Chris Harrison Blogs 'The Bachelor' Season Finale
It seems like only yesterday that Ben was standing in front of that mansion waiting for the first limo to arrive and now, just a few months later, Ben is happy, he’s in love, and he is engaged to Lauren. From the first moment they met it was pretty clear there was something special between them, but none of us could have foreseen what an amazing and tumultuous roller coaster would lead them to where they are now: happily engaged and ready to start their lives together.
This week was unlike anything we had ever seen on The Bachelor. Ben fell madly in love with two women: Lauren and JoJo. That’s not to say that Bachelors haven’t fallen in love with multiple women in the past — they definitely have. But Ben is the first man who told both women exactly how he felt about them. While it’s always, always important to be honest, it can also cause more hurt in the end. One thing I can say about Ben is that he never lied. He always told everyone exactly what was on his mind and on his heart.
Related: ‘The Bachelor’ Finale Recap: ‘I Never Want to Say Goodbye to You’
Ben has always looked up to his parents and admired their relationship, so when he introduced them to both women, he wanted them to help give him some clarity, but obviously, that’s just not something that anyone can do in this situation. The only person who can help Ben is himself, and while I know he appreciated his parent’s input, what he needed more than anything else was to know that they would support him and whichever woman he ended up with. It was touching to see Ben’s parents so invested in him and his future. I really enjoyed getting to know them through the course of the season and appreciate them letting us into their home.
The final dates with Lauren and JoJo were very hard to watch, even though they were totally riveting. Ben had so much on his mind and even beautiful Jamaica couldn’t distract him from the difficult decisions he had to make. He told both women he loved them but they both knew that nothing was certain, and on that last day he knew he was going to have one of the best moments of his life but only after he had one of the worst moments of his life.
You could see how unbelievably hard it was for him to say goodbye to JoJo. He couldn’t identify a single flaw in her and he really did love her, but he knew that when he woke up the next morning, he needed to be next to Lauren. It was really as simple as that, in my mind.
We all teared up watching JoJo leave. It was one of those departures that just didn’t really make sense. The mood was sad and everyone was quiet right up until the moment Ben called Lauren’s father. It was then that everything took a turn. You could see the smile on his face from a mile away. He knew she would say yes — and helping Lauren out of the helicopter and watching her walk over to Ben was really wonderful. When he got down on one knee there wasn’t a dry eye anywhere on the island.
It was a beautiful and touching moment and I know wholeheartedly that this couple is going to make it work.
And the good news is that no one has to go home empty-handed. JoJo may not have gotten everlasting love this time around, but she’ll be back on May 23rd as your new Bachelorette. She’s an exciting and vibrant woman and she is ready to find the man of her dreams. Until then, Bachelor Nation, thank you for joining us for our historic 20th season. We love you!
The Bachelorette premieres Monday, May 23rd at 8 p.m. on ABC.