We’re down to four, and I’m still leaning toward Paul being the Mole - how about you? of course, that may see him eliminated, as I thought it could be Clay last week and yeah, bye bye Clay!

We start off dividing up into young at heart and a camera guy. Paul and Mark are together, and Nicole and Craig. It’s dexterity tests for tots though the catch is the young at heart player is blindfolded with their only view from the camera in their partner’s hands - which is a mirrored image. Harder then it looks, as the mind plays tricks on you, and your partner with the camera can not give you a good enough view. They put shaped blocks into the proper holes, kick a soccer ball into the net, and pour tea into teacups. There’s a whole bunch of mole-ish behavior, with zoomed cameras and spilled tea, and no one making a soccer goal. And then it’s the big test…

They have to walk across a plank between two buildings 2 stories high. Still with the camera/blindfold deal. So much for tot tasks! And of course it’s not that easy, they have to stop halfway across, pick up a piece of chalk, and then on the other end write “the Mole was here” on a chalkboard. Nice. (And also? not happening for me! Yikes! Sure, they’re all safety lined in and all, but still…)

Mark and Paul are first, and Paul is laughing, but it’s very shaky and nervous laughter. Oh and after the get the chalk, they only have 1 minute to get the message written. He makes it with seconds to spare! But of course, this makes Mark suspicious that Paul is the Mole since he did well on that one, but couldn’t make a goal with the soccer ball.

It’s Craigs turn, and his vertigo is kicking in, and he’s scared to death. Nicole follows his instructions as he says zoom in on the chalk - and he’s not even close to it… he makes it and picks up the chalk, and he starts across to the other side, and he’s taking too long to get to the other side. He makes it across without falling, but not in time to write the message on the board. Nicole says “even if he’s the mole, he didn’t have to mole it up that bad!”

Total pot is $353,500 after today’s efforts. Paul says Craig is his top suspect, especially after today.

(more…)

The first mission on this weeks return of The Mole has Jon making them separate into 3 runners and 3 thinkers. Mark, Clay and Alex are runners, and Mark is declared the best. Nicole, Craig and Paul are thinkers, and Paul claims the best communicator spot because he’s loud. Nice. They have to find 7 bottls of win in the bigass vineyard, each worth 10k for the pot. To find them, the thinkers are given puzzles, the answer they choose gives them coordinants, Paul relays the info to Clay and Alex who uses a GPS to find them. What about Mark? Well, he has to walk/run on the tredmill until the end of the challenge. Each bottle found increases the speed, and if he stops the challenge is over. He can help with the questions, but Paul can’t. And they’re off.

53 minutes later, and mostly right riddle answers with a couple of corrections and a very steady but tired Mark, and they’ve added $70k to the pot.

The next mission is at a bridge over a gorge. They’re 90 feet high, and will be bungee jumping and attempting to hit a target below to get more money for the pot. They also - after walking to the edge of the plank - have to guess how much they’ll earn as a group, and the closest without going over gets an exemption.

(more…)

Wow. I got to admit that I saw the ending coming as of a couple weeks ago - it was really the only way it could happen with the way the season was headed, though they drew out that 2 hours with every last bit of montage-y goodness they could. There were visits (joint visits!) home to meet DeAnna’s family, where the folks got the chance to grill the guys on their intentions. They each asked permission to propose, and Feminists everywhere groaned in unison. For me, I think it’s a sweet gesture, because both Fiance and Daddy know Baby Girl is gonna do whatever the hell she wants to anyway. Whatever. Heh.

Then there’s the last dates back in the bahamas, with lots of making out and gifts and even a - what? Surprise visit from Jeremy who tells her she made a huge mistake by sending him home. She cries, but boots him to the curb once again. Jesse and DeAnna go for a romantic day on a secluded beach and he gives her a ‘book of thoughts’ which is a scrapbook or pictures and notes someone dictated to him. He reads it and we’re back to loveydovy ready to settle down talk.

Jason and Deanna go scuba diving and swimming with sharks,and he gives her the gift of a board game he made himself, that plays out their televised courtship…. awwwww. Cheesy, but cute, and then declarations of love and DeAnna is totally confused and doesn’t know what she’s going to do - natch. As for the boys, they go ring shopping, unsurprisingly.

