Episode 4
"I remember being on your side and saying everything and [being] like, 'This is so weird to be telling all my past relationship stories'. And it felt weird and it's not natural... but you kind of have to do it to get to where we hopefully want to be at the end of this."
—Becca, proving once again why we love her
LAST WEEK, CONT'D
We resume with last week's pre-Rose Ceremony 1-on-1 times, where David returns (looking way better than the previews would've had us expect—shocker) and where Becca gifts Jordan a fateful pair of gold lamé shorts. My favorite moment among these conversations was when Blake casually revealed he'd be into having 5 kids and Becca responded with an appropriate...
Nick is rather conspicuously sporting a tracksuit, something that was just barely addressed...
Now, the above sentence doesn't even make sense. To me, wearing a tracksuit in this context says, "I don't give a shit", not "I'm putting it all out there." But, give this same sentence a listen (remember, slashes indicate cuts)....
This is / a risk / you know, going into a Rose Ceremony with a tracksuit on, but you know what / this is the time to put it all on the line.
I suspect Nick planned some sort of activity or gimmick or topic involving his tracksuit for his 1-on-1 time with Becca, but the poor guy is a peripheral character on this season, so the elephant in the room that is his tracksuit was totally dismissed with some sloppy frankenbiting.
GARRETT'S 1-ON-1
Garrett is whisked off on a 1-on-1 while, back at their digs, Lincoln shares his brilliant, clearly thought-through analyses as to why the earth is flat. (Oh boy.) The best thing about this conversation was Jean faux-considering of what Lincoln was saying and Leo's EPIC Direct-Look-Into-Camera™...
Amusingly, Jean even physically distances himself during Lincoln's Flat Earth tirade!
During a textbook Man Chat (notice John's "Let's have a Man Chat"-style opener), we begin to see Jean getting antsy regarding Becca. Two things stood out to me about this. I laughed out loud when Jean made the rather aggressive statement about "getting his woman" (who is presumably belongs to ALL of them equally 😏) and John responded with a super polite, slightly eyebrow-raised...
Honestly, John's cute response was why I made the .GIF, but after re-watching it I think it's actually possible Jean didn't say "I'm ready to get my woman" in this conversation at all, and that it was maybe taken from an ITM. It's just a bit suspect how we don't see any of the key wordage that makes this about Becca actually come out of his mouth here. However, I could totally be wrong about this and regardless, it doesn't really change anything either way given how Jean ends up behaving later this episode.
I should probably at least touch on Garrett's 1-on-1. Honestly, I thought it went as swimmingly as we all expected it to, with the biggest takeaway being that Becca is SUPER into him. (I listed the quotes over at Flare.) The two have an undeniable chemistry and I think it'll be really hard for any other guy there to compete with the fact that Becca sees her father in Garrett. (In a non-creepy way, of course—for what it's worth, Andy is easily the most like my father personality trait-wise out of all the guys I've dated!)
GROUP DATE
Becca takes the guys on a lumberjack-themed Group Date and we learn that Becca (understandably!) has a thing for lumberjacks. All the action is in the evening, however. In his 1-on-1 time with Becca, Jordan strips to reveal the gold shorts she'd given him at the previous Rose Ceremony. It's all fun and games until Colton practically explodes over this and pulls Jordan aside to confront him. Now, this probably won't come as any surprise given the history of my opinions on these two men thus far this season, but I truly don't understand what Colton's beef with Jordan was here. SO WHAT if Jordan wore the gold boxers? (Sort of like, SO WHAT if he wore nothing but his underwear during his 1-on-1 time with Becca two episodes ago?) It's obvious Jordan is totally harmless, a bit of a clown, and is no real threat from a competition standpoint. None of the stuff he's doing is affecting how the other men have to live, their experience on the show (like, say, Corinne's behavior), or giving him some unfair leg up on the competition.
Look, I get how it could be annoying to live with certain personalities (believe me, I understand), but that's truly all it is—finding it annoying to live with another person, nothing more. That's why it bothers me when, in Colton's confrontation of Jordan, he pretends like it's coming from some noble standpoint, like Jordan isn't taking the experience (or Becca) "seriously" enough. I would respect this more if he just called a spade a spade: You find Jordan straight-up annoying to live with? Just call him out on that. Don't make it about his sincerity in being on the show or how seriously he's taking things. At the end of the day, Becca finds Jordan amusing—she's not negatively affected by him or his actions—so it's not really the guys' place to critique his seriousness.
Also, can I just point out how Jordan did not start out confrontational or retaliative? Colton bombards him about the gold shorts and he replies with a simple (and honest), "If you saw my 1-on-1 you'd understand why."
So, with all that said, I would LOVE your guys' input on what you think Colton called Jordan in his fit of disproportionate rage...
