I'm so annoyed that the producers insisted Ben couldn't see Tayshia until she was pretending to get ready for the love story. I'm pretty sure Ben gets to stay and she sends Ivan home. Tayshia says it herself--"she sent him home for a reason". Channel that, Tay. Now I'm really seeing Ben's pants and they look uncomfortably tight. Those can't be good for the boys. They look like jeggings but they're clearly not, they're super skinny jeans and I thank the Lord that I'm way too old for that kind of crap anymore.
After being pissed at Ben when he first showed up, he tells her all the things she wanted to hear and you can tell she's melting. Ben keeps waiting for these perfect opportunities to tell her how he feels but he's clearly incredibly dense and doesn't seem to realize that there are no perfect moments. How old is this guy again?
Listen, I get it--Ben's hot. But he has so much internal work to do on himself. I don't want to say that because he's attempted suicide twice that he's irreparable or damaged--he's not. Unfortunately, he can't do the mature thing like Brendan did and realize he needed to heal before he could be with somebody else. Tayshia wants somebody to "fight" for her and wants someone like Ben to know that despite the fact he has so much work to do on himself, this is the love of a lifetime (it's not), so he needs to focus. If I may channel wise motivational speaker Matt Foley:
Hey you kids are probably saying to yourselves: I'm gonna go out there and grab the world by the tail and wrap it around and pull it down and put it in my pocket. Well I'm here to tell you that you're probably going to find out, as you go out there, that you're not going to amount to jack squat!
What can I add to that? Tayshia's still super annoyed at Ben but she says he can go to the Rose Ceremony which is total BS. If I were Ivan and Zak (forgot his name for a sec), I'd be so pissed at Tayshia. Another surprise comeback? She's starting to pull Pilot Pete vibes. Make a decision and stick with it Tayshia. You're better than this. Ben's obviously staying and Ivan's going home.
Tayshia walks Ben out and he asks for a hug and she doesn't respond and then they start making out and you know it's over for Ivan. Tayshia acts like she regrets the kiss but Ben is psyched and 100% confident that he's getting the rose and if I were him I would be too.
Anytime somebody says on this show this is the best they've ever felt in their life I am concerned. They've either led a sheltered life, they're too young to have had much life experience, or they're lying.
Rose Ceremony
Poor Ivan doesn't know he's going into the slaughter. I assume neither Zac nor Ivan know that Brendan's gone, though you have to wonder if the two of them wonder why they didn't have to do the ridiculous walk of shame skit that they both had to do. You know their mouths will drop to the floor when Ben walks in. Ivan is shocked and Zac repeats the Serenity Prayer in his mind over and over.
A friend commented to me about Tayshia's shoes, but I'm just getting a glimpse of them now and I agree with my friend--there's no way I would have been walking around in those in my suite. Those would probably go on right before I turned the corner. Oh to be young and have the will power for that kind of thing again. You can see Ivan thinking, "if you send me home then I don't want you anyway." Not in a mean way, but in a composed way.
Tayshia picks up a rose, sets it down and asks Ivan if they can talk really quickly. Ivan doesn't hear her so she repeats herself and you know Ivan's going home. Ben tries to engage Zac in conversation and Zac essentially ignores him.
Tayshia's break up talk seems a little BS'y because she said she had concerns. What kind of concerns could there be about Ivan? I'm not saying the guy's infallible but there's incompatibility or lack of attraction and then there are red flags. It's not really explained in depth, but it seems that Ivan's either not religious at all or is an atheist and Tayshia is pretty religious (which she's said in the past but I don't think we've seen it discussed in depth, or if we did, I missed it), so they are not compatible that way. And you know what? That's okay! It was fantastic that they had a conversation about this and it's perfectly okay for Tayshia to decide that religion is really important to her and she needs somebody religious in her life. But are Zac and Ben any more religious than Ivan is?
Ivan knows it's over and he takes it like a champ. There are much greener pastures out there for you Ivan, and I have no doubt your DMs are already runningeth over. Poor Ivan now has to get driven around in circles around La Quinta. As he's leaving, Ivan says he thinks she'll pick no one. Could this be foreshadowing?
Ben Meets Tayshia's Family
We know from the coming attractions that Tayshia's dad has some concerns and I can't wait to hear his thoughts on both of these guys. I could see a parent being concerned about either one of these two, though I think Zac's addiction and recovery is less concerning.
I forgot that Tayshia has two brothers. I don't remember if we met both of them during her hometown with Colton. I love Tayshia's dress and I love Dad's skepticism. I thought I remembered that Tayshia's dad had been in the military and apparently it was the Navy. I thought maybe that mom was drinking beer and seemingly the only one drinking, but I think it's iced tea.
