Hello Steve,
I have to be honest I am not watching this season of The Bachelor. I’m not sure why. It could be because the Claresha season just did me in and I’m still recovering or because I find Matt James lack luster, who knows. I recently read an article talking about why Robert Mills thinks ratings are down for Matt’s season. He also talks about when Matt said he didn’t know what to do during the rose ceremony and all the bachelor producers fainted from shock. Well not really but that’s basically what he said. If I remember correctly Chris Harrison said something along the same lines about him having to “teach” Matt what to do.
My question for you is do you think their criticism of him being a first time Bachelor is fair or warranted? I was actually excited to get someone new that we haven’t seen 23 times already, crying into our tv screen (sorry Clare). But I get it could be a slippery slope when trying to get someone outside of Bachelor nation, we could get a dud. Maybe Matt is? How would I know, I’m not even watching. I just get my info through you. Even though he’s new I think their being too hard on him. Again sorry he hasn’t done this show forwards and backwards like some other people. I’m rooting him on from afar.
Comment: I mean, how he is as a Bachelor is purely subjective. Some people love him. Some people think he’s been ok (like me). And some people think he’s shown zero emotion and is barely into more than one or two people and he’s counting the days til Tyler shows up so he can bro out with him.
Robert Mills did specifically say though that 99.9% the next “Bachelorette” will be from the franchise. Not that that’s a shot at Matt, but for him to be so definitive only 4 episodes into Matt’s season, I think pretty much says, “Hey, for the first time in 25 seasons, we chose someone who’d never been on our show before and, well, next season we’re not gonna do that again.”
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Hey Steve,
Thanks for all that you do! I’m so happy that Ashley is back for the lives 🙂
Here is my 2 cents on the Clare/Dale break-up. Dale has always seemed a little off to me, especially with the parents hitchhiking story. That was just too strange of a coincidence. It almost felt like Dirty John vibes. As in, he wanted to connect on such a deep level that he would make things up to have in common. Then he posted the break-up in his IG story AND feed. Then he called the paparazzi to come ask him questions about what’s going on and if he would do BIP or be The Bachelor. His answer was “I’m not there yet man”… He is looking pretty bad in the way he has handled everything. Seems disrespectful and immature.
Non Bachelor related – on a scale of 1-10, how surprised are you that Gwen Stefani and Blake Shelton are still together and engaged? I remember back in the day you thought this may be just another celebrity hook-up.
Comment: Pretty surprised.
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Hi Steve,
I just wanted to share some thoughts I had about the ratings this season. You talked about the comments being made about how viewership will increase now that there is a buzz around Matt. I really appreciated your thoughts and I agree that I do not think viewership will increase substantially, but for a different reason.
Using the small sample of friends that I have that watch the bachelor, we seem to all agree that Clare/Tayshia season was a disaster. It was not enjoyable to watch and the dates were downright cheesy. It seemed like a super low budget version of the show and didn’t have the same polish as other seasons. I honestly think that may have turned people off Matt’s season. People don’t want to watch that again and it was well-known that this season was also being filmed in one location.
How did you feel about the Clare/Tayshia season compared to other seasons of this show? Do you think that is impacting viewership currently?
Comment: It’s hard to say. Monday was the highest rated episode of the season thus far, both in viewers and rating. So I expect small increases as the season moves forward.
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Hi Steve,
Love your lives with Ashley and so glad y’all are back! I’m not sure if you have already explained this before, but with the recent talk about Matt’s season having such a low rating and references to how many million viewers compared to other seasons, I can’t imagine that is the reference point for live cable viewers only with the way the industry is moving. How do DVRs, streaming services, etc. play into those numbers?
Comment: The numbers you see me post are the overnight numbers. There are definitely other ways to break it down, DVR +3, DVR +7, etc. But advertisers really look at the overnight numbers, as do most networks. Streaming services don’t have something that you can log into and see the download numbers or stuff like that. Maybe in the future they will. Right now, they stay pretty coy about their numbers, other than to say a particular show is a “hit.” Well, we don’t really know if it is because they don’t share their numbers.
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Hi Steve,
I was listening to your podcast during a run this weekend and heard your question about what makes a book a best seller and what that means. You may have already received an answer to your question, but I’m writing with my understanding of it just in case.
Any provider can have its own “best seller” list based on their own sales and top performers. Amazon, Barnes &Noble, etc often have their own and advertise such based on that. That’s why their lists don’t necessarily align, although there is often overlap and similarities because a truly good book will perform well across multiple platforms.
New York Times Best Seller aggregates data from all national sales, pre-sales, etc. to make their own list. This is more accurate as to what is truly a national “best seller” as it’s not relying solely on one book provider. I think NYT also considers critics’ choices and opinions.
While being a best seller on any list is an honor for a writer, being on NYT is probably the highest (aside from awards like Pulitzer, obviously).
Chris Harrison showing he’s a best seller on Amazon simply means a lot of Bachelor fans went to Amazon and bought his book there. He’s unlikely to make a Barnes & Noble or NYT best selling list because most people don’t care enough to actually go out and buy it. Or if they’re perusing a bookstore, they’re likely looking for more substantive books..although it’s possible if enough fans buy it and his ghost writer is really good.
