Last night was the premiere of season 18 of The Bachelorette. This year, the most eligible bachelorette in America is 28-year-old elementary school teacher Michelle Young. If you are an active member of #BachelorNation like I am, odds are you got to know and love Michelle on Matt James’ season of The Bachelor last winter. Michelle was one of five women who arrived to Matt’s season a couple of weeks late. As the group of women had already been established, and every season claims to be “the most dramatic season ever”, Michelle’s arrival caused some tension in the house. Even after a rocky start, Michelle quickly won the hearts of America and Matt James, for a bit. Obviously, she was not Matt’s final rose recipient but she was in his final three. Last night, she began her own journey to find love.
I have been an avid viewer of the Bachelor franchise for years, and night one is always one of the best episodes of the season. The main event of the night is each man’s exit from the limo to try and impress Michelle. In total, Michelle met 30 men who all are hopefully, here for the right reasons and here’s what you need to know.
First of all, way too many men made cheesy teacher jokes as part of their introduction. One came dressed as an apple… because teachers like apples apparently. We get it, she’s a teacher, but come on men, think of something a bit more creative! The big drama of the night was with “Ice Cream Ryan”, he brought an ice cream truck for his introduction, hence where he got his nickname. Spoiler alert: he got sent home before the rose ceremony.
Hostesses and previous bachelorettes Kaitlyn Bristowe and Tayshia Adams scoped out Michelle’s crop before the first night, and found something in Ice Cream Ryan’s room. A Bachelorette Playbook (but he spelled it “bachlorette”). Obviously, if you’re making a playbook and taking notes on how to NOT be the villain of the season, you are not here for the right reasons.
In the rules of “girl code”, Kaitlyn and Tayshia had only one option: warn Michelle. Clearly, this was a giant, waving red flag for Michelle, so she confronted Ryan and asked to see his “notes”. Stumbling over his words and getting caught up in his web of misspelled lies, Ryan reluctantly agreed (as if he had a choice).
In true teacher fashion, Michelle read over his “notes”, assumed the disappointed teacher position, and sent Ryan home. As she should! I applaud Michelle for not putting up with his playbook and calculations. We are rooting for you Michelle!
The night wrapped up with a rose ceremony as always, saying goodbye to a few additional men, the most notable was a guy named Jack Russell… yes like the dog. So far, Michelle is acing this bachelorette role, and I can’t wait to watch her journey unfold!
