Drama-creating 'rat' revealed on this week's 'Bachelorette,' will Michelle send him packing?
'Bachelorette' Recap
NEW YORK -- The men and Michelle were still reeling after Jamie's big revelation that her character was being questioned when that wasn't the case at all. It was Jamie's problem and he used his insecurities to make her feel terrible so he could figure out where she stood with Joe. The other men are trying to determine who spoke to Michelle, they want to find out who the rat is.
Group Date #1
The first date card read, "Martin, LT, Olu, Spencer, Clayton, Nayte, Joe, Rick, Will, and Peter, I want a man who isn't afraid of the danger zone." You know that card meant that they were going to fly into the danger zone - Top Gun!
They went to the air museum and Michelle was waiting for them in a classic plane. Jay Ellis and Glen Powell were there to meet the guys as they star in "Top Gun: Maverick." The guys got to go through some real training so that Michelle could pick her "Maverick." Little Willy, Frosted Tips, Dough Boy, were just a few of the call signs given to the men by their fellow competitors. They did a physical workout and of course a G-force simulator. While the guys had to spin around, the guys had to tell Michelle how they felt about her. Will was already feeling sick just watching the other guys go, but he seemed to recover. Peter spoke to her in Italian, and then Will did it in Spanish and that did not sit well with Peter. He felt Will copied him. During a "dog fight" where the men battled each other gladiator style with the big padded sticks Will just destroyed Peter. In the end, the winner was Little Willy, aka Will. That made Peter mad and he called him a "bum." Michelle got to drive Will around in a vintage car used in "Top Gun: Maverick" as they got to know each other better. He also got a bomber jacket for winning the challenge.
Later, the guys were excited to spend some time chatting with Michelle one-on-one during their cocktail party after the group date. Clayton complimented Michelle's confidence and she told him that he seems more relaxed and confident already. Then he asked her to spin around so she could experience a bit of G-force. It was cute! Then, they shared a kiss!
Michelle did a lot of kissing in fact. Things seemed to progress with Nayte and Joe as well, but in the background, Peter and Will continued to argue. Peter seemed to be losing his voice he was talking and yelling so much. Martin used the distraction as a chance to go grab Michelle to have their own special moment together. Michelle said that she appreciated how he pulled her aside earlier to check on her and she went in for the kiss!
Peter then got up and put on Will's coat while Will was chatting with Michelle. He walked over to the swimming pool and threw it in! Oh my goodness. The other men could not believe he did that. Will walked back and asked where his coat was. The other men told him that Peter threw it in the water and they apologized for not stopping him. They urged Will to be the bigger man and not say anything. Will started to cry and had to walk it off. Clayton told Peter it wasn't a good thing to do and that all of their actions impact Michelle and Peter told him to stay out of it.
Will stayed quiet as Michelle gave the group date rose to Martin. She told Martin she had something else special for him and sent the rest of the men back to the hotel. They danced to a string orchestra playing "Take My Breath Away" which is of course from "Top Gun". As Michelle thanked her lucky stars for a night without drama, Will fished his prize jacket out of the pool.
Rodney's One-on-One Date
The one-on-one date card read, "Rodney, Love is about letting go." Rodney was so excited. He said he was on cloud nine. Michelle took Rodney into a kitchen at the hotel where he had to feed her blindfolded. Then she had to feed him while she was blindfolded still and it got messy! Then they had to handcuff themselves to each other and work to open some boxes to find the key. Then poor Rodney had to strip down naked and run through the lobby while Michelle yelled through a megaphone "This is our journey!" Kaitlyn and Tayshia cheered Rodney on while the other men came to the balcony of the hotel to watch him streak! Poor Rodney! He deserves a rose after that!
After all of the dares, they headed into a hotel room where they lounged on a bed and did the "Truth" portion of the date. Rodney said his biggest fear is passing away before he's able to become a husband and father. Michelle said that she's afraid of being complacent and it's also her downfall because she is always focused on the next thing and doesn't enjoy the current thing. Rodney said that nothing about Michelle is average, and then they kissed! Michelle said that Rodney chipped through the "friend zone" and made it through to the "relationship zone!"
Then, they left the room and boarded a rowboat where Rodney rowed them over to a dinner table outside on the other side of the water. Michelle said that she loves how playful and fun Rodney is and she sees elements of her parents' relationship in their relationship. It's something that she's looking for. He talked about how he was raised by a single mom along with his brother after their father left when he was six. But he said his mom showed him that with hard work and a good heart you can get through anything. He aims to make his mom proud! Michelle revealed that in her past relationship with a person who was white when she was called the N-word by a woman at the grocery store, her boyfriend told her that she was giving that woman power by choosing to be upset about it. She didn't feel supported in the way that she should have been because she had to justify her emotions. Rodney agreed with her that she should be able to feel how she wants to feel. Rodney! Where did you come from? Lookout guys! Michelle gave him the date rose! This underdog is here to stay!
