"It's real. It's been real."

Half of this episode was JoJo crying and saying "I don't know"

Chris Harrison and his live studio audience are here to present the final chapter of JoJo's Journey to Jordan, I mean, Love.  Journey to Love.   Because it was in no way obvious since night one who she was going to pick.  But before we get to that, Chris shows us Ben and Lauren from last season who are still together and not just there to keep ABC happy since they get their own spin-off but because they really care about JoJo's story.  Some members of the cast of Bachelor in Paradise are also there so it's even more awkward for the people sitting around them when they show a preview of the BiP shit show season.

Finally we get to go to Phuket, Thailand, where Jordan and Robby get to meet JoJo's family.  She tells her family she thinks she loves both of them and "when I'm with Robby, I think of Jordan.  When I'm with Jordan, in the back of my head, I think of Robby."
Jordan gets to meet the family first.  He shows up and gives everyone silly hats and then it's time for questions.  JoJo's mom asks Jordan how he will manage her trust issues.  His answer doesn't seem to satisfy her because she tells JoJo she's worried because Jordan is too similar to JoJo and mom's worried that she's blinded by his charm.  This is the same mom that told JoJo that she had nothing to worry about with Ben for no other reason except she's beautiful.  Then Jordan talks to JoJo's dad and notably does not ask for permission for JoJo's hand in marriage, which will become the scandal of the episode.

Anyway, it's Robby's turn to ingratiate himself with the family.  He kills it: professes his love, asks for the parent's blessing to marry her, and even her dad got choked up.  JoJo's mom tells Robby she's giving him a princess and he needs to "make her the queen of your heart," so that happened.

After he leaves, JoJo sits down with her parents and two brothers and I think her sister, who says nothing and only occasionally appears in a shot, what they think.  They all tell her Robby is perfect.  She gets upset and says she doesn't know and why can't they just pick for her because Jordan's great too.  One of her brothers points out that maybe she really wants Jordan since she keeps defending him.  Good thing JoJo still has one date left with each man to figure it out.

On JoJo and Robby's date, Robby says he wants to get her pregnant like, yesterday.  "You have a heart of gold," JoJo says, and Robby whispers, "you're a heartbreaker" as he leans in for a kiss and FORESHADOWING MUCH?

On JoJo and Jordan's date, they argue about why Jordan didn't ask her father for permission to marry her.  Jordan says it didn't feel right when he didn't know how she felt and there's still another guy in the picture and JoJo cries because why isn't Jordan just doing exactly what she wants so she has no excuse not to pick him.

Both men then meet with Neil Lane and picked out gaudy diamond rings.  Jordan then takes a page out of Ben's books and calls JoJo's parents to ask for their blessing.  He then writes a note to JoJo to let her know.  Robby also writes a note, so we get to see JoJo cry about how hard her decision is even more.

After some montages of the guys starting shirtless and then getting dressed in blue suits while their engagement rings sit nearby, it's time for the final rose.  Robby shows up first to the final rose locale, meaning it's game over.  Luckily, JoJo doesn't make him give his whole speech before interrupting and sending him home.  They both cry, and then JoJo quickly dries her eyes so Jordan can come make all her dreams come true.

What is with all the baskets and urns??

It's time for After the Final Rose.  Chris Harrison sits down with Robby and plays psychiatrist.  JoJo comes out to give Robby some closure and they send him away to bring out Jordan to convince everyone love is real.  Chris then pushes the Aaron Rodgers issue and Jordan does an actually pretty good job of dodging the question.  JoJo and Jordan are throwing around dates for a wedding and Jordan's moving to Dallas since, you know, he's unemployed and he can't become a famous sportscaster if he stays in Chico.

If you're going to miss all the drama, and have missed Chad since he went home, then have no fear, because Bachelor in Paradise will be gracing your televisions for the rest of the summer!

"Now 'I love you' means GTFO?"

#LukeforBachelor editing right here

After the drawn-out departure of Luke, JoJo and her three guys that she is "like, googoogaga over" head to Thailand for Fantasy Suite Week, or "exotic overnight dates" as JoJo calls them (and by overnight, she means sex, of course).  So while everyone is still figuring out why she didn't want to sleep with Luke, we muddle through a boring date with Robby where they make out while people massage their feet.

