Editor's Note: Season six Bachelorette and E! News Correspondent Ali Fedotowsky is blogging exclusively on E! Online about the current season of The Bachelor, giving her reactions and spilling behind-the-scenes secrets.
It seems like FOREVER since we last watched The Bachelor or The Bachelorette. Summer break (with no Bachelor Pad) was honestly a nice break from all the rose drama. I think I needed the break.
But now Juan Pablo Galavis is back with another full season of tears, fights, hot tubs, and "I'm here for the right reasons" speeches. Are you guys ready? If not, too bad… the Bachelor is back this "Juanuary" and we're all along for the ride!!
I'm not going to sit here and break down every girl for you. That's not a good use of anyone's time. Instead, I'll tell you about you about my favorite girls, some standout moments and of course, we have to talk about the "not so normal" girls. Don't worry ladies, even if you are a weirdo on the show, I won't hold it against you.
You can never truly trust what you see on a reality show, so even if I kinda joke about people on here (only a little – I would never be straight out mean), it's all in the name of fun and entertainment. I mean come on, you went on a reality show to date a guy with 24 other girls (actually 26 other girls in your case) so you have to be able to make fun of yourself and take a little heat as well. I mean I did it! I make fun of myself for doing it all the time! You should hear what my friends say to me! Ok…let's get into it.
First, a lot of people on Twitter were wondering why the girls do such weird things out of the limo. I'm about to tell you why: Even though the rose ceremony the first night goes until about 8 a.m.—Yep, you heard right, 8 a.m.!—Each girl still alone has 5 to maybe 15 minutes with Juan Pablo so they want to be remembered! Obviously if you have great chemistry, your silly stunt out of the limo doesn't really matter, he'll pick you anyway... but for the girls that don't really have great chemistry, they're desperate to be remembered. (In my fan questions section below, I'll talk about how hard it is to remember everyone that first night.)
Standout moments and girls…
Juan Pablo Going Back Inside to Get Lauren's Name: Shows what a stand up guy he is. We've never seen anyone do this in the past (and trust me plenty of people forget to say their names) so it tells me that he really is a caring guy.
Clare: Clare stood out to me because she's the one whose dad sadly past away, and she has a DVD from him to give to her future fiancé. I found this story to be so endearing and special. But what makes me nervous about this is I fear that she'll give him the DVD too early and then get sent home. I think that would be really sad. Don't do it Clare! I like Clare. I like her sense of humor. I mean she did come out of the limo preggers after all!
Lucy: Ahhh Lucy. An enlightened child, prancing through the mansion without a care in the world. My favorite line of hers was, "I didn't wear shoes because I didn't want to be too tall." What she should have said is "I didn't wear shoes because I'm a professional free spirit!" Here is what worries me about Lucy. She is almost TOO carefree. So much in fact that I worry she'll say whatever she wants without a care in the world and end up insulting other people. I'm sure you're all with me when I say that there is just something a little off with this girl.
Nikki Could be Mine and Courtney Robertson's Love Child… Just Saying: I got SO many tweets last night telling me that Nikki and I are basically the same person – sisters – doppelgangers – clones! Since I watch with the west coast, I didn't know what to think, so I had to wait to watch to see for myself. And after watching I feel like she looks like a mix between me and Courtney Roberston. Right?!?
First Impression Rose: I have to admit his first impression rose pick—Sharleen (The opera singer)— seemed like an odd choice to me, and many of you on Twitter felt the same. But who knows what he was thinking when he choose to give it to her. Everyone gives it for different reasons. I gave mine to the person I felt in my heart that I would end up with. That said, I know that Jillian Harris gave hers to someone for a funny reason (I don't remember exactly what she told me but I know she didn't take it too seriously—she was just having fun with it!). So I'm sure Juan Pablo has some good reason why he gave her the 1st impression rose. My guess it was because she seemed so nervous and awkward. He probably wanted to make her feel more confident. Plus I think he saw something in her that was similar to him. They are both a tad awkward in an adorable endearing way right? Or maybe he just LOVES opera music.
Sharleen in General: A lot of you are concerned that Sharleen seemed too unsure about Juan Pablo. I think it's refreshing to see someone so cautious and unsure of the situation. What I don't love is when girls say they want to marry Juan Pablo before they even meet him. THAT'S what's weird to me. She feels uneasy for a simple reason… it's a WEIRD situation! And she's obviously not super comfortable competing for one guy with all those other girls. When Juan Pablo came back with the 1stimpression rose and she said, 'Seriously?' I thought it was just because she is a quirky, awkward person. I love that about her! What I don't love about her—the fact that she keeps saying "Thank you sir" to him. Now that's not quirky, endearing-weird…that's just weird-weird. Maybe she reads a lot of "50 shades of Grey" and likes the whole submissive thing? Ha.
