The Bachelor recap: Hungary for love
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The week before hometowns is always eventful, and this episode of The Bachelor was no different, rose lovers. Greer emerged from COVID quarantine, a woman was sent home during her one-on-one date, and the group date played out like an episode of The Mentalist: Budapest.
Let's recap!
Welcome to Budapest, Hungary, a.k.a. The Epitome of Romance™, a.k.a. The Perfect Environment to Fall in Love™, a.k.a. The Ideal Locale to Choose a Final Four™. (OK, Zach didn't say that last one.) The remaining women — Kaity, Gabi, Charity, Brooklyn, Kat, Ariel, and Greer (in absentia for the moment) — are super excited at the idea of bringing the Bachelor home to meet the family.
The first woman to get a second one-on-one date is… Kaity! Everyone coos and congratulates her when Ariel reads the card, but once she leaves for her date, the spiraling begins. "I'm really disappointed," says Kat. "I feel, like, not chosen." Girl, that's because you were literally not chosen! (I know she meant "chosen" as in "made to feel special," but whatever.)
Hungarian huju!
ABC Kaity and Zach
"I can't wait for my family to meet Zach," gushes Kaity. But she knows "nothing is guaranteed," and that their day strolling around Budapest could make the difference in whether she gets that all-important hometown date rose. Their first stop is the Budapest Castle Hill Funicular (or "fer-nicular," as the Bachelor says it), which leads them to a scenic viewpoint overlooking the city.
ABC Kaity and Zach in Budapest
While taking in the sights, Zach does something very unusual for a star of The Bachelor: He admits out loud that he and this woman he might propose to do not know the most basic facts about each other. "We're far along, and some of the simplest things we don't fully know about each other," he says. "So, if you ever want to just throw out a thing, like — I want to know your favorite color." To that end, they both vow to start spouting random facts about themselves. (Kaity's favorite color is purple! Zach's original last name was "Shacklecross"!) Who knows? By the end of the day, these two might even know each other's middle names.
Kaity and Zach enjoy some traditional Hungarian palinka ("It actually boosts your appetite for everything," notes the salesman with a wink). Then they stumble upon a typewriter just sitting out in the open, next to a sign that urges lovers to "share their hearts" and "unlock love's fiery sparks." Is this a real thing in Budapest or something producers just made up? I'm guessing the latter — but it's good to know that Zach understands how to operate a typewriter.
ABC Zach can type!
He's definitely a hunt-and-peck style typist, however. Still, he manages to produce a few lines on paper. "Dear Kaity, ever since the day I met you, I knew there would be something special…" and so on. Kaity's message, meanwhile, has a few typos, but is equally heartfelt.
ABC Kaity's note
Sorry, did Kaity… spell her own name wrong? The girl must really be infatuated.
That night, she and Zach have dinner at the Kiraly Bath, the oldest bathhouse in Hungary. It's a gorgeous building, which I guess makes the idea of having dinner in a bathhouse a little less weird. Knowing that this is her last chance to impress the Bachelor before hometowns, Kaity lets Zach know that she is in it to win it — and by "win it" I mean "settle down with a husband and have a family." All she wants is a man who's going to "be there" for her. "When I'm with you, I can see that safety, that security, that stability," she says. "You're an amazing guy, inside and out... I want this more than anything."
Kaity is yearning for stability, you see, because her father walked out when she was still very young — and she didn't really meet him again until she was 16. But by then, it was a little too late to build a real relationship. Her mom did remarry, but then that dude left, too, when Kaity was in 8th grade. "At the end of the day," says Kaity, "I lost two father figures in my life." Damn! I'm really beginning to wonder if producers added a question like this to the Bachelor application: Has a man in your life ever caused you to suffer significant emotional damage? Yes/No (If yes, please explain).
It's very moving and emotional — and of course, Zach LOVES it. "Recognizing how hard it is for her to share that just shows real strength," he says. "That's pretty damn special." You know what that means, rose lovers.
ABC Kaity gets a hometown date
Kaity's going to hometowns, y'all! Naturally, they celebrate by making out in a Hungarian bath.
It's time for the group date. Kat, who took it very hard when she didn't get the second one-on-one of the week, has rebounded and is determined to have a good time. "I'm just hoping that we're getting back on track before bringing him back to my family," she says, while walking to the Kálmán Imre Theater with Ariel, Charity, and Gabi. Inside, they're greeted by the Bachelor and Labib Malik, a self-described "magician, mindreader, alchemist, and psychonaut."
Hungary, explains Zach, is "basically the birthplace of magic," and he believes you need magic "to find some answers and clarity" when looking for love. To that end, Mr. Malik asks the women to hold out their hands. The magician proceeds to draw a heart with a red pen on the base of Zach's left palm and then "takes" the heart with his fingers. He has Zach blow on his fingers to transport the heart to one of the women. "If the connection is real," explains the magician, "the heart will appear." The winner is… Gabi!
ABC You have to believe we are maaaaagic...
