Hi y’all! Thanks for checking out this week’s Rose Report--a blog where I break down the crazy things a group of women do in hopes of winning the heart of Denver’s Ben Higgins. A little about myself: I’m a 28-year-old producer, an avid Bachelor/Bachelorette fan (Chris Harrison is my spirit animal) and admittedly, I don’t like red roses.
Week Five. We’re halfway through the process of Ben’s search in finding his true love. He says he’s becoming more and more confident his wife is in the group of 11 ladies left. But before you read any further – if you haven’t watched Monday’s episode (Episode 5), there are spoilers ahead. I repeat: THERE ARE SPOILERS AHEAD.
In this episode Ben and the ladies head to Mexico City. The girls get to the hotel, check it out, and then the cameras zoom in to an envelope. Yep, it’s the one-on-one date card. Olivia, as usual, thinks her name and her name alone will be on the card. Even her gut (her GUT, y’all) told her that she would have a one-on-one. Turns out her gut was wrong, and Amanda’s name is on the card. Cue Olivia’s fake smile.
When the card says "Amanda." ?#TheBachelor pic.twitter.com/eZChtW7zgM
— The Bachelor (@BachelorABC) February 2, 2016
The next morning, Ben comes to the hotel to wake the ladies up. This happens every season so we knew it had to be coming. Lauren H. had her retainer in and had to pull it out (hilarious) and Ben tried to make her feel better by telling her he wears a retainer when he sleeps too. Basically the girls are a hot mess.
While he’s at the hotel, Ben wakes Amanda up for their one-on-one date. The girls are all jealous because that means she’ll get to spend even more time with Ben than a usual date. We then move to Olivia and Lauren H. talking about Amanda, and Olivia says she doesn’t think Amanda will be coming home. Amanda and Ben hop into a hot air balloon…and their date begins.
It’s time to find out who’s going on this week’s group date, and the girls that are going are: Jubilee, Becca, JoJo, Caila, Emily, Lauren B., Jennifer, Leah and Olivia. Of course, Olivia’s name being called means she won’t be going on the other one-on-one date for the week and she is super annoyed but no one cares. Whose name wasn’t on the list? Lauren H. That means she’ll get the second one-on-one of the week.
— Kelly Ann Schuberth (@KellySchuberth) February 2, 2016
Back to the one-on-one, Ben and Amanda are enjoying the evening, and Amanda is opening up to Ben about her past marriage. At first, I can’t tell if Ben is actually interested in what she’s saying or if he’s just trying to be nice. But, he obviously likes her, because he ends up giving her a rose.
The next day, it’s time for the group date and Jubilee is over it from the start. We’ve got another date involving school – this time the girls are learning Spanish. Ben practices with each of the ladies, and tells them he’s falling for them in Spanish. When it’s Jubilee’s time to go, Ben tells her in Spanish he’s falling for her – and she is not having it! She tells him, “that’s what you told all the other girls.” She got super sassy and all of the other girls were like:
After Spanish class, the girls are split into teams to cook a Spanish meal for two professional chefs. Of course Olivia, being the piranha she is, attacks Ben right away and asks if she can be on his team. Jubilee also wanted Ben on her team so the two fight over it but in the end Olivia gets her way. What? That’s like, never happened.
Ah, yes, this seemed like fun... ?@BachelorABC #TheBachelor pic.twitter.com/uQVU1te6Wz
— Good Morning America (@GMA) February 2, 2016
After the break, we finally get to see the cooking creations made by each team. I can already tell Ben and Olivia aren’t going to win – the bread for their duck sandwich is nasty burned. My boyfriend chimed in during this part and said, “Those buns were overcooked like Olivia’s personality.” Good one, babe.
— Kelly Ann Schuberth (@KellySchuberth) February 2, 2016
The chefs liked everyone’s dishes, except for Olivia and Ben’s. Before they tasted it they whispered in Spanish that it looked like dog food. Jubilee and Lauren B. end up winning the cooking contest, but unfortunately for Jubilee, that’s not enough to win Ben over.
Later in the date, Ben pulls Jubilee aside to talk to her. She explains to him that she feels “overshadowed” by the other girls during group dates, and wonders if Ben even notices her. Ben ends the conversation by telling her he’s not confident in their relationship anymore. Jubilee asks Ben not to give up, but it’s too late. Jubilee is sent home.
Side note here -- I really like Jubilee, but I just don’t think Ben was the right guy for her. Who is? I don’t know, but maybe she will have 25 lucky men fighting for her on the next season of “The Bachelorette.” Thoughts? I guess we’ll just have to wait and see!
Ben goes back to the other girls on the group date and explains to them what happened. He joked about being done breaking up with people. JoJo doesn’t realize it’s a joke and tells Ben “10 more to go!” Duh, JoJo. DUH.
— Kelly Ann Schuberth (@KellySchuberth) February 2, 2016
Ben ends up giving the group date rose to someone he “reconnected with, that struggled for a while…” OLIVIA. He gave the freaking rose to Olivia. UGHHH so over her. Find some new drama in the show, ABC.
? Every rose...? #TheBachelor pic.twitter.com/0dLolAcKAX
— The Bachelor (@BachelorABC) February 2, 2016
So then it’s time for the second one-on-one date in Mexico with Lauren H. The two met up at a boutique and were then told they’d be walking in a fashion show for Mexican Fashion Week. Lauren was super nervous but both she and Ben killed it on the catwalk.
Nice 'Zoolander 3' audition for @benhiggi.@BachelorABC #TheBachelor pic.twitter.com/ijs9mahedy
— Good Morning America (@GMA) February 2, 2016
Later that night, Ben and Lauren H. talk about their relationship, and Ben wants to see if they can be more than just friends. We haven’t seen Lauren and Ben together much, so it’s nice to see them talking and getting to know each other. It’s safe to say by the end of the night she’s out of the friend zone, because she gets a rose.
Fast-forward to the cocktail party. Amanda is talking about her kids and Olivia suddenly chimes in saying she feels like they’re on an episode of Teen Mom.
Was this your reaction to the "Teen Mom" comment? #TheBachelor pic.twitter.com/9gRssGwaUz
— The Bachelor (@BachelorABC) February 2, 2016
After seeing the girl’s reactions, Olivia realizes how bitchy she just was and tries to backtrack. She even pulls out the waterworks for this one. She’s finally starting to realize all of the other girls hate her, so she’s trying her best to fix things.
Emily has had enough so she pulls Ben aside and opens up about Olivia and what kind of person she is. Of course, Olivia knows exactly what’s happening, so she gets up (with the rose she has already been given in hand) and walks over to Ben to do damage control.
After that, Ben chats with the other ladies about Olivia. Then it fast-forwards to the rose ceremony, and Ben asks to talk with Olivia. The other girls are wondering if this means he will be taking her rose away – something that they would all be okay with.
We’ll have to wait until next week to find out though, because the episode ended with “to be continued.” UGHHHHH. A boring episode and then you leave us hanging?! SO annoying. But you know we’ll ALL tune in next week for what happens. So, what do you think will happen? Will Olivia have her rose taken away? Will she be sent home? What do you think? Tweet me at @kellyschuberth and let me know your thoughts. I’ll see you next week!
In Chris Harrison we trust,