I’m sure you know by now I enjoy reality TV. I don’t take it seriously as most people as you can probably tell by the tone of my columns, but it’s mindless entertainment. I’m only watching “Big Brother” this season for the first time ever (outside of the two celebrity editions) because Holly Allen is on and I wanna see how she does, but I’ve just never been interested in committing three nights a week to a reality show. Well, then “Love Island” drops in our laps last night, and dammit, I’m interested…for now. For those that don’t know, CBS picked up “Love Island” for 22 episodes and they are running them consecutively. It’s on 5 nights a week for a month straight (outside of Sat & Sun). That’s a hell of a lot of commitment you’re asking for TV watchers. No reality show has ever done this. Also, every “dating” reality show that’s come after the “Bachelor” has failed miserably. Now you’re telling people to watch every night for a month? I mean, I’m interested now. But in 2 weeks will I be? I don’t know. I wanna see where this goes, but it’s awfully similar to “Paradise Hotel” so far. Same exact concept on the first episode. You immediately have to choose someone strictly based on looks. I just don’t know how this will be sustained over a month EVERY. SINGLE. NIGHT. Speaking of “Paradise Hotel”…
This week on the podcast, I spoke to both “winners” of PH, Tatum Smith and Bobby Ray – separately. And there’s a reason they’re on separately. They don’t speak to each other anymore. You can listen to the episode and determine why you think that is. Tatum said it’s all because of Bobby Ray and what he did but wouldn’t go into detail, and Bobby Ray says it’s because Rosanna came and visited him for a weekend and Tatum got upset. I don’t know what to believe but they’re both interesting interviews I’d say. What went into Bobby’s decision to drop at $200k? Did Tatum ever think he’d drop? What was her thought on it when it happened? Could she still have seen herself dating him post show? Would Bobby have dropped if Tatum never made out with Carlos? Why did Tatum make out with Carlos? All questions that will be answered tomorrow. I enjoyed talking to both of them. Look forward to you hearing it.
Wanted to give an update that I got on Monday night. Former podcast guest Craig Robinson texted me to let me know he is now 1 year sober. That was awesome news to hear. If you haven’t, I suggest listening to Craig’s interview from a few months back. You won’t be disappointed. To hear where he was at his lowest of lows to now seeing him send me a picture of his one year sober coin was really cool to hear. I’m rooting for the guy as most of us should be. It’s not easy I’m sure. Any day anything can trigger something to make someone relapse. It’s a long process and I just hope Craig stays the course. 1 year is a big accomplishment for someone that was in as deep as he was. I hope it continues this way for a long, long time.
We spoke yesterday about Jed’s IG post from Monday night. I wanted to address what I tweeted shortly thereafter. This is what I tweeted in case you missed it:
Yes, blame me. This is all my fault. I’m the one who should be punished here. SMH. pic.twitter.com/6zz8zJOAht
— RealitySteve (@RealitySteve) July 8, 2019
Reading some of the responses to that, it seems a lot of you thought I was addressing Jed in what I said when talking about blaming me. I wasn’t. I was talking about the IG commenter who was saying I should be held liable for whatever she was babbling about. That’s so utterly preposterous there’s no need to explain it much further. However, just wanted to make it clear I wasn’t responding to Jed, nor did I think Jed was referencing me in his post. I have not asked, poked, prodded, or told anyone to verbally attack or harass the guy’s family. If you do, you’re a loser. Be mad at him, form an opinion of how you think he handled the Haley situation, hate the fact he broke Hannah’s heart by doing this, but lay off the threats and harassment. That’s just stupid. Jed made his own bed, now he’s gotta lie in it. As for that commenter, I mean, there’s not much you can say to that much stupidity. The logic behind that comment is far off from reality, I think you can all see it. Just wanted to make clear my comment above the retweet was to her, not Jed.
Ratings are in from Monday night and again, the show set it’s highest ratings of the season with 5.99 million viewers and a 1.5 rating. Becca’s hometowns last season drew 6.31 million and a 1.6 rating, so it’s pretty much the same. Outside of the MTA, these last couple episodes will definitely be in the 6 million range and could reach 7 million, which has been standard for “Bachelorette.” I’m really curious to see and waiting for the “Love Island” overnight ratings to come in. Won’t be anything close to “Bachelorette,” nor do I know what CBS expects or is hoping for. I’m gonna guess 2.5-3 million viewers with a rating close to 1.0. Lets see if I’m close. Next Tuesday I’ll update everyone on the ratings for the episodes that run this week. The key won’t be initial ratings. It’s how the audience holds over the next week or two.