Then it’s time for the final rose ceremony, and more dragging on forever and ever as they go through montages of ‘the journey’ from all three perspectives until Jason gets out of the first limo and a collective gasp goes off across the land. He gets down on one knee, and she interrupts him and says “No, I can’t” and the shock across the land deepens. She says he’s perfect and safe and dependable, but she’s in love with someone else. Naturally she’s meant everything she’s said to him, but she sends him away as he laments “I even bought a ring!” - awwwww.

Then it’s Jesse’s turn, and after a lifetime that I spent on Big Brother Houseguest reveals, he races up (after managing not to spew) and falls to his knee before her. He says they’re soulmates and the only word he thinks of when he thinks of her is ‘forever’ and he says “DeAnna Marie Pappas, will you spend forever with me?” And she says…

…ok. No shocker, here, she says yes and there’s much kissy-face afterwards. DeAnna tells him she loves him, and according to the third hour of the evening’s Bachelorette run, they announce they’re getting married on May 9, 2009. The Bachelorette is sending them to Greece for their honeymoon, and they almost had to hose Jesse and DeAnna down when they finally got to see each other in public for the first time. (Sure, they’ve seen each other in the meantime, but always hidden.)

Jason got his chance to confront her, and she says she never was in love with him like she was with Jesse, that what she wanted changed throughout the process.

Also, Matt Grant and Shayne Lamas give an update to their relationship - still going strong and they seem happy as ever and are still engaged. That’s it for this season of the Bachelorette - a fairy tale ending for all. Or at least, for Jesse.

So, how many of you are positive Kristin is the Mole? How about Craig - was his little hospital trip to dramatic for you and thus suspicious? Is Mark too obsessed with his journal? Will Victoria threaten bodily harm to another contestant only to wuss out again? Let’s find out!

Jon Kelly has more torture for the remaining contestants as they meet them at a local landmark where he shackles them to iron bars. Across the way there’s a cage with a key and an exemption - they have to decide who goes first, adjust the chains to let them next to the cage, and then trust them to grab the key and not the exemption and free themselves. If anyone takes the exemption, they don’t get any money, and the players still shackled will have to stay outside all night in the cold. Yikes. How can they trust the untrustworthy?

They debate who goes first and decided Craig should as he’s sickly, and gives his word that he won’t take the exemption. Kristen is next, and then Paul swears on his daughters life - they aren’t sure they believe him, but he unlocks himself and goes, leaving the pass in the cage. Mark is still bemoaning the loss of his journal, and for some reason doesn’t trust himself to leave the pass behind - and there’s a lot of bickering. The dude is weird. As a result, he’s the last one to get the choice, but in the end does the right thing and leaves the pass an joins the rest for dinner - adding $25k to the pot.

(more…)

It’s another double dose of the Bachelorette tonight, as we get the episode and the reunion-esque “men tell all” show one after the other. We start with the final three getting to go to the Bahamas and have one on one all day (and all night..) dates with DeAnna. Jeremy is up first, and they play on jetskis and Deanna hopes he’ll let go and have some fun, but he goes all weird on her and shuts down. It’s like he’s a teenage boy on his first date all of the sudden, and he finally tells her that he’s scared to lose her, and she gives him the fantasy suite card and they rush off to the private room to spend the night.

Jason’s date involves off roading and a secluded picnic and even some kayaking - which they really suck at, since neither have done it before. They laugh a lot and seem to have a really great time. He tells her that his son and her are his favorite subjects and later gives her a necklace and they get all lovey dovey as she kisses him eagerly and of course, he gets the dream suite too. In fact, he doesn’t even read the rest of the note, getting to ’spend the night’ and giddily dragging her off like a schoolboy, as she follows laughing.

Jesse’s turn for the all day date involves horseback riding on the beach and lots of laughter and a sensitive romantic side of Jesse. He gets serious and they talk of kids and marriage and what their life would be like together. He assures her that she has a place in his life and he’s falling for her. She gives him the card, and he says he isn’t sure he can take it until he meets her dad. She’s shocked - but turns out he was just teasing her and off they run to the suite and she loves that he makes her laugh.

(more…)

Tonight on the Bachelorette, DeAnna heads off to each of the final four’s hometowns to visit and get grilled by the friends and family who will demand to know if she’s going to break their baby’s heart. Fun for all!

First, Jesse in Colorado, where he charms the pants off her (Not literally, GOSH.) and teaches DeAnna to snowboard. He takes her to meet her parents, and Jesse admits to his dad that he’s holding back because of the other guys and he doesn’t want to be hurt. Dad tells him he has to risk to get reward, and Jesse takes that to heart and finally kisses DeAnna during a horse drawn carriage ride.

