‘The Bachelor’ Episode 5: Kelsey’s ‘Mental Breakdown’ Causes Tension With Tammy (RECAP)
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Last week’s episode of The Bachelor left off with Peter Weber still confused over what to do with controversial contestant Alayah Benavidez now that she’s re-joined the group of women vying for his affection.
And tonight, we pick back up at the the dramatic cocktail party, with the girls at Alayah’s throat. They can’t seem to understand why Peter would keep her around when she’s brought nothing but drama to the group.
But right off the bat, Peter finally starts to show signs of good judgement. He takes it upon himself to send Alayah home before the rose ceremony because perhaps he’s finally — FINALLY — seeing what the other women have been seeing.
“She’s not the one that was meant for me,” he tells the group of women after Alayah leaves. “I just want you all to know that I value you all so much and I hear you. I trust you.”
He then proceeds to do some damage control and pulls aside some select women to apologize for taking time away from them due to the drama that Alayah has brought over the past few days. It seems to be working — for now at least, but I’m not too sure Peter understands just how much time he’s wasted. We’re already in Episode 5 and don’t know much about a majority of these women.
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Is it too late now to say sorry? – Peter #thebachelor #bachelor #bachelornation
Three women we don’t know much about? Deandra, Savannah, and Kiarra. But it’s probably for the best because those are the three who don’t get roses at the ceremony. After they’re sent home, Peter announces that the crew is headed to Costa Rica.
But Costa Rica isn’t all fun and games. Peter shows up with a huge gash on his head and thinks it’s a good idea to tell the women that he got into a fight with a puma. “If you think this looks bad, you should see him,” he tells them. But that’s clearly not what actually happened. After a few shocked faces for the trailer, Peter proceeds to tell the truth — that he ran into a golf cart with a glass in his hand, and shattered the glass on his head.
“I have 22 stitches. I will never forget this experience for the rest of my life,” he laughs.
Sydney’s one-on-one date
Sydney gets the first one-on-one date in Costa Rica and the two take a helicopter ride through the jungle and stop to have a picnic. They open up about their pasts and family life and seem to be really connecting on a deeper level than we’ve seen so far. Peter tells her that she’s the best kisser in the house (!!!) and that he genuinely sees a future with her. Big steps here guys!
Later on in the evening, the two head to a romantic dinner right next to a beautiful waterfall. Sydney continues to open up about her family life, telling Peter that her mother raised her on her own and that her early years were difficult. She admits that middle school and high school were some of the worst times of her life as she was frequently subjected to racism due to her mixed background.
Peter appears to be blown away by Sydney’s strength and vulnerability and ends up giving her the rose. “You are someone I can definitely see having a life with and I know this is early on but I don’t know, you just inspire me,” he tells her.
“I really feel like this is just the beginning for me and Peter. This day has shown me how strong our connection is and I can see him being my husband,” she admits.
Back at the house, Kelsey spirals out of control at the thought of Peter connecting with Sydney. Tammy tries to talk her through her emotions but Kelsey seems extremely irrational about how this process works. Apparently, Kelsey doesn’t want Peter to look at another woman… even though she’s on a competition show centered around multiple women dating him. Tammy tries to explain that the process is temporary and these difficult emotions won’t last forever — but even that is hard for Kelsey to wrap her head around. This should end well!
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Tammy: the voice of reason. #thebachelor #bachelor #bachelormemes #bachelorabc #bachelornation
The group date
Shiann, Madison, Kelsey, Victoria F., Natasha, Victoria P., Lexi, Hannah Ann, Tammy, and Mykenna get the group date card that reads, “Let’s capture our love today,” and the group learns that they’re participating in a swimsuit photoshoot for Cosmopolitan magazine. And the one “winner” selected from today’s date will be featured in the magazine alongside Peter.
Right in the middle of the shoot, Victoria F. starts making out with Peter. He’s literally sitting about a foot away from Kelsey but his tongue is town Victoria’s throat. This sets off a pattern, with Hannah Ann grabbing him next for a mid-shoot make out in front of the other women.
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@tammykayly is all of us. #thebachelor #bachelor #bachelorabc #bachelornation #bachelormemes
Ultimately, it’s Victoria F. who wins the group date and gets the feature spread with Peter. The girls watch as she proceeds to kiss and grope him in the waterfall. Fun!
Later on the group date, Kelsey continues to lose her mind watching Peter spend time with other women. She ends up telling him how badly she’s struggling and admits that she’s falling in love with him. “I didn’t expect to have the feelings I have and it terrifies me,” she says.
“I’ve thought about you so much. If only you knew,” he tells her, hinting that she may be a bigger frontrunner than she (or even we) realized.
