The Bachelor: Episode Eight Recap
The hometown rundown.
by LAYLA HARRISON ★ FEBRUARY 24, 2021
I do not have the ENERGY to unpack all the bachelor nation goss right now. So I’m going to leave you with a singular image for you to think about on your own time. Ready? Ok.
Credit: dailymail.co.uk
Yes. That’s Clare and Dale. Now let’s get into it.
Michelle
Michelle meets Matt in the woods and they bike around the resort. She says, “When I’m around Matt, I feel 100% myself” before revealing, “Matt has put me through a lot so now it’s time for me to put him in the hot seat.” They bike to an auditorium with a sign on the door that says, “Ms. Young’s Classroom.” Michelle and Matt walk in to see a little desk on a stage and hanging above it, a projector of a few of her students on Zoom. It was adorable. She introduces Matt as Mr. James and one of the kids asks, “Is that your boyfriend?” Michelle responds, “So I hear you have some questions for Mr. James that you need to ask him.” Wait but… What about? The question… Ok. The kids fire some intense questions at Matt including: are you going to marry her, how are you going to inspire her, are you going to have babies. TBH, I’m cringing.
They leave the auditorium and set up a picnic blanket back in the woods they definitely just came from. The chat on the blanket is where, and I’m sorry to any Michelle stans (my mom included), I see that there’s no chemistry. She’s shown how mature she is, but being in the vulnerable position that all contestants are her personality seems off. The dynamic doesn’t feel right. Watching them is like watching a teenage boy and an older woman trying to relate and speak softly. She also seems really nervous. Like the power dynamic between them not on The Bachelor would be flipped and watching the roles reversed and him making her feel nervous and unsure (because he’s dating other women) is overwhelming.
Michelle’s family is sweet and they really like Matt… For whatever reason. She said how important her fam’s approval was and she’s got it. Unfortunately, this hometown solidified the fact that I don’t see it. Michelle tells Matt, “I’ve connected with you in a way I've never connected with anyone before.” Girl, I hope that is not true. You can do way better. She proclaims, “When Matt and I walk away from this experience together hand in hand life will be so full.” Yeah… IDK about this one.
Rachael
Rachael drives up to her date in a black go-kart and I can’t help but feel sorry for Heather driving her little minivan all over again. Matt says, “When I like someone, I give them a tough time… and I’ve given Rachael a tough time.” He predicts that Rachael will try to get payback on their date. Rachael asks Matt if he trusts her and when he says yes, she blindfolds him. DON’T GET EXCITED THOUGH. She drives him over to a literal plane and reveals that they’re skydiving. Matt describes himself as a thrill seeker and gushes, “This is the perfect date.” No tough time for Matt here! Rachael tells Matt that if she dies she’s glad she’s dying with Matt. He says, “Aw. Thank you for that reassurance in this.” This is the first time he’s said aw before awkwardly thanking someone for saying something nice and emotional. Huge moment for Matt. Rachael jumps out of the plane first and here are her two best lines when she’s LITERALLY. IN THE AIR. VERY FAR ABOVE GROUND.
“I literally feel like I’m on top of the world right now.”
“Matt I’m literally falling for you.”
Somehow, Matt lands before Rachael and watches her come down. But DUDE. She crashes into the earth. She’s picking up a lot of speed when coming down and smashes into the ground on her side. Her guide lands on top of her and rolls off her body. It’s insane to watch. My friend looks at me and goes, “Are they going to sue the skydiving company?!”
Credit: Twitter
Uh… They SHOULD. Matt jogs over to Rachael and tells her that watching that made him realize how much he cares about her and seeing someone he cares about in harm's way awoke some emotion in him that he didn’t realize was there. Rachael starts to cry because she thinks it’s so sweet. He tells her he’s falling in love.
Credit: Twitter
I can’t help but think they’re not in love, they're just horny. Like they just wanna have sex with each other. The tension is just always there and both of them are in a suppressing setting.
Whatever. Hot take. They shouldn’t get married, they just need to hit the fantasy suite. But I feel like the dynamic after will be very telling and I do have a feeling it could work out for a while.
