After Monday night’s episode of Part 1 of The Bachelor finale, fans have called the rose ceremony with Clayton Echard’s final two women a train wreck.
As Gabby Windey and Rachel Recchia stood there waiting to hear why Susie Evans was not in attendance, they heard much more than they had bargained for.
During this event, a few Bachelor Nation alums attended and took part in a discussion with The Bachelor host, Jesse Palmer, on how they felt Clayton handled the rose ceremony and other things that have happened recently.
Clare Crawley, Nick Viall, and Michelle Young dish on Clayton Echard’s final rose ceremony
Clare Crawley, former lead of The Bachelorette who left just a couple of weeks into her season after finding love immediately with Dale Moss, commented first.
She stated, “If I’m being honest, [he’s handling this] not well. Not well at all … It’s tough to watch. It’s tough to be on our side of it. We all know what that feels like. But watching it is excruciating.”
Nick Viall, a notable figure in The Bachelor franchise history, inserted that Clayton “left out the most important thing when opening up to Rachel and Gabby – he already told Susie he loved her ‘the most.'”
He went on to talk about how this should have been something that Clayton revealed to Gabby and Rachel, too, especially since Gabby was wavering on what to do. Basically, Nick said that Clayton was “trying to convince her not to trust her gut.”
Nick also said that he truly thought Clayton had good intentions, but he never stopped to consider the power he had in his position.
He declared, “He never took the time to empathize with these women and what it would be like to be in their shoes and unfortunately I think you’re seeing a guy who is focused on finding love for himself and not finding love with someone else. And it’s just, I think it would go a long way for him to have been more empathetic and just put himself in their shoes.”
When it was former The Bachelorette lead Michelle Young’s turn to speak, she claimed that “there is no handbook being the lead … Being vulnerable is a really strong thing to do – to put yourself out there and give everything you have.”
She then said that when someone is The Bachelor or The Bachelorette, you must handle it delicately, and both the lead and the contestant vying for the love have to feel heard and supported.
How does Kaitlyn Bristowe feel about Clayton Echard’s decisions?
While these three Bachelor Nation alums have all had something to say about Clayton’s words and actions, many criticizing Clayton, Kaitlyn Bristowe defended him.
She stated that there is no reason to not be intimate with more than one person in that particular scenario, nor should Clayton feel bad about falling in love with multiple women.
Kaitlyn also talked about how the lead is trying to find the person to spend the rest of his/her life with, so why wouldn’t you do all that you could to make sure you’re compatible?
While Clayton has received backlash from most Bachelor Nation fans and alums, there are a few who have defended him throughout his journey. Will those few still stick by him come tonight’s Part 2 finale and After the Final Rose?
The Bachelor airs Monday at 8/7c on ABC.