Ever since I saw the preview for tonight’s episode of The Bachelor, I have been excited about it.  Brad tests the women to see just how well they know him.  How does he do this?  By sending his twin brother in to socialize with them and see if they spot the difference.  Will someone fall for Brad’s sneaky trick?  Who’s going home without a rose?  We’ll see what happens and I’m here with live thoughts during the show.  Post your thoughts, too! 

Chris drops off a date box and says he hopes to see all of them at the next rose ceremony.  Why wouldn’t he?  Stephy, McCarten, Jenni, Lindsey, Sarah and DeAnna get the first date box and they’re heading to the circus.  He’s got the hookup, or ABC does, and he gets the girls up close and personal with an elephant.  Did anyone ever notice how overenthusiastic the women get?  They went to the luxury box which had balloons in it and all started screaming. 

The girls also get to interact with the circus performers and Jenni does backflips – that’ll get any guy’s attention!  She asks him if they can do long distance and he says yes.  Hey, buddy, go look at the track records of the other 10 bachelors before you.  You might want to find a way to be in the same place. 

The girls find out they’ll be part of the circus and backstage, a clown pretty much jumps on Brad.  That’s my worst nightmare!   Brad gets a minute alone with McCarten, who oozes confidence but maybe shouldn’t.  A clown delivers Brad the rose that he must give to one of the women.  He tries to give a speech but I’m pretty sure no one can hear him.  Stephy gets the rose for opening up about herself to him

Hillary finds out she’s getting a one on one and of course, the other girls are jealous.  Solisa helps her get ready and Brad shows up with lots of jewelry for Hillary to wear.  The other girls’ expression range from polite smiles to disappointment.  A private jet takes the pair to San Francisco for the night.  They sit down to dinner and about two seconds in, she’s in tears.  Wow.  He took her on the date because he said she was fun.

The other date box arrives for Kristy, Sheena, Jade, Bettina, and Solisa.  They’ll be going sailing for their date.

Tearjerker update: Hillary’s still crying.  Back at the house, the girls debate whether or not Hillary will come back.  When some express they want her to come back, McCarten calls them out for being fake.  Back in San Fran, Hillary can’t seem to turn off the waterworks.  NO!  He gave her the rose.  I thought, for sure, she was going home.  Over ice cream sundaes, they share a kiss. 

The second group of girls spend a day on the open water with the bachelor.  Once again, Solisa gets up close and personal.  She thinks she has a strong connection with him but I think he might just like the view.  At the house, Hillary calls DeAnna and McCarten witches, for telling her they didn’t think she was coming back.  Of course, she called them that in her interview and not to their face.    While racing jet skis, Sheena gets in trouble with the Coast Guard after cutting Brad off.

Bettina gets time with him and she feels like it’s time to tell him about her divorce. She does admit it and Brad couldn’t hide the shock on his face and in his voice.  Afterwards, he decides to give the rose to Kristy and not Bettina, who is worried her past may affect her future with Brad.

Brad brings his twin onto the show, sending him to a cocktail party in his place to find out who really is into this for him and who’s not.  Oh, I can’t wait!
 
Yes, time to go.  Chad heads in and McCarten is clueless as is Lindsey.  Sheena is the first to notice something is off and figures out he has a twin.  She bursts into tears and sends a message to Brad that she really does like him.  Kristy and Bettina also figure it out as do Stephy and DeAnna.  Sarah doesn’t seem to pick up on the fact that she’s talking to someone who’s NOT Brad.

When Chad walks in, the girls freak out: a) because there are twins in front of them and b) because it was a test to see how well they knew him.  Everyone is uneasy heading into the rose ceremony, as they should be.  After Chad and Brad discuss who should stay and who should go, Brad heads to the ceremony.

Brad gives the first rose to Sheena and the second to McCarten.  Jenni, Jade, and DeAnna also receive roses.  The last one goes to Bettina – yay!  I was hoping she’d stay.  That means Lindsey, Solisa, and Sarah have been eliminated.  Lindsey takes it the hardest, saying she saw someone she loved and could have kids with.  Nine women move on and Brad will sure have a tough decision to make in the coming weeks.

– Gina Scarpa, BuddyTV Staff Writer
(Image courtesy of ABC)

Gina Scarpa

Staff Writer, BuddyTV