Dad nails it when he's talking to Tayshia and he says, "I don't want you to have to work so hard to get somebody to be on the same page as you." Exactly! Ben's talking to mom and she's not very warm with him from what we see, but Ben says it went great so he's either clueless or lying. Both are concerning.
Dad asks Ben what he likes about Tayshia and Ben responds with the same BS he told mom: "it's the way she makes me feel." That doesn't answer the question. He finally comes up with the adjective 'incredible'. Dad bizarrely seems appeased by this and says he's gone from being doubtful to willing to give the guy a chance, which seems glowing from her dad. They all ride scooters together but my cold heart is still not melted.
Zac's Turn
This must be the visit that doesn't go well but if dad gives Zac a hard time about his past then I don't think that's fair because I'd argue they didn't get the full picture of Ben. I'm less concerned about an addict that is now an addiction counselor than somebody who attempted suicide very recently then couldn't use his words when he needed to.
Mom seems to like Zac more and Zac is way more personable. Even Tayshia can articulate her feelings about Zac to her parents better. The dynamic between Tayshia and her dad is cute. Mom definitely likes Zac. Dad's a little tougher on Zac but I think Zac hits it out of the park. I've realized that I think I love Zac almost as much as I love Brendan. There I said it. I also admit that I might be blind to his faults but that's also potentially because he doesn't have faults.
Dad Drops By
This has been the first time in a long time that I've been spoiler free and I am loving it. We see Tayshia "journaling" when there's a knock at the door. Tayshia now has a complex about door knocks, but it's her dad. Which is weird. He doesn't have any specific concerns about the guys, it's more of a "are you really, really, really really sure you want to do this again?" Which is fine but seems like more producer-generated drama.
Zac's Last Date
We're only halfway through and I can't imagine what they're going to do to draw this out. Maybe Neil Lane has forced himself into the show again? Tayshia isn't as excited as she usually is to see Zac since her dad stirred the pot. For some inexplicable reason Zac is wearing a shiny long sleeve shirt that he is clearly sweating in. Because he is way more astute (and a counselor) and picks up on non-verbal cues, he can tell that Tayshia is off and he's nervous. I'm nervous too, Zac, I'm nervous too.
Thankfully Zac and Tay get to go back to the air conditioning and get a dance lesson. The woman instructor's hair is an amazing color of purple. Tayshia is clearly starting to spiral and it's painful to watch. They seemingly nail the routine but Tayshia is still bothered by Zac's perfectness. Zac is not perfect. Just because there are no red flags doesn't mean they're perfect. It means there aren't red flags.
Tayshia talks about her concerns to Zac and the uncertainty of the future and we find out that today's Zac's ninth anniversary of sobriety and how that sobriety helps center him. He's saying all the right things but it's ultimately up to Tayshia. She seems appeased by this.
I hope that the producers are trying to screw with us because I'll be really sad if Tayshia chooses no one.
Ben's Last Date
Oh boy, we see Ben in the shower. We see Tayshia and she's in the same denim outfit she was in when she spoke to her dad. So it seems she's breaking up with Ben today. They never put the lead in the same outfit twice, so the timing of events is in question here, but never mind. This is going to be tough to watch. Ben clearly doesn't know what's coming or maybe he does. Ben's speechless but takes it in stride and this time I feel like Ben will be okay. He knows now that he did everything that he could.
There are still 20 minutes left and I'm so nervous because it seems like Zac has this in the bag but it's never that easy on this show. But aren't we due for a season that's wrapped in a pretty little bow? We don't need the f***ups of Arie, Colton and Pete.
As I wait for commercials to end, we have seen this before. Andi dumped Nick and Rachel dumped Pete, so this isn't unprecedented. But g-dammit, the producers continue to mess with us. My guard isn't down. Neil Lane shows up at Zac's place and it's very, "Hi I'm Troy McClure". I laughed out loud.
Zac looks super hot in his suit. Good Lord they're drawing this out. Tayshia goes to see Chris and Chris is clearly getting nervous. I'm getting nervous.
Zac arrives. Tayshia looks okay. Zac gives a lovely speech and in all of the things that he says about the reasons he loves Tayshia, he doesn't mention her looks once. Tayshia starts her speech and at one point I think she's going to call it off but she doesn't! I'm so happy!
I almost start crying it's so sweet. THIS is why she was crying. I'm so relieved. Finally, a normal ending! I feel really good about these two but for all I know they're already over.
They go off in a cab, it's totally adorable.
Matt James Preview
They end with the coming attractions for Matt James season and I can't wait. I have no opinion on Matt James, there's no investment so I'm all in on the drama. HERE FOR IT.
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