Let's move onto The Bachelor fan questions! You guys tweeted me these questions last night and I have some answers for ya…
Marknado (@markt25hb) asks: @AliFedotowsky @eonline is the initial meet as awkward as it looks?
Yes. It's VERY awkward. Honestly my first time out of the limo almost seems like a dream to me. You're so nervous and everything is so new and strange. Seeing cameras EVERYWHERE is pretty nerve-wracking if you're not used to it! But after the initial meeting, you basically forget the cameras are there and things feel more normal and less awkward. Well, as normal as you can feel dating a guy with 24 or 26 other women. Ha!
Marissa (@tatasmyname) asks: @AliFedotowsky @eonline I noticed a lot more diversity Sean's season. Do the guys (or girls) request certain types, physically?
You can't really request whom you want as contestants. Like you can't say, 'I'm only attracted to Latin girls, so just give me Latin girls,' but the producers do ask what kind of people you are attracted to. You can be specific or vague. All I said was, 'Don't give me a bunch of hotties that can't carry a conversation. I want funny, smart, quirky guys!'
Haley (@haleyd2point0) asks: @AliFedotowsky Do the producers ever suggest to the Bachelor which girls to choose on the first night to make the season interesting?
Not really. On the first night you can barely remember everyone. I mean, can you remember everyone after watching? I doubt it. It's tough. It's such a LONG night and you are so tired, so sometimes whether someone stays or leaves is based on whether or not you can remember them. Honestly. I know that sounds awful, but it's true. I think I chose the majority of the guys who stayed the 1st night, but after that I couldn't really distinguish the last couple so I had the producer "help" me pick, and I'm sure they would suggest I can't get rid of the "interesting" ones. Ha. I'm not saying it was this way for Juan Pablo, but if I had to bet money on it, I would say he probably had help picking girls from a producer. And the producer would definitely pick people to stay that would cause drama!
Emily (@TaftEmily) asks: @AliFedotowsky @eonline so these girls make up their professions? Some are a little strange. I.E. free spirit! #TheBachelor
I think that just's another word for "blissfully unemployed." Hey, it's a tough economy these days! I admire her "spirit." ;)
Kim (@KimFea) asks: @AliFedotowsky @eonline What is something you would change about the show? Or the casting process?
I would have the Bachelor be a part of the casting process. I think the show would be a lot more successful if the lead had a chance to sort through the peopled that are on the show. Let's face it, you know within the first 60 seconds of meeting something whether or not you are attracted to them. Even if it's a "friend" attraction, there has to be some sort of attraction. So yes, I wish Juan had the chance to help in the casting process. I think it would be a cool twist one season! Don't you?
Jen (@_jenmarie) asks: @AliFedotowsky @eonline When do you (previous contestants) get to meet the newbies? #TheBachelor
Past contestants usually get to meet the newbies at the Women Tell All (Or Men Tell All) after party. I've never been to one (except my own seasons), but the producers usually invite past cast members to come meet the new cast. I've heard LOTS of hook-ups happen at these parties! Maybe I'll have to go to the next one just to get all the hook-up details and report them back to you guys. ;)
Thanks for all the great Twitter questions guys. I don't know if I'll be able to do these blogs each week, but I'll do them when I can. So follow me on Twitter at @AliFedotowsky because I tweet about the show each week and I may answer YOUR question in my next blog or on Twitter!
I'll end with my picks for the final three ladies:
1. Andi: Juan Pablo had a HUGE reaction to her looks coming out of the limo and they seem to really hit it off when they talked inside. She's hot AND a lawyer. She's a good catch and I think he knows it
2. Nikki: Juan Pablo bit his hand because he thought she was so attractive coming out of the limo. Physical attraction is important too. But she was also the first person he chose to talk to inside. This is a very telling sign that she will go far.
3. Sharleen: I know this is an odd choice for my number three but getting the 1st impression rose says a lot about his initial feelings for her. It the majority of past seasons, the person who gets the 1st impression rose makes it into the top three. Unfortunately I have a feeling she will eliminate herself at some point. I just don't think she's made for this.
Ok that's all I've got! Until next time…
Ali