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The Worst Moment For Feminism On The Bachelor Last Night

Welcome to our new weekly feature, where we identify the Worst Moment For Feminism on the most recent episode of The Bachelor.

I’m going to start things on an optimistic note this time — the best moment for feminism on The Bachelor last night was when Sarah, who was born without one arm, was chosen to go on the first one-on-one date with Sean, and not a single contestant, in a fit of jealousy, said anything about her being a charity case or having an “unfair advantage” (at least, not while there was a camera in view). Given that this show very frequently showcases some of the worst kinds of girl-on-girl psychological warfare, this was no small thing. Of course, this is the same episode in which Robyn (who I still like; sue me) and a makeup artists giggled that “Tacky hos are a dime a dozen” at a photoshoot for the cover of a Harlequin romance novel (!!!!!!) within earshot of Tierra, whom Robyn had been loudly disparaging a few seconds earlier.

No, the worst moment for feminism on The Bachelor last night came about courtesy of Bachelor Sean, the man, the myth, the legend. He chose wedding dress saleswoman Desireé for the second one-on-one date and decided to start the night off with a prank. (Sidebar: feminism aside, pranks are the worst. They are awful for the person who is being pranked, who is often genuinely humiliated and then forced to act like they loved being embarrassed or risk being accused of not being a “good sport.” They are also generally not funny). Sean did this ostensibly to see if Desirée has a “good sense of humor,” a quality he believes is essential in his future mate.

The thing is, Sean seems to be confused about what “sense of humor” means. He didn’t want to prank someone with Desirée; instead, he chose to make her the butt of the joke. Apparently, if you’re a woman, having “a good sense of humor” starts and stops with being okay with jokes made at your expense. “When we’re 80 and we lose our looks,” Sean said in an interview, “I want that personality.” If Sean is 80 and still trying to prank his wife, I think she should be able to look into euthanizing him.

Anyway, Sean took Desirée to a fake art show, ditched her in a room with a “$1.5 million” sculpture and watched her reaction when the sculpture shattered on a hidden camera feed with Chris Harrison, who has never looked happier in his life. It was nice to be able to watch Harrison fall in love (with Sean, and with pranks), for once. Desirée insisted that the sculpture fell on its own, got reamed out by the “artist” and “event photographer,” and then Sean “rewarded” her with dinner for being such a “good sport,” saying that he felt bad because she was “so sweet” about the incident. Aaaaand that was that. So funny! So bad for feminism!

You can watch the full episode (including the suuuuper funny prank, which comes about an hour into the show) below, via Hulu. See you next week.

TAGS: abc | feminism | the bachelor

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