That evening, Robby tells JoJo yet again how he's in love with her and gives her a note his dad wrote to him about to prove that he's telling the truth or something.  JoJo brings up Ben again because Robby said I love you and Ben said I love you and we all know how well that went.  JoJo gives him the fantasy suite invite and Robby says "I don't have to dream about JoJo, I get to dream with JoJo" and we're done.  I'm moving on to Jordan's date because I can't handle anything else out of Robby's Ken doll mouth.

Jordan and JoJo go on a long difficult hike to some pretty cool caves.  Unfortunately, one of the caves us a temple and they can't kiss so are forced to talk.  Then, at dinner, Jordan says he wants to spend the rest of his life with her, to which JoJo immediately retorts with "that's what Ben said," and girl, you aren't convincing anyone you're over him.  Anyway, he obviously gets the fantasy suite card.

"That was weird" -Chase/Everyone watching

Chase's turn.  The two play with fish and JoJo makes Chase kiss one and then they all but hook up in the ocean.  While preparing for her evening with Chase, she gets a little surprise visit from Robby, who said he missed her and knew where she lived and RUN JOJO, YOU'RE IN A HORROR MOVIE NOW.  Anyway, they chat some more about "country clubs and coloring books" and then JoJo mentions she's actually in the middle of a date.

Chase and JoJo "eat" dinner while Chase talks about how he sees a future with JoJo and tells her he "want[s] to smear that lipstick."  She likes this for some reason and gives him the fantasy suite card.  They head to the suite and Chase says he's "100% in love with" her and JoJo leaves to cry on a bench.  She comes back to send Chase home and he gets angry and she chases after him and says really helpful things like "I wanted to fall in love with you."  Cracking open a beer, Chase hops in the sad van with an "oh this is my fantasy suite?"  It's actually a pretty good exit, in my opinion.

Just wiping off hair products dripping down their perfect faces

Time for the rose ceremony that they're having for some reason other than forced drama, I'm sure.  JoJo comes out to tell Robby and Jordan that Chase is no longer here, and then what do you know, Chase walks in and pulls JoJo away.  Robby says "do people get sent home and come back from the dead?"  No wonder Robby was the first to say I love you and continues to say all the right things to get a rose!  He thinks the rejected bachelors get killed!

So turns out Chase is just back to have a nicer good bye with JoJo, and Robby and Jordan have nothing to worry about.  Then JoJo watches Chase leave with a monkey in tow and laments, "when did falling in love become so hard?" as if she didn't have two other guys she's fallen in love with waiting for some roses about 20 feet away.

"My heart is beating" -some brilliant commentary by JoJo

And now time to recap the Hometowns episode: where we get to see what kind of families raised men who think going on television is a great way to find a wife.

Chase: Divorce, Divorce, Divorce

In Colorado, or just on a movie set?

First up, we head to Colorado where Chase lives, and it is snowy and beautiful.  JoJo and Chase are going to meet Chase's dad first (since his parents, we learn, had a messy divorce).  Chase decides this is a really good time to ask why his dad and mom's relationship failed.  Then Chase talks to his dad alone (which may have been a better time to bring up the divorce?), and for the first time, I see a personality in Chase.

Next stop: meeting the mom, step-dad, sister and her family.  They're all pretty reasonable, nice people, and it goes well.  Chase and his sister talk about how they were both hurt by divorce and then Chase and his mom cry about love, to which his mom says "crying is not our style."  Chase tells JoJo he's falling in love with her as she leaves.

Jordan: The Aaron Rodgers Story

"the spicy child"

Next up: we go west to Chico, CA where we get further evidence that Jordan peaked in high school since he takes JoJo to his high school and introduces her to random teachers and coaches.  JoJo asks if some picture is Aaron Rodgers and Jordan changes the subject.  "You could tell it hurt him to bring it up," JoJo says, right before bringing it up again while they sit on some bleachers.  He more or less tells her not to bring him up.  So of course, when JoJo sits down with Jordan's other brother, Luke, she brings it up.  Luke says they all miss Aaron and it's hard to talk about and then the rest of the evening is boring because there is no more talk about the Aaron Rodgers drama.

Robby: The Hope Saga

For a total change of scenery, we go down to Florida, where Robby is from.  The theme of this date is Robby's ex girlfriend.  Right after JoJo tells Robby's mom she's falling in love with him, Robby's mom thinks it's a great idea tell Robby that his ex's roommate is putting rumors out into the world.  Namely the rumor that Robby broke up with this Hope girl just to go on the Bachelorette.  Robby breaks up what looks to be a nice chat JoJo is having with his sisters to tell JoJo about this.  He is a little too defensive about the whole thing and even says that he's "here for the wrong reasons" (even if he was quoting someone else).

