- As one bachelor reaches new heights on a pulse-pounding adrenaline date with Emily, some of the men are grilled by Emily's friends about their intentions, and Emily will learn who her friends think would be a good match for her and Ricki. Plus, the Queen of Country, eight-time Grammy Award winner Dolly Parton, surprises Emily and one lucky man at Dollywood, and country music star Luke Bryan also gives a special concert to Emily and one of the bachelors. But the fun ends at a dramatic cocktail party when some of the men come clean about whether they're ready to step up and be a stepfather, sending shock waves through the group - and Emily decides to do something about it.
- Bachelorette
Emily's mom brings her breakfast in bed. The two discuss how much The Bachelorette's daughter misses her when she is gone. Meanwhile, host Chris congratulates the final 16 men. Cards are pulled and Chris from Chicago gets the first one-on-one date in Emily's hometown. So the pair head out to explore the strangely deserted streets of Charlotte. Suddenly, ropes drop from the ceiling of a tall building. "That's when it kicked in that we'll be climbing a building," Chris tells the camera. He also says that Emily looks really sexy in a climbing harness. About halfway up, Emily begins to freak out. Chris, "such a calming presence," urges The Bachelorette to the top. "I feel like we accomplished something together," Chris says. They exchange high fives.
During dinner, Chris explains that his last serious girlfriend was a high-school relationship that only recently ended. He then admits that he is only 25. Emily senses a "red flag." Is such a young buck ready to take on a wife and daughter? Chris insists that he is "mature" and a "man." So Emily awards the younger man a rose. "This date has been incredible," Emily tells the camera. Chris then asks for a kiss. Emily accepts. They make out a little. "Kissing Emily was, like, the greatest thing I ever experienced in my life," Chris says.
The next day, Emily greets the boys for a group date at a park. Sean is nervous as he is not the "type of guy who aggressively approaches women." Others, like personal trainer Ryan, are overtly confidant. Emily then shocks everybody by suddenly walking away ... and returning with four of her best friends. "They are here to grill you to figure out who would make the best husband and dad," Emily explains. "No pressure." Cue of montage of the friends interviewing the men. Variations on "Are you ready to be a dad?" are repeated over and over. Some of the men dance. Ryan does push ups on a picnic table. The ladies are particularly smitten with Sean, who is asked to remove his shirt. The highlight of the interview session comes with Travis, who is still carrying around a real egg as a symbol of ... something.
Afterward, dozens of kids storm into the park and the ladies closely observe the bachelors playing with the children. Ryan decides to leave the kids and crash ladies time. He cracks numerous jokes and then proceeds to tell Emily that, if they were married, she would have to stay thin. Ryan is kidding ... we think. Later that night, Emily takes the gang to dinner where she singles out Sean and Doug, who were the biggest hits with Emily's friends.
During private time, Sean explains that he is very picky when it comes to women and has had a great example by watching his parents, who still go on date nights. Doug's family life is a bit different. His mom split and his dad died young, leaving Doug and his sister to live in a foster environment growing up. "It's people like that that make me look at my life and feel so blessed," Emily tells the camera. Tony, meanwhile, is getting very sad. He misses his little boy so much and is soon crying. Emily offers a comforting arm rub. But it is Doug who takes Tony into the alley behind the restaurant and has a heart to heart. So Tony calls his son on speaker phone and openly weeps. "I love my son!" he tells the camera. Eventually, Emily shows up to offer her sympathies ... and then basically explains that it is time for Tony to leave. A parent herself, Emily does not want to keep Tony away from his boy for another second.
So Tony hopes in a cab and takes off. Emily returns to the group, explains that Tony is gone and awards the rose to Sean. The next day, Emily has her one-on-one date with Arie, a race car driver. The pair takes a plane to Tennessee and visits ... Dollywood. "For me, this is the happiest place on Earth," Emily tells the camera. So the would-be couple walks through the strangely deserted amusement park, sipping lemonade and riding rides. And wouldn't you know it? Dolly Parton soon steps out. "Surprise!" says Dolly before playing a song she wrote specifically for Emily and Arie.
Emily is starstruck, especially when Dolly invites her to have some private "girl talk." Dolly explains that she has been with her husband for almost five decades and sings another love song that she wrote for him. Emily and Arie slow dance ... and Emily spends more time staring at Dolly than Arie. Later, Emily and Arie have dinner. Arie explains that his past relationship was with a woman who had two young kids, but it ended when she didn't want to have more kids. Emily then talks about her last relationship with bachelor Brad. She theorizes that Brad wasn't really "ready." Arie insists that he is ready. The date ends with a rose, ride on the carousel and a make-out session.
Cocktail party time. Emily asks Kalon for some private time -- and he pretty much blows it. He gets into a long story about how he didn't dream as a child of having a first child that wasn't his own. Emily dares interrupt -- and Kalon cuts her off. "I love it when you talk, but I wish you'd let me finish," he says. It isn't funny, though Kalon chuckles as if it were. Later, Emily tells the camera that she likes "tall, skinny and funny," but not "tall, skinny and condescending." Ouch. Then, Travis decides it's time to let go of his egg. He dramatically hands it to Emily, who smashes it on the ground. So that whole thing is over.
Emily then has a very bizarre conversation with Alessandro, who seems intent on getting himself kicked off the show by insisting that he would view becoming a dad as a "compromise." He repeats it over and over despite Emily's increasingly furrowed brow. Soon after, Emily decides to just go ahead and send Alessandro home. "I'm totally shocked because I wasn't expecting that at all," he tells the camera. Later, Emily is comforted by Arie. His comfort comes in the form of a major make-out session. Ryan is furious and confused: "Would I have ever seen myself competing against a guy like Arie? No."
Time to send some men home. The rose ceremony begins. Emily awards roses to ... Jef ... Charlie ... Doug ... Michael ... Travis ... Alejandro ... Ryan ... John ... Kalon ... and Nate. So it's goodbye to Stevie. "It sucks," he comments. See you next week, America.
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