hello steve! I sent you an email already but after hearing the news about becca being involved with thomas, i have to wonder if the reason why she broke up with him was because of his edit on the current show? because she is clearly seeing the episodes and knows what is going on in katies season. wondering what your thoughts are?
Comment: We don’t know for sure if/when she saw the episodes. So I can’t say whether or not it played into her decision to dump him. Maybe something happened out there that I don’t know about yet.
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Hey, Steve! My mind is still kind of blown about Becca appearing on BIP. It’s always seemed like it was taboo for a former lead to consider going down there. The franchise likes to present their former leads as “above it all,” like there’s a hierarchy between leads and other former contestants. Sure, someone could go on BIP and “rise” to the level of lead, like Nick and Colton, but even the franchise itself always seemed to imply that a former lead was too good to go back and mingle with the masses on BIP.
So, I guess my question is, what changed? Is the franchise going for the wow factor of a former lead to go to Mexico? Was Becca genuinely interested in dating within the franchise again? Do you think this will open the door for other former leads to consider going on BIP? (I know most of them in recent memory are coupled up, but just speaking hypothetically.)
Comment: I mean, it’s the first time it’s happened in 7 seasons, so it’s hard to say it’ll become the norm. I don’t see Kaitlyn/Tayshia/Clare/Matt (our last 4 leads) ever doing it again.
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Hey there!
I saw on Katie’s instagram story today her posting little screenshots of the other time she spent with the guys during the cocktail party that was never shown on camera. It seems like she really tries to highlight her connections with people especially after we read Rachel’s account of not having her love story told properly because of poor editing. I feel like Katie is giving production almost a slight middle finger by posting stuff like that and with her being so candid about the show on social media. What do you think?
Thanks for the spoilers!
Comment: Tough to say. Maybe she’s been so complimentary of her guys this season and propping them up whenever she can because she feels bad for not picking any of them and picked the guy from last season. Just a thought.
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Well – if anything, everything that’s happened to Becca in Bachelor Nation is a testament to the manipulation of the producers…. or is she just incredibly naive?
I mean, I give her a pass for what happened with Ari, that’s not on her. But when she picked Garrett – I mean do these people have any real conversations? Do the producers even steer that? Because the guy was clearly politically in a different world.
Because she is so beloved – wouldn’t you hope/think that they might look out for her in regards to Thomas? (Okay, now I’m naive…) And from a personal brand point of view – do you think BIP was a step down for her? I mean we’ve seen people go on BIP end up being the lead (Colton, Nick, Tayshia) – but not a former lead going on BIP….
GREAT work spoiling this year! Makes watching that much more interesting!
Comment: People are really hung up on Becca going down to Paradise in the first place. Hey, I can’t speak for her. My personal opinion is she didn’t need to. She’s Becca. But I already her reason will be “why not…fun experience…never had a chance to…” blah blah blah. I just think, yes, there are people in this franchise who have reached a certain level by being a lead or being engaged, and going on that show when, lets face it, I’m sure Becca has no problems finding a date, just seem more incentivized than actually interested in finding love. Because someone who’s already had two broken engagements from this franchise I don’t see truly giving herself up to the show and being vulnerable like that again. Yes, I heard she liked Thomas, but we’ll have to see it play out to determine how serious it was.
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Your latest post about how the two girls cohosting Tayshia and Kaitlyn were so liked And meshed so well-/Well from this bachelor fan, I can’t stand either one of them. The two of them simpering together in their little preplanned heart-to-hearts are so annoying. I love Chris Harrison and will not watch the franchise again. Especially with the plans for a gay bachelor/bachelorette. Can’t they ever just leave a popular franchise along without changing it? They ruined dancing with the stars by taking Bergeron off and now they’re doing the same thing to this one.
Comment: Then I would suggest not watching. And I never said that about Kaitlyn and Tayshia “meshing so well.” Not sure where that came from.
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Hey Steve,
Love the column.
A few things.
Since the past two weeks worth of episodes have essentially been one week in time, do you think the fact that filming ends early will even be a plot line on the show? Or could they gloss over it since it will be the same number of episodes? Have you heard anything on why that happened yet? No, haven’t heard. But I think them ending a week early probably is the reason why we had the last episode extended into two.
