The Bachelor‘s host Jesse Palmer promised an “explosive” and “emotional” evening following Season 28, Episode 9‘s agonizing cliffhanger last week, and Joey Gradiadei’s “Women Tell All” special delivered.
The night kicked off with 16 familiar faces and fan-favorite Bachelor Season 28 contestants taking the stage to reflect on their time with Joey, the friction in the mansion, what life since elimination has looked like since, and more. Then, we got to see the aftermath of Kelsey Anderson’s mysterious “we need to talk” note and the Fantasy Suite Week rose ceremony. After Bachelor Nation watched an emotional elimination in Tulum, Mexico, Joey’s third runner-up joined Jesse on stage and reunited with her ex for the first time since their breakup.
Curious who went home on The Bachelor tonight post-Fantasy Suites? Want to know what went down during the Season 28 “Women Tell All” special? What the heck Kelsey’s note all about? And who’s headed to the finale to meet Joey’s family and potentially get engaged next Monday? We’ve got answers.
Here are the major takeaways from The Bachelor Season 28’s “Women Tell All” episode.
What Did Kelsey’s Note Say On The Bachelor?
The Bachelor‘s “Women Tell All” continuation picked up right where we left off. As noted in our Fantasy Suite Week recap, in a last-minute twist Kelsey told cameras she couldn’t stop thinking about her conversation with Leslie and didn’t know if Joey potentially breaking up with her was something she could handle. “There’s something I need to talk about with Joey. I think it’s important because I made a promise to myself and a promise to him that whenever there is something that comes up in my mind that I need to share it with him,” she explained. “This is a conversation that needs to be had before the rose ceremony. It is more pressing now than later. I don’t want to blindside Joey ever. I want to be honest and I want to be able to tell him everything that’s on my mind.”
Kelsey left a “we need to talk” note in Joey’s hotel room door, and after receiving it, he broke down. “I don’t understand what this is. I don’t understand it. I’m confused…Usually when someone writes ‘we need to talk’ it’s scary and you think something went wrong, and I don’t understand what could have went wrong because I haven’t said anything to her.” Our poor sweet sad boy spiraled until Kelsey knocked on his door and they sat down to talk. As he looked up at her like an abandoned puppy, Kelsey beat around the bush for what felt like six agonizing hours but in reality was probably three minutes tops, only to say, “I really care about you. I just wanted to tell you how much I miss you when you’re not there.” Girl, PLEASE!
Upon seeing Joey nearly pass out from stress and relief, Kelsey laughed, apologized, and let him know how much she wants to meet him family, but Joey told cameras he could barely hear anything she was saying because he was so terrified he was about to get dumped. (In his defense, those feelings were valid and this was all so dumb and rude!) Going into the rose ceremony, Kelsey regretted the note and feared she would get sent home and regret ever writing it. But did she?
Who Went Home On The Bachelor After Fantasy Suites? The Bachelor Season 28 “Women Tell All” Rose Ceremony Recap:
In the highest stakes rose ceremony yet, Joey ended Fantasy Suite week by saying one crushing goodbye and extending two special invites to meet his family next week. “This one’s gonna take a lot of deep breaths to get through it,” he said, acknowledging the week was full of beautiful moments and several lows related to his biggest fear. (You know, that his love won’t be fully reciprocated at the end of his journey?! He says it several times an episode, but it still seems like these ladies need to hear it!)
The first rose went to Daisy, and the second and final stem of the ceremony went to Kelsey, note be damned! Rachel Nance said her goodbyes, but sat down to chat with Joey before leaving Tulum and The Bachelor behind.
“You did everything I could ask and the worst thing I could do was keep you here if I wasn’t still able to get to the point of expressing the feelings of falling in love. I know I have love for you. I know I will always have love for you. I just wasn’t able to fully get there,” Joey told Rachel before walking her to her SUV.
