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We’re more than halfway through Jenn Tran’s Bachelorette journey, and Season 21, Episode 6 determined which four men are headed to Hometown Week.
Those who watched Joey Graziadei’s season of The Bachelor will recall Jenn was sent home before she got a chance to introduce Joey to her family, so not only was she was able to empathize with her seven remaining guys in Week 6, but she was super intentional about dates, conversations, and time spent with the men.
Jenn undoubtedly had high-stakes decisions to make, but she also had help navigating the crucial week, as The Bachelorette called in not one, not two, but SIX alum to make special cameos on her group date and a Wicked-themed one-on-one. Why Wicked? Well, the group left New Zealand and headed to Seattle, Washington, aka The Emerald City!
On top of some exciting familiar faces, elaborate Wicked hype, and a fun new location, the week delivered some of the juiciest drama of the season along with a pre-rose ceremony elimination that will have members of Bachelor Nation hooting, hollering, and failing to keep the main thing the main thing as they briefly shift focus away from Jenn’s search for love to celebrate a long-awaited departure.
Curious who got a one-on-one date in Week 6? Who went home? Who secured a Hometown Week rose? And what the heck happened with first impression winner turned worst impression winner Sam McKinney?
Buckle up, Bachelor Nation. Decider’s Bachelorette Season 21, Episode 6 recap is here to break down another wild, unexpectedly satisfying week.
Jenn Tran And Marcus Shoberg‘s One-On-One Date Recap: There’s No Place Like Hometowns
Despite Jeremy Simon being the only remaining guy who hadn’t gotten a solo date with Jenn, the first one-on-one of Episode 6 went to Marcus Shoberg, because as Jenn told Season 20 Bachelorette lead Charity Lawson, he was still holding back in their journey and she needed more time to see if he was capable of opening up.
As far as the Emerald City date went, Jenn sent Marcus a green letterman jacket, she showed up in a pink dress, and the two got their Wicked on with help from host/wizard Jesse Palmer and some franchise alum. After Jesse reminded viewers that Wicked hits theaters this Thanksgiving, the three hopped on a trolley and embarked on a movie-themed adventure which involved following a yellow brick road to meet Elphaba and Glinda, aka Bachelor Season 28 winner and runner-up Kelsey Anderson and Daisy Kent.
Jenn and Marcus learned more about each other’s interests, families, and pasts through a sweet game and got words of wisdom from Charity and OG Bachelorette Trista Sutter along the way. The day portion of the date concluded after Jenn and Marcus floated a few feet off the ground in a tethered hot air balloon (Reality Steve rumors suggest that strong winds and safety concerns were to blame for the lack of take off), and the two met back up for a romantic dinner on the field of T-Mobile Park.
Marcus stepped up to the Week 6 challenge and opened up about his imperfect family and upbringing, sharing that he and his sister were “born into a pretty rough situation” with parents who were unstable and unfit to care for them. “They brought [me and my sister] to daycare one day and never came back for us,” Marcus told Jenn. “That was the start of a very rough chapter in my childhood. I had to take on the role of looking after [my sister]. We lived in a foster home together. Families would try us on for size and then change their mind…and we’d end up back at foster home.” Marcus admitted the experience made him feel like there was something wrong with him, and the honesty made Jenn understand why he’d been holding back and putting his guard up. She assured him that his vulnerability showed strength, not weakness, and she handed out the rose.
Did Marcus Get The Rose? Yes! After Marcus opened up to Jenn she felt they were incredibly similar and told cameras this was the love story she always wanted as a kid but never felt worthy of. Marcus accepted her rose and they kissed under a fireworks show.
The Bachelorette Season 21, Episode 6 Group Date Recap: The Sam M. Sh*t Show
Next up, Jenn invited Spencer, Jonathon, Sam M., Devin, and Grant on a group date, which means Jeremy got his one-on-one after all! (A huge day for people from Connecticut, aka Me!) Jenn invited her five guys to iHeart Media to get grilled live on the radio during “Love On-air Seattle” with hosts Jubal and Bender, plus Bachelor alums Jason and Molly Mesnick, who were on the same radio show group date 15 years ago.
Before the boys stepped foot in the studio, Jenn let everyone know that she needed to feel more secure in her relationship with Sam M. Though their physical connection was strong, she still felt he was holding back emotionally, so the pressure was on — whether he knew it or not. Going into the date, Devin (an A+ yapper) felt incredibly confident in his ability to be genuine on air. He felt Sam was in trouble, however, and boy was he right. Four guys nailed the rapid fire word association game, but when asked which word sprung to mind when he heard “Fantasy Suite,” Sam M. garnered gasps by saying — brace yourselves — “AGGRESSIVE.” When asked to describe Jenn in three adjectives, Grant, Devin, and Jonathon dazzled, while Sam was unable to coherently verbalize his feelings for her, saying, “Like fire, and strong passion…to say that I’ve been doing nothing but falling in love with you since the first time we had a convo would be a lie.” OK sir.
