By Miranda Park (she/her)

I would like to pay my respects to the owners of the land, the Wurundjeri peoples, upon which I reside, and their elders past, present and emerging. I would like to acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded, and that I actively benefit from the impacts of the colonisation of so-called Australia.

Following on from Sarah’s insightful article, which talks us through watching The Bachelor with a critical lens, I wanted to discuss some common stereotypes that are used in the Bachelor Universe; specifically, the ‘wifey’ vs ‘villain’ trope.

But before I delve into this, let me give you a quick rundown of the events so far*:

The Bachelor can be divisive at the best of times, but one thing that seems to be uniting viewers is the consensus that Locky’s season has been…how should I put it…lacklustre. Clearly this year’s budget has been so dismal, or Locky wouldn’t have been forced to take Irena on a fencing date (yes you read that correctly, fencing). The hilarity of watching the producers try to turn a global pandemic into dramatic fodder for their show was completely overshadowed by HOW AKWARD AND CRINGE-WORTHY IT IS WATCHING VIRTUAL ROSE CEREMONIES. *screams internally*. But hey, that’s “love in lockdown” for you. Also, as many people are pointing out, where even is Locky??? Presumably paragliding off the tallest cliff he can find (because he oozes so much fearless masculinity that he’s just got to hurl himself off stupidly high things). But I seem to be spending more time watching the civil war between Roxi and Juliette, than I am watching The Man Himself on his quest to find love.

Anyway, I digress.

There are certain things you can always rely upon when you sit down to watch the first episode of a Bachie season:

1. Osher is the bee’s knees and you’ll be reminded of this every time he walks into the mansion;

2. There will always be that one person who gets nervous drunk at their first cocktail party;

3. The Bachelor will be bombarded with a chorus of “can I grab you for a chat?”; and

4. The episode will introduce that season’s ‘wifey’ and ‘villain’.

You can usually spot the ‘wifey’ from the moment she steps out of that limo and onto the red carpet, which may as well be the aisle of her wedding. How so? It’s all in the music. You’ll often hear the soft tinkering of pianos and sweet sound of violins in the background as she descends down the carpet of PG-rated romance and fairytale love stories to meet her future hubbie. If you’re really lucky, you might even catch the faint tinkle of wind chimes that are presumably swinging in the breeze…‘cause love is in the air, duh.

Contrast this to the saucy saxophone music that usually plays whenever a ‘villain’ walks out to meet their bachelor for the first time. Abbie Chatfield, the so called ‘villain’ of last year’s Bachie season, described it as “80s porn music”. It’s sultry, it’s a little flirty, it’s a lot like Kenny G was just commissioned to write the soundtrack. Most of all, it’s designed to create an air of suspicion around the woman in question, even before our brains have had time to register her as the season’s ‘villain’. Because no one wants to believe that the woman whose screen time is accompanied by “porn” music, has come on The Bachelor “for the right reasons” (whatever that means). What is perhaps most outrageous, however, is the snake sound effect that is played over every conversation and every movement this woman will likely make during her time in the mansion. In an interview for the Shameless podcast, Abbie said:

I would sip a glass of wine and I got ‘sex villain’ music or a snake ‘ssss’ sound. I noticed so many times, I would blink and it would go ‘ssss’. Like I’m coming out of the bushes to get the girls.

The Bachelor producers seem to subscribe to the idea that if you can’t physically call someone a ‘snake’, just add the sound effects instead.

So, why have I just given a detailed account of all the piano tinkles and snake hisses that occur in the background of Australia’s most watched reality dating show?

Well, it’s because, when fan favourite Bella Varelis stepped onto the red carpet this year, I was convinced that she would be the gal to nab Locky’s heart (and the rest of Australia’s). Why? Because as she floated down the red carpet, it was like the late, great Ennio Morricone had written the score to her love story. The pianos, violins and wind chimes were out in full force, making it seem that without a doubt (well in my mind anyway), she would become the ultimate ‘wifey’ of the season.

It was very surprising, therefore, when a couple of weeks later (and a few episodes behind on my Bachie viewing), I was scrolling through my insta feed only to stumble across this Pedestrian article:

What happened to Bella? And why in god's name was a lightsabre photoshopped onto her picture??

Her crime? Supposedly turning on her best friend Irena in a fit of jealous rage, after realising she wasn’t the only one to have a strong connection with Locky.

Now I’m not going to lie, my heart sank a little when I read the title of this article, but is sank even more when I read the first line. It began with, “One of the best parts about watching The Bachelor is figuring out who the show villain is”.

Is it really though? Am I the only one who is starting to tire of seeing women being so blatantly pigeonholed into two dimensional tropes with the help of some super dodgy sound editing and a generous sprinkling of snake hisses?

What intrigued me about this article – and by extension, Bella’s story arc on the show – however, was that very rarely do you see a ‘wifey’ turn into a ‘villain’, and vice versa. It’s utterly frightening to think how public perception of a reality TV star (or any celebrity for that matter) can change with as much speed and vigour as I can inhale a box of bolognese arancini balls at 11pm on a Wednesday night. If you had any doubt about it, “cancel culture” is alive and well. Moreover, it is arguably at its most ruthless and inflexible when directed towards women. How is it that men seem to be offered their redemption on a silver platter (I think of certain former AFL players as I write this), when quite often cancel culture will completely extinguish a woman’s career at the slightest whiff of controversy.

And while I’m at it, why does it seem like men on their seasons of The Bachelorette aren’t vilified with nearly as much venom and polarisation of ‘good’ versus ‘evil’, as women are? What is it about Australian media and pop culture that makes it still cling onto this ‘Madonna/Whore’ complex, despite the fact that arguably a large percentage of its consumers now recognise how completely sexist and debasing it is? Or do they? It’s in moments like this, that I really do wonder.

I wonder if we will ever see a type of mainstream reality TV that doesn’t regress back to archaic stereotypes which reduce women to mere caricatures. Because in reality, people aren’t villains. Villains exist in movies, in fiction. They most certainly aren’t people whose lives have been thrust into the public spotlight, laid bare for all the world to scrutinise, to speculate, to twist into a narrative that is no longer their own.

I also wonder when the intensity of our anger and frustration over seeing these worn out stereotypes appearing time and again, will overcome our addiction to the strange and intoxicating allure of The Bachelor franchise. I am such a culprit of this. Writing this blog post has just proven it. I will be the first person to point out how twisted and bizarre it is to continue watching The Bachelor year in year out, and all the while getting more disturbed and vexed by what I see playing out on my screen. Perhaps it’s become habitual. I feel like Pavlov’s dogs, salivating at the mere mention of a rose ceremony. Is it enough to continue watching this show and contribute to the thousands of dollars it rakes in each year, so long as I keep telling myself that I watch it in order to critique it? Maybe, maybe not. I’m still undecided.

Will I mull this question over as I pop on tonight’s episode of The Bachelor and inhale yet another box of arancini balls? You bet I will.

*Please note: This article was written a few days before the season finale aired and therefore doesn’t discuss the most recent events of the last episodes. But all I will say is (spoiler alert!), imagine having the word ‘honour’ tattooed across your chest yet dumping a woman on national television 24 hours after declaring that you’re in love with her. Well played Locky, well played...

Header image: screenshot from The Bachelor, Channel 10, Fair Dealing