I say this every time, but hometowns are my absolute favorite. We get to see contestants in a different light, we see the lead a bit more nervous than usual, and many times it’s the first time we get some true vulnerability that doesn’t feel forced from everyone left in the process. Tonight was very much all of that. In fact, it felt like one of the more normal hometowns we’ve ever seen. Even though production definitely tried to play up some family relationships or potential drama, overall, everything seemed to go as expected.
Susie, Poquoson, Virginia
Susie’s hometown is up first, and she’s in the most gorgeous pink coat. Was this one of her gifts from the pretty woman date? When they first see one another the vibes are off. Neither one of them seem that excited to see one another.
For the day time portion of their date, we finally get to see Susie in her badass habitat! They’re practicing jiu-jitsu for the day and I am so excited Susie picked a date that allowed us to see one of her hobbies.
They get a quick jiu-jitsu lesson and Susie basically chokes the man and kicks his ass. Love to see it honestly.
Susie shares how she’s always wanted to get out of her hometown, but then her dad got sick and she knew how important it was for her to be home, at least through that time period of her life. She reminds Clayton how serious she is about their relationship and that’s why she’s bringing him home.
Susie’s Family: Mom Jean, Dad Tom, Sister Barbara, Best Friend Lauren
Susie’s family had a warmness to them, even through the screen. They felt like this group of people that have this great bond where there’s a lot of care for one another.
Tom, Susie’s dad, pulls her to go talk first. She asks about how his health is first and then shares with him that he’s set the standard for the type of man she expects as a partner. It was such a sweet moment.
Clayton sits with Tom next and explains to him who Susie is and what it would mean to choose her. At her dad’s worst health moments, Susie slept next to his bed all night. Her dad calls her a catch and says that as her parents, they look up to her, what a compliment!
Jean, Susie’s mom asks Clayton if he loves Susie and he doesn’t answer the question, this will be the first of many times that he obfiscates the question of whether he loves any of these women, which is so interesting given what we know now.
When sitting with her mom, Susie shares that she thinks she could marry him. Jean shares with Susie that Clayton didn’t say he loved her.
Gabby, Denver, Colorado
Gabby is up next and she’s sharing how much the city of Denver means to her. They’re meeting in the woods and I was surprised at how excited she was to see him.
I didn’t take their connection seriously, but there were little moments during this date that communicated so much, like when Gabby tied Clayton’s boot. I know this is such a small gesture, but it really is one that communicates care and love. You know how many times my partner has laced up my sneakers or helped me in to (and out of) a heel? A lot.
Clayton and Gabby are hiking a trail and she decides to take him to Proposal Rock as a “subtle hint” of what she hopes for. This was a cute way for Gabby to show that she was really interested in Clayton in her perfectly quirky way.
They make their way to a random hot tub, as one does in this franchise. I was just happy to finally get shot tub ina cold climate, instead of the ones we’ve been getting in hot ass Palm Springs.
Clayton asks who he’ll be meeting that night. Gabby shares that her Grandpa, uncle, aunt and cousin will be present. She shares that her dad’s girlfriend was recently diagnosed with cancer and therefore he won’t be able to attend the meeting.
Gabby’s Family: Grandpa John, Aunt Julie, Uncle Rich, Cousin Kira
I like that were getting some non-traditional family members, this show really pushes the nuclear family and it’s nice to see Gabby prioritize people who are important to her. Almost immediately as Gabby sits down, she starts crying. In her interview with producers she says she’s falling in love with Clayton.
Gabby shares the story of her limo entrance with her family (where she made a joke about sitting on Clayton’s face) and even though it was a little vulgar, her Grandpa John, bursts into laughter. It’s cute to see that her family has the same sense of humor.
Grandpa John takes Clayton to talk, Clayton asks how Gabby was growing up and John says she’s always been silly. John encourages Clayton to slowly get to know one another and that there’s no need to rush even though the process its self is rather rushed.
Meanwhile Gabby is sitting with her aunt and uncle sharing how hard its been to parse her feelings during this process. She shares that she hasn’t said she loves him because she wanted to see him with her family.
Her aunt and uncle praise how easily Clayton is able to joke with the family and they all agree that he fits in well with them.
Time for Gabby and Grandpa John to sit with one another. John says that Clayton is full of shit, as a joke, of course. He’s excited for his granddaughter.
He cautions her to make sure if they decide to get married to make sure it’s for life. He says if it isn’t for life, he’ll haunt her. It’s unclear if he was joking or not, but I just want to note, divorce is ok. You can be in love and and be ready for marriage with a person and then things can change.
People go through seasons, experiences may shape the way they act and although marriage is a life-long vow, it’s not a moral failing if two people decide to go their seperate ways.
It’s likely that Grandpa John was joking, but I think if he was more aware of this shows track record he probably wouldn’t even be entertaining a conversation about marriage.
Gabby rejoins the family and they share their regrets that Gabby’s dad couldn’t be there. Then there’s a honk outside and it’s Gabby’s dad holding several posters with sweet messages on them. The sentiment is very kind and feels like those old videos people used to make to tell a sad story on YouTube.
