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The Bachelorette Is Short on Entertaining Drama

Annie Scudder — Tue, 22 May 2012 11:40:30 PDT

I never thought I'd say this, but I kind of miss Jake and Vienna. The Bachelor vets brought lots of crazy to the franchise and gave viewers a reason to tune in. The only contestant from this season of The Bachelorette who could possibly make the cut for Bachelor Pad, the offshoot that is more blatant about capitalizing on unstable cast members, would be Kalon. He's this season's villain, who made his grand entrance in a helicopter. The other guys take offense to Kalon's supposedly sophisticated vocabulary and choice of luggage. Could it get more tame than that?

Between baking cookies and Muppets, Kalon, aka Chopper, did sour the saccharine season momentarily last night in episode two, picking a fight with single dad Doug while lounging in the pool with his stunna-shades on. Kalon accused Doug of taking time off from being a dad to compete on the show and said, "I always imagined that my first child would be my actual child." Uh oh. I see tears in the future when Emily gets wind of that. Watch the clip of the pool fight now, and tell me if you think viewers would rather be entertained by the reality TV dating show than see the contestants "find love."

Bachelorette Breakdown: The Week's Biggest Whoa!-ments

Maggie Pehanick — Tue, 22 May 2012 09:13:48 PDT

Week two on The Bachelorette brought plenty of action, and I'm not just talking about the chemistry between Emily and Kermit - though that was slightly uncomfortable. No, I'm referring to the first one-on-one dates, the first group date, and all the poolside drama. It looks like we've got a veritable Real Housewives of Charlotte on our hands, only in this case the housewives are men and Botox is replaced by Muscle Milk.

I'm recounting the good times, and the especially bad times, from this week's episode when you

When Emily told Ryan they'd be baking cookies for her daughter's soccer team on the show's first one-on-one date, I was like, Whoa. No doubt this guy thought the only food preparation he'd have to do on The Bachelorette would be stomping his own grapes when producers flew him and his date to the scenic Napa Valley, and even then it would all just be for show and they'd get to drink perfectly aged Merlot by the fire while staring into each other's eyes. Not this season, buddy!
When Ricki showed up in the audience of the group date, I was like, Whoa! Wasn't the whole purpose of bringing the show to Charlotte so that Emily could still maintain some semblance of normalcy in her daughter's life? First she brings Ryan to soccer practice (but makes him wait in the car mere yards away from her daughter) and now this? (Side note: I kept thinking they should have rolled up the tinted window, lest Ricki see the strange man in her mother's car, but then it occurred to me that he might suffocate in the South Carolina heat.) Actually, come to think of it, watching your mom be the ringleader in a variety show starring the Muppets and a dozen suitors (one of which will be your new daddy!) is pretty commonplace nowadays.
Whilst lounging in the hot tub, Kalon let slip that he thought Doug "put being a dad on hold" to be on the show, and Doug was all, Whoa. Despite the fact that Kalon is coming off like a tool and clearly making no friends, Doug overreacted a touch and told him to "check it," but in a much more serious way. Kalon tried to interject, and again Doug was like, "Check it." I believe the phrase he's looking for is actually "Check yourself before you wreck yourself, bro." It also appears that Kalon is no longer "Helicopter Guy" and has now been given the nickname "Chopper," which the guys think is derogatory, but which is actually really cool and something I might try to get my friends to call me.
Meanwhile, Emily went on her date with Joe. The two dined at her local cotillion venue and put their hopes and dreams in the "love clock." After laying out his wishes to come back to Charlotte to marry her, Emily told Joe he wasn't the guy for her, and Joe was like, Whoa. It was brutal, but it was necessary.
After the loads of private time he got with her this week, Ryan still thought it would be kosher to monopolize Emily's time before the final elimination. He did this by writing her a seven-page letter and then making her read it to him out loud. It took 15 minutes, which is about two weeks in Bachelorette hours. This wouldn't be quite so bad if Taylor wasn't awkwardly waiting in the wings, caught in the unfortunate position of either backing down or breaking mid-letter-read. All the guys who were watching from outside were like, Whoa.

Did I miss any whoa!-ments?

Photo courtesy of ABC

Share Your Snap Judgments of the New Bachelorette Boys!

Annie Scudder — Mon, 21 May 2012 16:00:00 PDT

Tonight, beautiful and sweet single mom Emily Maynard continues her search for love on The Bachelorette. We aren't afraid to admit the franchise is our guilty pleasure, and we tuned in for last week's season premiere (made even more entertaining with our Bachelorette bingo boards!). For fellow fans of the show, we've rounded up photos of the men as well as the most telling pieces from their bios to give you a quick introduction. There's a Colombian mushroom farmer, a biology teacher, and even a race car driver from the Netherlands. We know who Emily gave her first impression rose to - single dad Doug - now's your time to weigh in with your first impression and see who got kicked off in the premiere. Check out the guys and vote on each. Will he be booted right away? Do you bet he has a girlfriend at home? Is he going to be an alpha male who gets in fights? Or do you suspect he'll make it to the end? Get voting now!

Are These the Tamest Contestants in Bachelorette History?

Annie Scudder — Tue, 15 May 2012 10:25:31 PDT

The Bachelorette was back last night, and while the franchise is always trying to top itself in crazy, this season has a more mellow tone. Taking cues from the overly polite Southern belle star, single mom, and Bachelor vet Emily Maynard, the show has moved to her hometown of Charlotte, NC, and brought on some men who seem like they'll try a little harder to look like nice guys. Of course, there were cheesy gimmicks; I still can't figure out why one guy brought an ostrich egg. But at least one bachelor, Doug, won some sweet points and the first impression rose by bringing a letter from his 12-year-old son.

