Another season of The Bachelor has come to an end, and it's not a good one.
Before Matt James' season even began airing, fans started finding questionable photos either "liked" by or featuring contestant Rachael Kirkconnell. The most egregious pic featured Rachael all dressed up at an antebellum-themed party in 2018, and it eventually led to long-time host Chris Harrison stepping aside from the franchise after choosing to publicly defend her.
Matt didn't propose to Rachael, but he did tell her he saw her as his future wife and the mother of his children, but when he learned that the photo was real and found himself having to explain to his girlfriend why it was a bad idea to go to a plantation party, he broke up with her. And then he grew a large beard.
So yeah, not exactly the ending we were all hoping for, even if it did open up some important conversations about race that this show has never publicly had before.
While Matt's ending was certainly one of the least satisfying of the franchise for many reasons, it's not the only one that could be described as...chaotic. The last time a Bachelor season ended well on screen was with Nick Viall in 2017, and he and Vanessa Grimaldi split a few months later.
And sure, we'd also call Arie Luyendyk Jr. and Lauren Burnham a success story, but never forget being forced to watch him break up with his first choice, Becca Kufrin, on camera for like 40 minutes.
What we're saying is that this show is tough, and every ending is unique. Take a little walk through Bachelor franchise history by revisiting all the finales below!
Hopefully, new Bachelorettes Katie Thurston and Michelle Young (yep, 2021 is the year of the ladies) will have some better luck.