LOL at Kat's face. Props to producers for coming up with the most insecurity-inducing sleight of hand nonsense possible. And the parlor tricks aren't over yet! "I'm going to read your minds," announces Labib. Okay, Simon Baker. Let's do this! Everyone takes a seat on the stage. First, Zach is paired up with Gabi, and the mentalist asks her to imagine that she's standing in a vast desert. "On the desert, I want you to place a cube," he continues. "What is your cube made of?" Gabi says glass. "That's very interesting!" says Labib. Is it though? Gabi is perplexed.
ABC Gabi can't believe her eyes
The mind-reader says that cube represents Gabi as a person, and because she decided it was made of glass, that means people can see through her. Wait, does he mean that she's transparent, or that people can tell when she's dissembling? I think the latter. Anyhow, he asks Gabi to think two words that represents what she's looking for in a relationship with Zach. He then writes something down on his little chalkboard and asks Gabi to reveal her words, which are "safety" and "comfort." Cut to:
ABC Holy Criss Angel mindfreak!
What in the name of Neuro Linguistic Programming is going on here? One by one, the remaining women take their place in the hot seat. Having been prepped well by producers, Mr. Malik is able to make seemingly sharp insights into each of their psyches: Ariel is a "mystery" who is trying to protect her heart "at any cost"; Charity is still scarred from her ex's infidelity; Kat once considered walking away from this "journey" because it was too painful; Gabi sometimes leaves people "confused."
By the end of the exercise, all the women are in tears, because they're all worried that the magic man's insights will make Zach doubt their commitment to him. "I just feel beat down right now," says Kat, sobbing. "The things I say, I just don't want them to be misinterpreted."
Everybody is on edge as they head into the after-party. "I want Zach to feel comfortable to meet my family," says Charity. "And after today, I don't know if he does." Cheer up, honey — looks like the Bachelor interns made you all some fruity drinks.
ABC Great, now I want some pink lemonade.
Alas, Charity is still tortured by her experience with the mentalist. Will Zach decide that she has too many trust issues? "I'm actually terrified," she says, wiping away tears. Hang in there, boo. And don't forget: You can do better than Zach — and probably will.
Ariel sits down with the Bachelor first, and she immediately launches into a hilarious impression of her father. "My Dad was like, 'Ariel, you can't do the show. I know what they do there: Orgies,'" she says, speaking in a Ukrainian accent. "He's like, 'You'll walk into a room, and they will force you to get naked.'"
Okay, we must meet Ariel's father — and we definitely need to know what reality shows he's watching. Ariel raves to Zach about her loving family and community, saying that she feels the love and support of the "entire Ukrainian Jewish immigration in New York." Still, Ariel says she misses having the love of a partner. "That's the thing I want most in the world," she admits. He LOVES it.
ABC Ariel and Zach
When it's Charity's turn to talk to Zach, she assures him that she is "100 percent ready" to be engaged, even though she's still working through her own issues from her last relationship. "It's a risk that I'm honestly willing to take," she says. "I have no doubt with you." Zach is grateful for her candor, and he wants Charity to know that he sees a "possible forever future" with her. Hearing that is a balm of Charity's soul, and she returns to the holding pen in a much better mood.
Even though Gabi "received" the heart from Zach's palm, she's still feeling very insecure about Mr. Malik's comments that she can confuse people. "I'm super ADHD," she tells Zach during their one-on-one chat. "So, I've always worked on controlling that." She's worried he won't want to deal with the manic pace of her thoughts or her easily distractable nature. Pish-posh, says Zach. You're fun to be around! (I'm paraphrasing.) They end the conversation with a make out session on the landing of the grand staircase.
Will Kat's chat with Zach end on an equally positive note? She goes into it worried about how Zach will feel now that he knows she's contemplated leaving this "journey" in the past. But it turns out the Bachelor is more nervous about the moment the Mentalist asked Kat if she was ready to have Zach to meet her family and she said, "Mmm-hmmm. [awkward pause] I think so?"
So, Kat, what gives? "These days have been so hard," she tells him, choking up. "It was just too much." Dabbing away the tears, Kat explains that in life she often finds herself looking for an escape "when things get hard" because "it's easier." But she wants Zach to know that she was and is determined to push through those moments with him. "I, too, want that forever feeling," she insists. "I see that as our future so well." Ding ding ding! That's exactly what Zach was hoping to hear.
ABC Zach and Kat
Way to play through the pain, Kat. But was it enough to earn her that all important hometown date rose? Survey says…
ABC Gabi gets a hometown date
Oh, no — Kat's crying again. "I hate not feeling wanted," she says, weeping. "It sucks." It sure does, honey. But at least you're not about to get dumped after spending six days quarantining in an Estonian hotel room. In other words, Greer's back, everybody! And she's super excited to continue her "journey" with Zach. Little does she know, it's going to be a short one.
Zach greets Greer in his hotel room. It's been three weeks since they've seen each other in person — though she did have a very uncomfortable FaceTime chat with him during the COVID cocktail party two episodes ago. She barely survived that virtual rose ceremony, so the chances that Zach's still going to want to keep her around now are slim. But she's gotta give it a shot. "I do see something between us," she says shakily. "I guess I was just wondering where you're at."