But while Peter is clearly smitten with Kelsey, Tammy takes it upon herself to sabotage her and tell him how she’s been “drinking excessively” in the house and having mental breakdowns. Are we really doing this again? Didn’t we just do this with Alayah? I’m already exhausted.
Peter pulls Kelsey aside to confront her about Tammy’s claims, asking if she really did have a “mental breakdown.” She defends herself, just telling him she’s been sad watching him with another woman.
“Will you be OK? Because this is not going to get easier,” he asks her.
When returning to the group, Kelsey faces the women, who address her about her emotions. “You were upset about a champagne bottle for four days,” Tammy tells her. Victoria F. and Lexi also weigh in on her emotional instability, though Kelsey is still in the dark on who threw her under the bus to Peter.
Breaking up the tension, Peter joins in and offers the rose to Hannah Ann, whom he had connected with earlier in the evening.
Kelley’s one-on-one date
Peter and Kelley get in touch with their spiritual side with a a Costa Rican cleansing ritual. On the date, Peter admits that he feels their relationship hasn’t been equal — as he’s been giving more emotionally and she’s been holding back. Later in the evening, Peter addresses his concerns with Kelley. “I just want someone who wants me as bad as I want them,” he admits. “It’s weird that I still feel so strongly with all of these doubts. I think that’s what I’m still trying to wrap my head around.”
At dinner, he puts her on the spot, telling her that he needs to know for certain if her heart is in this. She still seems unsure but ultimately tells him that she’s had a breakthrough and does want to pursue Peter. “If our relationship is strong enough, I can for sure be, like, engaged,” she tells him. “I don’t necessarily know how the process goes from here.”
Despite his concerns, he still offers her the rose because he clearly feels a strong connection with her. It seems as though he’s willing to break down her walls a bit more in the coming weeks. “I need you to trust in this process,” he tells her. “Everything I said from night one about how beautiful this is and how it works, it does. But you need to give yourself to it. I know this can work.”
The Kelsey drama
Back at the house, Kelsey confronts Tammy about the negativity in the house. “Do you have a problem with me? Because I’m sick of the drama,” she asks her. Tammy admits to talking about Kelsey to Peter… but at the same time denies that she talked about Kelsey to Peter. My brain hurts.
Tammy once again brings up Kelsey’s drinking, saying she’s been excessive with alcohol. “I’m just concerned for your wellbeing,” she tells her. “I’m trying to have a conversation with you and you’re getting emotional.”
The next day, Kelsey takes it upon herself to set the record straight with Peter. She heads to his hotel room and addresses the comments Tammy has made about her. Instead of just letting this storyline fizzle out, she keeps bringing it up over and over, essentially reminding Peter about her “mental breakdown.” She brings up the drinking allegations made by Tammy, and even threw in the rumors spreading that she’s been “popping pills.”
Peter reminds her to focus on their relationship and not listen to the whispers going on in the house. He begs her to keep her eye on the end result of this whole dating-on-television thing, and they seem to wipe the slate clean… even though it wasn’t dirty to begin with. Peter feels so strongly for Kelsey that, despite the upcoming rose ceremony, he preemptively gives her a rose. “Don’t worry about the other girls,” he tells her, although it’s clear the girls are going to wonder how Kelsey got a rose ahead of the ceremony.
Kelsey returns to the house and immediately faces the women, rose in hand. She explains what happened and naturally, the women are pissed that she was able to steal extra time with Peter.
Who goes home tonight?
Instead of the typical cocktail party, Chris Harrison informs the women that Peter has decided to go straight to the rose ceremony. Tammy immediately questions Kelsey if she brought her name up when talking to Peter. Kelsey assures the her and the rest of the women that she didn’t trash talk them — and she didn’t — but they all still seem skeptical of her motives. They essentially blame the canceled cocktail party on Kelsey’s chat with him.
The girls then shift their focus towards Tammy, and question why she’s been spreading rumors about Kelsey popping pills. She informs the group that she was concerned by the “alcoholic tendencies” she’s been witnessing, but no one — specifically Sydney — seems to buy her excuse.
We head to the rose ceremony, but before Peter can hand out the first rose, Tammy pulls him aside. She essentially asks him if he’s unsure of where he stands with their relationship, knowing that she had drama with Kelsey. Mykenna then interrupts Tammy’s talk with him (is that allowed?) so she can whine and cry and complain about how she hasn’t had any time with him.
Peter returns to the rose ceremony and reminds the women that he has to follow his heart. He ultimately says goodbye to Lexi and Shiann.
The Bachelor, Mondays, 8/7c, ABC
