Jenn Tran ended her “journey” by proposing to Devin and then he ended their relationship.
But her “happily ever after” was woefully short-lived.
For once, that’s not a gross exaggeration.
Jenn Tran’s family and best friend on ‘The Bachelorette’.ABC
It’s a miracle!
Trinh is a little nervous, because Jenn has never brought a man home before.
“My daughter, she’s everything to me,” she says.
Jenn updates her family on ‘The Bachelorette’.ABC
Don’t we all, mama… but tbh, I’m not holding my breath.
There are tears all around when the Bachelorette arrives.
Hope springs eternal, rose lovers.
Devin and his chest hair introduce themselves to Jenn’s family on ‘The Bachelorette’.ABC
After all, there are still 48 whole hours left.
Devin, get your butt in here!
“I do have insecurities about meeting Jenn’s family,” he says.
Devin and James on ‘The Bachelorette’.ABC
“It’s definitely the fear that they may not see that Im good enough.”
Devin and his copious exposed chest hair sit down with Trinh and Lylan first.
Mom wants to know if hes ever dated an Asian woman before.
Marcus meets Jenn’s family on ‘The Bachelorette’.ABC
“I love it!
But for me it’s not so much the ethnicity.
I’m Hispanic, my family’s Hispanic, and my mom is white.”
Jenn’s aunt Lylan and her brother, James, on ‘The Bachelorette’.ABC
I mean, duh.
She says Devin wants her to be happy and allows her to talk openly about her feelings.
“He wants you to teach our kids Vietnamese!”
Marcus struggles to find words on ‘The Bachelorette’.ABC
The Bachelorette gets a warmer reception from her brother.
“You guys are a great match,” he says.
“Whatever decision that you choose, I’m going to support you.”
Jenn and James hug on ‘The Bachelorette’.ABC
That said, he also won’t give Devin his blessing to propose.
“Uh, I’m definitely not going to give the blessing now,” he says.
“It’s not because I’m not sure about you.
James offers a cryptic opinion on ‘The Bachelorette’.ABC
It’s because I haven’t talked to the second guy yet.
But I do respect that you asked.
I love that, actually.”
Jenn and Devin take part in a Hawaiian ceremony on ‘The Bachelorette’.ABC
Devin does NOT love it.
At least Jenn still loves you, buddy.
Now, get in the SUV so Jenn’s family can meet “the second guy.”
Jenn shows off her lava rock on ‘The Bachelorette’.ABC
She’s not going topull a Womack, so stop trying to make us think she does.
The Bachelorette says if Marcus finally drops the L-bomb today, “it’s going to change everything.”
(Have fun watching that back, Devin!)
Devin gives Jenn a green stone necklace on ‘The Bachelorette’.ABC
“I want to see this all the way through with Jenn.”
I’m no body-language expert, but something tells me James is not quite convinced.
“I can tell he cares a lot about Jenn,” says James.
Marcus sits with Jesse Palmer on ‘The Bachelorette’.ABC
To that end, James pulls Marcus aside for their one-on-one chat.
He adds that Jenn has helped him realize that he can, in fact, find true love.
James does NOT love it.
Jenn surprises Marcus at his hotel room on ‘The Bachelorette’.ABC
“Marcus played ring-around-the-rosy a lot with my questions,” he complains.
“And that’s concerning, especially given that he’s not there yet.”
“I want to get there for her.”
Jenn is displeased on ‘The Bachelorette’.ABC
Dude, if you’re not feeling it, you’re not feeling it!
Stop letting this contrived romance factory guilt you into creating emotions you don’t actually have!
That’s not good for anyone least of all Jenn.
Jenn and Marcus say goodbye on ‘The Bachelorette’.ABC
None of this escapes Trinh.
“Marcus looks like he’s not ready yet,” she says.
Jenn does not have an answer for him, but she’s grateful for his guidance.
Marcus on ‘The Bachelorette’ finale.ABC
“Your opinion matters to me, more so than anybody else’s,” says Jenn.
“You know me better than anybody else.”
James is so moved, he has to step away and get his tears under control.
Jenn and Marcus reunite on ‘The Bachelorette’ finale.ABC
Awww, give your sister a hug, you big softie!
“How do you see this ending for us?”
Marcus says they’ve made “progress,” but he’s still “struggling” with a proposal.
Devin looks at rings on ‘The Bachelorette’.ABC
“I’m trying because I believe that it’s possible,” he offers at last.