“Reader Emails” begins on Page 2…
KitKat101
July 10, 2019 at 5:30 PM
I just have one question to the “Plane Man” emailer… What does Hannah having green eyes have to do with anything?
elizabethhalloran
July 11, 2019 at 5:11 AM
Hey Steve!
Am I the only person who remembers Haley telling you that Jed’s mom knew he was going on the show to promote his career? That, in itself, leaves her wide open to backlash. Albeit, not physical violence or threats, but still….
Anyway thanks, enjoying this season!
justsaying
July 11, 2019 at 7:38 AM
I would LOVE it if Hannah scolds Jed profusely during the ATFR. Telling him how dare he not accept full responsibility for his actions and how dare he said he has his side of the story. How dare he, how dare he, how dare he. Hannah should tell Jed to seek therapy, to learn remorse.
As for Jed’s family, bravo to the mailer who called them out. Why continue to enable a cheater like Jed?? Paying his rent and covering up for him. Appalling!
You know what Jed, you are not at the same level as Luke. At least Luke said on social media something along the lines it’s been a learning lesson for him. And Luke did not make his family put up an act for him.
As for everyone wanting Hannah to get back with Tyler, I don’t think it’s going to happen. Base on my observations, she only has physical attraction with him. I find Tyler very mouthy too, he’s not all innocent.
The two guys she felt strongest for were definitely Luke and Jed, unfortunately. Hannah will probably get back with Luke first before even considering Tyler.
dogmomma
July 11, 2019 at 8:37 AM
“The two guys she felt strongest for were definitely Luke and Jed, unfortunately. Hannah will probably get back with Luke first before even considering Tyler.”
After reading that comment, it does make sense. Maybe she was into Jed because he portrayed himself as being the next famous singer and some people might be attracted to the stardom aspect of that. With Luke, she may initially have been attracted to the fact that they had similar backgrounds in their faith. Maybe if they had met under normal circumstances and not on a TV reality show, they might have had a chance. But I think Hannah was going through some self-discovery with her sexuality and this show was like being a kid in a candy store. She said that she didn’t have a lot of experience with boyfriends before the show. Now that she’s had her fun, maybe she’ll learn from this and maybe Luke will do the same thing. And maybe somewhere down the road they could reconnect….. Or maybe she will move to California and start selling gummy bear vitamins and Diff Eyewear. Time will tell.
ctrealitygirl
July 11, 2019 at 10:04 AM
Funny, dogmomma, I emailed RS last week and mentioned that I thought it was more likely that Hannah would get back with Luke after her break-up with Jed rather than go after Tyler. It’s obvious to see that she has deep feelings for Luke and basically only a strong physical connection with Tyler. But RS said she’d NEVER go back to Luke. I’m not saying she would immediately, but I could see it happening down the road after things have calmed down.
dogmomma
July 11, 2019 at 3:31 PM
ctrealitygirl, I agree… she wouldn’t go back to him right away, but given some time for things to cool off and emotions to settle down, I could see them spending time together. I don’t think she’d do it publicly and not right away because of the backlash she’d receive after how they portrayed him.
ctrealitygirl
July 12, 2019 at 6:30 AM
Exactly! She’s going to feel badly enough having to face Jed’s deceptions, so I doubt she’d risk any more bad press by dating Luke. Plus, she’ll be reeling from all the controversy, disappointment, etc. All the drama of this season really seems to have affected her. I’ve never seen a bach-ette lead show signs of wear before, at least they haven’t shown it. I’ve noted how many times she commented to the guys that she was calling it an evening because she was tired..and all the cancelled cocktail parties too – although those might have been producer-induced. I will say though, that with Hannah, we finally saw a “real” person emerge!
dogmomma
July 12, 2019 at 7:06 AM
Agreed! Hannah definitely broke the mold and I ended up liking her much more than I thought. I’ve been watching since season 1, and I watch even when I can’t stand the lead- I just fast forward through those seasons a lot more. I was hoping that Hannah would find her happy ending as so many of the other bachelorettes, but who knows, maybe she did in a different way.
justsaying
July 12, 2019 at 7:58 AM
I also want to add, if she can break up with Jed so easily and quickly, that’s a sign he’s a default choice after Luke left. She can’t have that much in depth feelings for Jed.
