It’s hometown time on The Bachelorette, also known as the time for oddly staged kisses in front of people’s family and friends and a lot of talk about your loved one potentially getting engaged to someone you just met.
For Jenn, she enters hometown dates with four guys, and only one of them seems to know with absolute certainty that Jenn is the one for him.
But we still have two weeks to go, so we must endure these hometowns. Let’s jump in!
Devin is first up, and it’s good to get him out of the way, so you forget it by the end of the episode because it’s so obvious he’s making it to the end of this season.
Devin likes Jenn. No, sorry, Devin loves Jenn, and at this point, it’s just a matter of when he’ll say it versus if he feels it.
The other guys can’t relate.
Houston seems nice from the park, where Jenn and Devin run around while some of his “closest” friends trail behind.
Underneath some of the theatrics, Devin seems like a kindhearted individual, and I get wanting to integrate your girl into your activities, but if a man made me run a mile and sweat my ass off the first time I met his friends, there’d be some problems.
Jenn loves it, though, and she and Devin do their thing: flirting, deep talks, and casual intimacy. If I didn’t know they were on a reality TV dating show, I’d think they’d been dating for ages.
Devin’s family is sweet, especially his mom, Jennifer, whom Devin clearly adores. Again, this is the hometown where there aren’t issues because everyone knows Devin likes Jenn.
If anything, they try to make Devin seem a little unsure as he talks about his family being unlucky in love and wanting to change that, but it’s just a smokescreen to try to dredge up something that isn’t rainbows and butterflies.
Jenn starts the obligatory round of questioning: Why Devin? What makes him special?
She passes with flying colors. Then it’s time for Devin and his bestie mom to discuss the situation, and she basically says you miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.
And because Devin is nothing if not someone who treasures his mom, he tells Jenn he loves her on the doorstep of his mom’s home. There are no fireworks, and it’s very much a super chill love confession, but it’s also very Devin.
Jenn doesn’t say it back, and I can’t exactly blame her since she still has three more of these hometowns to get through. And Devin takes it all in stride because he’s at least putting himself out there in a way no one else has yet.
With Texas down, it’s time to head to Connecticut for a hometown with Jeremy, who is inexplicably still there.
I want some of Jeremy’s confidence because how he walks away from his date, thinking their relationship is anywhere near the others, is a mystery that will never be solved.
Jenn and Jeremy go to a strange yet charming grocery called Stew Leonard’s, which my friend who lives in the area says is a real place, and she will bring me something from there next time she goes.
Small victories, people.
If Devin and Jenn are defined by their casual intimacy, then Jenn and Jeremy are defined by the laughter. Those two stay laughing when they’re together, and it’s cute and fun, but life isn’t always about laughing!
Sometimes things get serious, and there ain’t no animatronic cow to make it all better!
Jenn meets with Jeremy’s family, and it’s obvious early on that they aren’t sold on this whole thing. It’s almost like they’ve been watching the show with the rest of us.
Jenn and Jeremy have barely interacted, let alone shared their feelings, so she’s hoping this visit will spark something in Jeremy and he’ll open up. But his family, especially his mom, Karen, presents as very skeptical, and the vibes are just off.
They sit on a cleverly placed bench outside the house before Jenn leaves. She wants to know if he’s ready for an engagement, but it’s apparent he’s nowhere near ready to propose.
He’s clearly not sure Jenn is the one yet, so how can he even consider marrying the girl?
Jeremy says he’s falling for her, the one phrase you will hear on repeat while watching a dating show, and Jenn takes it for what it is.
Jeremy shouldn’t be long for this show, but maybe there will be another Karen out there.
Sunny San Diego is next, and Jonathon is there, ready to show Jenn around. I kid. He wants to play lacrosse AGAIN because that’s starting to feel like the only thing he feels they have in common.
Another date ensues with running and sweating, but no one is around for the sweaty kiss, so that’s a plus.
Much like Jeremy, Jenn wants Jonathon to let his guard down and let her know how he’s feeling, and I GET IT. But at the same time, she’s dating three other dudes, and it’s okay to keep some things close to the chest when there’s a huge chance you’re going to embarrass yourself on national television.
Jonathon’s brother and his wife had a real-life speedrun relationship, but even he of the speedrun feels a bit like Jonathon may get hurt in all of this.
It’s nice when the families are sweet and incredibly awkward when they’re rude, but the reality is they’re just meeting these people, and they don’t know a thing about their relationship. Acting like they’re TOO excited about this whole process is suspect.
However, Mom Lisa sees it for Jonathon and pushes Jonathon to tell Jenn he’s falling for her. So, now we have one full-blown love confession and two fallings for those keeping score at home.
Last up is Tacoma, Washington, where Marcus and Jenn don’t get their little alone time somewhere in the city but go right to his friend’s place.
Marcus has been a frontrunner from the jump, and Jenn is VERY connected to him, but as the weeks have passed, I’m starting to see the connection less and less.
It’s like that friend who’s dating someone, and they are SO into them, and you’re excited for them, but then you meet them, and the math just isn’t mathing.
Where’s the spark? Where’s the chemistry? I fear I just haven’t seen it lately compared to others.
No shade to Marcus, but their vibes and energy don’t always seem aligned. But Jenn is into him, so we move.
Marcus’s sister, Gabriella, seems so lovely, and she and Jenn crying together is easily the most emotional moment in the episode, which is surprising because hometowns can be intense.
It’s interesting to hear Marcus flat-out say he isn’t in love with Jenn yet and sound so apologetic about it.
The Bachelor model as a concept is so wild because what do you mean you feel awful that you’re not entirely in love with someone you’ve been dating alongside mad other men for the last few weeks?
But anyway, Gabriella doesn’t want Marcus to get hurt, but she does tell him to go for it! A theme of the two hours.
So, Marcus tells Jenn in the rain that he’s falling for her, and we’re ending hometowns with everyone on the road to love, Devin already there, and Jenn having to snipe someone right before the finish line.
Having the guys meet up at like a neighborhood Chile’s to debrief and talk about their family time is awkward, made all the worse by Marcus, who is REALLY struggling with what he’s not feeling.
He feels so far behind, and he sounds like he’s not sold on Jenn being his person. He also realizes only four people are left, so he needs to get sure or get walking.
The rose ceremony comes with everyone but Marcus feeling confident, and it’s apparent that Jeremy will be the odd one out. And shocker he is.
Nothing against Jeremy, but how he didn’t see that he was actually the one far behind, I’m unsure. But alas, it’s his time to go, and he handles it gracefully.
We’ve now got Devin, Jonathon, and Marcus left, and Jenn dropping the L-bomb to Marcus, which has me FLOORED because my gut has been saying Devin is her man for the past few weeks!
And we get a double-feature with the Men Tell All also airing next week, which means we’ll see what mantras Sam M. pulls out of his latest self-help book to stun us with.
The season is almost over, folks! Let me know if the comments who you think are making it through overnights and onto the finale!
You can watch The Bachelorette on Mondays at 8/7c on ABC.
