Since 2003, The Bachelorette has introduced viewers to hundreds of single men looking for love, and with eighteen completed seasons under its belt, here are a few of the most entertaining and compelling seasons to re-watch. Like its ABC predecessor The Bachelor, every lead (who is typically an alum from a previous The Bachelor season) spends several weeks getting to know anywhere from 25 to 30 prospective partners. In most cases, seasons end with proposals. Naturally, with so many contestants fighting for the attention of one woman, it's not uncommon for Bachelorette seasons to feature intense drama, entertainment, and interesting dates.
While Bachelorette fans have recently been following several new breakups, including season 18's Michelle Young and Nayte Olukoya, viewers have been equally busy tuning into The Bachelorette season 19, which premiered on July 11. As the show's first official co-leads, Gabby Windey and Rachel Recchia from The Bachelor season 26 have already had quite the rollercoaster experience, just a few episodes in. Between the first rose ceremony being canceled and several men rejecting Rachel's advances, viewers are expecting season 19 to be one of the most dramatic Bachelorette installments to date.
Although Gabby and Rachel's journeys will undoubtedly remain complicated throughout the competition, their Bachelorette season isn't the only one to be highlighted for its entertainment value and overall dramatics. In fact, there are some Bachelorette seasons and former leads that are considered particularly compelling, whether due to the leads, the suitors, or circumstances that are beyond the show's control. Here are a few Bachelorette shows that fans should re-watch.
The Bachelorette Season 1 (Trista Rehn)
While the inaugural seasons of some reality shows easily fade into the background as the series' progress, The Bachelorette season 1 with Trista Rehn didn't just catapult the Bachelor spin-off to fame; it also led to one of the show's most successful matches. Trista and Ryan Sutter displayed a natural connection from day one, with Ryan never receiving lower than the fourth rose. While he was in a tough race with fellow contestant Charlie Maher, Ryan and Trista were successfully engaged at the end of the season, and married in 2013. Even better is the fact that Trista and Ryan are still married as of August 2022. They've proved that, despite filming for national television, it's completely possible to fall in love on The Bachelorette.
The Bachelorette Season 12 (JoJo Fletcher)
The Bachelorette season 12, which was led by The Bachelor season 20 runner-up JoJo Fletcher, is another season that has fulfilling amounts of entertainment and genuine connections. While most of the men kept a cool head throughout the season, there were several problematic and confrontational contestants who ended up in multiple conflicts, including the notorious villain, Chad Johnson. Despite Chad's temperament, JoJo ended up being another successful Bachelorette lead, who accepted a proposal from Jordan Rogers, the brother of NFL quarterback, Aaron Rogers. JoJo and Jordan recently married in May 2022.
The Bachelorette Season 16 (Clare Crawley/Tayshia Adams)
Although Gabby and Rachel are technically the first set of co-leads on The Bachelorette, season 16 was flipped upside down when Clare Crawley left with Dale Moss after just a few episodes. Due to the unusual circumstances, Tayshia Adams was named season 16's new bachelorette. She took over the season with the remaining men, as well as four new additions. If this wasn't dramatic enough for viewers, season 16 was also the first Bachelorette season to be filmed during the COVID-19 pandemic, after filming was suspended for months. With so many changes in one Bachelorette season, season 16 is regarded by fans as being one of the most entertaining and compelling installments to re-watch.
The Bachelorette season 19 airs Mondays at 8 p.m. EST on ABC.