The Bachelor – Week 5

The Bachelor 

The Good, The Bad, The Ugly

Week 5

By Jakub Dulak

January 31, 2018

Another week of the Bachelor is upon us, and the drama this week is as hot as the Ft. Lauderdale sun shining down on all of our contestants. Once again, we’re here looking at the good, the bad…and the ugly.

The Good

• Chelsea’s endearing backstory and her taking the position of best possible match.  This week was all about Krystal, so before we delve into her “glitter bomb” let’s take a look at one of the few other ladies who got some solid airtime this episode: Chelsea… Chelsea seriously won me over this week. There was nothing particularly noteworthy about her in previous episodes, but her date with Arie just made sense. Her backstory of being burned and overpowered by her ex was incredibly compelling, allowing us to see a very human side of her. I’ve been smitten by Seinne, Kendall and Bekah the past few weeks, but they’ve all proven themselves to be way too good for Arie. With Chelsea, I think Arie is the exact kind of guy she needs in her life. Someone soft, who’s kind of a pushover, and who can let Chelsea just do her thing and feel safe.

• The everglades date with Tia providing some beautiful scenery and a chance to see the more country side of Tia. The girl hunts frogs people!
• Kendall is willing to try human flesh. Do I need to go into that? I want more of her on my TV screen, she’s probably the most interesting of the girls left!

The Bad

• Arie trying to play the nice guy is showing him to be somewhat manipulative. I don’t think he’s all that aware of it, but it’s a nasty character trait to spot.  Arie got the girls emotionally invested in a bowling game only to call it void after it’s done. That’s…super manipulative and not ok. I don’t understand how more of the girls didn’t have a problem with it.
• Krystal had a valid point for the first time in 5 episodes. Has hell frozen over?
• Krystal ends up not even attending the after party at first as a form of protest, which brings Arie knocking on her door.  Now, I hate Krystal. I do. But seriously, what were you thinking Arie?   It’s small, but a lie is a lie! In a game where you are fighting for time, a chance to be in a small group with the Bachelor himself is incredibly pivotal. YOU WERE ON THE BACHELORETTE BEFORE, WHY DOES THIS NEED TO BE EXPLAINED TO YOU???  The nail in the coffin?  He says, “Small things in this environment can turn into big things outside of it.”

The Ugly

• Krystal going full blown hypocrite drama queen and souring the entire cast against her.
• Krystal ends up cleaning herself up and going to the after-party anyway, trying to be the bigger person, I guess? It ends up backfiring horribly in her face as every single one of the other contestants calls her a hypocrite for saying one thing and doing another.
• Maquel getting sent home immediately after losing her grandfather. I feel for Maquel, as she left the show for a week to visit home for her grandfather’s funeral…but it shows us exactly how important every single second spent near Arie can be.
• I still don’t know who this Ashley person is! Who in the world is Ashley?  Did this girl get a single line of dialog this season???
• Production clearly getting involved to keep Krystal around. Krystal may be annoying…but she provides drama. And if there’s one thing producers want on the Bachelor, it’s exactly that. Chris pulls Arie aside pre-Rose ceremony and talks Krystal up as much as he can. Can he be any more obvious about his intentions?  It pays off, as Krystal is given the final rose. while sending Marikh, Maquel and Ashley home.