Bachelor for Nerds
Week 7
Before I get into this week’s blog, I should make something clear. My contestant analysis is based solely on the canon of the show, which means only what I see during the episodes is factored into my breakdown. I do not look at or use social media to supplement or affect my views on the contestants.
Background Analysis
The table below shows the breakdown for each contestant heading into Week 7. The contestants in red were eliminated during the episode.
The model went 4 for 6 this week which accumulates to 13 for 24 on the season. Michelle and Pieper were relatively interchangeable based on their BSR, so Abigail was the only surprising elimination in my opinion.
The figure below shows the state representation for the remaining contestants following Week 7.
California, Canada, Georgia, and Minnesota are the remaining places with contestant representation. This is a lot more geographically diverse than what I anticipated after Week 1.
The age range is still quite large heading into hometowns. I believe the two strongest contestants are the two 24-year-olds, but the pros and cons for each of the remaining contestants strangely matches their age. It’ll be interesting to see who Matt chooses based on their age qualities.
Show Analysis
Like I said last week, the Heather arc is pretty goofy. It felt really random and certainly caused a lot of drama in a very short amount of time. The contestants were quite ruthless with her, especially Pieper and Serena C. They definitely had the right to be upset, but the magnitude of their aggression was a bit uncalled for.
As awkward as that yoga session was, I do admire how Serena P. communicated her discomfort with the date. She wasn’t argumentative or hostile toward Matt, but she instead voiced her concerns about public affection in a very mature yet amiable way. She has good character and sticks to a great set of values, and she’s actually grown on me since her first 1-on-1. I’m curious how she’ll do in the next few weeks, but Serena P. doesn’t seem as much of an outlier as I previously thought.
It’s extraordinary the sacrifice Bri had to make in resigning to continue on The Bachelor, but I think it’s more alarming that her job made her resign when (I’m assuming) they knew she was going on the show. That’s normally something that is communicated and worked out before the process — not during. While I am surprised that Bri did not get the group date rose, I don’t anticipate her leaving before the Fantasy Suites.
I’m sad to see Abigail go. She remained so sweet and nice throughout the show, even when Matt was sending her home. I wish we got to know more about her during a 1-on-1 or a serious conversation.
Rachael is a very strong contestant who has a very strong connection with Matt, and she hasn’t shown any weakness at any point during The Bachelor. Her rose is very much deserved, and to be honest, I feel like all the other contestants reacted as if they were eliminated when they did not receive the rose. I didn’t anticipate Kit making it to the end based on the competition, but she didn’t have to leave following the group date.
Not gonna lie, that GTA-style drifting was kinda badass; I’m so envious of Jessenia that she got to go on that date. Unfortunately, Matt was not able to build a strong relationship with her, and she was understandably eliminated.
I saw a different side of Pieper this episode. Her attitude was pretty awful, and the fact that she didn’t speak to Matt as he walked her out makes me respect her even less. She could’ve been appreciative for the good times she had with him or at least wish the other girls luck, but she instead chose to be entitled and more mad than sad.
Looking Ahead
The table below shows the breakdown for each contestant going into hometowns.
I removed most of the factors from the table to make it more readable and less intimidating for only four contestants remaining. While I am no longer factoring POPULARITY into the BSR calculation, I am still displaying the data because I think it’s interesting. Rachael is likely getting the most Twitter action due to reasons not related to The Bachelor, which I will not consider in my BSR calculation and thus not cover in this blog.
The figure below is a visualization of the BSR standings.
This figure does not look good for Serena P., for she is the only contestant outside one standard deviation from the zero-BSR mean. As for the other three contestants, there is a lot less confidence in their future. I’m looking forward to seeing how hometowns favorably or unfavorably impact their BSR.