The bleeps do not sound single-syllable to me but I could be wrong. I know there's been discussion over whether or not Colton called him some homophobic slur, but personally I a) reeeeally hope that's not the case and would love to give Colton the benefit of the doubt with this, and b) see Colton as being far too image-conscious and camera-aware to allow himself to go there on national television.
Next we have the big talking point of the episode, Jean's fake profession of love. What a TERRIBLE idea (and execution!) this was. I get the sense Jean thinks he smarter than he is (in the context of this show—I'm never talking about real life here), thinking he could fake his way into being a frontrunner. (Also, how insulting to Becca that he thought his "falling in love" with her is all it would take for him to feel more secure? Like, maybe SHE'S JUST NOT THAT INTO YOU.) I also think he thinks he's a better actor than he is. I'm sorry, but his pacing and delivery of the following was NOT convincing or remotely romantic. You didn't get the sense he was emotional or verklempt or nervous or anything... (oh, also, notice how the shot of Becca's incredulous face is clearly taken from a different place, possibly their first conversation, when her hair still has more curl in it)...
It only got worse when a freaked out Becca took this opportunity to send Jean home (something I think she was likely planning on doing soon anyway, given how uncomfortable he obviously makes her), and Jean thought it was somehow a good idea to backpedal. What bothers me about the following is not only does it have the serious potential to make Becca suspicious of all the professions of love any and all of her guys give her for the rest of her journey, but also how he actually tries to make it her fault. Like, how dare she send him home when he just gave her a custom perfume, and he was just trying to be accommodating and considerate given he knew SHE wanted to take things there and SHE'S ready and SHE wanted to hear those words...
... and after that manipulation didn't work on Becca, he finally accepts defeat and allows her to send him packing. Here we see a rare shot of the LED lights used for in-car interviews...
WILLS' 1-ON-1
Upon having heard the drama from his housemates, Wills mic-drops the Jean situation best with...
During Wills' 1-on-1 date, there's a Man Chat where, in his childlike cross-legged-ness, John continues to be adorable...
As a 1-on-1, Wills' reminded me a bit of Ashley Hebert's season where JP served as her rock and support through a rough patch. As a contestant, he reminds me a bit of Jubilee from Ben's season, when she would self-edit and downplay her happiness. Wills does a bit of this; he downplays his feelings and even his facial expressions, so when he DOES state something like the following and really allows himself to smile and laugh, we truly believe it...
What I also like about the above is that glimmer of self-awareness, like he is fully aware that he just admitted to being really happy to have gotten a rose on his date, WHILE ON THE BACHELORETTE.
ROSE CEREMONY
Nothing shocking here, though I was very sad to see Christon, one of my two comic relief contestants, go. It's all on you now, Leo!
As always, my frontrunners can be found over at Flare!
THE FASHION
Requests
Lauren asked about the dress and earrings Becca wore while on Jimmy Kimmel a couple of weeks ago...
Her dress is the Herve Leger "Nanette" geometric foil dress and it sells (on sale) HERE. Since that's still pricey, there's a Small selling on eBay HERE. Her diamond floral earrings are by fine jeweler Dena Kemp and sadly I couldn't find them anywhere online, but there are two decent looks-for-less HERE and HERE.
I actually wasn't going to spend time on Becca's outdoor gear from her 1-on-1 date with Wills, but several of you asked about this jacket...
Okay, so it's a statement and a risk, but I RESPECT this outfit even if I'd never put my husband in it. It's ballsy, shows major personal style, and fits him really well. Wills has been taking major style risks and while I don't love all of them, I admire them from a distinct personal style perspective.
I also liked Christon's ensemble from the same Rose Ceremony...
This isn't anything crazy or new, but it's refined and classic. I don't always love a suit jacket with khakis (I find it can easily look mismatched when not executed correctly) but the colors on that tie nicely reference the pants and overall everything looks polished and well-coordinated. He looks dashing.
Finally, one casual piece of Jean's...
I love this piece. It's like a bomber jacket-cardigan hybrid. It has the sportiness of a bomber but with the comfort and coziness of a cardigan. Unbeknownst to him, I've already begun my hunt to find the perfect one for Andy. :)
Worst Dressed
On a silver platter...
Becca's Looks
For her Park City, UT B-rolls...
She looks practical but cute; I like how the oversized scarf doubles as both a source of warmth but also a fashion statement. (Without the scarf the look would be very average.) Becca's Patagonia "Tres Down" parka sells (on sale) HERE. Her Rag & Bone "Devin" boucle-knit scarf sells (on sale) HERE, and her Paige "Transcend Verdugo" jeans (in Mae) sell (also on sale!) HERE.
For her 1-on-1 with Garrett...