In between non-sensical rambling, Sam also found a way to be incredibly insulting towards Jenn, especially after the radio hosts dismissed the other guys so Jenn could ask him some deeper questions one-on-one. When asked about his first impression of her, Sam actually said, “I got out of limo and thought, ‘This girl is not my type. I thought the Bachelorette was going to be Daisy or Maria.’” WHAT?! Jenn should have sent him home live on air.
When asked what exactly he likes about Jenn, Sam said her selflessness, which would have been a solid answer had he been able to provide a single example that fit the definition of the word. When the pressure got to be too much, the “feral” kisser reminded Jenn that physical touch is his love language and planted a big old smooch on her as a distraction. It may have wrapped up the day portion of the date, but at the cocktail party later that night, Jenn told the guys that one conversation left her feeling “unsettled” and pulled Sam aside to get more clarity.
After getting visibly overwhelmed by her extremely valid questions about their relationship and his feelings for her, Sam decided to pull out the big guns and tell her “I love you,” which came across as a desperate attempt to distract from his ingenuity rather than an authentic show of affection. “Where the hell is this coming from?” Jenn told cameras, admittedly frustrated with Sam. “There’s no substance there, there’s no logic there.”
Who Got The Group Date Rose? No one! With Hometown Week ahead, Jenn wanted to be 100% confident in her feelings so she left the group date rose for the rose ceremony.
Jenn Tran And Jeremy Simon‘s One-On-One Date Recap: Psychic Chickens And Flying Fishes
Prior to Jeremy Simon‘s Week 6 one-on-one date, some members of Bachelor Nation wondered how exactly the 29-year-old real estate investor from New York (but really Connecticut) made it this far in the season with such little screen time. While we’ll never know the full extent of Jenn and Jeremy’s off-camera connection in the first five episodes, the intimate day they spent at Pike Place Farmer’s Market proved they share lots of laughs and effortless banter. The true test came during dinner, when Jenn set out to see if they could form an emotional connection as well.
After a day spent tossing fish around, playing games, exploring the market, visiting a Psychic Chicken, and having their palms read, Jeremy and Jenn went to Chihuly Garden and Glass for a romantic dinner where they dug into serious topics like faith, religion, family, and tradition. Jeremy said he’s looking for a partner who’s as caring as his mom and he sees that in Jenn. He said he’d love to take her home to meet his family, and explained that although his Jewish culture is incredibly important to himm he didn’t need her to convert. Jenn told him she’s incredibly open to new cultures but also wanted to keep Buddhism a big part of her and her family’s lives.
Did Jeremy Get The Rose? Yes! Jeremy and Jenn loved the idea of a blended family and agreed that raising Jewish Buddhist kids sounded fun. Jenn told Jeremy he brings out the most of her than anyone left on the show, so Jeremy’s officially headed to Hometown Week!
The Bachelorette Season 21, Episode 6 Rose Ceremony Recap: Who Went Home? And What Went Down With Sam M.?
Ahead of the pre-Hometown Week rose ceremony, Jenn knew that she had to sort out the Sam M. situation and headed straight to the boys’ hotel block to search for him. When she took physical chemistry out of the equation she realized that Sam M. was incapable of even coming up with a single adjective to describe her, so she sat him down and let him word vomit some more in hopes of gaining clarity.
A “terrified” Sam tried and epically failed to fight for a rose, admitting that words were not his strong suit and doubling down on his “I love you,” despite being unable to properly back up his feelings. When Jenn pressed him for specific qualities he liked about her he kept circling back to her “ferocious love” comment and seemed incapable of adding fresh context to the conversation. When asked what he learned about her on their group date, Sam could have talked about Jenn’s past or their struggle on the SkyWalk. Instead, he said he learned she wants a love that’s so powerful and told her he loves her AGAIN. At a certain point, Bachelor Nation will see Sam realizing in real time that he’s lost the plot, that he’ll be massively disappointed in his edit, and that he failed to keep the main thing the main thing. After seeing just how many chances he had to redeem himself this episode alone, however, it’s hard to feel anything other than disappointed, offended by, and incredibly confused over this man.
Sam’s journey from first impression to worst impression was agonizing to behold, but in the end, Jenn realized he reminded her too much of a relationship she put in the past and said goodbye. “I don’t know exactly what love is, but I know that’s not what love is,” she said after sending Sam M. packing before the rose ceremony. “I am so mad that I got it wrong.”
My biggest complaint? Bachelor Nation was robbed of seeing the guys (specifically Devin!) find out that Sam was eliminated. Instead, The Bachelorette hopped right to the rose ceremony where two incredibly wholesome contestants — Grant Ellis and Spencer Conley — left without roses.
See you next week for Season 21’s highly-anticipated Hometown Week recap, featuring a rundown of intimate dates with the following four men:
- Marcus Shoberg, a 31-year-old Army Ranger Veteran from Raleigh, North Carolina
- Jeremy Simon, a 29-year-old real estate investor from New York, New York (as a reminder, his hometown is Fairfield, CT)
- Devin Strader, a 28-year-old freight company owner from Houston, Texas.
See you next week, Bachelor Nation! New episodes of The Bachelorette Season 21 premiere Mondays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC with next-day streaming on Hulu. And be sure to read Decider’s pre-premiere interview with Jenn Tran for more exciting tidbits.