Yeah, that’s not gonna be good enough, buddy.
Honestly, why don’t you just tap out now?
Jenn drops a bomb on ‘The Bachelorette’.ABC
At least think about it while Jenn goes on her Last Chance DateTM with Devin.
“How are you feeling about everything at this point?”
Maybe this whole “something catastrophic happens” narrative that Palmer has been pushing all nightwasn’ta red herring.
Jesse Palmer has bad news on ‘The Bachelorette’ finale.ABC
I’m starting to get a little worried.
Now, lets rejoin Jenn and Devins Last Chance DateTM, already in progress.
Kahu and her colleague greet Devin and Jenn and perform a Hawaiian ceremony.
Jenn is despondent on ‘The Bachelorette’ finale.ABC
(I’m paraphrasing.)
Jenn’s is a fear of abandonment, and it is big literally and figuratively.
Kahu listens, and then encourages them to release the fear symbolically by hurling the stone into the ocean.
Jenn and Devin on ‘The Bachelorette’ finale.ABC
Honestly, this ceremony sounds really liberating.
That night, Jenn heads over to Devin’s hotel room for their final chat before Proposal Day.
“Tonight, I want her to feel the weight of my soul,” says Devin.
Jeremy has some ‘splaining to do on ‘The Bachelorette’ finale.ABC
“I want to check that that she knows I’m here to fight for her every day.”
The weight of your soul, dude?
Never took you for a “21 grams experiment” stan.
Picture-in-picture misery on ‘The Bachelorette’ finale.ABC
Anyhow, go ahead and give Jenn your official Token of AffectionTM.
It’s a pounamu stone, which the Maori shaman gave to Devinduring their date in New Zealand.
“I can’t be more proud to say that I want to give it to you.”
The ugliest ring box known to man on ‘The Bachelorette’.ABC
Of course, the Bachelorette LOVES it.
“I can’t believe youve been holding onto this since then,” she marvels.
Girl, it’s been like a month.
Jenn offers Devin a ring on ‘The Bachelorette’.ABC
The next day, Jenn wakes up feeling “frustrated and confused.”
“I’ve given Marcus every opportunity to tell me that he loves me,” she says.
“At this point, I can’t help but be in my head.”
“I just want Jenn to be happy.
I want what’s best for her.”
Jesse does his best to counsel Marcus.
“I’m not telling you how you should feel,” he says.
“But… if in fact you do love this woman, you’ve got to tell her.”
Oh, okay problem solved!
The man clearly does not love Jenn (which is fine!
That’s right, pal.
Jenn’s here, and the cameras are too.
The Bachelorette gets right to the point.
“There’s an engagement tomorrow,” she says.
“We’re running out of time.”
At this point in her “journey,” Jenn needs some concrete data about how Marcus really feels.
“I don’t know if you see me in your future,” she frets.
As we’ve learned, Marcus does not perform well when put on the spot.
“I’m struggling, for sure,” he adds.
“What are you trying to tell me?”
Girl, what do you THINK he’s trying to tell you?
Still, she keeps pressing him.
Yes, he wants to be a husband and a father but does he want that with her?
“I can picture it with you,” says Marcus.
“I don’t understand why it’s so scary for me to move forward.”
Because she’s not the person you’re meant to be with, pal!
When will either one of you accept this?
Somehow, despitealllllthe signs, Jenn is devastated.
“I’ve been investing so much into us, Marcus,” she says through tears.
“Where am I supposed to go from here?”
I can answer that, ma’am!
Baking powder?Rose lovers, Jenn cannot believe her ears either.
“I want to give it a try,” Marcus continues.
I don’t want to give up on us.
or is Marcus just having some serious mood swings?
Dear Lord, yo don’t let Jenn trust this sudden revelation.
Cut to:
“Thank you for being honest with me,” she says.
You didn’t need Marcus to validate you, Jenn you needed to validate yourself.
(Cue “The More You Know” jingle.)
“It’s tough to watch back,” he tells Jesse.
“That was obviously a hard day for both of us.”
The host asks him if he had regrets, and Marcus says no.
It took some time to realize that we made the right choice."
“It’s tough to let someone go like that,” he admits.
“That selfish part of me wanted to hold on to it, for better or for worse.”
“Our relationship meant so much to me…
I was so happy to be able to go on this journey with you.”
“I believe we both learned so much from each other,” the Bachelorette adds.
