Jesse Palmer Promises ‘Shocking’ Finale of ‘The Bachelorette.’ This Time, We Believe Him.

He added: “A lot has happened to both Gabby and Rachel in those final days in Mexico,” where last week’s episode left us, “and in the days since then as well. …There are twists and turns on the horizon that I don’t think anybody in Bachelor Nation, or anyone that’s even been watching the show, will see coming.”

While a two-night finale—and the tantalizing of multiple twists—is hardly unprecedented, some of the controversy Palmer alludes to certainly is. Like any other season, the leads were tasked with finding “their person” for our viewing pleasure—putting the men through pageantry (a swimsuit competition, a boxing match, an interrogation from a dominatrix) that historically has never actually indicated whether or not someone was prime picking for marriage. This time however, Rachel and Gabby were doing it together, a new concept that was marketed as a quasi-feminist rebrand. Ads for the season showed the two women laughing, taking turns behind the wheel of a fire-engine red convertible, rose petals flying through the air like caution to the wind. It’s a ham-handed metaphor for a season in which both women should have been the sole navigators of their own destinies—in which they’d enthusiastically pursue men who would pursue them back.

Even Palmer underscored the role of their bond: “I think the most beautiful thing about this season is these two incredible women—beautiful, intelligent, independent and great friends.” As someone who often found herself imagining Gabby and Rachel ending the season simply by hopping back into that red convertible and leaving all of these suckers behind, I agree. However, if it was romantic love that they wanted to find, it would be a shame that they couldn’t do so in a franchise that promises to make it possible.

Within the first few weeks of the season, the flaws in the new format grew impossible to ignore, as multiple men either attempted to entertain the affection of both women, flip-flopped from one to the other, or flat-out rejected them in the most callous of ways. Rachel in particular suffered from the show’s lack of structure and was turned down more than three times. The most egregious offense though, was committed by potential suitor Logan Palmer who abruptly stopped pursuing her in lieu of Gabby midway through the season. The season became progressively more painful to watch as Rachel was reduced to sobs in one episode after the next. And who could blame her?

“I think at the start of all this, when they made the decision to have two Bachelorettes, they really didn’t know how it all was going to play out,” Palmer said. “A lot of producers and the powers that be weren’t exactly sure how these journeys would unfold, and I think a lot of this was trying to put the power into Rachel and Gabby’s hands and give them the control of the decisions that they wanted to make.”

As a cynic, one might wonder whether or not the powers that be had anticipated such problems and, in fact, sought to coast on the inevitable boost of a controversy. Unfortunately, if this were the case, they’d have been right. Last month, the Bachelorette was the highest-rated and most-watched program on primetime.

By next Tuesday night, we’ll know for certain whether or not season 19 will deliver the most dramatic finale yet. But with a structure like this—a mere performance of leaving outdated ideals behind without actually doing so—I’m not certain I need it.