The Bachelor 7 Begins

By: Shannon Gossage

The first episode of the seventh season of The Bachelor aired Monday and featured a slew of changes and a number of interesting women. ABC decided to shake things up on their fledgling show and the first major change was that there was no formal rose ceremony. The girls received 5 minutes notice to get out of bed, get ready, and meet the bachelor in the ballroom.

The girls then enjoyed a "speed dating" round where each bachelorette had 2 minutes to charm the Bachelor, Charlie O’Connell. Unlike seasons past, O’Connell can pick women to stay throughout the process and not just at the rose ceremony. Also, they can be sent home at any time. Another big change is that the rose ceremony is now an open forum where the women can basically back stab each other or try to defend their position.

ABC has done its best to shake up this almost lifeless show. The changes provide some much needed drama, because let’s face it, how many of these people are really serious about meeting the "love of their life" on national television. Seems more like it is about television exposure. That also goes for Charlie himself. It has been reported that Charlie dumped his girlfriend of almost two years to appear on the show as the seventh Bachelor. It has also been rumored that he is still with girlfriend Dana, but used the show for publicity. Whatever the case, it should make for a somewhat more interesting season.