Resting his hand on her knee, Zach begins reminiscing about their night-one connection, and how "fast and hot" it was. Unfortunately, though, "we've both had weeks stolen from us," he continues. "Day one to now, I'm just following my gut, my heart. And to give a hometown rose I need to feel 100 percent confident that I can see a future, and… I don't feel that."
Ooof. Greer does NOT love it.
ABC Greer tests positive... for loneliness.
"I, like, completely understand," she whispers. "I understand where you're coming from, and I respect it. Time is really of the essence, and we haven't had much of it." She's obviously genuinely upset, but Greer still thanks Zach for being so "honest and transparent" with her. Her voice never rises above a whisper the whole time — maybe she's worried that if she speaks any louder, she'll cry harder. They share a sad hug goodbye. "I'm tired of putting myself out there and getting nothing in return," she says softly, before breaking into sobs. Hang in there, lady — you're a prime candidate for Paradise.
Wow, it's been a busy morning for Zach. First, he had to dump Greer, and now he's off to meet Brooklyn for the final one-on-one date of the week. Hungarian huju number 2!
ABC Brooklyn and Zach
It's one of those "do as the locals do" dates, so Zach and Brooklyn hop on bikes to explore Budapest. (Producers love to put this guy on bikes, don't they?) "I think the last time I was on a bike, I was probably, like, 12," says Brooklyn, as she and Zach wobble their way through a local park. From there they board a hot air balloon for a panoramic tour of the city, and then from there, it's off to the Szechenyi Bath spa house. (Whoever planned this date probably schedules their vacation days down to the minute.)
After wading into the warm pool, Zach and Brooklyn strike up a conversation with a cute old Hungarian couple who are playing chess nearby.
ABC Zach, Brooklyn, and a sweet Hungarian couple
Turns out the couple had their first date at this very spa house 25 years ago. It's simply too adorable for words. Brooklyn and Zach are certainly feeling the romantic vibes, and when they smooch in the pool, the other spa-goers burst into (producer prompted) applause.
ABC I hope that pool has a lot of chlorine
Love is in the air. Or maybe that's just steam.
Everything seems to be going really well. That night at dinner, conversation naturally turns to Brooklyn's family — who Zach may or may not be meeting soon. Brooklyn's dad was not in the picture growing up, but her mom raised her with a lot of help from her grandpa, who she loves dearly. "He stepped in when my dad stepped out," she explains. "He took me and my sister in and treated us like we were his own daughters. He's just my hero." After her last disastrous relationship, Brooklyn vowed not to introduce anyone to her family unless she "truly saw a future" with them — and guess what, rose lovers? She sees one with Zach.
Awww, that's sweet. How are you feeling about it, Zach? What's that? You need some time away from the table to "just breathe and think"? Uh-oh — that's not a good sign. "She has this incredible grandfather who loves her and wants the world for her. And she doesn't take it lightly when she brings someone into the house," he says, his voice tightening with emotion. "If I'm not feeling sure, who am I to be in that house?"
Oh boy. We know where this is going, rose lovers. Zach returns to the table and delivers the bad news.
ABC Sorry, Brooklyn
"It's not fair to you to have me not be fully confident and fully sure going into meeting your family," he says. "You do deserve the love I can't give you. I'm so sorry." They're both crying now. Like Greer, Brooklyn thanks Zach for being honest and upfront with her, and they share a tearful embrace before she climbs into the Reject SUV.
The Suitcase Ninja arrives at the women's suite and removes Brooklyn's bag. The remaining women are SHOOK, and they end the night in a group hug.
ABC Group hug!
Such sisterly support — we love to see it!
Holy cow, is it rose ceremony time already? I guess we're just skipping the cocktail party and going right to the pre-hometowns carnage. Rose ceremony roll call: Ariel and Charity join Kaity and Gabi in the Circle of Safety™. So sorry, Kat, but that means your "journey" is over. Crying, the women wrap her in another group hug, and then she heads outside to have a farewell talk with Zach on the Bye-Bye Bench.
Kat just has one question for the Bachelor: "Why?" Zach says that their "connection" changed since the Bahamas, and he simply couldn't be confident in their future together. "I shared so much that I've never shared before, because I thought we would be so worth it in the end," Kat chokes out as tears stream down her face. "I tried; I really did." Zach wants her to know that this isn't her fault — it simply just wasn't the right fit. Honestly, there's not much the poor guy can say that's going to make her feel better; breakups are just a big old bummer.
Once Kat drives away in the Reject SUV, host Jesse Palmer emerges from the shadows to give our distraught Bachelor a hug.
ABC Jesse and Zach
Normalize grown men crying on television!
Well, rose lovers, we have our final four. Were you surprised to see Kat get the boot? Did your soul die a little bit when you learned that there will be two episodes of The Bachelor next week (Monday and Tuesday)? And what is YOUR cube made of? Post your thoughts below!
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