As a first time viewer of The Bachelor, I thought I had a sense of what I was getting into. However, watching the show these past few weeks, it has surpassed my expectations on how much drama can be put into one show. We are getting closer and closer to seeing how Peter’s journey to finding his “co-pilot” will end. This week he visited Madison, Kelsey, Victoria F, and Hannah Ann’s hometowns. Read ahead for a recap of all the drama on this week’s episode of The Bachelor! Spoilers ahead, obviously.
Hometown #1: Knoxville, Tennessee
With a rainy backdrop, Peter visited Hannah Ann’s hometown as his first stop. Before Peter met her family, they went axe throwing (which for a California boy, Peter is weirdly excited about) in order to impress her dad. Hannah Ann’s father (aka “Ranger Rick”) works in the lumber industry as a forester. After a few fails, they both finally made a bullseye, and Peter split a block of wood. After their date, Peter decided to give Hannah Ann his own list of “Things I Love About You” after she wrote him one last week. Peter met Hannah Ann’s family with flowers in hand. He was super sweet, and the meeting went really well. And while Hannah Ann talked to her sister, Peter got a stern talk with her father about his relationship with his daughter and how she compares to the other women still in the running. Rick explicitly told Peter not to tell Hannah he’s in love with her unless he truly means it. Even with the warning, Peter still tells Hannah Ann he is honestly in love with her before saying goodbye.
Hometown #2: De Moines, Iowa
Next up, Peter visited Kelsey in chilly Iowa where they made their own wine (who knew Iowa had its own winery). They crushed grapes with their feet in a very large and deep tub (ugh, gross). Kelsey and Peter danced in the tub, and then they tasted and mixed wine to create their own. I’ve never seen Kelsey smile as much as she did this episode, which is really nice. Then she told Peter she is in love with him. At dinner with her mom, stepdad, and two sisters they ate crab rangoon (Kelsey’s favorite dish), and Peter got an even scarier speech from Kelsey’s mom. Before Peter left, he told Kelsey he is “definitely falling”, which wasn’t exactly equal to her confession. Yikes.
Hometown #3: Auburn, Alabama
Next, Peter heads to good’ole Alabama with everyone’s favorite gal Madison. Peter and Maddie’s date is at her alma mater, Auburn University. They played basketball in the arena where her dad is the coach for the Auburn Tigers. As they walked into the stadium, Charles Barkley is on the screen, and Peter is again threatened to treat Maddie right or beware. Maddie absolutely crushed all of the drills Coach Bruce Pearl gave her and then wins the one-on-one game against Peter. You go girl! For dinner, they had prime rib in true Alabama fashion, and Maddie was given the “special plate.” This means that everyone around the room has to say something nice about her. Aw! Peter’s talks with Maddie’s mom and dad were tense; her mom is hesitant, and her dad has the same concerns as Rick. Before Maddie left to say goodbye to Peter, her father reminded Maddie of her faith. In her confessional, Maddie hoped to say to Peter she was in love with him, but doesn’t know “if their spirit and souls are compatible.” At the same time, in his confessional, Peter was completely the opposite, saying he knows that they’re on the same page. Poor, Peter.
Hometown #4: Virginia Beach, Virginia
Last, but certainly not least, Peter met up with Victoria F. on the beach. They played with her super cute dog (who treats Peter better than Victoria has ever done, to be quite honest). Peter and Victoria started their date by taking pictures in 18th century clothes, and then they moved on to a concert with country singer Hunter Hayes (don’t worry guys, she hasn’t dated him). His lyrics fit very well with Peter and Victoria’s relationship: crazy. It doesn’t take long before something on their date goes wrong, when one of Peter’s ex-girlfriend, Marissa, confronted him about Victoria. She warned him to be careful because many relationships have been broken because of her. When Peter confronted Victoria about Marissa’s claims, Victoria did what she does best: cry. She got defensive and started screaming and crying at Peter; she even had the audacity to admit she had planned to tell him that she loved him. In the middle of the fighting, Peter must have decided to skip the family meeting, (uh, oh) and he went back to his hotel. The next morning, Victoria showed up in Peter’s hotel room to apologize, and, with a light tears, she gave him a printed picture of them on their date. It is never boring when it comes to these two. After Peter visits all the final four’s hometowns (except Victoria F.’s), all the girls waited for Peter in an airplane hanger at the rose ceremony — we get it Peter, you’re a pilot. Victoria was feeling antsy since he never got to meet her family. Peter gave the first two roses to Hannah Ann and Madison (duh); that left Kelsey amd Victoria. Peter continued, and for some odd and frustrating reason, he decided to give Victoria the last rose. Moving forward, we can now get excited for the next stop: Australia! That’s all folks!— but wait, before Peter left, Madison gave her concerns to Peter about him sleeping with the other girls. And with that, the episode ends in a cliffhanger. I guess we’ll have to wait an agonizing week to find out how it all goes down.