Original Bachelorette Trista Sutter is putting her reality-TV experience to use for us here at Watch With Kristin, blogging about Jillian Harris' quest for the perfect guy. Take it away, Trista...
Yet another week of watching the latest lucky girl search for love on national television. As the first lucky girl to wear The Bachelorette shoes, I can certainly sympathize with Jillian Harris' position. Here's my humble opinion on last night's action...
Hometown dates start with Reid in Philly. Superhigh squeals from Jillian are a good sign of excitement, although I'm anxious to see if they are truly good signs or not. As they sit on a park bench in the city, awkward silence hits. Cringe-worthy for sure, especially when they fill it with a kiss. Another incredibly cringe-worthy moment was when Jillian kissed Reid during cake time (Happy Belated Birthday, Reid!). It was so uncomfortable!
Comfortable, though, was the time with his dad. He said, "Don't worry about what I think or what your mom thinks. If you're happy, go for it." Unconditional support is what a family should be about, and it seems like Jillian would be lucky to be part of that. They seem solid and supportive and drama-free. Some may say boring, but boring may just mean the show edited the laughter-filled parts out (like they did with Ryan's date to my dad's house on my season). Or it could mean they are the real deal and are purely grounded, happy people. Good either way, as that will be her reality if Reid is the final rose recipient. (Not sure I would bet on that, but as I've said before, I'm always wrong at guessing!)
Michael introduces Jillian to his mom, dad and identical twin brother in Valencia, Calif., after she releases her signature superhigh squeal when he opens the door. Gotta love the exuberance, although I feel sorry for the audio guy with the headphones on when she does that into her microphone. The date goes well, although I'm not sure how it couldn't with such a genuine, fun-loving family. His brother Steve helps her talk through the age concern she's feeling. He sets it straight that Michael wants to be a young husband, and she realizes that she'd rather be with someone who makes her laugh, than someone who was older just for age's sake. Good point. Good date.
Kiptyn welcomes Jillian to San Diego, and she lets out yet another signature superhigh squeal. Gorgeous scenery, gorgeous guy but not-so-gorgeous kiss. Ick! I realize Jillian may be into his reach-with-the-lips type of kissing, but I'd just rather not watch. Right away, Jillian is swept off to the backyard for a little humor and quite a bit of pressure. Humor comes from the yellow "caution" tape around the hot tub (love that she can laugh at herself!) And pressure came from their lasagna and fine wine test, which Jillian passes with flying colors. It seemed a bit unfair and condescending, if you ask me.
Then there was the time Jillian had with his mom. Ouch. Talk about tough! She did warm up, and they seemed to click over honesty and Kiptyn's happiness, but if I were in her shoes, I would've worried about future conflicts with her. Kiptyn's sister (of course, she's gorgeous), on the other hand, let it all out at dinner when she said, "Get this girl pregnant!" I love that sense of humor!
Jesse's family's winery is set in beautiful Carmel, Calif. The only thing missing from their hellos was Jillian's signature squeal. Not a good sign, although I'm sure the audio guy was thankful. There were the typical chats with mom and his brother, but the jam session was out of the ordinary. How much fun! Jesse is so on the top of my list. He is so articulate and calming, and I absolutely loved his brother.
Now, it's off to Austin to see the guy who "gets me the most," as Jillian says. Maybe Wes just did his homework and read all about her before he decided to blindside her for his career! Jillian squeals hello (yes, she did it for everyone but Jesse), and then he introduces her to his band. If only she could hear his personal interviews...ugh! I know the producers want it to be as authentic as possible, and I know it's hard to do when your dating life is being filmed and it started with 30 guys, and they don't want to interfere. But how do you not share with her that Wes' "ultimate goal" is for his new CD to do well and that not even a woman can give you the feeling you get when you are on stage? I just want to jump through the screen and strangle him. At the very least, I want to throw the guitar out of his hands and tell him that as a country music fan, I would never buy his music!
While Jillian is getting her personal concert from Wes, Jake secretly arrives at the hotel. Yay for the hero! He says he needs to protect her and let her know how deceptive Wes is. Amen brother! Jake tells Jillian that she's gonna have a hard time with one of the guys, particularly Wes. You can see how desperately she believes Wes' B.S. And while Jake takes forever to get it out, he finally delivers the bad news: "Wes has a girlfriend. Her name is Laurel." That could not have been easy, but he did it...unlike Tanner! She seems to believe Jake and his 100 percent confidence.
But in the interest of fairness, she gives Wes a chance to explain, er, defend himself. I understand the need, but when a sweet-talking player really wants you to believe something, he usually wins. Jillian says she has to go with her gut, and unfortunately, her gut seems to like manipulative liars who can sing. My mom always said, "If you question something, then it's just not right." I don't understand how she could keep someone around if she had the teeniest inkling that she was being played a fool. She has all the information in front of her and instead decides to believe Wes over Jake.
I guess love is a powerful thing, powerful enough to get her to go meet Wes' family. She thinks it may shed some light on his situation, but when you don't ask his family specifically about his dating life and Laurel, do you really think they are gonna just throw him under the bus? At the end of the date, Jillian says that she's always followed her heart and never regretted it. I don't believe in regrets either, but I wonder if she'll regret not listening to Jake when her heart is breaking in a million pieces at the end of this journey if she chooses Wes.
Dates are done and Jillian is back in L.A., and guess who shows up? Ed. Yay! He realized he made a huge mistake leaving the show for his job back home and he wants another shot. Wow. That's a lot to take in one week. I do appreciate that she hesitated in giving him a second chance. After all, he made the decision to walk away. Can she trust him to not do it again somewhere down the road?
This all leads to what is probably the most dramatic rose ceremony yet. She chats with host Chris Harrison about the drama of the week and said a few things that stood out to me (and I'm paraphrasing here):
1. If it were easy, it wouldn't feel right. Maybe. Maybe not. Shouldn't love feel easy? I think so.
2. Out of principle, she said that she owed it to Wes to trust him. Why? You shouldn't owe him anything. He owes her the truth if anyone owes anyone anything!
3. She'd rather make her own decision and be wrong and get burned than follow someone else's lead and be wrong and hurt somebody else. That's superselfless of her, but isn't this about her finding love? It's not about minimizing hurt, although that's a hard part to deal with in her situation. It's nice, but she shouldn't be putting herself last.
Needless to say, the guys are superpissed when Ed walks in. I don't blame them. In the end, roses to go Reid, Kiptyn, Ed and, shockingly, Wes. I know the rose to Ed was a huge surprise, but I was personally stoked. To me, they seem to be the best fit, although I admit the view from the couch is not always the best view.
I was not so stoked about Jesse's departure, but once again, it's her life and not a show just for our everlasting entertainment. Sad for Michael, but I'm thinking he won't be hurting for dates—classy departure, fun soul and cutie-pie.
Good luck out there, guys! Although I think that Jillian's gonna need the luck with Wes still in the picture. Until next week...
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Check back here, same time, same place, for a recap of next week's The Bachelorette. And follow Trista on Twitter @tristasutter or on her family website at www.ryansutter.com.