In Dallas, Texas, Jeremy takes DeAnna on a motorcycle ride, and makes it last as long as possible so he could stay cuddled up with her that way. His parents have passed away, so they bond over the pain of losing a parent, and then she meet his brothers and sister-in-law for dinner. The brothers tell DeAnna she better not hurt their boy, and she swears her intentions are true.

In Seattle, she finds Jason and gets to meet his son, Tyler, who’s completely adorable and makes my ovaries cry. They play in the park, and then DeAnna gets to meet the rest of the family - everyone cries when she leaves, even Tyler, and DeAnna’s maternal instincts are slammed into overdrive and she thinks Jason might be The One.

Then its off to Raleigh, NC, where DeAnna can’t keep her hands off the hottie, Graham. The his mom scares her a little, saying Graham has never committed longer then four weeks, and when she’s alone with him alter he shuts down again and won’t talk to her. Stupid boy.

At the Rose ceremony, everyone is shocked when the first rose goes to Jesse, then one to Jason and Jeremy, as she shows the Hottie to the door. He shouldn’t have shut down that last time, hm? She tells him she was falling for him, but can’t be with someone who won’t open up. So what’s he do? pulls out a letter he wrote her, saying all the things he wanted too but couldn’t but now it’s too little to late. Now, of course, she’s second guessing the decision and worries she’ll never fall in love on National TV and OH YOU POOR THING!

Who will be ousted next week? Will Jesse surprise us all and be the last man standing? Only two more weeks until we find out!

Hey, did you know there are a ton of folks out there desciphering every little thing as potential clues as to who the mole is? Nice! Course, they all think that Bobby is the mole - or Craig… they even have some good theories. But are they correct? Time will tell!

This week, more coalitions are formed while Nicole and Paul snark back and forth about their hatred of each other and how they’re here to stay and screw the other and blah blah enemies forever blah. A lot of the rest of them are concerned because she made that death threat last week, and Paul uses it to his advantage. Clay, Mark and Bobby are sharing info to try and figure out who the Mole is. Meanwhile Nicole says she just made the death threat to get under his skin, but she feels nothing for Paul. it’s a game.

Challenge time! It’s called Fruit of the Luge, and they split themselves into two groups - Trust Blindly, and Can’t Trust Anyone. Then one from each group is paired together and they race down the 2 person luge track. The driver is blindfolded (can’t trust players) as the trust blindly players direct them to the bottom, and call out the 7 fruit pictures they pass, and the blindfolded players have to remember and place them in order at the top of the track - and they can’t talk between themselves once they cross the finish line, until they are done picking out the fruits.

Everyone does pretty well, but for Nicole and Alex who only get one correct, and Craig and Victoria keep rambling on and talk and end up disqualified and their 7 for 7 is removed from the total. The whole group adds $89k to the pot, though. Did Craig try to sabotage on purpose? Did Nicole do it, by saying Green Apple twice and messing them up? Suspicious abound!

Jon Kelly books them for a spa day, and promptly steals their clothing and after their treatments lets them know they can wear the provided booty shorts and tank tops as they wander the streets and beg for clothing off the locals to meet him for dinner where they have to adhere to a dress code in order to be let inside. If you don’t make it to dinner on time - you don’t eat. Here’s a card with the name of the restaurant on it, and each person that shows up will get $5k added to the pot. Clay and Mark refuse to participate - Clay says it’s because he needs to keep his dignity and self- respect intact. On national tv. On a reality tv show. Yeah…. Mark says “ditto” and drops off too.

The rest, it’s amusing as hell to watch them scramble for the clothing in the streets, until Craig makes a big find - they stumble onto a laundromat where all their clothes have been cleaned and pressed! They dress in their own, and bring the rest back to the restaurant. Everyone gets there on time, and that brought the pot up to $129k.

Paul gets all uppity during dinner, citing money is more important then friendship and Nicole decides to kill him with kindness. WhatEVer. Then it’s quiz time, and then time for execution. Jon Kelly offers $20k to anyone who will walk out before finding out their scores, and gets no takers. He calls some safe, then offers $30k to walk out, and Ali takes it saying she feels like she was about to be executed. Turns out she’d have been safe. In fact, Bobby is then executed, and leaves alongside Ali.

Guess he wasn’t the mole after all…