The Bachelorette: Hometown Recap (Week 8)

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Week 8: Hometowns 

Hometowns! This week, Desiree got to meet the families of Zak, Drew, Chris, and Brooks. This was arguably the best week of hometowns this show has seen in a while, but it didn't go without its usual quirks and awkward moments.




Zak's Hometown: Zak was up first and he was visibly thrilled to be showing Des around his hometown of Dallas, Texas. Their date started with Zak telling Des about a dream that he had, a very confusing, strange dream involving Sno-Cones, children, and penguins. He then disappeared, leaving Des (and me) perplexed. Zak returned moments later in an ice cream truck...the family ice cream truck. He and Des would be serving Sno-Cones to an elementary school full of eager children. Absolutely precious. This date actually looked like a blast and Desiree was clearly enjoying herself and enjoying seeing Zak in his element.

As Desiree and Zak walked into his house, they were greeted enthusiastically by his family. His mom was adorable and I fell in love with her instantly. She was so welcoming to Desiree and so excited to meet her and get to know her. Definitely not the typical potential awful "mother-in-law" situation. The conversations between all of the family members and Desiree went seamlessly and the family concluded the evening with the performance of an original song written about welcoming Desiree into the family. With such a genuine family, I knew Desiree was going to have a terrible time sending Zak home, if it came to that.

As Zak said his goodbyes to Des, he presented her with a promise ring and told her that he loved her. Although Desiree couldn't say "I love you too" back, (or so we thought...) she expressed how touched she was by his gesture and kind words. Overall, this hometown date went as perfectly as possible, by the books.

Drew's Hometown: Welcome to Scottsdale, Arizona: home of one of the few men in the world that can rock a bright pink shirt. Drew and Desiree start the day off by picking up Drew's severely mentally handicapped sister and bringing her home to spend the day with her family. Drew's sister's reaction to seeing her brother is priceless. Though she cannot formulate words or much of anything, her screaming is clearly from excitement and she rushes over to give Drew a big hug. Desiree is touched by being a part of this experience and, with her loving reaction to meeting Drew's sister, she slips into the family perfectly from the very beginning. Upon meeting Drew's family, it's instantly clear that he comes from an incredibly loving family and they welcome Des with open arms. In her conversation with Drew's father, he shares with her that he has met an angel, his daughter. Des is brought to tears and tells the camera that she is "ready to move in."

Drew tells Desiree that he loves her, and boldly. Des' reaction is more passionate and receptive than when Zak told her, which places Drew in front of Zak for best hometown date.

Chris' Hometown: Remember earlier when I said despite the overall awesome hometown dates there were some awkward moments? Well, it's time. The time that Chris and Desiree spend alone is not awkward at all; it's perfect. They play baseball in his home field and have an absolute blast. The connection between the two of them is easy to see. Things don't get weird until Chris' dad takes Desiree into the basement for an adjustment. Whoa, back up. Even though Chris' dad is a chiropractor, I don't see any reason why showing Des his "skills" is necessary, especially on the first meeting. Strike one. It just gets stranger from here, as camera shots of Chris getting his nose adjusted, as if it's a daily occurrence, by his dad are shown. Strike two. Honestly, I just got some weird vibes from this family. There was nothing outwardly wrong with them, no fights broke out, but something just seemed off. I don't see Desiree fitting in as well with Chris' family as the others.

With a less than compelling exit, Chris slides into last place thus far.

Brooks' Hometown: There are few things that I really love about Brooks. Primarily, his sense of humor. He is incredibly witty, as shown on almost every episode this season. Des is really into him...really into him. Brooks and Des canoe in a local lake and despite taking water, they have an absolute blast. Brooks has had some reservations almost every week, and it's obvious that Desiree is ahead of him in the "feelings" category. He's hoping that talking with his family will ease some of his hesitance and help him move forward in the relationship. Upon walking through the doors of Brook's home, the two are greeted by an enormous amount of hugs, screams, and hellos. Also, everyone is wearing name tags. His whole family is hilarious; I love it. The conversations are very meaningful, but not many answers to the deep questions asked are shared with the viewers. Brooks seems to feel more confident after talking with his family. HOWEVER. He is the only one not to tell Desiree that he loves her this week. That's big. (Or at least in the past it has proved to be).

Rose Ceremony: Once again, we are shown an incredibly confusing interview between Chris Harrison and Desiree. I refuse to discuss it because honestly, I'm upset. The editing these past couple of episodes is terrible and really making me frustrated. As I watched the episode with Morgan and Lindsey, we all agreed that these new pre-rose ceremony interviews need to go. Stat.

Brooks is called first, followed by Chris. Despite his two strikes, he slides in and is safe. "The final rose...when you're ready." It goes to Drew. BOOM. Spot on prediction on my part, though relatively unexpected. Zak is heartbroken, as was I. I was hoping that Chris would've packed his bags, but poor little Zak has to go home to his adorable mom and explain why Desiree let him go. And the hardest part will undoubtedly be coming up with that explanation. I feel for that guy, I really do.

Next Week:

"The Men Tell All" airs next week so there will be no elimination. Instead, we will have a reunion of 22 testosterone filled, protein packed, guys. There will be screaming, yelling, pointing, and most likely...crying. Get excited ladies and gentlemen.