Authors’ note: This review contains spoilers and brief mentions of sexual assault allegations.
ABC did Jenn Tran so fucking dirty.
When it comes to The Bachelorette (2003-present), the cards should be in the lead’s hands—so why did it keep falling on Jenn to do the chasing? From one contestant saying to her face that they wanted a different bachelorette to the final pick following Jenn’s desired replacement on Instagram right after ending their engagement, this season of The Bachelorette has not felt like a triumph for Jenn or the historic AAPI representation she brings to the series.
With each season of The Bachelor (2002-present), fans can expect to meet the next bachelorette alongside the lead’s future partner. Jenn made her debut as a contestant on Joey Graziadei’s season, landing a spot in the top six before being sent home. Although Jenn was well-loved, two other women undeniably stood out despite Joey ultimately choosing Kelsey Anderson. Daisy Kent, a hearing loss activist and children’s book author from Minnesota immediately won audiences over with her picture-perfect rom-com charm. And while viewers adored Daisy with Joey, Maria Georgas was the unequivocal it-girl of the season. Refreshingly honest, bold, and well-dressed, she had the internet wrapped around her perfectly-manicured fingertips.
From the beginning, it wasn’t subtle that Jenn wasn’t ABC’s top choice. ABC went so far as to offer Daisy the role on live television, which she turned down mere moments before Jenn was announced as the Bachelorette. And while Maria continuously expressed support for Jenn, she would later claim that “the role was hers until it wasn’t.” On the popular podcast Call Her Daddy, Maria revealed she had already done fittings before deciding to pull out.
There is a bitter irony about the first-ever Asian bachelorette not even being the second, but third choice. No bachelorette should start her journey feeling like she must prove herself worthy of the title, and although she was well-received, there is no denying that the audience was not expecting Jenn—and neither were the men already cast for her season.
Episode 1 starts with the bachelorette meeting her 25 suitors. All arrive with the goal of catching Jenn’s attention, whether through creative or blatantly cringe tactics, like Jonathan Johnson’s salacious entrance showing off his assets.
Subsequent episodes follow Jenn through several group and one-on-one dates, where the men get to know her and each other. When Devin Strader pulls Jenn away from the group during the season’s first group date in Australia, several of the other contestants characterize him as selfish, inciting a season-long feud.
Tensions culminate in Aaron Erb pulling Devin away for a “personal chat” about his character and Thomas Nguyen berating Devin in front of Jenn, noticeably souring her mood. All season, the men seemed more interested in each other than Jenn, shifting focus away from her and onto Devin.
For a show meant to emphasize the lead’s autonomy, The Bachelorette stripped Jenn of any control over how to conclude her supposed story of empowerment in the live finale.
The significance of independence as the season’s theme comes from a scene teased since Episode 1, where Jenn tells her then-mystery fiance that she “can’t let [him] propose,” implying that she would emblematically reclaim her power by being the one to propose.
Jenn did indeed ask Devin to marry her in Hawaii, but the footage initially would not be shown at all. In the “After the Final Rose” finale episode, we shockingly learn that Devin ended their engagement over a 15-minute phone call just one month after taping. Jenn is given space to confront him on set, but for some inexplicable reason, the showrunners still rolled the proposal tapes to “celebrate” Jenn’s moment of independence, even after her painful revelation.
When Jenn asked, “Do I have a choice?” to sitting through a replay of her ill-fated proposal, the answer was a resounding no, airing live with a camera trained on her face to capture every tear and wince. Incredibly painful to watch, the finale solidified the already questionable production team as unnecessarily cruel and exploitative.
ABC championed Jenn as the franchise’s first Asian bachelorette, only to cast her with men who were clearly expecting a different lead. The network doubled down by filming perhaps the franchise’s harshest finale in history—a cheap grab for ratings through Jenn’s devastating confrontation.
The lack of Asian contestants—moreover, contestants of color at large—was also not lost on viewers. Furthermore, a heartwarming scene of Jenn speaking Vietnamese with her mother in Episode 1 left audiences believing that this season would explore how she cherished her family and culture. However, this acknowledgement faded out as episodes went on and any nod to Jenn’s Asian American background was nonexistent by the end, making the initial feature feel shallow and insincere. Doing Jenn justice required more than just casting her, and there was a harrowing lack of effort from the team to curate an environment that was genuinely safe, inclusive, and respectful.
The contestant screening for Jenn’s season, frequently compared to that of Matt James’s (ABC’s first-ever Black bachelor), was abhorrent, as both failed to remove contestants with problematic pasts. Matt’s final pick, Rachael Kirkconnell, had fans wondering how she slipped past the casting team when she was found to have worn culturally appropriative costumes and attended a plantation-themed party. Fans were similarly outraged at the conclusion of Jenn’s season, as Devin, along with finalist Marcus Shoberg, faced allegations of sexual assault on Reddit and Tiktok, pushing Bachelorette fans to begin a petition to fire the current ABC producers for their negligence in screening this season’s contestants.
Audiences may argue that reality television series, especially dating shows, are never really “that deep.” However, watching from a screen can make us forget that we’re viewing real people with real emotions, who still deserve to be treated with respect.
After three appalling steps backward, The Bachelor franchise is looking to take at least one step forward, having just announced Grant Ellis, one of Jenn’s suitors, as the show’s soon-to-be second Black bachelor. We can’t say we have faith they won’t fumble, but we can hope that this season was a harsh lesson on how not to treat the next person making Bachelor history.