In regards to the PPP, I personally find it terrible that anyone from this franchise with a social media platform received it (with the possible exception of Colton because it did go to his foundation, not him or his personal brand). In the case of Tayshia, we have heard from plenty of sources, including Jason, that while the rest of the world seemingly crumbled, the social media world thrived. Even if it did go to her hiring an assistant, that really isn’t what it was meant for at all. Paycheck PROTECTION, not paycheck creation. If her social media was booming and she was earning more money than before and needed to hire an assistant because of all the WORK (bringing in $$$) she has, then I feel that the assistant’s wage can be easily covered by that. I laugh that she thought that was a reasonable response. Arie and Lauren’s situation is downright despicable, but I sure hope they’re enjoying their new second home in Hawaii. A lot of people seem to share that sentiment. If it wasn’t used for business expenses and to pay employees so they didn’t need to be laid off, or as a sole proprietor, used for strictly business purposes, then they deserve all the criticism they’re getting.
Have you seen the rumors of Michael A. being the next bachelor? Any merit to those claims? Huh? They haven’t even started filming Michelle’s season. I can guarantee they don’t have a next Bachelor already picked.
Will you tell us when said Bachelor person announces their pregnancy, who it is? I don’t even follow them so I doubt I’ll know when they announce. And they aren’t a big enough name I don’t think where a media outlet will cover it.
Have you heard anything bad about Michael A. prior to this season from sources or anyone? I literally feel like he is perfect and that you wouldn’t have heard anything bad about him.
Thanks for your responses. I think you do fabulous work.
Comment: Just know that every season I get a lot of stuff sent to me about a lot of contestants and it’s usually all negative.
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Steve,
Long time viewer, first time emailer. With respect to Blake coming on the show for Katie, I just have to say I’m tired of the re-treads every season. I know ABC loves the familiarity, but many fans of the show prefer for there to be new/fresh faces on the Bachelor/Bachelorette. IMHO, Bachelor in Paradise is for fan favorites who didn’t win—or people from the most recent seasons to have “another chance at love” (cough, cough) so I’d prefer that they all meet up there instead of looking desperate showing up for another run at the Bachelor/Bachelorette who’d be perfect for them. Just slide into the person’s DM’s and date them. Otherwise it all feels like them being thirsty for fame/relevance—and I know they all are anyway. It’s recency bias because they did it in back-to-back seasons with Matt & Katie. But it doesn’t happen often, and when it does, it usually doesn’t go well.
I guess I should be happy there is an engagement at the end of this—just feels like Katie wasted the time of all of the guys who came for the first time—but I guess if one of them was the one, she would have picked them over Blake.
Question—why didn’t they have Katie talk to Kaitlyn when she was deciding about whether or not to bring Blake on? I’m sure Kaitlyn could have shared some interesting insight since she decided to bring Nick onto her season part way in and all of the drama that ensued, how the guys felt, etc. It just would have been much more interesting than Tayshia saying one of her guys (and Claire’s guys) wanted to come on the show to meet Katie. Seems like a missed opportunity. Thoughts?
Comment: I guess they could’ve. And maybe Kaitlyn did speak to her at some point about it and they just chose not to air it. Or maybe that convo is coming up soon.
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Steve,
Am I the only one in America who wanted to send Katie a DM that said “I’d like to talk to you about Thomas” after EVERY GUY started out that way?
I wish more people in America had Katie’s bullshit detector. I laughed out loud when she sent Carl home but damned near pissed myself when she eliminated Thomas. That was as epically strong as Claire telling off guys who deserve it (honorable mention Hannah Brown) and as funny as when Ben left (Olivia?) on that deserted island.
Katie …. pretty good bet you’ll see this …. You get an A+ so far.
And finally …. I like Reality Steve 2.0 juuuust fine. Keep up the good work!
Comment: Thanks. I appreciate it. 2.0. Interesting. Never looked at it that way. I guess in a sense it could be seen like that.
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Steve,
This season from the similarities in their personalities to the promos to the casting very much seems like production is looking for a very similar season to Kaitlyn B season. Right down to a contestant from the last Bachelorette season coming back a few weeks after the season started. Now in the past week it was revealed by you that Blake is who Katie picks at the end of the season and (from the episode) that Blake and Katie had some kind of contact before the season. Again this is reminiscent of the emails Nick and Kaitlyn had sent each other before Kaitlyn’s season started filming. Last season Clare and Dale faced backlash for a lot of reasons but some of it was because nobody believed they hadn’t communicated before the show though Clare admitted to “stalking” his social media. Many felt like she cheated the show and its process because of this. Do you think this is a similar situation with Katie and Blake that she was really interested in him from the day filming was set to start? I’m sure she had an interest. But we just don’t know the extent of their contact. Clare and Dale have said over and over again they never spoke, so I wouldn’t compare it to that. Kaitlyn and Nick, yes. But even this seems less than what they did. They both admitted they were basically into the sexting part of their relationship. Katie just claims Blake hit her up to tell her he was a fan.
From the editing of Kaitlyn’s season, it was clear production was rooting for Nick to win Kaitlyn’s season. Do you think that production wanted that and is happy they finally got that kind of ending many years later on Katie’s season?