What was sweet about this moment is how much it meant to Gabby. She begins full on sobbing and it was this moment when I was convinced Gabby could be a good bachelorette. We barely get to see all sides of a contestant, but we’ve seen her silly side, her serious side when speaking about her relationship with her mother, and her loving side for her family and Clayton. Given all that, she seems like a great option. Ready to be in a relationship, emotionally open and intelligent, and a gorgeous woman with an actual job.
It was weird that no one joined her outside. Not Clayton or her family. I understand the importance of having her moment with just her father, but Clayton couldn’t have waved from the porch? Weird.
Seeing her father was all Gabby needed to share how she really felt with Clayton. She tells him she’s falling in love with him and as they’re saying goodbye, Gabby says she’s ready for their lives together.
Serene, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
We are in the midwest for Serene’s hometown date and she seems really excited to see him!
Serene and Clayton are climbing a big ass tower and all I could think about was the fact that they were doing it in jeans. Why were they in jeans? Did no one tell them to dress appropriately? Was wearing rigid clothing part of the challenge? Help me understand.
Clayton is freaking out on the obstacles and Serene is breezing through it, which was cute especially since Clayton is the athlete of the two.
During the date, we’re getting soundbites of Clayton talking about how the obstacle course is a lot like falling in love. We didn’t need any of this. Please stop making these people compare dates of any type to falling in love. Cut it out.
It’s time for the final obstacle and to get back to the ground, they’re JUMPING. When they both make it to the bottom, they embrace. Serene is smart, this was a way for them to bond over a shared (scary) experience.
Serene gives Clayton the download of who he’ll be meeting and she let’s him know that her dad won’t be there. Her parents divorced when she was very young and she says she’s never really seen functioning marriage before so she’s slow to open up and bring men home.
Serene’s Family: Mom, Brother Roland, BFF Melanie
The conversations with Serene’s family seemed a little awkward. While they’re sharing good stories and memories from their journey, her family looks a little uninterested.
Clayton and Serene’s brother go and sit. He shares that Serene doesn’t open up easily and it scares him because it take her a while to open up with her own family.
We find out that the cousin Serene mentioned during her one-on-one with Clayton died just months before she went on this journey. Roland asks Clayton if he loves Serene, he stumbles, gives and audible “um” and then says he hasn’t said it to anyone. But that’s not what Roland asks. Not a good sign for Serene.
Serene is talking with her mother and she’s lit up sharing memories from their time together. I don’t think I realized how into Clayton Serene was. It’s not that we didn’t see enough of their connection, I feel like we saw a lot of it. But her connection with Clayton was easy to overlook in comparison to what he has with Rachel and Susie.
Roland and Serene talk and Roland asserts himself as the protective big brother. He says he really doesn’t want her to be hurt, he clearly wants so badly to protect her and I think his tears were a bit of realization that he can’t protect her, all he can do is share his opinion and be there for her regardless of the outcome. Serene says she’s never seen her brother emotional, which gave her a sense of peace.
Listen, I don’t really care what was said during this meeting of the family, the conversations felt too easy and rushed, so it’s likely not a good sign for Serene. As Serene prepares to say goodbye, she tells Clayton she’s in love with him. Clayton says “I have so many feelings, but it feels so good.” Ok Clayton, that literally means nothing.
Rachel, Clermont, Florida
Rachel has seemingly lost her voice, so now we are forced to listen to her weird whisper voice even more than usual.
For the day, they’re going kayaking? Is this a kayak? I don’t know. I don’t do outdoorsy things or bodies of water with gators in them.
They’re getting in some nasty body of water with snakes and gators. I felt like Clayton was talking so much during this date, but he wasn’t saying anything of substance. He was just talking to fill the silence. I gather than Clayton isn’t much for an outdoor person—despite what he said to Gabby—I don’t get the vibe that he’s down to get dirty and chill with bugs.
Clearly Rachel and Clayton have a strong physical connection, but I have the same critique I’ve had all season, while we can totally see their chemistry and spark, its frustrating that we can’t see the conversations where they get to know one another more.
Rachel shares that Clayton will be meeting her parents and two of her friends. She warns Clayton that her dad is a little tough, blunt and often a critic of the men she dates.
Maybe I don’t understand because I’m a woman and don’t have children, but what do men get out of being tough about dating their daughters?
At the end of the day, Rachel is a grown ass woman. She flies planes by herself, but her dad is going to treat her like she can’t handle making a decision on who she wants to spend her life with (or at least a few years with)? I hate that. There’s protective and then there’s patronizing.
Rachel’s Family: Mom Mary, Dad Tony, Best friend Nate and Sam
Before going in, Clayton asks Rachel not to leave him hanging with her father. He got the warning about her father earlier in the day and he wants to make sure that he isn’t the only one reassuring her family that they’re the real deal.