Credit: Twitter
After that craziness, Rachael and Matt meet her parents. She announces that they went skydiving and her dad asks, “Did you crap your pants?” ON. NATIONAL. TELEVISION. Like stop. That’s so embarrassing my friend and I were like if our dads did that to us we would cry. Anyway, they peel off and the dad is hard on Matt. There’s always the one dad, every season, that is super skeptical of the bachelor. Unfortunately, I think it was just because the Kirkconnels are RACIST! Matt should’ve bonded with them over voting for Trump, but guess he didn’t think that far ahead. Instead, Matt tries to convince the father that he’s ready for marriage and tells Mr. Kirkconnel, “I've told her that I’m falling in love with her because I connect with her in a way I've never connected with anyone.”
Rachael’s dad then goes to talk to her and asks her about her relationship with Matt with a simple, “What’s the deal there?” He then says he wants to make sure she’s “being ~respected~.” Rachael confesses she might be being naive but feels that she’s different from the other women.
At the end of the night, Matt tells Rachael he didn’t ask for her father’s blessing and she is rubbed the wrong way by that. But, they both are falling in love with each other. Or so they think I guess. I’m just so not convinced on this one. Like even if she wins they just seem like high school kids right before they make it official.
Bri
Going into this date, my hopes are high. Bri’s been one of my top picks since the beginning, even though I know she probably doesn’t win (as the IG story from last week indicates). Matt starts the date by telling producers, “We have so many things that we connect on and we really just get each other.” This includes the fact that they both grew up in single mother households. Bri shows up looking RADIANT per usual. She recalls their first date when they went on an ATV ride and Matt flipped it! She playfully reveals that their date is her “revenge.” She’s taking him off-roading in a bright green Jeep. She says it represents, “What a bumpy and crazy ride this entire experience has been.” SWOON. She’s so cute. But instantly, I think of Matt’s flirty comments about Rachael saying that he thought she was gonna have a revenge date. It just sucks that he’s overlooking Bri and accrediting so much happiness to Rachael. UGH how does he not realize how perfect Bri is?
Bri confesses to Matt that this is “completely uncharted territory. I don’t think I expected to be here with you and I didn’t expect you to meet my family.” Bri’s mom is there as well as her babysitter and her best friend. When she introduces him to her family she says, “My two worlds collide.” I AM CRYING IN THE CLUB. She literally just called Matt her world. But ok carry on I guess?! When Bri holds her baby sister, Matt says, “Seeing Bri holding her baby sister made my heart melt because you always imagine what your own family’s gonna look like.” He states that Bri is going to show up for their potential family.
Bri’s mom starts by asking what they’ve been doing, followed quickly by, “We know what Matt’s been doing… Dating.” He replies cooly, “Yeah. Dating your daughter.” But then Bri’s mom hits him with the, “Matt can I grab you for a moment.” She says she’s gonna ask what she needs to ask even if it makes him uncomfortable. Bri’s mom asks, “How do you feel about her?” and “Are you in love with her?” Matt says, “I’m falling for her.” Bri’s mom takes a sharp breath in. “Ok.” Bri’s mom tells Matt, “She’s a realist... She wants to get her hopes up but she’s scared of being shot down.”
Bri goes to chat with her mom, who says, “It’s crazy, but it’s not crazy. It’s such a short period of time, but it’s just something special… I don’t think it can be faked.” AND NOW WE KNOW. HERE SHE IS. Every year there’s one parent that shines, set apart from the rest. There’s the overprotective dad and then there’s the sick parent who we stan. I thought it might be Michelle’s dad just because he gave a zen vibe, but it wasn’t anything to write home about. HERE WE ARE! Bri tells her mom that she feels strongly about Matt, and her mom can already see that.
And just when we knew we were sold, she delivers AGAIN with, “I know that you want to protect yourself and I want to protect you too, but you have to make a commitment to yourself and be vulnerable.” Instantly goated as one of the best hometown parent appearances.
Inspired by her mom, after the couple leaves, Bri tells Matt, “I’m falling in love with you and I just want more time with you.” Matt smiles and makes it look like he feels it too, but isn’t allowed to say anything, and hits her with the, “Thank you for sharing that with me tonight.” But he said he was falling in love with Rachael… So it’s not against the rules. This is just upsetting. He should’ve said same. If he feels it of course. This couple is the ONLY one that makes sense. The chemistry is SO THERE.