Palmer, tired of all these pleasantries, asks Jenn when she knew that it was over with Marcus.
Welp, that was nice.
LOL, of course not, rose lovers!
That’s not how this franchise works.
The romance train rolls on, logic and reality be damned.
Look Devin’s already choosing a ring with Neil “Promotional Consideration Provided By” Lane!
Meanwhile, Jenn is having her final debrief with Jesse Palmer.
“I have to choose myself,” she tells him.
Again, I say, LOL, of course not, rose lovers!
All of a sudden, Jesse Palmer breaks in with a serious “we need to talk” face.
“I know what you’re thinking,” begins the host.
“Why is Jesse interrupting this beautiful moment?”
He cuts to commercial, and we see a quick shot of Jenn standing nervously in the wings.
WHAT IS GOING ON, ROSE LOVERS?
WHY IS JENN CRYING?
“We had left Hawaii engaged.
It was the happiest day of my life,” says Jenn.
“And then, essentially, as soon as we had left Hawaii, things were just different.
It kind of just felt like he was pulling away…
He wasn’t calling as much; he wasn’t texting s much.”
“He denied ever being in love…
He was checked out.
It wasn’t what he wanted anymore.”
It’s painful to watch.
“Nobody forced him to say the things that he did,” Jenn rightfully points out.
“He was sitting here telling his mom that I was the one…
He sat in front of my mom and said that I was the one!”
Okay, Devin, get your sorry ass out here and explain yourself.
A smattering of boos greets him as he walks out on stage, and Jenn lays into him immediately.
“What I can’t understand is everything you did after you had broken our engagement.
Ending the engagement on the phone call.
Oh, HELL NO.
Maria, the woman who many people thought was going to be the Bachelorette?
That is some top-shelf BS.
Why you would do something like that?
Because he’s a garbage human, I guess?
Devin doesn’t have much to say for himself.
“I failed you…
But everything I felt for you was real.”
“Was it?”
Jenn shoots back, blasting him for “clubbing” in New York with Jeremy right after the breakup.
Palmer cuts in and presses Devin for a little more of an explanation.
“When we left the show, I had a lot of doubts,” says Devin.
“And regretfully and sadly, I repressed those feelings.
But I did come clean about that.”
Jenn’s all,Yeah, two months later, you jackass!
Bro, that’s what you say when you hit traffic and miss the previews of the movie.
“How can I say that I’m sorry more than I’ve tried to be?”
Devin is getting his ass kicked and he knows it.
When Palmer tosses to another break, we hear Devin mumble, “What is going on here?”
You’re getting what you deserve, bro.
Oh, cool “it’s not you, it’s me.”
Jesse cuts in at last, because there’s still one more piece of business to take care of.
No, I’m not kidding.
“Are you ready?”
Sadly, the answer is no.
Say it with me, rose lovers: The Devil works hard, butBacheloretteproducers work harder!
Devin arrives at the Proposal PlatformTM wearing a tan suit and a Ferragamo belt.
Don’t worry, Devin.
We fell for that one, too.
“Baby, I want to grow old with you!”
Awww, that’s cute.
You know what’s NOT cute, though?
This accursed clamshell ring box TeamBacheloretteprovided to Jenn for Devin’s engagement band.
Wow, do I hate this.
It looks like something Ursula fromThe Little Mermaiduses to keep her Xanax in.
It looks like something you’d find at a haunted garage sale.
Okay, I’ll stop.
Here it is, with Devin’s ring inside.
He guffaws “You turned the tables on me!”
and answers in the affirmative.
After Jenn puts the ring on his finger, Devin insists on getting his moment, too.
Yeah, I don’t really love that.
Did Sam M. just take over Devin’s body?
And we all know how that went, rose lovers.
When we cut back to the Thunderdome, Jenn is fighting to hold back more tears.
She’s doing her best to stay strong.
The crowd gives her a “hell, yeah!”
He may claim “that man loved you,” but none of us are buying it.
Get this guy off our screens like, Mr. Palmer.
Fingers crossed that Joan’s “journey” doesn’t go so disastrously off the rails.
Trust me it’s a hoot!)
Wow what a bummer of a night.
Are you surprised that Devin turned out to be such a major douche nozzle?
And will I see you back here on Sept. 18 for the premiere ofThe Golden Bachelorette?
Let me know your thoughts on Twitter@KristenGBaldwinor on Bluesky at@kristengbaldwin.bsky.social.