In all we met one pretty-mild villain, a luxury brand consultant who came in on a helicopter and said he's changing his personality to be "down to earth." Seemed pretty tame compared to "winning" Courtney from Ben's season or evil Bentley from Ashley's. Emily even got rid of a singer/songwriter who could have provided the looking-for-fame story line, and the upcoming scenes from this season of The Bachelorette weren't as dramatic as they usually are. Since Emily is the first mom to hand out the roses, I'm thinking producers vetted this batch of guys for more than making good TV. Do you think I'm right, or do you expect more unstable, yet entertaining antics to come? Watch Emily tear up while reading the letter from Doug's son and tell me what you think.

Bachelorette Breakdown: First Impressions From the Premiere

Maggie Pehanick — Tue, 15 May 2012 10:09:48 PDT

Welcome to a new season of The Bachelorette, everyone! First of all, is anyone else as excited as I am to see Emily Maynard take the reigns, or roses, as it were? She is sweet as apple pie and I don't know anyone that doesn't love a Southern belle, least of all the gentlemen vying for her affections. I use the term "gentlemen" lightly, as several of them displayed relatively ungentlemanly behavior on this week's premiere.

As per Bachelorette tradition, the premiere included a basic primer to who Emily is, the limo intros with the guys, some time for Emily to mingle at her party and eventually give out the coveted First Impression rose, followed by the first rose ceremony. Let's have a quick rundown of the episode's highlights, shall we?

Find out our take when you read more.

The Bachelorette: New Pictures of Tonight's Premiere

Maggie Pehanick — Mon, 14 May 2012 17:55:02 PDT

Emily Maynard is in charge of the roses this time around in the new season of The Bachelorette. We've already sized up her suitors at first glance, but now we're checking out the pictures from the first episode. It looks like Emily's got her hands full with a bevy of bachelors, one "old lady," and an ostrich egg. Just the usual over here at The Bachelorette. Chris Harrison doesn't even look fazed. Scroll through all the pics and let us know if you're watching tonight's premiere!

Photo courtesy of ABC

Print and Play Our Bachelorette Bingo Boards For the Premiere!

Tara Block — Mon, 14 May 2012 12:00:29 PDT

Get your gowns and roses ready; today is The Bachelorette season premiere! Emily Maynard is taking a second shot at love after things ended with The Bachelor Brad Womack, and we're not ashamed to admit we'll be glued to our seats for the premiere. If you're a longtime fan of the show (or even if you're not), we've got a fun way to make your Bachelorette viewing party even better - Bachelorette bingo!

Here's how it works: just click here to download five different Bingo boards (including a blank one), print them out, and play a Bachelorette version of Bingo at your premiere viewing party!

And here are the links to the different printable Bingo boards:

Now grab a glass of wine (or two), some equally Bachelorette-obsessed girlfriends, and play some Bingo!

Meet the New Men of The Bachelorette

Maggie Pehanick — Mon, 14 May 2012 08:16:09 PDT

Stop what you're doing. Photos of the 25 lucky gentlemen vying for Emily Maynard's heart on the new season of The Bachelorette are here ahead of tonight's premiere. Between the lumberjack, the Staten Island party MC, and the token fitness model, you're not gonna want to miss this. Warning: you're about to see a whole lot of plaid.

Newly Minted Bachelor Chris Harrison's Best Lines on Love

Tara Block — Thu, 03 May 2012 15:30:36 PDT

In the most shocking twist in The Bachelor history, the reality dating show host of all hosts Chris Harrison is now going to be a bachelor himself. Chris Harrison sadly split from his wife, Gwen, whom he's been married to for 18 years. Frankly, we've always had a thing for the Bachelor and Bachelorette host and his piercing blue eyes, so we'd be lying if we said we didn't hope Chris was the rose-wielding star of the next season. Or maybe the real plot twist is that he's who Bachelorette Emily ends up choosing? As Chris enters bachelorhood again, let's check out some of his best quotes on love, sex, and TV dating now.

The Bachelor Faces Racial Discrimination Lawsuit

Tara Block — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 10:00:00 PDT

If you've watched any of the combined 23 seasons of reality TV dating show The Bachelor and its spinoff The Bachelorette, you've probably noticed they are lacking in the diversity department - in a big way. Neither shows have featured a bachelor or bachelorette of color, and for the most part, nonwhite contestants don't make it very far. Fed up with the hit show's lack of diversity, two African-American football players from Nashville are filing a racial discrimination lawsuit against The Bachelor on behalf of "all persons of color who have applied for the role of The Bachelor or Bachelorette but been denied the equal opportunity for selection on the basis of race."

This shouldn't come as a surprise for the creator behind the two shows, Mike Fleiss, as he was asked by EW last year about casting a nonwhite star and gave this response:

"I think Ashley is 1/16th Cherokee Indian, but I cannot confirm. But that is my suspicion! We really tried, but sometimes we feel guilty of tokenism. Oh, we have to wedge African-American chicks in there! We always want to cast for ethnic diversity, it's just that for whatever reason, they don't come forward. I wish they would."

We would love to see more diversity on the show, and maybe this lawsuit will be the catalyst necessary to push The Bachelor and The Bachelorette in the right direction. Do you think the show should be sued for its alleged racial bias, or do you think - like Mike Fleiss said - that people of color aren't interested in starring in the show?