Ashley/others may have different understandings, but that’s mine. I read a lot of books (especially during the pandemic) and have learned the differences that way, so it might not be the most accurate description of differences.
Comment: Crap. Totally forgot to ask Ashley about that last night on the live. I knew there was something I forgot. Thank you for explaining that. So basically Chris Harrison didn’t sell shit outside of the links he provided for people to buy off Amazon. Got it.
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Hey Steve!
Longtime reader and fan, you know the deal!! For once, I have a question not dealing with Bachelor stuff at all which I know can be a breath of fresh air sometimes!
I recently started watching Love Island, and wow I love it!!! I’ve seen you mention it in your columns before and I know you’ve had “Islanders” as podcast guests before, so I said let me give it a try! I started with Season 1 of the U.S version which I heard didn’t get the best reception, but I found it so hilarious; I actually finished all 22 episodes in like 3 days!! Did you watch that season and if you did, did you have a favorite or least favorite couple or Islander? I really liked Caro because she was just a burst of energy; I loved Kyra and Cashel together too; and then Zac and Elizabeth!! I just think it’s hilarious that like Bachelor Nation, it doesn’t seem like it works out for the couples once they get to the outside world, because none of the final four couples from that season are together today!!
Then for someone that’s new to the series, which seasons do you recommend watching (if not all of them) and should I watch in a particular order? I was thinking of continuing with the 2nd season of the U.S, but people have told me that the U.K version is just so much better, so just wanted to hear your advice in terms of that.
And then last question- Overall, who have been your favorite Islanders on the show?? It can be from the U.K or U.S Seasons!!
Thanks for all you do!
Comment: I’ve only seen the two US seasons. I don’t remember a thing about season 1. Season 2 is more fresh. I’ll go with Tre as my favorite since he came on my podcast ha ha. Thought Caleb and Justine would last longer. Crazy to think that Connor and Mackenzie are the only couple left. I figured they’d be the first to break up.
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Hi Steve!
Love reading your spoilers every season. I know you’ve mentioned they’ll never change casting young girls, but man am I tired of seeing 21 and 22 year olds come on the show “looking for love”. Serena certainly carries herself well, but Kit’s behavior last week was so childish and dramatic. I saw her and MJ post their “apologies” on their stories, but they seemed very fake; as if they were only sorry because of Sarah’s dad and not because of how they actually treated her. Do you know when MJ and Kit are gone? I can’t stand watching a 21 year old on this show anymore.
Thanks!
Comment: Not sure their exact episode exit, no.
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Hey Steve,
I’ve kept up with your blog more recently and I always enjoy reading your content.
After listening to your podcast with Olivia C and staying up to date with your tweets I can’t help but notice how much attention you give to the trolls. Olivia’s podcast made it seem like they really affect you. I know it probably feels good to clap back sometimes but just know you don’t have too! I’m not sure if you’ve always called them out so maybe I’m just noticing it now. Sometimes after reading comments on bachelor content I feel exhausted with the audience so I can only imagine how you feel. I feel I give them maybe 1% of my time. Because I don’t respond to 99% of the stuff I get. But are there times where it’s fun to call them out? Sure.
Anyways, I wanted to send a positive review since it seems like you’ve got a lot of negative ones recently. Thank you for your take on the show and the spoilers! It saves me a lot of time not having to watch the dumb stuff but I still know what’s going on.
Thanks again for your work, I appreciate it.
Comment: Thanks. I haven’t looked in a while at my reviews, but the last time I looked, I did see a good number of trolls on there, so, I thought it was pointless. There’s a major difference between someone leaving a review of a podcast where you can tell they actually listened and are critiquing/complimenting what they heard, and trolls just saying they don’t like it without giving any specific examples, which is exactly what I saw. Disappointing, but what am I gonna do?
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1. Not trying to be ugly or pass judgement on physical appearance AT ALL, but this is the 2nd rose ceremony where Victoria appears to have some kind of injury or stye on her left eye. Shouldn’t she have gotten medical help or seen the show doctor by this point? It’s just making me super unnerved since eye stuff is so easily transmissible. I believe she said on social media somewhere that yes, she did get a stye the night she slept on the couch. Now, it’s very tough to just automatically believe anything she says based on what we’ve seen about her, so I don’t know for sure. But that is what she shared.
2. How do you think production determined the ladies that they had come in on episode 4 versus the OG contestants? Did the contestants that had to wait around longer only to be introduced 4 episodes behind everyone else know that’s what was happening? At that point, when/if they realized they weren’t night-one contestants, could they have dropped out or had they already signed on the dotted line? I guess they could’ve said no, but they’d already been flown out there, had to quarantine for 10 days before the first night happened, then doing the math, probably another 10 days before they were introduced. Would you really want to leave after waiting around for 20 days? Might as well just stick it out at that point.
3. Did production know that Anna and Brittany knew each other (or knew of each other) prior to filming? Seems like too convenient of a story line for it to be just a coincidence.
Comment: I’m sure they had an idea.
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Since day 1, every time I look at Kit I see the Queen’s Gambit actress. Is it just me? Surprised no one has brought this up. Also surprised how she comes off relatively mature for a 21 year old, especially compared to 27 year old Victoria.
Comment: I wouldn’t know. I haven’t watched Queen’s Gambit.
