Joey’s Uncle On The Bachelorette Reminds Viewers Of *This* Bachelor Nation Parent

During their time together on The Bachelorette, Charity Lawson and Joey Graziadei forged one of the season’s strongest connections. From their chemistry around each other to their ability to tackle important conversations — such as the prospect of having an interracial marriage — it seemed like Joey was one of the front-runners for Charity’s heart. She seemed to think so, too. “It’s one of those things that you know it’s right,” she said after their New Orleans one-on-one date.

After the July 31 hometowns episode, Joey is still in contention for Charity’s final rose. However, there is a surprising obstacle to their future together: Joey’s uncle, Joe.

Charity and Joey’s hometown date began with tennis lessons in Pennsylvania, where Uncle Joe made his debut. Joey had nothing but good things to say about him in a confessional, saying his uncle might be “the most special person” in his life and crediting him with inspiring his love of tennis.

In his own confessional, Uncle Joe said he and his nephew shared similar traits, and he wanted to help him “avoid some of the pitfalls” he’s experienced. In hindsight, this was worrying — because it became clear that Uncle Joe would take an active role in cautioning against Charity and Joey’s potential future together. In his conversation with Joey later, he said as much, telling his nephew he “didn’t seem as comfortable” with Charity, and wondering whether Joey was just “portraying somebody that she wants.”

He eventually brought those concerns to Charity herself. “To be honest, today on the tennis court, I got a little vibe from him where I’m like, ‘Hey, are you trying to be somebody that Charity wants?’ If there’s a concern I have, it’s a little bit of that,” he said. “How confident are you that you have the genuine Joey? The real Joey?”

Charity told the camera she found the suggestion “alarming,” and left the hometown date in tears — and viewers on Twitter felt her pain.

Naturally, some fans were reminded of past Bachelor Nation family members — including Peter Weber’s mom, Barb.

Other viewers wondered what Uncle Joe was actually trying to say — because his vague concerns about the “real Joey” didn’t cut it.

Naturally, family support is a major part of any Bachelorette journey. But if you’re rooting for Joey to pull through, don’t worry: It’s not always a dealbreaker. Just last season, Rachel Recchia and Tino Franco weathered a similarly rocky hometown date where Tino’s dad questioned how much the couple really knew about each other. Sound familiar? Despite the rough patch, Tino went on to win Rachel’s final rose. A lot went down after that, obviously — but the hometown date was not the death blow.