Recap: Un-Belize-able

Seriously, who does that?

by Crissi Dillon

If there were ever an episode that could double as a travel ad, this last episode in Belize was the one. From Lindzi’s helicopter dive into the Blue Hole to Courtney’s hike up the Mayan temple, I was ready to call my travel agent and book a vacation right on the spot.

But the beautiful country was only a backdrop to a new set of steps up the relationship ladder, or down the tidal wave of drama. This was the week when the girls went swimming with the sharks – both figuratively and literally.

The first one-on-one was with Lindzi. As she leaves to get ready, you can practically see the daggers the other women are shooting into the back of her head with their eyes. She proceeds to put on too much eye make-up and then leaves in a helicopter with Ben to go towards the infamous Blue Hole – a submarine sinkhole off the coast of Belize that is 400 feet deep and a popular spot for scuba diving. She and Ben were to jump out of the helicopter into the water. The jump symbolized a leap of faith – diving feet first into the unknown. However, Lindzi and Ben’s relationship is hardly as deep as this metaphorical jump. While Lindzi is drama-free and seems a really nice girl, it doesn’t appear that their relationship has reached any new depths at all.

The second one-on-one was with Emily. The cutest date of the episode included a bike ride through a quaint village in Belize, diving for lobsters, and sending a message out to sea in a bottle. During part of the date, Emily mentioned how much she loves spontaneity, referencing all these fun activities they’ve been doing on their dates. This leads me to believe she is actually falling in love with the PRODUCERS of the show, the true masterminds (and deep pocketbooks) behind the adventurous dates Ben is taking these girls on. However, she got major props for actually extending an invitation to meet her parents instead of just accepting this was part of the show.

During this date, Courtney was shown back at the hotel, lamenting to the girls how betrayed she felt by Ben over not being chosen for a one-on-one, and over the fact that he was on one with Emily and didn’t “stick up for her” when Emily was so mean to her. “He’s really going to have to regain my trust” she pouted, as if she didn’t sign on to date a man with multiple girlfriends on a nationally broadcast TV show. But much to her delight, she got her wish.

Ben and Courtney hiked up the side of a Mayan temple. “Here is where they probably did human sacrifices,” Ben noted before laying out his blanket and setting out a picnic lunch. Muy romantico. And in a move unprecedented on a show where the Bachelor holds all the cards, Courtney did something incredibly brilliant – she turned the tables on him and questioned whether she was actually ready to have him meet her parents. “I’ve lost the spark,” she told him, leaving Ben to scramble to win back her cold, cold heart and make her fall in love with him again. And while most of my discontent with this season’s show lies in how much I dislike Courtney, I couldn’t help at applaud the way she is going about ensuring that Ben only has eyes for her.

“I like you,” Ben tells her, mentioning how he’s a little weird and appreciates his woman to be a little weird too. This is noteworthy since Courtney is more than a little weird with her words of the episode (“Snap!”) and gunslinger talk during her private camera time. However, this was the first episode we actually saw any kind of emotion come of Courtney besides smugness, proving that she is just as vulnerable as the rest of the women and may even possess a heart.

The last date was the three-on-one with Kacie B, Nicki, and Rachel, where they got to swim with nurse sharks. Despite the fact that nurse sharks are not known to be aggressive, Rachel was terrified and used Ben as her bodyguard, resulting in his attention for almost the whole date. And yet, it was Kacie B who received a rose on this date, ensuring that Ben will be meeting her family next episode.

It was on this date that the women finally pulled Ben aside and voiced their concerns over Courtney. “Tread lightly,” Kacie B told Ben. Earlier in the episode, the usually sweet as pie Kacie referred to Courtney as a black widow before pretending to squish her in her hands.

This conversation they held with Ben was most likely the reason why, at the rose ceremony, Ben stopped everything before handing out the last rose and pulled Courtney aside. The only girls left without roses were Courtney, Rachel, and Emily. As the other girls freak out about what’s going on, Ben is wondering the same thing about Courtney. Why does no one like her? Is she there for the right reasons? Is he being duped. In the end, Courtney purses her little bird lips and Ben chooses her over the other two girls. Rachel and Emily are told to leave.  Courtney celebrated by waving her rose at Emily.  “See ya, wouldn’t want to be ya,” she said.  Ben, once again, was oblivious.

Next week is hometown week where Ben gets to meet the families of Kacie, Nicki, Lindzi, and Courtney. One spoiler showed a mock wedding aisle and a car with “Almost Married” printed on it that Courtney has put together for Ben. We find that creepy. Ben most likely won’t.

See the photos from next week’s episode HERE.