I caught up with this season on PrimeTime On Demand and ABC.com, though bailed on the Belize episode because it kept cutting out.
My thoughts:
I think that Kacie is a beautiful woman, but I’m not sure she has anything of real interest to talk about. I mean, other than being pretty and supportive, would she bring anything else to the table? Sadly, she had one of the most pathetic limo ride send-offs I’ve ever seen. She went from being dignified, which I really appreciated, to a childish tantrum in the space of twenty minutes. Too bad. Though, honestly, a winemaker and the daughter of a teetotaler? Seriously? It’s obvious that she’ll marry a hometown boy, have a few kids, and make her life as a stay-at-home mom.
Lindzi is beautiful (except for the white eyeshadow on her eyelids, which I can’t stand), adorable, and seems down to earth. Of all the women, she seems to have the “independent” and “knows who she is” qualities that Ben claims to want. Her parents seemed normal. So obviously he won’t pick her! Though I will say that I didn’t see much chemistry between them. (I actually thought he had the most chemistry with Emily.)
Of the 3 left, I think he has the most chemistry with Nikki, who seems to be a total dark horse. And her family seemed nice. (Looks-wise I think she fits Ben best – pretty but approachable. I think that both Lindzi and Courtney are out of Ben’s league in the looks department. He’s not all that handsome, IMO, and has a dorky quality about him.) But I don’t feel that I know Nikki very well at all. So either she’s boring as hell or the producers haven’t given her much airtime.
Courtney is obviously a producer’s plant to stir up drama. I doubt she could come up with those ridiculously inflammatory lines on her own, nor do I think for one second that she was creative enough to come up with the psycho pretend wedding on her own. Ben looked really uncomfortable during that whole scene (can’t blame him), and I think it’s obvious to everyone, except possibly Ben, that she’s in it to win it – “it” not being the man or a marriage, but rather the competition itself. I got the same feeling about Lorenzo Lamas’ daughter, Shayne, when she was a contestant several years ago. She wants to “win” because she’s competitive. But him? Nah.
Unlike Shayne, though, Courtney bugs the crap out of me because she thinks that doing things like babytalking and twirling her hair makes her more feminine. Maybe that appeals to some men, but as a woman I find it to be demeaning. Even the name of her house (Casa de Las Ninas: House of Little Girls…?) was appalling. Would you really want to spend the next 40 years of your life with a girl who, at 28, thinks of herself as a little girl?
In any event, I think it’ll come down to Lindzi and Courtney. He’ll propose to Courtney because, as another poster said, he’s thinking with Little Ben. And then in 3 months, we’ll read about their dramatic breakup once she realizes that she’s not all that attracted to him once the cameras are packed up.
That’s my prediction. For all that it’s worth!
Oh, and one final note. I really do appreciate The Bachelor, not because it’s great television, but because I love to travel, and the locations have given me some great ideas. I’ve already put Park City, Utah on the list of places I’d love to go visit. So while it’s joked that men read Playboy for the articles, I admit to watching The Bachelor for the pictures. 
