Well, the dual-woman version of The Bachelorette is upon us, and boy, is it interesting. When ABC announced that both Kaitlyn and Britt would be competing for the role of the Bachelorette, the Internet was aghast. How could they do that? It’s a step back for feminism (and it kind of is, which is another story). Tonight, Chris Harrison told viewers that the reason that they picked both Britt and Kaitlyn to compete was because the decision was so tough to make and the race so tight that the producers thought that the men should meet the two women before a decision was made. Like, what? Are you sure it wasn’t because of the ratings, Chris? Ugh. But even with my reservations, I'd never have suspected that double Bachelorette limo night would be this awkward.
Anyway, now that we fans of The Bachelorette have seen the plan in action, I can safely say that man, is it much worse than we thought. Like, way worse. One of the contestants said that he felt like he was at a seventh-grade dance, and the girls agreed. And you know what? I agree. This whole situation is frightening awful and awkward to watch, so I can’t even imagine what it was like to be actually part of this whole thing.
The gist of the arrivals was that both Britt and Kaitlyn stood outside the Bachelor mansion waiting for the men to show up. When the limos arrived and the contestants stepped out, they had to literally choose a side and walk up to the woman that they wanted to be the next Bachelorette. Due to the editing of these arrivals, it looked like poor old Kaitlyn was the first choice of, um, none of the guys. The hurt on her face was pretty apparent, and it was like watching two friends like the same guy and the guy is so clearly into only one of the girls.
It’s not that this hurt was one-sided. Once Kaitlyn started getting more attention (or the editors let her have it), she began getting some cool gifts from the guys (one of them brought her moonshine, straight from Kentucky). Britt lamented that she wasn’t getting any presents for the contestants. Her disappointment was also palpable.
Many times, either Britt or Kaitlyn would say in a voiceover that she is into the guy currently getting out of the limo, and that same guy would go over to the other lady and tell her that she was the reason he wanted to be on the show. Of course, the other is instantly made to feel awful about herself.
I get that The Bachelorette producers were trying to spice up a pretty stale formula with this new Bachelorette format, but it’s cruel and unusual punishment for everyone involved, including the faithful viewers.
Images: Rick Rowell/ABC; Giphy (2)
