Bachelor Host Jesse Palmer Admits the Franchise Has 'Done a Very Poor Job' of 'Addressing Serious Topics'
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
Craig Sjodin/ABC via Getty Jesse Palmer
Warning: This post contains spoilers from Tuesday's episode of The Bachelor.
Zach Shallcross has been calling the shots so far on The Bachelor season 27, but on Tuesday's Women Tell All special, his eliminated suitors got their chance to speak up.
Jesse Palmer emceed the night, which started off with an overall recap of the season's drama: Anastasia being accused of only coming on the show to gain followers, Kat kissing Zach before Charity's one-on-one and Christina oversharing about her time with Zach.
Cat said Christina, 26, "was sucking up the energy" from the group.
The content creator said that, while that feedback would make most people want to take a step back, for her "what my mind wanted to do was do more, make sure people understand my intentions."
RELATED: Rachel Lindsay Celebrates Release of New Novel Inspired By Her Experience Before The Bachelor
The women also reiterated their theory that Anastasia, 30, signed up for The Bachelor to boost her personal brand — and introduced the idea that she had a boyfriend while filming.
"Anastasia, you had a boyfriend on the show," Cat claimed. "You called him in The Bahamas when you got your phone back."
Ricky Middlesworth/ABC
Anastasia refuted the allegation. "I didn't have a boyfriend, to clear that up," she said.
Then the conversation turned to Kat pulling Zach for a kiss when he came to meet Charity for their one-on-one in Estonia — a move that deeply upset Brooklyn at the time.
While Charity, 27, said Kat apologized and "we're good" now, Kat still felt that for Brooklyn, 25, "to come at my character at the level that you did was just wrong." Brooklyn, 25, stood by previously calling Kat "classless."
"If the shoe fits, slice that bitch up," Brooklyn said.
JESS SPARKLES ON THE MAIN STAGE
Jesse, 44, welcomed Jess into the hot seat to reflect on her unexpected elimination after expressing to Zach that she wanted to go on a one-on-one date. The e-commerce coordination thought Zach "wasn't understanding" of her in that moment.
"I just felt so misunderstood," Jess, 23, said. "At the end of the day, I just wanted to date, I just wanted time."
ABC/Ricky Middlesworth
Jess felt "very led on and blindsided" by Zach, but said she has grown to love herself more since leaving the show.
"I think I truly did fall in love with myself," Jess said. "I know what I deserve, and it's way more than that."
Jess also addressed her love of body glitter. "I may not have shown that much confidence [on the show], but that glitter gave me a little bit more," she said.
GREER OWNS UP TO HER ACTIONS
After being dumped by Zach in Budapest following her recovery from COVID, first impression rose recipient Greer said she realized of "we're not each other's person."
Jesse also wanted to be sure he talked to Greer about previously defending Blackface in since-deleted social media posts. "As a franchise, we've done a very poor job in the past addressing serious topics head on," he said. "And we're not going to miss that opportunity here tonight."
Greer, 24, agreed. "I don't want to sweep it under the rug," she said.
Ricky Middlesworth/ABC
The medical sales rep proceeded to address the situation.
"What I failed to mention in my apology is what happened was racist," Greer said. "It's not about the intent, it's about the impact and this acquaintance of mine that I knew performing Blackface was racist. Me defending it was racist. My ignorance was racist and I'm just so ashamed. I'm just deeply sorry that I hurt the Black community."
Greer sat down with Institute for Healing Justice and Equity co-founder Dr. Kira Banks after her previous posts resurfaced.
"She brought to my attention that it's so important to be open-minded," Greer said. "It's so important to question things and ask and not just do without thinking."
Greer claimed she also did her own research. "I looked up lectures, really wanted to dive deep into the history of Blackface and understand why it was wrong, why it's offensive," she said. "And the research I was able to do I just realized it was a symbolism for dehumanizing the Black community."
Greer acknowledged she "can't go back in time," but hopes to "try to do better in my future."
RELATED VIDEO: Bachelor Zach Shallcross Dumps Woman Recovering from COVID Because Time Apart Jeopardized Their Connection
CHARITY REFLECTS ON HER HEARTBREAK
Despite the heart-wrenching split that Charity experienced after hometowns, she still called Zach an "incredible person" when she took the hot seat.
"He really is a stand-up guy," she continued. "He has this ability to make me feel so safe and so comforted."
Craig Sjodin/ABC
The child and family therapist started to cry. She admitted that while her family worried about Charity getting her heart broken by Zach, "they know that good things are in store."
Charity knew that, too.
"I don't think had I not gone through this, yes, I would've been ready, but I think this has just kind of took the veil off," she said of being ready to find love. "I thought I was like, at that point, but I feel now even more eager and more ready to truly find my person."
ZACH HAS THE FINAL WORD
Jesse welcomed The Bachelor out to the stage and invited questions from his exes. Kat wanted to know from Zach whether he could pinpoint "any tangible moment or time or instance" where he felt "a shift in our relationship."
"Our connection never faltered," Zach, 26, said. "But when it was getting to that point right before hometowns, I had to make that very difficult decision and there was nothing, not one moment, there wasn't one date or some word said that made me look at you any different."
Similarly, Charity told Zach she "struggled a lot with not knowing how you processed that decision" to send her home.
"That morning after meeting four different families, I had the biggest pit in my stomach because I didn't know what to do," Zach said to Charity. "There was no process or way to go about it."
Craig Sjodin/ABC via Getty Zach Shallcross
Jess confronted Zach about their breakup as well. He assured Jess "I really, really did care about you a lot" and called saying "goodbye" to her "the last thing I kind of expected."
Jesse asked Zach how he's felt watching back his season. "I'm just kicking myself when I watch it," Zach said, citing his tendency to say "hello, hello" and use the word "like" frequently.
Before Zach departed, he teased that what he referred to as "Sex Week" (a.k.a. Fantasy Suites) would be "something very overwhelming" to watch.
Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
The Bachelor airs Mondays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.
