*Warning: Major Spoilers Ahead*
It’s been six years in the making for new bachelorette Clare Crawley. After watching Clare tell off Juan Pablo, cry through two seasons of Bachelor in Paradise, and finally get engaged to Benoit on The Bachelor Winter Games (only to break it off a few months later), I was excited to see Clare finally get a real shot at finding love. The marketing for this season is all centered around Clare being the oldest bachelorette yet, at 39 years old. Being the oldest bachelorette, I went into the premiere thinking that Clare really knows what she wants in a man and isn’t going to deal with any petty drama, both of which ended up being true.
The first impression limo entrances were filled with the usual gags (one guy wore a straight jacket because he “went crazy” waiting to meet Clare) and over-the-top gestures. Despite all of this, only one entrance was memorable to me: Dale. Why, you might ask? Well, after Clare and him talked for about two minutes, she told the producers that she had just met her husband. Even after he went into the mansion she couldn’t focus on the new guys coming out of the limos. Dale ended up getting the first impression rose, making him a clear front-runner and possibly Clare’s winner at the end of all this. Although Clare seemed to feel love at first sight, I personally didn’t see any immediate sparks or connection. I think she’s putting all of her eggs in one basket way too soon when there are literally 29 other guys waiting to get to know her. Only time will tell what will happen between them, as the previews for the season hint at Clare leaving the process early with Dale and getting replaced by someone else as bachelorette.
The whole episode was basically dominated by Clare’s instant infatuation with Dale, but the first night was not without drama. Tyler and Yosef had a brief spat over an Instagram direct message Yosef allegedly sent to Tyler’s friend before coming on the show. Honestly, it was very boring and pointless drama that didn’t even make sense. Clare had both of them talk it out with her but saw that it was going nowhere. She ended up sending Tyler home and keeping Yosef for a little bit longer.
Other highlights of the episode included Clare’s conversation with Blake, who broke the rules by direct messaging her on Instagram when filming got postponed due to covid-19. Clare said that even though he broke the rules she was letting him stay because him reaching out meant so much to her. They ended their conversation with a passionate kiss, making Blake another possible front-runner.
Overall, the first episode was basically all about Clare and Dale. The show isn’t doing anything to disguise the fact that he is the front-runner and Clare’s temporary obsession. I’m really excited to see what’s next for Clare. She always puts her heart on the line and follows her own rules, so maybe this really could be “the most dramatic season ever”.