I don't care that the current season of The Bachelor is still airing; I'm ready to talk about what comes next. No offense to Nick Viall, but the most compelling part of this season is the women courting him. So will The Bachelor's Rachel be the next Bachelorette? Honestly, I know it's early, but I'm calling it right now: yes. I think Rachel as the Bachelorette is what the people want, I think it's what the producers want, and I think it's honestly what Nick wants, based on nothing more than watching his face through my television every week.
First of all, let me say that I am a huge fan of Rachel. I liked her from the moment she was introduced and had the cojones to say that she doesn't believe in "love at first sight." She said she was more of an energy gal, and was hopeful that that chemistry would be there between her and Nick, but that she wouldn't know until they, y'know... actually met.
This might sound like a very normal thing, because it's how human beings speak in the world. But this is ultra rare in the world of The Bachelor. Basically the moment these ladies step out of the limo, it starts a clock that counts down to the proposal at the end of this experience, and there are certain milestones that every woman is supposed to hit along the way. First, there's phrasing like, "I can totally imagine falling in love with this man," followed by "I think I'm starting to fall for him," followed by "I'm in love with Nick," and then the narrative moves on to "I have to tell him, when should I tell him?"
And with the filming schedule of a show like The Bachelor, that's a lot of steps to cram into a short amount of time. Thus, most women who are buying into the franchise come in already espousing strong feelings for the Bachelor. Whether they actually feel those things or not is not for me to speculate, but it makes Rachel's words right up top feel all the more genuine to me. She has her life together, she has a head on her shoulders, she has a career, her family life seems dope. This woman legit has it all, and I think she came on the show more as an experience than anything, was open to it turning into something more but not desperate for it to.
And that, my friends, is exactly the type of woman I want at the center of the next season of The Bachelorette. And I don't think I'm alone.
Rachel is a breath of fresh air and a delight every time she comes onscreen. But I'm not convinced just yet that Nick's feelings for her are as strong as he keeps insisting. When it's Vanessa on screen, I can physically feel the chemistry between the two of them. When it'sRaven, I feel like I'm watching Nick's surprise at falling for someone he didn't think he was going to. In contrast, on Nick's dates with Rachel, I feel like he's just having a great time. They two of them have the chemistry of a long-time couple: incredibly comfortable around each other and enjoying each other's company with some closed-mouth kissing thrown in there.
She's been getting a great edit, both with Nick and with the other women, she got the First Impression Rose, and she's had not only a lot of screen time, but also hefty doses of validation. In Monday night's episode, Nick went so far as to say, "I want her to be confident," explaining why he told her how he felt about her. That's exactly what's been coming through all season. But he hasn't spent as much time with her as he has with the other girls. Hell, sometimes he seems to have stronger feelings for Corinne, and spend more time thinking or talking about her, than he does Rachel.
So, while I don't think that Nick and Rachel are endgame, I do think that ABC is setting Rachel up for the Bachelorette position by giving audiences any and every opportunity to fall as deeply in love with her as I think production already has. Because HOW COULD YOU NOT. Whether she's actually on a date with Nick or not, Rachel is a delight, and she would make a great Bachelorette.
