'The Bachelor' recap: Hometown Week ends with a shocking elimination
After a rough week, Colton Underwood decided Caelynn, Cassie, Hannah G. and Tayshia were the four ladies who were ready for a commitment. Colton visited their hometowns, which led to a shocking elimination.
First up was a visit to Caelynn’s hometown of Fredericksburg, Virginia, that starts out with a fun horse and buggy ride through town, followed by a meeting with her protective family. Caelynn’s sister, Ariana, is happy to hear Caelynn say she's in love with Colton, but also voices some skepticism about his sincerity. Caelynn's stepdad, John, is equally concerned, suggesting she shouldn’t rush into marriage and risk a broken heart.
Finally, after an emotional exchange, he tells Caelynn he will always love her regardless of the outcome. Meanwhile, in separate conversations, Caelynn's parents also confront Colton and share their reservations about a possible marriage to their daughter.
Eventually, John agrees to give his blessing to a potential marriage to his daughter, on the condition that Colton can promise he’s willing to make a lifelong commitment to Caelynn. Addressing the camera afterward, Caelynn's stepdad says he and his wife have done everything they can to prepare Caelynn for adulthood and must trust her ability to make wise decisions. A hint of trouble ahead comes during a private conversation between Colton and Caelynn, where she reveals being “fully in love” with him but he doesn’t reply.
Next, the Bachelor heads further south to Birmingham, Alabama, where Hannah G. tries to turn him into a “perfect Southern gentleman” with a quick etiquette lesson before meeting her family and friends. Needless to say, they wonder how the couple can be ready for marriage after just a month of dating and with other women in the mix. When Colton asks Hannah’s dad, Tom, for permission to marry his daughter, Tom’s “blown away” by the gesture and says yes. Hannah’s mother tells her to follow her heart and “Go get it, girl.” Afterward, Hannah also tells Colton she’s falling in love with him but this time he answers that he’s falling in love with her, too.
Tayshia gives Colton a little payback for their bungee-jumping adventure and challenges him to go skydiving near her hometown of Santa Ana, California. Afterward, they reveal they're falling in love with each other.
Skydiving, however, proves not nearly as scary as meeting Tayshia’s father, Desmond, who doesn’t want to see his already married-and-divorced daughter get hurt again. When Colton asks for his blessing to marry his daughter, Desmond is hesitant to give him a definitive answer, telling his daughter that she can’t “microwave” a relationship. He finally comes around, though, and gives the couple his blessing.
Finally, it’s Cassie’s turn to host Colton in her hometown of Huntington Beach, California, where she gives him a surfing lesson. It doesn’t go well and things only go downhill from there. Before meeting Cassie’s folks, Colton asks Cassie where she stands in the relationship and learns she isn’t quite ready to use the “L” word. Over other conversations between Cassie and her family it also becomes clear that, just as the other bachelorettes had warned, Cassie isn’t ready for marriage.
To make matters worse, Colton asks Cassie’s father for permission to marry his daughter, and dad refuses, explaining it would be a “premature blessing.” A further blow to Colton comes when he again confronts Cassie about her feelings toward him and she again refuses to commit.
All of this would lead us to believe that when it’s time to hand out the roses, Cassie would be the one who was sent home. But in a shocking twist, it’s Caelynn who gets “blindsided and dumped” by Colton.
The three remaining women are:
Cassie, 23, a speech pathologist from Huntington Beach, California
Hannah G., 23, a content creator from Birmingham, Alabama
Tayshia, 28, a phlebotomist from Corona Del Mar, California
"The Bachelor" returns next Monday and Tuesday at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.