“I didn’t want to say goodbye,” Joey told cameras. “I want her to be in my life. I want to have the way I feel around Rachel in my life, because who wouldn’t want that from someone that special? I don’t have those feelings of love with her and I can’t keep her here if I don’t. I think it’s still beautiful what we had and what we could look back on. I just want her to be OK and I know she will be, I just want her to know how bad I want her to be OK.”
“I’m sad I had my heart broken again. The fact that he couldn’t love me back, it obviously hurts, because I wanted it so bad,” Rachel said. “I’ll always have love for Joey. Joey is a great guy. I think it hurts more because he didn’t do anything wrong, so naturally I’m thinking it’s something that I did ± because I didn’t allow myself to be open enough from the beginning…I just really wanted it to be he and I at the end.”
Rachel Nance And Joey Graziadei Reunite During “Women Tell All” Special
Rachel wiped tears from her eyes after watching her elimination back during the “Women Tell All” special and told Jesse Palmer, “As emotional as it was, and as sad as it was, I just think it was a beautiful moment between the two of us. You can see how much love was there between the two of us, so these are sad and happy tears at the same time.”
“I was definitely in love with him, I mean who wouldn’t be? He’s amazing,” the Season 28 contestant said. “Thinking back, my wish is I was able to [open up] sooner, but I’m so proud of myself that I even got to the point that I did towards the end… I really pushed myself and just allowed myself to feel the emotions that I felt…I have no regrets, and I really did open up as much as I could have.” Rachel’s Golden Bachelor mentor Susan cheered her on from the audience and Joey came out to give her a big hug.
“You made everything so easy, but when it got to the point that you were giving so much, it was time for me to give more. Personally, I wasn’t able to get there, and that’s the most real thing I could do in that moment was to move on from it, because you deserve that,” Joey told Rachel. “But I care so much for you and I wish so much for you, because it wasn’t an easy moment.”
“My dad is the guy who set my standards for dating, and then I met Joey, and he met those standards,” Rachel told Bachelor Nation. “Joey taught me that I can get what I deserve after this and whoever I end up dating has some big shoes to fill.”
The Bachelor An End To Online Harassment Of Rachel And The Rest of Season 28’s Cast
Following the emotional reunion, Rachel, Jesse, and Joey addressed her rough experience with online harassment and hate, calling for an end to the virtual vitriol. When asked how life since the show has been for her, Rachel described the time since Hometown Week as “an emotional roller coaster,” explaining, “I’ve just been getting a lot of hateful messages as soon as the episode aired — a lot of racist comments towards me, and just calling me the N-word or calling me Jungle Asian — all because I got a rose.”
“I’m sad because my parents really enjoyed the Hometown episode and then for them to just see people attacking our culture and attacking me…this is a whole new level. It’s just hundreds of people messaging me stuff. People made TikToks about them throwing up when we were kissing, and it’s just insane,” she said.
“I want to tell you I know how hard that is to talk through, but by sharing that, you’re going to spread so much light on things that should be shed,” Joey said. “You never deserve that.”
When Jesse Palmer called on Season 28 contestants to raise their hands if they received a hateful message throughout the season, nearly every woman in attendance did, including Golden Bachelor attendees Kathy Swarts and Susan Noles.
“For all of the love that Joey and these women have received, there’s also sadly been a noticeable rise in hate on social media,” Jesse said. “Here’s the thing, Bachelor Nation — we love your strong opinions. But I think it’s so important that we lift these women who are brave enough to be vulnerable and to share their stories with Joey and with all of us at home. These women they deserve our praise and not our hate.”
Rachel’s final message to viewers was “just be kind,” which seemed to be a shared sentiment throughout the “Women Tell All” special . Even Maria Georgas, Sydney Gordon, and Lea Cayanan all apologized for their ongoing Season 28 feud and hugged it out in front of the audience.
Next up? Joey introduces Kelsey Anderson and Daisy Kent to his family and potentially gets engaged, heartbroken, or both (?!) during The Bachelor Season 28’s “unprecedented” finale on Monday, March 25.
