The theme of episode 3 was summed up the best in a quote from mystery lady Shawntel Newton, “This is a very uncomfortable situation.” It was uncomfortable listening to the girls being so catty to Shawntel. It was uncomfortable watching Brittney ditch out on her one-on-one. It was uncomfortable when Shawntel confronted Ben about her feelings.
It was uncomfortable watching Erika try to remain vertical when she most definitely wanted to be horizontal. And it was uncomfortable listening to Ben talk to his sister Julia about how they are each other’s “number one fan.”
It was uncomfortable seeing the copious amount of lip gloss Ben had applied for his one-on-one with Emily. And it was uncomfortable listening to Ben talk about his “leap list” (aka the product integration for Honda CRV). This may be the most uncomfortable episode yet! And, as you know, there is nothing we love more than when a situation gets so out-of-hand that the producers have to enter the frame. And this is exactly what happened on Monday night.
Brittney shocks everyone by declining her one-on-one with Ben in an unprecedented pre-one-on-one self removal. Brittney, even before she’s given Ben a chance proclaims: “if my hearts not in this I don’t want to stay.” “It’s a really awkward situation.” I’ll say. “I don’t want you to waste a one-on-one in San Fran.” “This was by far the hardest decision of my life.” Ouch!!!! What happened? This walk-off left us wondering if Brittney had another crush on her mind, couldn’t handle the drama the ladies were bringin’ or couldn’t handle seeing other ladies getting close to Ben?
Well before we even had time to process this uncomfortable situation another one emerged….enter Shawntel! What was up with the ambush of Shawntel!? I have never seen that sort of animosity directed at a walk-on by a group of amazing ladies. And where was Chris Harrison to mediate? Then her confrontation with Ben. He seemed a little less than excited at this new addition leaving us to ponder what the texting was like between the two. Was Shawntel reading too much into things?
This brings us to the finale of all uncomfortable situations… Erika passing out during the rose ceremony!!! It’s certainly not the first time a lady has passed out during a rose ceremony, but it may have been the most dramatic….so dramatic there wasn’t time to position cameras. Producers entered the frame. A large man, dressed in all black–with an ear bud firmly in place–attempted to take command of the situation. Ladies were dispersed. It was a situation. And NO Chris Harrison in sight! Where was he?!?!?
Finally, we’re left with the group Martinelli’s cheers for next week’s trip to Park City, Utah…….and I just can’t see the
ladies being too excited about more snow and more X-treme group dates. Oh – and even though Courtney shed a tear tonight for Ben, we’re still not buying it. She may be feeling something close to an “emotion” for him, but it’s definitely rooted in something that’s way darker than true love. Ahhh….till next week!
Here are what some of your favorite Bachelor/ette characters had to say about episode 3:
Just in…Craig Robinson weighs in: “Emily is showing the other girls what “It” factor is all about. The girl has swag. Courtney says book smarts are boring but what she doesn’t know is that the epidemiology books and “It” knowledge acquisitions have boosted Emily’s stock. I love that she conquered her fear of heights and tackled the Golden Gate like it was an oversized Turkish Olive Oil wrestler. She’s a beautiful girl inside and out. The conversation at dinner was natural and she said all of the right things. The only reason for any of these girls to hate on her is her superiority to the common girl. The Emily haters are looking pretty cloudy.”
Some thoughts from Bachelor Ben Flajnik himself! “So I have heard from everyone that makes this show happen that this was truly the craziest cocktail party and rose ceremony in Bachelor history. Having only seen one other season (Brad Womack’s), I would have to agree. Wow. Nothing in my life would have ever prepared me for the s––– storm that happened that night.
After watching, I didn’t realize that the women were so mean to Shawntel and I was a bit taken aback. I mean I knew it was a bold move on Shawntel’s part, but some of the women took it a bit too far.
Shawntel and I had chatted a few times in between seasons and I thought she was an interesting, beautiful woman and she was right to assume that there was a connection. There was, but the timing was wrong. So, you can imagine how surprised I was when she showed up to the cocktail party unannounced.
I knew if I kept Shawntel around I would lose all the credibility I had built with these women and it wouldn’t be easy to dig myself out of that hole.”
The Bachelor Expert weighs in! “The phrase “the most dramatic” has been used a lot in Bachelor history and the phrase applied this time. We see a mystery girl driving and telling Chris she is on her way to San Francisco. Then the biggest downward spiral in reality TV happened. Shawntel Newton, one of my favorite contestants showed up. Shawntel did an interview with me in August. Love ya Shawtel hold your head up!”