I guess off camera producers indicate it’s time for Matt to leave and he looks at Bri and asks, “Are you kicking me out?” She replies coyly, “I won’t kick you out.” PERFECT HOMETOWN.
Serena
Serena starts her date by giving Matt a Canada-themed quiz. The first question is what is the most commonly used phrase in Canada. Matt nails it, answering, “Eh?” You learn something new everyday! As they stand in a room decorated with about 100 Candian flags, Serena asks how many points on the Canadian flag’s maple leaf. As Matt stares directly at the flags and counts the tips, he guesses 14. The answer is 11. Then they have a Candian food tasting Breaking news: Matt loves poutine. So at least we know he’s not completely out of his mind. After the taste test, they’re off to meet Serena’s family. Her mom is legit her twin and you cannot convince me otherwise.
In a one on one conversation with her mom, Serena confesses, “I do sometimes feel like I’m catching up to his feelings.” Her mom says, “You don’t seem smitten but I think it’s because you’re in your head.” Serena tells her mom that something is causing her deep doubt but she doesn’t know what it is and can’t say it or verbalize it or write it down. Then, she starts to SOB. Poor Serena, she’s so fun it sucks seeing her so sad.
Serena’s sister tells her that she doesn’t wanna get in a bad situation and she doesn’t want to get engaged and say “I messed up.” She asks, “So you are thinking about getting engaged?” Serena says it’s “on the table.” I think maybe… It should be taken off that table.
After the date, Serena walks Matt to the car in silence. Vibe check! The vibe is off. Serena says she’s emotionally exhausted and didn’t expect Matt to take the night so calmly. Apparently he just tells her to trust him, but we don’t see that. Serena wanted her hometown to “get [her] there” and think that he was her husband. She cries and says she has “doubt and fear.”
What Next?
Matt gives Chris Harrison the hometown rundown. Chris says, “You’ve always adored Serena” but instructs him not to hand out a rose if she hasn’t told him she’s falling for him or in love with him. Matt agrees and goes to meet Serena in her hotel room.
Serena is curled up on the couch looking a little bummed when Matt walks in. She looks up and says, “I didn’t know you were gonna be here.” Matt sits down and a serious conversation starts immediately. He tells Serena, “I’ve known how I felt about you for a long time.” Yeah ok but how is that though?? Continuing on he says, “I can say without a doubt you’re the person I’ve spent the most time with. I can see that there is a future and you’re someone who I could definitely see a life together with.” Serena insists that Matt has everything that she wants in a husband, but slowly tells him, “When it came time to talk about my feelings for you, I really struggled and I thought that it was fear initially and that I was just scared. But I think if I’m being honest with myself, it’s more than that and I think that it just comes down to the fact that I don't think that you’re my person.” SMACK. Matt lowers his head, nods, purses his lips, scratches his head, and according to my TV’s subtitles, “grunts softly.” Finally he musters up the courage to speak. Oh! My b. No he doesn’t. Spoke too soon and the head is back down now. Alright let’s try this again Matt. He looks up and says, “I felt that there was something off with you. It just stinks. It sucks to hear that because I just want what’s best for you and if I can’t make you happy and be that person for you, then that just stinks.”
NOW I’M LIKE WAIT. IS SHE THE ONE WHO COULD SAVE US FROM RACHAEL? DID HE LIKE HER THE MOST ALL ALONG? AND NOT RACHAEL? Have we all just missed something?
Matt is silent for a while before finally asking, “You wanna walk me downstairs?” He holds out his hand for Serena to hold. She walks him to the car and says goodbye with a simple,“Seeya.” Matt gets in the car and cries. It’s pretty sad to watch, so remember to think back to how he dumped Abigail so you don’t feel bad!
Credit: Twitter
After Serena self eliminates, Matt doesn’t have to send anyone home at the rose ceremony. All the women are going into fantasy suite week. We’re almost to the finish line! I am VERY excited to see how the dynamics change next week.
Cover photo credit: Instagram (@bachelorabc)