Group Date #2
The second group date card arrived and it read, "Jamie, Leroy, Chris G., Casey, Malik, Chris S., Brandon, and Romeo, I want a man who can express himself." Rudy Francisco, a spoken word poet, was there to help the guys express themselves. Casey was losing his mind because he works as a motivational speaker and he's a hero to Casey.
Michelle was blown away by all of the men's poems. But then, Jamie told a parable... it was really strange. The guys thought that he didn't follow the assignment and they thought it showed off his trust issues. Michelle also went up to the mic and read a letter to her future soulmate. It was very heartfelt and she talked about how she didn't fit in. She didn't have many dates and talked about how she was picked last for prom but first for basketball. The guys were really touched and moved by everything she had to say and could really see that she's genuine in wanting to find love.
During the cocktail party on the group date, Michelle and Brandon made a big connection. They spent a lot of time kissing. Michelle said that her stomach did a flip with him like she was on a rollercoaster and Brandon said he felt like he was falling in love with her. But he didn't say it to her just yet!
Jamie told her that he appreciated her story and he relayed to her how he felt the same. Michelle said she appreciated him telling her that and then she kissed him. Is she not seeing that he wouldn't say it in front of the others like the rest of the guys did? Jamie thought he had the group date rose in the bag. But, she gave it to Brandon! Burn! Jamie was burning and pulled a producer aside. He found it insulting that he was in the same consideration as Brandon and said, "I thought it would be a stronger group of guys." And said that Michelle was in, "Spring break mode." Wow, he's so insulting. The more he moves his mouth the less I like the guy. "I'm not going to judge it, but it doesn't mean I can't make fun of it," he said. Ick.
Cocktail Party
Michelle looked stunning her gold gown and Nayte wasted no time in asking her to talk. He said that he wished they could run away and Michelle took her shoes off and they started running! They ran into the dark of the grounds of the resort and they talked about how they mutually trusted each other and they kissed.
Meantime, Casey started stirring the pot to see if he could figure out who told Michelle the guys were questioning her integrity. Rick used his time to tell Michelle that the other guys were not questioning her character and that he's confident in that after talking to the men this week. He said that guy wasn't being honest and probably did it to try to earn her trust and throw others under the bus. She revealed to Rick that it was Jamie who said that to her. Michelle said that she's now seeing a red flag with Jamie.
Rick went back to the other guys and revealed the rat to be Jamie. Nayte urged Rick and Casey to get Jamie in on the conversation so they weren't just talking about him behind his back. Jamie stumbled around and said that the house was talking about the speculation about Michelle and Joe and that it created a character in the room. Nayte said, um no, no one was talking about that. The other guys backed Nayte up. Nayte shut down every comment Jamie said and called out the false truths. Meantime, Michelle spoke to Tayshia and Kaitlyn about the situation.
Michelle came back out into the room of men and said, "What's with this weird vibe?" Jamie spoke up and tried to explain himself. Michelle backed the conversation up to the words they had about her past relationship, or really, lack thereof, in Minnesota. Then she talked about how he paired it with the fact that men were talking about the fact that she and Joe knew each other from before the show. He tried to make it seem like he was preventing gossip when really he started it all.
She asked Jamie to speak outside and you knew that this was not going to be a good conversation. She said that the trust between them was broken because he created drama with inaccurate information. He wasn't protecting her, he created a situation that was potentially damaging to her experience as "The Bachelorette." She expressed that she was hurt and needed to end things with him. He said, "OK." Bye, Jamie.
Rose Ceremony
1) Martin (group date)
2) Rodney (one-on-one date)
3) Brandon (group date)
4) Joe
5) Rick
6) Leroy
7) Nayte
8) Casey
9) Chris G.
10) Chris S.
11) Clayton
12) Olu
13) Romeo
14) Will
That meant that Peter and his temper were sent packing along with a few other men who didn't get much airtime. They all left graciously.
Next Week
Michelle gets worried that she's going to commit to someone who "doesn't see" her. Chris S. tells her, in front of the group, "There are guys here who think they have it in the bag." Yikes! Nayte is ready to shut that situation down!
ALSO READ: Meet the 30 men vying for Michelle Young's heart on 'The Bachelorette'