Also in the previews, Hannah looked like she was crying about Luke when Chris H said he’s ready to propose with a ring, blah blah. That’s prove Luke’s who she really wanted. Not Jed.
ctrealitygirl
July 12, 2019 at 12:49 PM
That’s great insight, justsaying!Now that I think about it, Hannah did seem really happy when she left Luke’s hometown date, stating that she was falling in love with him. She seemed very happy that his hometown went well, and I’m betting she would have picked him in the end if he didn’t slut-shame her for having sex with one of the other guys. And it’s starting to make sense with the way stuff she’s been posting. She’s coming off as angry but NOT broken hearted.
dogmomma
July 13, 2019 at 3:43 PM
The comment section of these articles are my favorite part of the spoilers. Some very good points about Luke that are starting to really make some sense now. Plus, we don’t have a clue about what has really gone on between Luke and Hannah because we’re shown only what the show wants us to see and believe. This will definitely be interesting to watch as it unfolds!
justsaying
July 13, 2019 at 4:59 PM
Thank you ctrealitygirl. Hannah actually slipped and said she loves Luke, not just she’s falling in love with him, I think. Huge difference
susan78
July 13, 2019 at 10:04 PM
I don’t think she liked/lived Luke more, and I don’t think she’d have slept with Jed if she wasn’t pretty sure. Could be wrong, maybe she just had an itch that needed to be scratched, but…
Peter or Tyler would’ve been much better choices in every way, but whatcha gonna do?
susan78
July 13, 2019 at 10:05 PM
I don’t think she liked/loved Luke more, and I don’t think she’d have slept with Jed if she wasn’t pretty sure. Could be wrong, maybe she just had an itch that needed to be scratched, but…
Peter or Tyler would’ve been much better choices in every way, but whatcha gonna do?
dogmomma
July 15, 2019 at 2:54 PM
After reading the latest tweets from RS, it looks like we’re not on the right track if his information is correct. He says Hannah slept with Peter in the windmill, not Jed. And he said that Hannah went off on Luke at the Men Tell All and apologized to the audience for not sending him home sooner. So much for our theories…LOL
ctrealitygirl
July 16, 2019 at 6:51 AM
haha, dogmomma! I was thinking the same thing last night watching the show. Hannah looked completely done with Luke and I’d say relieved as well that she finally saw for herself what the guys had been trying to tell her all along. And I’m now wondering about the timeline of the overnight dates. We know she had sex with Peter, but it appeared to me that she most likely had sex with Jed too. The way Luke was asking her about the fantasy suite dates, he kept saying it as if they had yet to happen. I’m thinking she may not have had the dates with Tyler and Jed yet, or at least not Jed. Otherwise she wouldn’t have singled out the “sex in the windmill” so prominently. Even though the guys probably don’t know what order the overnight dates go in, they must know by how long they’ve been there where they stand in the order.
As for Pete’s ex coming out about their story, not looking good for him to be named the Bachelor, as there’d be a fair amount of flack that he wasn’t there for the “right reasons” and will tarnish his golden boy image. I still cannot believe Hannah opted not to sleep with Tyler. I’m so hoping he’s the next Bachelor…hot, hot, hot and seems pretty genuine
dogmomma
July 16, 2019 at 7:33 AM
It sure appears that they were setting Tyler up to be the next Bachelor. He’s very popular, and after respecting her wishes in the fantasy suite, they have their story line…. he’s a great guy, he fell in love with Hannah but she rejected him, and he was a complete gentleman. Everyone seems to be swooning over this speech to her about love and respect. So I’d be surprised if he isn’t the next bachelor, unless he doesn’t want it, and if not, then my guess is that Mike would be another popular choice. It’s pretty easy to see who the next bachelor is going to be at Men Tell All…. they will definitely set up that person’s story line.
ctrealitygirl
July 16, 2019 at 8:51 AM
From what Steve says about the MTA, Mike comes across really good. But Tyler was not present to “audition”! I’ll bet watching back the show, Tyler feels crappy seeing Hannah throw herself at both Luke and Peter in the fantasy suites when she declined having sex with him. I could see her doing that if Tyler was going to be the last man standing. She looked mighty sad when Tyler walked away the morning after. Perhaps in time she will regret choosing Jed over him…time will tell. At least it’s an interesting ending!
dogmomma
July 16, 2019 at 12:29 PM
When they have the After the Final Rose show, they might have Tyler on and build him up to be the bachelor. But it’s looking good for Mike as well. This was definitely a different season!!!