I found myself going back and forth on this outfit. It was certainly practical and felt realistic given the bobsledding date activity. I LOVE the cute boots and that hat (seriously so cute—I've already bought one for myself). What I don't love is that bomber jacket. Something about the shiny-ish finish and the slightly puffy cut looks cheap to me. (It even creases unflatteringly in the product photo which doesn't bode well for real life.) If you disagree with me, Becca's Alpha Industries "MA-1 W" red bomber jacket sells HERE. It also comes in a bunch of colors (some of which are on sale) HERE. Her Bos & Co "Springfield" boots are sold out (HERE). Her Kate Spade "Winking" beanie sells (on sale—don't miss the extra 30% off which I totally took advantage of!) HERE.
In the evening...
Ok, I loved this. That dress is cozy looking but has an interesting, dramatic twist in the form of those bell sleeves. The boots coordinate beautifully and have a heel while still looking somewhat casual and not too try-hard. I loved her statement necklace. Best of all, though, is this COAT. (You may know by now that I have a real coat addiction, surpassing even my interest in shoes or handbags!) It is gorgeous in its cut, rich (somewhat uncommon, for coats) color, and subtle military vibes. Seriously, you put a coat like that over yoga pants and you look polished. Gahhh, I want. Becca's ThePerfext "Olivia" dress is sadly sold out (HERE) but there are really good alternatives (and looks-for-less!) HERE, HERE, and HERE. Her Barney's New York wool-blend coat sells HERE but since it's on the pricey side, there's a decent, shorter look-for-less HERE and, if you can live with black, a fantastic look-for-less HERE. Becca'sKristen Cavallari x Chinese Laundry "Kane" booties sell (on sale!) HERE.Her necklace is by fine jeweler Royal Nomad but I'm afraid couldn't find it (nor a halfway decent look-for-less) anywhere. :(
For the lumberjack Group Date...
I feel like every Bachelorette has been put in some red plaid jacket at some point for outdoorsy dates and I for one don't mind. Not only did it suit the daytime activity, it also looked great on her—she slays a skinny jean + short jacket combo. And, conversely with the above red bomber, this jacket looks MORE expensive thatn it is. Becca's Jack by BB Dakota buffalo plaid "Cicily" sherpa jacket is sadly sold out (HERE) but there's a Medium still available HERE. (The same jacket also comes in black leather, HERE.) Her Zoë Jordan "Laplace" sweater sells (on sale!) HERE. Her Hudson "Nico" coated skinny jeans sell (on sale) HERE.
In the evening...
Arghhh... how do I feel about this dress? I'm honestly not sure. It's different, yes. It's got interest, yes. I just... don't love it. There are cocktail dress-meets-kimono vibes, which in my mind I'd be into, but I'm decidedly "meh" about this. Maybe it's because it looks kind of cheap? (Like, I could imagine this hanging in the depths of Variazioni's sale racks.) The belt detail looks a bit like two seatbelts, and because of those seatbelts all the attention is drawn to the midsection, which even with Becca's tiny waist isn't particularly flattering. I don't know... Let me know what you guys think. Becca's Zhivago "Le Loft" velvet dress sells HERE. You may remember her Gianvito Rossi Plexi G-string sandals from last week (HERE)—I'll link out the same look-for-less (HERE).
In the evening...
This was a hit for me. Edgy and badass done right (as opposed to gone wrong last week). Becca's really at home in leather jackets and I dug how the sweater had a bit of softness (the off-the-shoulder, the bows) to offset the leather. And though we hardly saw them, the star may have been her fun, glittery booties. Becca's Mackage "Baya" leather jacket sells HERE, and there's a good look-for-less going HERE. Her Paige "Violette" sweater sells (on sale!) HERE. Her Paige "Hoxton" coated jeans sell (on sale!) HERE. Her Nine West "Savrita" boots sell super on sale HERE, but since the sizes are limited, they're also HERE. Her earrings are by fine jeweler (and Bachelorette favorite) The Woods, but sadly I couldn't find anything about them online. The closest look-for-less I could find is sadly also sold out (HERE) but since it's on Etsy I think if you loved these enough and reached out to the designer it's possible they'd could make a pair for you.
Finally, at the Rose Ceremony...
This was a COOL dress. It's taking a fairly classic concept (a black, strapless, sweetheart neckline gown) and turned it into something new and fresh and whimsical. There's something fairytale-like about it and I LOVED that Becca wore her hair back to let this dress sing. :) Becca's gown is from the Randi Rahm Resort 2017 collection (HERE), but since it's couture and difficult for any of us to get our hands on (or afford), the best looks-for-less I could hunt down are HERE and HERE. Although you can't see them, she wore the SJP "Quinn" slingbacks, (on sale!) HERE.
Until next week, fellow pandas!