Luke: Nicholas Spark's new leading man

Red solo cup, I fill you up
Let's have a party!

Time to head to the Lone Star State and into a country rom-com movie starting Luke.  Luke invites what looks like to be his entire town to a BBQ, and then he and JoJo ride off into the sunset on horses to sit on a bench made of hay, and walk through a candle-lit path to a giant heart made of flower petals where Luke tells JoJo his heart is hers.

In Conclusion:

What's more romantic than an airplane hangar?

Time for the rose ceremony and JoJo thinks she knows what's up until Luke pulls her aside to actually utter the L word.  Now that all the guys have told her they love her and none of them look that different from each other, JoJo has a break down and we get the worst image in Bachelor nation: a To Be Continued.

"I'd still take hanging out with JoJo over eating cow intestine" (understatement of the season)

Still in Argentina, JoJo has to decide whose parents she wants to meet.

She starts with a 1 on 1 date with Alex, the only guy left who hasn't had one, which is apparently very clear to other guys as Jordan responds with "now you can stop bitching."

JoJo and Alex have an awkward car ride into the country while the other dudes make up a rap about how Alex is short and JoJo likes the rest of them better.

Then JoJo and Alex dress up like gauchos (supposedly), ride horses, and then spoon with a horse.  JoJo explains that her relationship has changed with Alex and she thinks it has to do with spending time with him, and isn't that how relationships work?

That poor horse

It seems to be inexplicably going well for Alex until he professes his love for JoJo.  He apparently can't read facial expressions because he keeps babbling about how this all feels great and then JoJo sends him home.  JoJo cries because it's hard and she doesn't know what she's doing and why wouldn't Alex make eye contact when getting in the sad van?  Maybe because you just broke his heart on national television just when he thought he was going to finally be like his twin and be married too?

Anyway, it's time for a date with Jordan, who JoJo is still very much obsessed with.  They go to a vineyard and crush grass with their feet and then drink that grape juice, which, ew.  Then there's a hot tub, obviously.  Later, JoJo asks about Jordan's family and he goes into a monologue about how close he is to his family except Aaron (you know, the famous one who's dating Olivia Munn and the reason we all wanted a hometown date for this schmuck), and how football doesn't define him, implying it defines his brother and his brother is the one who's distanced himself from the family blah blah blah.  Then he says he's "so in love" with JoJo and she's all over him.

What a sad tableau

The group date this week is for Chase, Robby, and James Taylor, and the producers either totally forgot to plan it, or the rain really did ruin their plans, because the guys and JoJo had a "slumber party."  We find out that James Taylor's "A-game" is being able to fit an absurd number of french fries in his mouth, Robby really likes saying the words "front-runner," and Chase continues to have no personality.  They all seem kind of drunk and all more or less profess their love for JoJo.  Robby for some reason gets the group date rose and they make-out with a thunderstorm backdrop while James Taylor and Chase pout in the elevator.

Just remember: it was James Taylor's idea to stuff the fries in his mouth

Luke gets the third one on one date this week, and they ride horses and shoot guns.  JoJo says "Luke is for sure a man," so I guess that's a concern she has about the other dudes?

In a surprise twist, Luke doesn't get an evening portion of the date and goes back to inform the guys that the rose ceremony is happening right now, "so, yee-haw."

James Taylor does not get a rose and it's a tearful goodbye for both James Taylor and JoJo.  For anyone who thought James Taylor had a chance, let me remind you what her final four look like and try to tell me she doesn't have a type:

Meet Jordan, Ken Doll Jordan, Country Jordan, and Jordan 2.0

A Tale of Two Chads

(cue horror movie soundtrack)

We open this week's episode on the men having a "funeral" for Chad; throwing his protein powder into the wind.  "Death to tyrants," one bro yells, chucking the tub off the deck.  Everyone's happy, until there's a knock on the door.  Chad is back!  Daniel lets him in and asks how the date went.  Chad says some things like "JoJo broke up with me because I'm too intense" and "Alex wouldn't shut up about me."  Jordan, wanting to be reasonable and give the guy a chance, suggests that Chad should apologize to the group for being such a dick.  It doesn't go over well (shockingly), but there's no violence and Chad leaves, twirling anticlimactically out the door.

