After meeting and sending home all but two of the original twenty-five men brought before her, Ashley has to make just one more choice to end this season’s Bachelorette. It comes down to California wine-maker Ben and construction manager J.P. from New York. She has spent time with their families and a private night with both of them.

Does she already know at the time of this show who she will chose with her heart, mind and soul? Or is she divided within herself? What will she tell us and what will she not tell us? And what of the two guys, Ben and J.P.? They clearly have fallen for her, but how do they feel about their chances of her choosing them? What do the fates have in store for these three? Three hours from now, we will learn the answers to some of these questions and perhaps only get hints for answers on other questions.

The show opens with Ashley hopping a plane and then a boat to remote Vomo Island, Fiji. She is dressed casually in white slacks and a lime green tank top. There, she arrives to greet her family sitting outdoors on a patio deck. Ashley doesn’t waste any time talking about the two guys, of course not mentioning names and not mentioning favorites. Ashley’s sister seems like she wants to get involved in the fray even at the family meeting; lo and behold, the what’s-coming-up previews shows the sister more involved than she probably should be. Will she sabotage what Ashley has going with either of the guys?

So, now it’s guy-meet-family time once more. We start with J.P. meeting and hugging Ashley on the beach and then they go to meet her family — mom and dad, brother and tattoo-laden sister. J.P. says he’s “completely blown away by Ashley” and how happy he is. Then they have a tropical breezy lunch with wine on the lawn with palm trees and the beach in the background. The wine is flowing freely and soon too the words flow more freely.

After lunch, the three gals do the girl talk thing and Tattoo Sis tells Ashley that she doesn’t think J.P. is the one. Mom’s just nodding as sis gives all kinds of reasons why J.P. isn’t the guy, none of which have anything to do with how J.P. and Ashley and feel for each other. Ashley is heartbroken by this turnabout by her sister and it’s obvious Ashley has strong feelings for J.P. as she defends him. Now Ashley goes to talk privately with bro on the beach and he isn’t any more encouraging. Ashley privately tells us that “this is not a good time to be judging” and feels that her family are only making it more difficult for her.

Meanwhile (and watch out for that ‘mean’ before the ‘while’), Tattoo Sis meets up with J.P., sitting on chairs on the beach lawn. “I don’t see it”, sis says, to which J.P. remarks “I was totally not expecting that.” “Nor did I,” she retorts. Neither was I! Maybe Tattoo Sis is making up for some grudge resulting from a long-past sister vs. sister transgression from the time they were little tots. Or maybe sis is just BF-less and is jealous of Ashley. Or wants her fifteen minutes of national TV infamy. Whatever her rationale might be, she’s a one-sister wrecking crew. J.P. is on the defensive and then goes into the reasons why he is in love with Ashley and that he hopes for the family’s support. “So you’re saying that if I propose to her, you’re not happy with that?” he asks Tattoo Sis, and she confirms this with a nod. Bah! Cinderella had nicer sisters (even if they were step-sisters)! Privately, J.P. tells us what does Tattoo Sis know? *bleep!*

At the same time, it’s low-key dad & daughter time, not really delving into things, as they are totally unaware of what sis is up to, with her deviling into things! We get all ten seconds of dad and daughter, which means an edit (rather, cut) of an insubstantial conversation. Then, Ashley and J.P. part ways from the family (for whom J.P. does not have especially kind words). He tells Ashley, “not everybody is going to love me” and she tells him not to worry about it, but he says he is worried about it. It’s a conversation of family damage control and a time for both of them to reflect on how much they want to be together. And they part ways on the beach, one one direction, the other the other direction…

Afterward, Ashley and Tattoo Sis have a talk. Sis says that Ashley is trying to convince her but “I don’t want to be convinced.” Yeah, you just want to blabber, Sis. Well, make that argue. They get into it and Ashley is breaking down into tears as Tattoo Sis isn’t really listening, just telling Ashley what she thinks. Ashley tells her sis that she wants her to be honest. Now Tattoo Sis gets into an argument with mom, who is more supportive of Ashley and tells sis that she should support Ashley too. “Blah, blah, blah, is what I’m saying”, says Sis. Cut! Thank goodness for commercials.

