Nothing like a fantasy suite week to make us feel a weird mixture of swoony and uncomfortable.
The Bachelor star Matt James just invited his final three women to spend the night with him off-camera, and while he had a great time with all three of them, there was one who felt like she got a whole lot more attention than the other two. And we're not excited about it.
This season continued the new tradition of making the women hang out in the same room before and after their fantasy suite dates, meaning we get to see them react to each other's comings and goings. That meant that as Michelle and Bri came and went on their fantasy suite dates with Matt, we got to see Rachael panic.
As Matt and Michelle had a spa day in a tub full of milk, we saw Rachael freak out over Matt being with another woman. As Matt and Bri set up a tent, we got Rachael freaking out over Matt being with another woman. Then, as Rachael and Matt tried to make some pottery, we got to see Rachael freak out over Matt having been with other women.
The night was all about how Rachael is feeling about what Matt was doing, despite Michelle and Bri being positively delightful on their dates. Then, when Rachael expressed her panic to Matt, he swept her up into his arms and carried her away to reassure her.
Then, while Michelle and Bri got hotel rooms, Matt and Rachael got to spend the night in a whole house with fireworks going on outside. During the rose ceremony, Rachael got to freak out once again before Matt chose her over Bri, sending Bri home.
It just felt like we saw a whole lot of Rachael and a lot less of the other two women, making us a whole lot less excited for next week's finale than we might have otherwise been.
Rachael has been the center of controversy for weeks after she was accused of bullying and photos of the 24-year-old attending an Antebellum-themed party in 2018 resurfaced. She spoke out about the controversy in a Feb. 11 Instagram post.
"At one point, I didn't recognize how offensive and racist my actions were, but that doesn't excuse them," she wrote. "My age or when it happened does not excuse anything. They are not acceptable or okay in any sense. I was ignorant, but my ignorance was racist."
After host Chris Harrison defended her in an interview with Rachel Lindsay, he apologized and stepped aside from hosting the season's After the Final Rose event. Emmanuel Acho will replace him as host for that episode, which will no doubt include conversations about race and racism after the events of this season.
It's disheartening to see Rachael get so much screentime, whether she "wins" or not, when she's the reason for all of the controversy. Michelle and Bri just also deserved a lot more than they're getting.
We just wanna have a good time watching people dramatically fall in love, but this is not fun. This is depressing. Hopefully next week's finale surprises us all, in a good way.
The Bachelor season 25 finale airs next Monday at 8 p.m. on ABC.