***SPOILER ALERT***
This season of The Bachelorette has been absolutely insane! From starting in quarantine, to Claire leaving the show, this truly has been unlike any other season before. On top of that, Claire might be the most hated bachelorette in history (don’t worry, Pilot Pete is still the worst Bachelor). There are so many reasons to dislike her- between her asking the guys to strip down, disappearing with Dale, and ultimately completely disrespecting her bachelors’ time. Here’s a complete rundown of the train wreck that is Claire’s season so far.
From the beginning, Claire’s season completely was unprecedented since it was filmed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Claire and the guys quarantined for two weeks before starting the show so that they could film within 6 feet and without masks. That’s dedication! These guys really want to be there for Claire since they’re willing to live in complete isolation for two weeks on top of leaving their family and friends. In the first episode, we find out that Claire has been talking to Blake in quarantine! Apparently, he reached out to her over Instagram to offer his support. Claire was having difficulty being away from her sick mother and being isolated from the world. Blake wanted to make her feel less alone and decided to reach out against the rules of the show. In the first episode of this season, we see Claire praising him for it and for being bold. That’s where this season started to go wrong. Claire’s already breaking the rules before day one and telling all of the guys to do so too. She doesn’t respect the process of finding her husband on the show and is already going outside the guidelines. That’s not even the worst part of the first episode because the second Dale steps out of the limo, Claire has made her choice. When he’s walking into the house, Claire says aloud “I think I just met my husband.” She got all hot and bothered about a guy she spent a total of 30 seconds with! With that, the season should have been over; she made her choice and didn’t give any of the other guys a chance.
Instead, Claire decides to go on with her season and have several dates. Her first one-on-one with Jason was very troubling to viewers because instead of getting to know him and having first date conversations, Claire decides to dive right into the deep stuff. On their date, they start with a scream into the wilderness that I’m sure frightened any wildlife within 30 miles. Claire and Jason then write names they’ve been called on stones and read them to each other. Jason reads “manipulative”, “selfish”, “cold”, “mean”, which should be red flags right there. Instead, Claire seems even more intrigued and they smash their stones together on the rocks. Claire’s interest in Jason doesn’t sit well with Bachelor Nation. Many fans are confused why the oldest (and supposedly most mature) bachelorette is so interested in a guy who calls himself “manipulative”.
Her group dates don’t go much better, but the most appalling one this season has definitely been the infamous dodgeball game. Producers split up the guys on the team and while they are explaining the rules, Claire adds that she wants to make it strip dodgeball. The cameras then cut to each of the guy’s faces and none of them seem happy about this idea, but they will do it for Claire. The blue team loses each round and as the guys strip down they appear more and more uncomfortable. Claire doesn’t stop until the guys are naked with their lower halves covered by black-out-boxes by the producers. They remain this way for most of the show, walking home and arriving at the house without any clothes, leaving them to explain what happened to the rest of the guys. Bachelor Nation is completely appalled by this and we’re ready to see her leave at this point. I wouldn’t be surprised if they received sexual harassment lawsuits too!
The real tipping point is that while all these guys are breaking rules and stripping down for Claire, she’s only focused on Dale. In each clip that she gets she’s talking about how cute Dale looks or how nice Dale is or how much she likes him. At the final cocktail party, she spends an hour making out with Dale while the other guys sit around waiting for her. When the other guys finally intervene and ask to talk to her, it cuts to her asking the producers to “speed up” the other conversations. She clearly doesn’t want to talk to the other guys and is incredibly disrespectful of their time. Chris Harrison thankfully recognizes this and talks to Claire about it. She decides to cancel the final cocktail party because she wants a chance to have a date with Dale, to explore his feelings for her too. She wasn’t disappointed because he has feelings for her.
After her rendezvous with Dale, Claire meets with the remaining guys. She admits that she found her future husband already and just wants to spend more time with Dale. The other guys are shocked, with Blake saying he “hopes she doesn’t get hurt” and “doesn’t know how she can be sure so quickly”. Claire seems appreciative of the guys and goes to meet Dale for a proposal. He’s incredibly sweet and talks about all of the things he loves about her despite only knowing her for three weeks. He also mentions how he knows she would do anything for him and that his mom would want that unconditional love for him. Dale’s proposal is really the first display that he likes her as much as Claire’s been talking about him. Claire and Dale then pack up and leave the show and honestly they seem happy.
Claire leaving creates a lot of questions for the rest of the guys. They feel shell shocked and are each struggling to understand what happened. They question Claire’s honesty in saying that she and Dale didn’t have contact prior to the show. The guys assume they’re going home and start packing their bags since they came here for Claire to find love and she did right? Wrong! Chris Harrison walks in and tells the guys that their “journey isn’t over” unless they want it to be. They’re bringing in a new Bachelorette and the guys can decide whether to stay and meet her or leave because they’re too attached to Claire. In the end, all of the guys choose to stay and meet… Tayshia!