: The former child meme is what Alex is famous for, however, his 2 on 1 where he outlasted Chad was a great moment.
Taylor vs Corrine: Being a fan of Corrine feels weird after all of the BIP transgressions. During last season, the battle of “emotional intelligence” between her and Taylor was annoying to say the least. Getting to watch the two clash, and watching Nick almost immediately pick Corrine was even more hilarious. In all honesty, she became way more likable once Taylor was gone.
Now, Lee vs Kenny:
You hear the line: “Two men, one rose, one stays, one goes.” The hype and production that comes with 2 on 1’s is unbelievable. This trailer makes me feel awkward. When I watch the Bachelorette, I’m expecting to have a relaxing watch on the couch where I can live-tweet about how lame certain people are, how dreamy another person is, how awesome Rachel is, look at some memes, and wait till it is back on next week. This produced drama to stir emotions by possibly physical fights with themes of racism included does not sound like fun.
I understand they want people to talk about this show, they want people watching this show, but after the BIP stuff, this does not feel right. This show deals with a ton of issues between the way it is viewed among popular culture. People that generally write about the show are usually more “liberal”, more blue state perspectives, trying to point out what’s wrong, and celebrate who is right. However, a good amount of viewers of the show come from Middle America, Red State views that just elected a president who differs from liberalthink.
Personally, I’m distinctly liberal, I’ll be honest about that. When I watch this show, I think that Lee is an “alternative fact pieces of garbage” that Kenny says he is. Lee acts sweet around Rachel, but in the house it feels he’s starting things with all of the people of color. That all makes sense when you look at the person Lee is.
In his interview write-up questions before the season, he spent a good amount of time talking about his music. What music does he make? Country music. Listening to Country music does not make you racist. I would never try to imply that. A healthy amount of Country music listeners are conservative, leading towards the base of fans that Lee would have. He’s gaining attention, every episode that he is on is more exposure for him. It is his goal to make it as far as he can in order to get his fans.
Do I think Lee is racist? If you had me look at a spectrum, I’d say yeah, not like an active racist, but a passive racist who believes in certain things that are inherently racist.
I feel bad for Kenny in this scenario. He had true passion for Rachel going in. Kenny might be a wrestler, but he’s been as distant as possible from the persona, except for when he was forced to wrestle on a group date, and for the fact that he’s a massive human being. He’s been on of the most gentle, considerate, and soft-spoken people on the show in recent seasons. Kenny real wants Rachel, that feels authentic. At the same time, I’m not sure about her affection for Kenny. She’s never given him a rose that early in the order. He lost his chance once Lee became one of the biggest things on his mind.
What’s wrong about this whole situation is that the Bachelorette/Bachelor should be about finding love, these guys vying for her love. It shouldn’t be about baited drama, for two people trying to prove something for their own self-image(s).