Where to buy some of the outfits from episode 3, courtesy of Possessionista:
Read more from Possessionista….
Dave Good serves up some gems: “The Rose Ceremony is pretty intense and the girls are really upset about this whole deal. If Shawntel gets a rose tonight my TV might explode along with at least 3 girls heads.
OHHHHHHHHHHH…Erika passes out! She literally faints on the panel at the rose ceremony. I think that’s a first in Bachelor history. I feel bad for her.
Wow! Ben decides to keep the final rose and sends Shawntel, Erika and Jaclyn home. Erica passes out again like one of those goats that faint at loud noises. Now I don’t feel so bad for her. One faint is enough faint. If you faint twice you’re just showing off.”
This week, Ashley Spivey gets really REAL: “The end of this episode was some of the most cringe worthy tv I have ever watched! I knew Shawntel was going on the show but I had no idea that she had to deal with all of this. It was never a secret that Shawntel liked Ben while watching Ashley’s season of Bachelorette, but what most people don’t know is that Ben and Shawntel texted/phoned each other up until he was chosen as the Bachelor. Maybe after people realize this Ben’s face right here makes sense…
From one of our fave Bachelorettes, Jillian Harris: “And then we get to the rose ceremony and Shawntel shows up. I think Ben’s reaction of “HOLY SH*T” pretty much summed up everyone’s thoughts exactly. On one hand it takes some major cajones to go after something you want so boldly but on the other hand, it did seem unfair to the other girls that had been there since the beginning. How did you feel about it?
We’re starting to see some front-runners in Courtney, Kacie B, Lindzi, Emily and Jennifer. I don’t think anyone is a big fan of Courtney at this point (her rude comments aren’t getting her any closer to a Miss Congeniality title) but you can tell Ben is really into her, which will make for some interesting drama.”
From fellow Bachelor/ette blogger Sophienette: “My opinion on Ben? He pretty much knows who his top 4 are already, and kept his head. Some say he didn’t have the balls to upset Courtney and the others, but I think it did take balls to not give Shawntel a rose, as I am pretty sure the Producers wanted him to. I do however wonder if he is going to address the “What’s her butt” comment with Courtney…
And talking of ballsy: I truly believe that Courtney showed character by making her point before accepting a rose. At least she wasn’t a hypocrite, when all the other girls just smiled as if nothing bad had happened that night. Was she classy about it? No. But do I find it refreshing that someone screws the rhythm of the Rose Ceremony, yes! (And I am not talking about Erika fainting!).”
Read more from Sophienette at Insomniac Ramblings – My Reality….
Bachelor Pad 2 winner Michael Stagliano’s thoughts: “Moving earlier into the evening, I got all heated watching/listening to Courtney bash my girls Nicki and Lindzi. I mean HEATED. I really like those two girls and to hear Courtney dogging on them for no reason…I don’t care what happens the rest of the season, Courtney will not bounce back from that with me. Her and Ben’s time on the roof was generic, lame, and incredibly hard to watch. Mostly because it seems like Ben is SO into her and I think she’s the worst. I just don’t like complainers. I don’t enjoy or understand pointing out other people’s flaws for conversational purposes and so far Courtney is the queen of that. Yikes.”
From our blogger bud The Final Prose: “I kind of felt like I was missing something…I mean, obviously it’s not fair to bring her back, but it’s a reality TV dating show – it’s not a fair premise to begin with. Also, all evidence before this points to Shawntel being a really sweet person, but all these women seems convinced that she’s a capital B bitch.
From Jillian Harris’ season, Reid Rosenthal: “The best part is when Shawntel from Brad Womack’s season comes back from the dead and just walks right through the cocktail party outside to interrupt Ben’s one-on-one time with Elyse, but it doesn’t matter because she gets booted. All the girls are like, ‘was that a ghost that just walked through the living room? I swear I just saw a ghost.’ Shawntel really throws a wrench in things and all the girls just start freaking out. Shawntel first explains to Ben why she was there and then after explains to the group of girls. They were staring at her as if their eyes were laser beams destroying her soul. Girls are crying and talking about how it’s unfair. Courtney says she is not going to accept the rose if Ben keeps Shawntel. Well, she did accept it because she is a bullshit artist.”