Now it’s Ben’s turn. They meet on the lawn and walk into the villa where her family awaits them. Ashley says privately that she is nervous and, after what happened with J.P., who could blame her? So the family chats indoors with Ben and Ashley. It seems like Tattoo Sis likes Ben better, but she’s still being the conversation’s prima donna. There’s a lot more laughing and giggling with Ben than there was with J.P.

Next… it’s Vamp Sis time with Ben! It’s obvious by now that she could suck the blood out of any relationship, including her sister Ashley’s. Ben is being interrogated in a rather lengthy Q & A session and Ben is having no trouble with it, leaving no doubts. “I’ve been married and I’ve been divorced, and that’s the last thing I want for Ashley,” Vamp Sis says. Well, that explains it. She doesn’t even want Ashley to have the first half of that. The family thing seems to be short, and Ashley and Ben go out on the beach and do a loooong smoooochy coooochy!

So long, family, bye! They share hugs and part ways as Ashley leaves Vomo Island and is once again on her own. She meets up with Ben at the Sheraton Resort and they go walking out on the lawn by the beach, awaiting a helicopter. They board the chopper and up they go on a tour of the islands, waterfalls, beaches and waters. They visit some hot springs and strip down to a two-piece bikini and swim trunks and then start spreading hot springs mud on each other. Ashley goes reaching into her own bikini top (hey, Ben, get a clue here!). Then they wash off the mud in the pond and then do the kissy-coo thing while half-submerged. Ben still looks not 100% comfortable with the physical intimacies.

Then it’s evening and Ashley joins Ben in his room at a villa, with the bed a prominent article of furniture. She says “you have so much on your mind right now”, and he responds “not really”, but we know he does. Ben is “kind of nervous about right now” and “I never expected this, ever” and she kisses him. Good girl, that’s one way to quiet him down. There’s more smoochy coochy on the bed. (Ack, what’s the camera man still doing in there?!. Give these two some privacy, they’ve already got a room!) Then we’re shown a shot of a gibbous moon and what happens next is left to our imagination. Anyone care to place some bets how far this progresses (or not)?

J.P and Ashley meet up on the beach, share a kiss and head up a beach staircase up to a hideaway over the beach. J.P. digs right in on Tattoo Sis and her 15-minute judgments. Ashley says that sis was speaking her mind, and J.P. says “I know she’s wrong”. He’s obviously still peeved while Ashley says “I’m still thinking about the reality”. Now, that’s reality TV for you! J.P. says he’s willing to give up a lot, not because he has to but because he wants to. He tells her that he told her family that he’s madly in love with her. She kisses him, but just on the the cheeks, once, twice, thrice and then lipsy-lipsy! It’s just the beginning as they go down on to the beach and make out until sunset.

They rejoin at the Westin Resort (that’s two resort product placements now) and as before, it’s an evening that starts out by sitting on the bed. J.P. surprises Ashley with a hand-made photo-journal and diary and allows her to read it out loud in his presence. He asks her to take it and, if you guys know anything about how gals love things things that come with a personal touch, he’s probably sealed the deal by giving her that diary. Poor Ben wasn’t quite so imaginative. They part with her walking back to her room as he lies back in his bed pondering the possibilities of their future together.

A new day dawns with Ashley waking up to sunlight in her bed. She goes for a walk and in the background she shares her thoughts with us about the decision she will soon make. She talks about J.P. (“passion and romance”) and Ben (“playful”, “comfortable”). On Denarau Island, the guys wake up and begin their day, too. Ben shares his thoughts and then he meets the jeweler to pick out a ring. Ben says “we’re friends, first and foremost” and he picks out a “forever ring”. That was easy. Then we switch to J.P. as he, too, shares his thoughts and greets the jeweler. Unlike Ben, for P.J. it’s a tough choice to pick one. He finally picks one out. Whoah, those are big stones on both of those rings! Now, it’s time for Ashley and the guys to dress up and get ready for the final Rose Ceremony. Off the guys go by seaplane to where Ashley is staying. The guys are dressed in suits, smart-looking but not extraordinary, while Ashley wears a long, lacy strapless white dress.

