“The Bachelor” finale leaves audience with an unexpected ending

 

In “The Bachelor”’s 25th season, bachelor Matt James failed to provide clarity for the future with the remaining women. His commitment issues interfered with his emotions towards the final two women, leaving him with unsettling decisions and hard pits to swallow in this concluding episode.

The last episode of “The Bachelor” was broadcasted on March. 15, and can be viewed on Hulu. Despite the overwhelmingly long episode that exceeds an hour, the clarity between Matt’s relationship with Rachel Kirkconnell and Michelle Young seemed to be lacking until the very end of the episode. 

Matt approached the day with confidence and was eager for the women to meet his family. However, after the private discussion with Matt and his mom, his feelings seemed to have shifted. The recurring theme of family issues between Matt’s relationship with his father is a constant battle that interferes with his relationships. 

“Speaking from experience, there’s nothing like being in love. It makes life wonderful, but people fall in and out of love,” Patty James, Matt James’ mother, said in the episode. 

This conversation left Matt and the viewers more confused than ever about how he truly feels towards these women. Yet Michelle’s unconditional love for Matt is clear, shown by her gesture of matching basketball jerseys with Mr. and Mrs. on the back. Despite the reassurance from the audience inferring true love, Matt proceeded to contemplate his love for Michelle. The impact of his conversation with his mother took a toll on his decision, as he ended his relationship with Michelle and abruptly left their date night.

“I have doubt about our relationship. I feel terrible. I didn’t know this is how it’d feel… I don’t think I can get there with you,” Matt said.

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It was incredibly disappointing to see Michelle, a fan favorite, not end up with Matt after their connection seemed so strong.

— Alexandra Glickman

Not only was Michelle blindsided by these harsh words, but so was the audience. It was incredibly disappointing to see Michelle, a fan favorite, not end up with Matt after their connection seemed so strong. Questions of the future between Matt and Rachael’s relationship then rose proceeding the closure of Michelle and Matt’s. 

Shockingly, Matt met with the jeweler to look at rings for Rachael. While this comes as a surprise, he soon decided that he was not ready for an engagement at the moment.  Once Matt and Rachel met in the woods, he expressed his feelings for her, and she showed reciprocation of love. While there was no proposal or engagement in this finale episode, the couple rode away on a horse carriage and continued their relationship happily ever after.

“Everything that I came here looking for, I found with you… I want to be everything to you,” Matt said.

However, after the show was already filmed, things flipped around in February. Controversy surrounding Rachael’s name increased. Stories about her teasing girls at her high school for liking men of color swarmed the internet, and she was exposed for liking and following accounts that posted photos with the Confederate flag. A clear sign of disrespect towards not only Matt, who is a black man, but to the community as a whole. After this, Matt decided to end their relationship for rational reasons. While they are no longer together, they still wish each other the best.

This episode had a lot of twists and turns, pulling the audience’s emotions every which way. Matt contradicting himself several times throughout the episode was definitely frustrating, but his conclusive ending was something the audience thought they would never see. At the end of the day, team Michelle still reigns

strong, and while her and Matt’s relationship didn’t work out, she is predicted to be one of the next Bachelorettes.