It’s 8:00 pm on a Monday evening. Your chocolate covered strawberries are dipped, and Rosé is all ready to be sipped. This can only mean one thing: Yes ladies you guessed it, it’s Bachelor night. But this season truly is the most dramatic season yet… and not in the way we had hoped.
I think we can unanimously agree that the casting of Matt James for season 25 of The Bachelor truly boosted the morale of Bachelor Nation during the pandemic. This eye candy was all that the show needed to increase ratings after the fiasco that was Claire Crawly’s season– am I right? However, to mine and many of Bachelor Nation’s disappointment, instead of drawing our attention to the gorgeous Matt James in last week’s episode, approximately 40 minutes of our viewership was dedicated to watching drama unfold between the women contestants otherwise named the “OG’s” vs “newbies”. The show’s progress towards discussing geopolitical issues like Black Lives Matter and strides in diversifying the cast have ultimately been overshadowed by this new anti-feminist narrative.
The devil works hard but Bachelor producers work harder; Their manipulative tactics have encouraged many of the woman contestants to reach new lengths of toxicity amongst each other. From rumour spreading to alleged slut-shaming, the Bachelor franchise has fostered an environment rooted with intolerance and disrespect.The Bachelor has thus evolved from their original plot lines of helping two people find true love into, instead, a show fixated on airing girl vs. girl drama. This has many of us concerned about which contestants will score more points for our Bach Bracket fantasy drafts. Will greater points be awarded for the women who are there for the right reasons, or will the women who start the most drama be of higher value? It all comes down to which cast members encourage a greater recurrence of viewers.
It’s easy for us to sit back and assume that our objectivity as viewers gives us moral high ground. We watch the chaos of the show unfold and advocate that we ourselves would never treat another woman that way. We constantly question why the producers think that we want to watch physical and verbal altercations instead of watching real connections made with Matt James. Whether we like it or not, we as Bachelor Nation are just as guilty of engaging in the same irreverent behaviours. Be honest, how many times have you and your friends found yourselves passing judgements on the contestants personalities, first impressions and rose ceremony dresses?
In this case, it is important to consider that we as Bachelor Nation actually play an integral role in what the producers air. Despite how unbearable the drama this season may be, we remain loyal to our Bachelor Mondays and continue to be entertained by each episode (and not entertained by men for money). Our behaviours reinforce and validate what we are seeing. However, I think we can find a healthy balance of being entertained by our favourite show while still uplifting other women.
It’s in our hands. Let’s hold eachother accountable for these anti-feminist behavours so that we can be support eachother, and thus be the best women we can be. Remember to always be a Katy in a world of Queen Victorias.