The Bachelor is back in full swing, and the Red and White is here to give you updates, gossip, predictions, and our own personal favorites. We’re officially about five weeks into the season, meaning we’re halfway to the finish line. 

In a short few weeks our bachelor, Matt James, will be meeting four lucky girls’ families, and eventually, asking one of them to marry him. At this point, usually viewers have their top picks, the ones they want to see at the end of it. However, as Bachelor producers always do, they threw a curve ball at Matt – and the audience. They brought in four new girls at the end of last week’s episode, making for very entertaining interactions among the original girls in the house, as well as the new girls. The girls who are still there from the start of the season even gave themselves the nickname, “The OGs.”  

This season has been interesting in one aspect: it feels like there are a lot more villains than in the previous seasons. Usually the Bachelor franchise has one girl as the “villain” of the season. However, this season, multiple girls are stirring up drama. One girl, though, has taken the spotlight, deeming herself as “Queen Victoria.” She was recognized as a bully in the house, and also made her feelings about Matt very clear – that she was best fit to be his wife. In the most recent episode, girls spilled the drama on her. Matt recognized the mean girls in the house, and saw their true colors. He ended up sending the Queen (Victoria) and a girl by the name of Anna home before the rose ceremony. 

Now as far as favorites go, there are as many fan favorites as there are villains. Some fan favorites have even been predicted as being the next Bachelorette. Katie, Abigail, Bri, and Pieper are some current fan favorites. These girls have stayed out of drama, and even stood up for the other girls when they’ve seen the bullying. 

One thing that’s expected every season is that a contestant is exposed for something. Whether it’s having a boyfriend or girlfriend, or just being problematic, it happens at least once. This seasons’ problematic girl: Rachel. 

Rachel has recently been exposed by others for having somewhat of a racist past. When this information came to light, she quickly went from being a fan favorite, to being viewed as a villain. It will be interesting to see if she addresses this after the season wraps up. 

At this point in the season, Matt is a very straightforward bachelor. He seems to be building multiple strong relationships, so at this point in the season it’s hard to make a strong prediction. Some frontrunners have been Abigail, Bri, Michelle, Kit, and others. It will be interesting to see whether Matt is able to commit to one girl, or if he’ll leave this season without getting on a knee. We still have half of a season to watch all the drama play out, and see what else the producers throw at us. 

Watch The Bachelor on Mondays at 8 p.m on the ABC channel. to see how the rest of Matt’s journey plays out.