Host Chris Harrison’s thoughts on The Bachelor Season 16, episode 3: “I know I’ve buried the lead in this blog by not talking about Shawntel yet, so here we go. Shawntel called and informed me that she and Ben had started a dialogue via text after he was on The Bachelorette. Shawntel told me things were going well and she would really like to see if there was more to this relationship, and that she would deeply regret not doing so. I invited her to join us in San Francisco. I obviously knew the other women wouldn’t be happy but I had no idea it would go this bad. I didn’t foresee the complete nuclear meltdown that took place once Shawntel strolled into the cocktail party that night. You all saw the result, so what I want to mention is how pivotal this moment was and how it changed the rest of the season. The ladies’ reaction was so strong Ben couldn’t help but realize just how serious these women were taking this. In return, Ben made the decision to send her home, which sent a definite message to the women that he’s equally serious and sincere about this. This gesture and the good vibe definitely carried over and followed us the following week to Park City.”
Read more of Chris Harrison’s episode 1 blog on EW.com’s Popwatch….
Bachelorette Ali Fedotowsky’s thoughts: “I think Ben sent Shawntel home because he knew keeping her would upset the other girls. I’m very confident that Ben liked her (based on their phone conversation prior to Ben becoming the bachelor) more than many of the girls on the show, just not more than his top three. I think he thought it wasn’t worth hurting the girls he really did like to keep a girl that he wasn’t sure about. And after Courtney’s comments upon receiving her rose, there was no way that Ben was going to keep Shawntel. Courtney was very rude to call Shawntel (who is such a sweetheart, by the way) “what’s her butt” and made it very clear to Ben that she would not be happy if he kept Shawntel by thanking him for not putting her through “that.” Regardless of Ben’s reasoning, I kind of think it would be weird if Shawntel and Ben ended up together. I mean, she looks just like his sister. Awkward…”
West Lee from Ashley Hebert’s season: “But there’s just no legitimate explanation for choosing not to hand out that final rose and send Shawntel home. Sure, you can say there would’ve been a lot of drama if she’d stayed, and you can agree with Ben that it wasn’t fair. But Shawntel was right when she said this wasn’t about drama, or fairness. It’s about love, and if Ben felt a connection with her he owed it to his heart to explore that connection.
Instead, I call your attention to Courtney’s little acceptance speech upon getting her rose. She made it clear that she wasn’t pleased with how Ben conducted himself around ‘what’s-her-butt’ and then thanked him for not putting her throught ‘that.’ What could she have possibly meant with that? The night had already taken place; she had already gone through it. She was talking about not putting her through that going forward, as in ‘don’t you dare give that b!tch a rose, or we’re gonna have problems, mister.’ And my take is that Ben, already being seriously taken by Courtney, decided right then and there to cut his losses and send Shawntel packing.”
This week’s words from Marissa May: “The entire time I was ‘dating’ Brad I made it a point to let him know that I wanted him to go on as many dates as he needed and kiss as many women as he deemed necessary. I didn’t want him to wonder if I was the right one if I was standing there at the end. I wanted him to try a relationship with as many women as he felt connections to because I never wanted there to be a doubt in his mind that I was it if it were to go in that direction. I also made it a point to tell him that the second he knew I wasn’t the one, to let me go. I didn’t want to be around by default; because there were only a certain number of girls scheduled to go home. This show is about the Bachelor trying to find someone to spend the rest of his life with. Every woman there should in turn want that for him. They should want him to find that special someone. So if it takes bringing in someone two weeks in, heck even five or six weeks in, to make that happen, they should want that for him. This isn’t about who “deserves” to be there. The only people who “deserve” to be there are the ones Ben wants. While it may be a hard bullet to bite, each and every one of them should understand the premise of this show and that not only should any and everything be done to try to find “the one” for Ben, but it’s also a show built on entertainment. Don’t act so surprised when something like this gets pulled out of nowhere.”
Read more from Marissa May on MsMarissaMay.com….
Blogger Knox McCoy’s thoughts: “Also, Ben describes Courtney as mellow, down-to-earth and drama free. Good stuff, NO great stuff, Ben. You are unparalleled when it comes to misreading personalities. I feel like Ben’s real job is supplying the copy for movies that everyone understands to be garbage, but there’s still that one lone ranger idiot who is like, “Nic Cage’s new movie Running On Fire And Scared is titilating and intellectually sound.”
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