Alex returns from the date after an evening with JoJo that was presumably too boring to air, and the guys hoist him on their shoulders, set off fireworks, shove his face in a cake, and have somehow found party hats to wear.

It's cocktail party time, and with no common enemy to bond over, the men begin to unravel.  Everyone sees Robby kiss JoJo out by the fountain and are convinced he did it in view on purpose.  Luke and Alex already have roses and took "seconds" of JoJo time, so apparently any "gentleman's code" they were adhering to was thrown out the window.  Basically, they all get super insecure except for Jordan, who pushes JoJo against a wall barely hidden from the other guys, for a little make-out session.  Two guys end up going home: James F., who I only knew existed because there had to be another James for James Taylor to need a last initial, and Daniel, who went out with a strange monologue about how he has no personality and something about the chances of "getting hit by lighting while.... shaving."

Even Vinny realizes how awful his hair cut was and put on a hat.

Moving on, it's time to leave the country!  JoJo's taking the guys to Punte Del Este, Uruguay, a place she had obviously just learned how to pronounce!  Jordan gets the first one-on-one date where they kiss on a yacht and swim with seals and it's nice and drama free, so instead of watching that, we get to watch some manufactured drama.  Vinny, it seems, has set up a "barbershop," complete with trashy tabloid magazines, one of which so happens to have a "tell-all" article with JoJo's ex-boyfriend, who's name is, you guessed it, Chad.  Chad 2.0 claims JoJo ran back to him after getting dumped by Ben and only broke it off with him (again) to chase fame on the Bachelorette.  Uh oh, seems like JoJo's not here for the right reasons!  The guys overanalyze this for hours.

Back on JoJo and Jordan's date, the two of them sit at a table with food they won't eat and wine they will drink to have some serious discussion.  JoJo is worried because apparently she's met an ex of Jordan's who said he was a cheater.  Jordan claims he's not a cheater and that he wasn't a good boyfriend because he was too focused on a career he wasn't good at, and that was what JoJo wanted to hear, so she believed him and gave him a rose.

Pretty sure many guys who were forced to watch this
didn't even notice JoJo's tears during this segment...

Happy about this date, JoJo chats with a producer who shows her the Chad article.  She breaks down and we learn that she is not a pretty sobber. She goes to clear  things up with the guys and begins crying immediately.  The guys clearly can't handle this and tell her it's a "non issue" even though they spent the entire day getting all worked up about it.

Apparently this is what guys do when everyone else is on a group date

For the group date, Luke, Derek, Chase, Evan, James, Vinny, Grant, Wells, and Alex go surfing down sand dunes until it starts raining on them.  They have a cocktail party where Derek gets the group date rose and Alex and Chase decide for some reason they need to confront him about how it's a pity rose and he doesn't deserve it.  But hey, a rose is a rose, and Alex, when you call someone an insecure little bitch, it just makes you look like an insecure little bitch.  His Napoleon complex is running on all cylinders.

Why did Robby pick those swim trunks???

Robby gets the other one on one date this week, and it appears to be the walk around a city and eat street food date.  She makes him try on a hat and tells him he looks like Ryan Gosling and I'm wondering if JoJo needs glasses.  They decide to jump off a cliff because it was about time we had a  physical risk as a metaphor for falling in love this season.  That evening, Robby tells a really sad story about how his best friend was texting while driving off a bridge and that changed his life and then concludes with professing his love for JoJo.  Let's just stop here and appreciate how Robby met JoJo barely a month ago and has only seen her in settings that involve a dozen or so other men competing for her attention and this is their VERY FIRST DATE EVER and he's already dropping the L bomb.

And now it's the cocktail party.  Derek decides to call out Jordan, Alex, Chase, and Robby for being mean girls and they all bro-ily scoff at him.  Chris Harrison comes in to cancel the cocktail party because JoJo already knows which of these losers she's sending home.  They are:
Evan, the frequent bloody nosed pastor turned erectile dysfunction expert;
Vinny, the barber with terrible hair who cut the other dude's hair and now I know why they all have terrible hair;
and Grant, the hot fireman who shouldn't be surprised since he's not white, and just look at this show's track record with black people.

They all cry as they leave. The End.