Bachelor for Nerds

Week 5

This may be my favorite episode of the season.

Background Analysis

The table below shows the breakdown for each contestant heading into Week 5. The contestants in red were eliminated during the episode.

The model went 3 for 5 this week which accumulates to 7 for 13 on the season. Mari was the only contestant I really thought who was safe, but her lack of time with Matt likely played a big role in her elimination. Victoria was near or at the bottom since Week 1, so it’s to see her finally gone.

The figure below shows the state representation for the remaining contestants following Week 5.

We lost Florida, Maryland, and Puerto Rico this week from Lauren, Mari, and Catalina, respectively. New York now leads with three contestants remaining, California and Oregon have two, and the rest have one.

The median age has dropped to 24, and it’s very likely that this age won’t change much due to the strength of contestants around 24 years old.

Show Analysis

Well they really cleaned house at the beginning of the episode. Anna knew what she did was wrong, and it’s good that she owned up to her actions. Matt didn’t see a future with her because there is no way he would seek a partner who spreads damaging rumors. He was very nice in telling her that he saw this as a mistake and not a true display of her character, but she had to pay big time for this mistake.

In my three seasons of religiously watching The Bachelor, I have never seen someone reject the consolatory hug after getting eliminated from the rose ceremony; if it had to be someone, I’m not surprised it was Victoria. She had exhausted all of her entertainment value, and thus it was her time to go.

I’ve been a fan of Rachael since the beginning, and her 1-on-1 only strengthened my opinion of her. She has a great sense of humor (i.e. joking about wearing one of the dresses to the grocery store) and is pleasantly normal around Matt. Not only was Rachael so grateful and appreciative when trying on expensive dresses and shoes, but she was also refreshingly self-aware and humble during the dinner. I hope she goes to the end.

The group date showed the strong relationships Matt has with Chelsea, Abigail, and Michelle. Abigail continues to be an overall great person who stays above the drama, and it’s no surprise that she walked away from the group date with the rose.

Kit is awesome. Every time she says something, there is a high probability it will be snarky, funny, or both. She won the quote of the night when she said, “Who cares about dinner? All I care about is cookies.” I hope we get to see more of her throughout the next few weeks.

MJ scares the hell out of me. Like if she looked in my general direction, I’d shrivel like a turtle and run away before she had the chance to speak to me. With that said, I admire how strong Jessenia is against MJ. Regardless of the validity of each contestant’s arguments, this is legitimate Bachelor drama at its best. While the drama may be played up a bit, there is a very real problem that was started by the contestants and has two of them fighting each other trying to resolve it; my friend Sam summed up this type of drama quite accurately with a metaphor: “They are pouring kerosene on the fire that already exists rather than light the fire themselves.”

Looking Ahead

The table below shows the breakdown for each contestant following Week 5.

I have added two new factors to the BSR calculation: COMPATIBILITY and ROSES. The former feeds off the PERSONALITY factor, but it more specifically focuses on the relationship between the contestant and Matt; the latter is simply the number of roses that contestant has received throughout the season.

MJ, Rachael, and Katie get the most action on Twitter. I’m mostly surprised by Katie’s POPULARITY because she didn’t have any big moments or a much focus during the episode, which is really good for her.

The figure below is a visualization of the BSR standings following Week 5.

Ryan, Magi, and Serena C. are now the bottom three according to their BSR. Those three contestants have not had much action on The Bachelor and are likely to go home next barring any 1-on-1’s or other big events.