The Bachelor Season 23, Episode 10, Recap: The Women Tell All

The Bachelor's "Women Tell All" special is a highlight every season. It's like a Real Housewives reunion, but everyone talks about things like their "journey" and whether or not they're down for Paradise instead of, like, bickering about where their sister-in-law is sitting on a couch. It's thrilling. (Spoilers ahead.)

My favorite part is always right at the beginning, when Chris Harrison introduces all the women we forgot about. Remember Bri? Jane? Nina? That there was more than one woman named Alex? Who are these people?!

We'll never know, because CH moves right on to asking the women what they think about last night's drama and Colton's fence jump. "[If I were him] I couldn't look Tayshia and Hannah in the eyes after that," Sydney says. Heather agrees, wondering how he could possibly finish the show after declaring his love for Cassie.

But what did the women think of Colton when they first met him? "I mean, he's hot," Hannah B. jokes. And what about that whole virginity thing? "I was excited to explore a man that's a virgin." Demi says. "Is it weird that I was kind of turned on?" Nobody gives her an answer.

Chris moves on, setting up a montage of the various dramas and rivalries that plagued the season. Right away, as soon as the video ends, Courtney starts in on Demi. Chris pauses them to let Catherine the DJ, of all people, have her time to talk uninterrupted. Not much to unpack there, so we dig into Onyeka and Nicole's feud. Nicole still feels like she was bullied by Onyeka, but Tracy speaks up and says that's ridiculous. "You questioned whether I was emotionally stable…just because you had seen me crying," Nicole says to Onyeka. Nina then chimes in, saying Nicole would talk shit all the time about the other women, so she's not totally innocent in this. Then Sydney stands up for Nicole, saying it seemed like Onyeka was acting out because she knew she was going to leave soon. "At least I didn't leave like a coward, like you did," Onyeka hits back. Basically, Onyeka says, Nicole was different on camera than she was off camera.

"Emotions are obviously running high," Chris says, before kicking to a commercial break.

When we return, Chris asks Katie why she told Colton that some of the women weren't ready for marriage. Caelynn says her warning put every relationship left, including her own, into question. At this, Katie finally reveals that, yup, she was talking about Caelynn and Cassie. It all stemmed from a conversation she heard the two have on a bus, during which she claims they talked about "winning" and potentially becoming the Bachelorette. Caelynn says she and Cassie were talking about their fears that one would get engaged and what that would mean for their friendship. According to Caelynn, she and Katie talked on the phone recently and confirmed this. Not true, Katie replies. "I hate this, actually," she says. "I feel so mad I'm shaking. That's the manipulation Hannah B. warned Colton about."

Hannah B. asked to be left out of this drama, but if you must know, she remembers the bus conversation and she agrees with Katie's version of events.

This leads Chris to ask Hannah B. where she and Caelynn stand. "We're like oil and water," she explains, but they're on good terms now. Caelynn agrees—they're never going to be best friends, but they can support each other and move on.

OK, time for Demi to explain why she shaded the "cougar club." At this point I realize: Where is Elyse? I paused to google—turns out she's at a friend's wedding—so I didn't hear Demi's defense. Whatever it was, Tracy is clearly still not a fan. "Demi, you act like a child," Courtney chimes in. Demi complains that Courtney wanted to "tone down Demi," which made her upset. Demi admits that calling Courtney the cancer of the house was extreme and wrong. Because "you're more like bed bugs," she says. "I only know how to deal with mature adults," Courtney replies, before getting up and stuffing a damn pacifier in Demi's mouth. It's…well, it's really weird. (Read Demi's thoughts on it here.)

Then Demi comes up onstage to talk to Chris. Being vulnerable is hard for her, she says, but she wanted to show Colton how serious she was. Demi reveals she never told any of the other women about her mom being in prison; she was also scared and embarrassed to tell Colton about it, but she appreciated how he responded once she did. She seems to be doing just fine post breakup, "I know who I am and I know that I'm a badass." With that, Harrison teases that we'll probably see her again (Paradise!).

Next, Nicole gets her time in the spotlight. After a video montage of every time she cried, Chris pulls out a box of Kleenex and asks, "What is it with the emotions?" Smooth, dude. Nicole has a great answer, though: She was always taught that it's OK to express herself, even if that means crying. She says she also felt pressure to make her family proud, especially her brother who has autism and is the love of her life. Chris then says he has a surprise to help "dry her tears": She's getting a one-year supply of Halo Top ice cream. "It's made all the tears worth it!" she exclaims. It doesn't end there: Colton's eating Halo Top in the shower, the audience is all given Halo Top. This promo is insane, and a first for The Bachelor, but it works given all I want now is a pint of ice cream.

Once snack time is over, Hannah B. gets her moment. "For me, I have a pressure to be perfect," she tells Chris. As a pageant queen and a woman in the South, she would put on whatever she thought people wanted to see. She was able to get past that and be vulnerable with Colton, which she says taught her she deserves more than what she used to think was acceptable. "I'm a so much different person, better person," she says. Oh, and she's ready for love again—if the rumors are true, she might just get that as the next Bachelorette.

When Caelynn goes onstage, she tears up watching a playback of her relationship with Colton. She was really blindsided by the breakup, and still doesn't know what went wrong. As for sharing her sexual assault on the show, she has been moved by the amount of men and women who have come to her with their own stories. "It's a larger conversation than one episode of The Bachelor," she says. (For more on that, read our interview with her.)

Eventually, it's time for Colton to join the women. Demi thanks him for being honest with her, and she understands why she wasn't the one for him. Caelynn asks when he knew he was going to break up with her. He gives her a nonanswer: He knows he didn't give her closure, but he still can't say why he sent her home when he did. Hannah B. says she was also shocked when she was dumped, given he had just introduced her to his family. But "I'm cool with you, I hope you're cool with me." Colton admits he could have been a better Bachelor, and apologizes for leaving anyone confused or offended by his actions.

"Are you still a virgin?" Sydney asks him, straight up. Colton avoids answering, so Chris asks the women how many of them think he is. Only a few do. "You missed out on a good fantasy suite with me," Demi quips.

On that note, it's been real. See you next week for the two-part finale!

Anna Moeslein is a senior editor at Glamour. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram @annamoeslein.