Ultimately Kaitlyn did not pick Nick though she was clearly interested in him. Given what you’ve heard from people who knew Katie wasn’t with any of the final 4 besides Blake, you are likely aware of some of the perceptions of the other guys and their experiences from people “in their camp”. Now that Blake is here, how do you think Katie’s behavior will be during the rest of the season? Will she be more like Kaitlyn who had an obvious connection with the newcomer but ultimately had a lot of other connections as well? Or will it be clear she is focused on the newcomer and not as interested in others? I don’t think she’ll be able to hide her connection with Blake. Hell it was pretty evident on Monday night.
On an unrelated note, there was an article today where Catherine Lowe said that Sean is boycotting the season because of Chris Harrison but she is watching to support the women (I assume she is referring to Kaitlyn and Tayshia as well as Katie here). When the ratings are reported each week, how do they account for a couple or group of people who watch together on one screen? Are they able to account for when someone who normally watches it with someone (or multiple people) and is now watching alone? Just something I was curious about when I saw that news regarding the Lowes.
Comment: No. Groups only account for 1, which is why whatever ratings are reported for a show like this, it’s a little lower than it actually is since we know this is the type of show watched by a group of people.
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Hey Steve –
In your podcast, Kasey referred to you as a friend. I took this as someone who understood producer manipulation and editing who could talk to him about it versus an ongoing friendship. If a contestant today reached out the same way, I assume you would still be willing to have the discussion – or would this go against your new code of behavior? No I’d definitely help out anyone who came to me with questions regarding that, social media behavior, etc. I’ve got no problem doing that. My change was just more about someone I don’t really know, reaching out to them post show, and interjecting my knowledge on someone they might be with, even if that info is only to look out for them. The times I have done that, sometimes it’s with someone I’m good friends with, sometimes those people ask me “Hey, anything I should know about this guy,” and sometimes it’s someone I barely know that I give a heads up to. I’ve always just tried to help. But in the end, although they might’ve asked me for the help, ultimately they’re gonna do what they’re gonna do, regardless of how bad my info is.
I know you dislike Celebrity Dating Game and it is wise to avoid commenting on Demi but I am eager to watch her episode on my dvr to see how shocked she is by sexual comments. I get that it is different as it is public and for entertainment. I saw Hannah’s segment and that’s all I needed to see to realize how ridiculous, scripted, pre-planned, unfunny, and lame it is. Didn’t watch Monday night and am not going to going forward. Hannah’s 30 minutes was painful enough.
Based on your experience, have you reconsidered your distancing from Taylor N? There a lot of factors involved here, more than just us sharing a similar thing happen to us.
Do you watch Too Hot To Handle on Netflix? To me, it is a more “honest” version of BIP – no pretending to look for a relationship, less potential or social media fame, no pre game relationships / plotting. Yep. Watched season 1. Watched all 4 episode of season 2 last Wednesday when they were released and will watch the next four sometime today I’m sure. Funny you say less potential for social media fame when I think the opposite. Have you seen some of the numbers of IG followers Francesca and Harry from season 1 have? We’re talking Bachelor/ette range. I think Francesca is over 3 million which I believe is more than any Bachelor contestants, male or female.
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Hi Steve,
Few people hear as much hearsay as you hear. While Katie and Thomas may have had conversations that were not shown, she seemed to base her assessment of Thomas as “a liar, unkind and selfish” completely on hearsay.
Katie’s “platform” includes anti-bullying, but in my opinion she downright bullied Thomas at the rose ceremony based on no more than hearsay. What say you?
I appreciate the care you take to determine the truth behind the hearsay.
Comment: I don’t think what the guys told Katie was hearsay. The definition of hearsay is “information received from other people that one cannot adequately substantiate; rumor.” Did she hear it from other people? Yes. Could she not adequately substantiate it? No, I think she could. Because then we’re diving into a territory of saying “If you don’t see something for yourself then in no way could it have happened.” If one guy told Katie, and that guy seemed to dislike Thomas, and she still did what she did, then yeah, I think you could say she didn’t do enough due diligence. But she literally heard it from the whole house. At that point, you gotta trust your instincts.
Now, the WAY she let him go, but making him think he got a rose, then backing up and telling him off – totally unnecessary and that was Katie playing a role for TV. She didn’t HAVE to do that, but, for dramatic effect she knew it would play well. Wasn’t a fan of it.
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Send all links and emails to: steve@realitysteve.com. To follow me on Twitter, it’s: www.twitter.com/RealitySteve. Instagram name is RealitySteve, or join my Reality Steve Facebook Fan Page. Talk to you tomorrow.