Upon meeting the family, they rehashing their time together and while everyone else in Rachel’s family is so enthralled and commenting on her ‘glow’ her dad is not interested at all. My captioning recorded Tony as saying “I’m scared,” but I rewound it so many times and I’m pretty sure he said “I don’t care.” Which, woof. Tough crowd.
Rachel and her friend Nate go chat and he asks about where she thinks Clayton’s relationship is with the other women. He asks about fantasy suites and if she’s worried about getting played. This is hilarious because we know as viewers that fantasy suites truly end up being some bullshit.
Meanwhile her friend Sam is talking to Clayton and sharing that she doesn’t want to deal with Rachel getting her heart broken. She also warns him that Rachel’s dad, Tony doesn’t like anyone.
I’m sure her friends mean well, but them making Rachel not being chosen about them having to “pick up the pieces” was weird. They were essentially like “if you don’t pick Rachel, we’ll have to deal with her being heartbroken and that’s a lot for us.”
Rachel, honey, these are your friends??? I get it, they don’t want her to get hurt or be blindsided, but the way it was communicated (at least to us) was very weird.
Rachel’s mom is over the moon for her. She was cheering about every group date rose, commenting on how happy she looked, and overall just being really supportive.
Clayton makes himself available to answer any and all questions Tony has for him. I love her dad’s first question. He asks what he knows about her, if he knows her dreams and aspirations.
He reminds Clayton that Rachel has wanted to be a pilot for most of her life and asks him how he will support her. Clayton says he’ll move anywhere so that she can live her dream.
I also appreciated how honest Clayton ways about the journey of dating 30 women and having four women left that he feels strongly for. He says that at the end of it all, everyone else gets hurt except the one he chooses. It seems like every season families can’t understand how a person is dating multiple people at once without knowing who they will pick, or how to avoid hurting anyone, but that’s not realistic. Someone is going to get hurt. It’s likely several someones are going to get hurt, there is really no way around it unless the final few aren’t actually interested in the lead. I appreciated Clayton being honest about that.
At the end of their conversation, Tony says he can’t give his blessing until he hears that Rachel really feels for Clayton. He says if he hears good things from Rachel, he’ll pat him on the back as a confirmation. Later as they were leaving, he got the handshake and pat from Tony. Too bad it seems like he fucks it up in the fantasy suites next week.
When Rachel speaks to her father, she shares how much she feels like Clayton sees her and that he seems like a man that is interested in being a partner that stands besides her, not over or in front of her. I liked the way she spoke about this, she truly wants a partner.
This date couldn’t end without getting more of Rachel’s whisper voice. She essentially whispers how much she’s falling in love with Clayton and they share that they can really see a future with one another.
Then There Were Three…
Going into the rose ceremony, Clayton admits to Jesse Palmer that he has approached these relationships from a very protective place so far, bur he is ready to let his walls down, he can admit that he’s falling for all of the women he has left.
He says the women have given their all and it’s only right that he does the same. He doesn’t want them to question where they are at with their feelings for him and start putting up walls.
Like he’s said for almost every rose ceremony, Clayton reminds the women that he has to follow his heart.
Susie, Gabby, and Rachel get a rose which means Serene is going home. We knew this after seeing the brevity of her hometown, but I am still surprised. I would’ve guessed that Gabby was going home before going into the episode.
Clayton walks Serene out and apologizes for letting her go. Serene asks why she’s being sent home and Clayton said it came down to where his heart stood. He said he had strong connections with the other women left.
Serene looks pissed. This was also the first time I noticed just how big the camera is when they get sent home. Who would want that in their face after they just spent two months being completely open only to get dumped.
Serene says she gave it her all and that she feels herself closing back up almost immediately.
The way leads are encouraged to break up with there final few in the same way they break up with the other 25ish contestants is backwards to me. One could argue the final 4-6 actually had something special with the lead, in this case Clayton. So, to me the goodbyes should honor that.
Clayton walked Teddi out last week and Serene out this week, but both women shared that they felt they didn’t have a full understanding of why he sent them home. After going through such an emotional process, it seems like the least Clayton (or any lead) could do is explain himself a bit more.
Could he not picture himself with Serene’s family? Was it the fact that her brother’s question of if he was in love made him realize he wasn’t? Could he not see himself moving to Oklahoma?
There’s a reason and I think it’s more specific than “My feelings for the other women were stronger.” While that is true, there’s more behind it. Something I appreciated about Tayshia is when her final few men left, she had reasons for them. I’m not sure this gave them any more sense of peace, but as a viewer it was nice to understand her thought process and reasoning.
Next week, we’re getting two nights of Bachelor content. We’re finally getting the scene where Clayton felt compelled to tell these woman that he slept with each of them and then we’re getting the Women Tell All, which is sure to be a fucking mess.
Although the idea of two nights of recapping sounds daunting, I think I will opt to send two different newsletters next week. One recapping fantasy suites and the other with some top takeaway/thoughts on Women Tell All. We’re so close to finally seeing how this mess of a season ends! I’m looking forward to it.