The first to arrive is Ben as he is greeted by the host of our show. “Today is the day I’m going to propose to Ashley and she is going to say ‘yes'”. Careful there, Ben, the odds are still 50/50! He greets Ashley on the beach and tells her that every time they spend time together, it’s better than the time before. He kneels down and proposes to her, “Will you marry me?” “I’m sorry”, she says as she clasps his hands around the ring he offers, “I know this is unexpected.” He walks off, and then she calls after him and walks up the steps with him.

As softly as she tries to have him land, it’s still a hard fall for him. “I don’t know how you want me to feel”, he starts. He says he’s in utter shock and disbelief and off he goes as she watches him walk away. In private, he’s upset and loses his composure a bit (*bleep*). “I thought I was in love. Maybe I was wrong about that too.” Ashley is upset too, as she “hated that” what happened. She knows she let him down and now there’s no going back. Tsk, tsk. I can’t help thinking, even before we see J.P., that she may have made the wrong choice. Then again, maybe it’s for the best for Ben after all.

We get a commercial break for Bachelors and Bikinis (officially known as Bachelor Pad). I’m still in two minds about recapping that show as I fear its moral decadence is highly contagious.

Now J.P. arrives by seaplane. We don’t get an edit of what he’s thinking on the flight over. He’s introduced by the host of the show and Ashley has a rose in her hand as she awaits J.P. (the rose mysteriously disappears in the next edit, as J.P. approaches her). They kiss and hold hands as the begin to talk. “It’s so hard to believe where this all started”, he begins, “and how far we’ve gone… the hardest thing about all this was not knowing… my biggest fear was having my heart broken… this is my leap of faith.” She replies that she’s in love with him and wants to be with him forever. Then he pulls out the ring and proposes, “Ashley, will you marry me?” “Yes,” she replies simply, and the ring goes on and they kiss. So, J.P.’s the man! Only after all this does she offer him the last and final rose!

Then we’re treated to some flashback moments over the season between Ashley and J.P. and then back to scenes on the beach and a whole collage of other shots the same day and from days before. Well, they look happy!

After the Final Rose

The post-show begins with an interview with the host and Ben. Before the questions and answers start, we get a recap of Ben’s visit and rejection. Ben says he didn’t see that one coming. The replay is “tough to watch.” No kidding! The hardest part was standing back up from being on one knee after her saying no. “It humbled me” (*applause*) What were the days like that followed? “It was difficult.” When comes to questions Ben has for Ashley, he’s curious as to exactly when she made that decision to go with J.P.

Ashley is invited out and she gives Ben a brief hug, and the first comment he makes is “Nice ring.” Well, it’s on pretty obvious display. Ashley said she was surprised how it turned out and affected Ben and he gained her respect. There don’t appear to be any lingering hard feelings and they say they can be friends, but don’t expect J.P. to let that friendship blossom!

The interview turns to Ashley, whose hair is redder and darker than while she was in Fiji. She says she wants to look back on this and be happy about it, despite some feelings being hurt. The host then hints about (and the camera pans to) Ashley’s sister and what she thinks about all this (oh, no! not her again!).

Hey, we get a sneak preview of Take the Money and Run, which is on tomorrow at 9:00. It looks pretty cool. The thieve pair decide to bury the money and hope the cops don’t find it in 48 hours, with a few decoys tossed in. Watch for the Guru’s coverage of the premiere here. Game on!

We’re back to the Bachelorette and J.P. is now on stage sitting with Ashley. What does he love about Ashley? “When I’m with her, nothing else matters.” What does she love about J.P.? “We’re just a team… the strongest relationship I’ve ever had.” Hmmm… are these two still in game mode? The host then shows them the proposal video for the first time they get to see it.

The interview then shifts to Ashley’s family’s (especially her sister’s) reaction toward him. The Tattoo Sis, Chrystie, gets invited up to talk about her reaction to J.P. She makes about as much sense now as she did in Fiji. Nonetheless, it’s all smoothed over and J.P. and sis share a hug in a gesture of making up. Just stay out of our marriage, sis, or else!

The host: “I wish you guys the best of luck.” and so ends the show and this season of The Bachelorette.

The question now is, will they live happily ever after? Hah! Just let them be thankful that neither of them are in that nutty hothouse known as the Bachelor Pad.