You already know how we felt about the prospect of Caila as the next Bachelorette. So when Chris Harrison announced during After the Final Rose that the role would actually be filled by JoJo, we were elated, to say the least.
Ben put both Lauren B. and JoJo in a tricky spot by declaring he loved each of them. But as we knew going into the finale, he could only walk away with one woman. So his reject seemed like the perfect choice for Bachelorette. Not only does she get another shot at love after Ben broke her heart on national television (in a way that no other Bachelor has ever done), but this becomes probably the smartest move producers have ever made.
For the first hour-and-a-half of the finale, we watched Ben flip flop back and forth between the two women, until he finally just had to pick one and get this thing over with. But we felt every second of Ben’s breakup with JoJo. She poured her heart out to him, and he let her. Then, he proceeded to blindside her, even though he promised he would never do that.
So, while you were literally aching for JoJo’s heart and wishing she could find a better man than Ben to make her whole again (or something like that), ABC and the Bachelor producers were striking up an ingenious plan for her to be the next Bachelorette. Okay, so it didn’t happen at the exact moment you were watching obviously, but you catch our drift.
Having a runner-up as the lead of The Bachelor or The Bachelorette is pretty unprecedented for the franchise. But the last few episodes of Ben’s season were truly unbelievable and so captivating. Producers couldn’t have asked for a better set-up for this summer’s Bachelorette. See, on some level you can forgive Ben for saying ILY to two women and proposing to one of them since his castoff will get another chance to find Mr. Right—a journey that you’ve been invited on. You’re also extremely invested in JoJo now and desperate to find out how she’ll recover from Ben’s rejection.
Caila as the Bachelorette could in no way match up to the opportunity that is JoJo. And America is totally okay with what feels like a quick turnaround announcement because they believe JoJo was wronged and they want to see the show make that right for her. The same cannot be said for Caila, and producers surely realized that.
For those of you who have already marked your calendars for the May 23 premiere of The Bachelorette, are these words ringing all too true for you? That’s what we thought. Yet again, Bachelor nation has sucked you in, and we’ll be right there with you.