Hometown Dates, A Visit from Superman and One Glorious Return

The Boyfriend is back tonight watching The Bachelorette with me. I think he may have actually missed watching the show (or smiling during a particularly sweet moment between Jillian and some lucky guy when he thinks I'm not looking). In any event...we're back.

Tonight it's hometown dates. In Banff Springs, Alberta, Canada, Jillian is reflecting (in last week's rose ceremony dress) on her upcoming hometown dates. In her yellow scarf of the week, Jillian is off to Philadelphia, PA to meet Reid's family. She gets out of the car and into his arms as cherry blossoms are in full bloom behind them. This is very symbolic of their relationship. He's got coffee waiting for her (cute that he knew what to get her). She's clearly giddy as a school girl to see him and meet his family. Reid seems to be a front runner. Did Jillian darken her hair since we've last seen her? They walk around a little in Philly and after a few glances of some buildings, Jillian thinks she could definitely live there. I was actually in Philadelphia on Saturday, and definitely had a different ride than Jillian because after almost 7 hours round trip from New York City, I was over Philly, or more accurately, the New Jersey turnkpike.

We get to Reid's family - Rhonda, Larry (his parents) and brothers Brett and Chad. They seem to be a very nice, typical Jewish family. Rhonda gets right in there with the questions and is very to the point. We learn that Reid is not just a realtor - it's actually a family business. "We're thinking Reid's going to get married some day...now that Reid's approaching 30, we'd like to see him settle down." Yup, sounds like a nice Jewish mom. What a yenta! Rhonda is pretty attractive. She tells Jillian straight up that she thinks she's adorable. The brothers are married and they'd like to see their bro be too. Larry the Dad tells Reid to process whether she's a good match for him and if she is, to go into it head over heels even knowing he could get hurt. This family seems a little too focused on the fact that Reid is 30 and therefore he should head straight to the chuppah. That said, every Jewish family is not satisfied until you're hitched with 2-3 kids and a career. On the upside, they seem like a very loving and typically "involved" Jewish family - in that they like to stay connected to Reid's life.

Larry seems like the calm one in the marriage. You can tell he's the more quiet and thoughtful in contrast to the more outspoken Rhonda, the real estate agent. Next thing we know, we have three women - show up unexpectedly - they are Reid's two sisters in law and his grandmother. They bring Reid a birthday cake for his 30th birthday. Reid and Jillian kiss in front of the whole family. The women in his family are surprised to see him so affectionate with a girl. Looks like Jillian hit it off with one of his nieces - she sits in Jillian's lap. Reid says in a private video to the camera that he could be falling in love with her. She is clearly into him. There's plenty of smooching at the end of this hometown date.

Next hometown visit is with Michael. Holy cow - did we know he has an identical twin brother? Michael is from Valencia, CA and is totally excited to see Jillian. Michael sneaks into his house and jumps up and down like a monkey when he sees his brother Steve and his mom Lynn in the kitchen. They come greet him along with his dad Frank. Jillian shows up at the door and rings the doorbell. This seems like a much less personal greeting than if Michael had met up with Jillian privately beforehand as on the other dates. Perhaps that was Jillian's request - maybe she didn't want that alone time with him.

Michael and his brother go upstairs and switch clothes. They plot the conversations they will have with Jillian as the other. One funny line is when Michael says, "Should I say - do you like him more than a friend?" This couldn't be any more Wonder Yearsish and despite the fact that Michael has really grown me - probably more so than any of the other guys, he repeatedly displays the youth card. I'm not saying that he wouldn't be good in a serious relationship - I just think he is not a good match for Jillian.

Quite interestingly, Jillian knew right away that the twins had switched clothes. The dad has some alone time with Michael and also seems very normal and down to earth. He recognizes that his son is in deep, and he tells Michael that Jillian is very sweet. Brother Steve asks Jillian about Michael's age. (Side note: The Boyfriend thinks that Jillian looks tired on this hometown date. I think she looks increasingly more tired as the dates continue, but she still looks very cute). Steve tells Jillian that him and his twin have always wanted to get married young to have time with their wives before starting a family.

Later on, they're eating dinner. The door opens, and Michael's sister Jenna walks in - who came back from Australia just to meet Jillian. Michael's mother is practically in tears. Then everybody starts dancing in the living room. Lynn recognizes that there's a lot of fun between Jillian and Michael. There's no doubt about that, but have they kissed yet? I think maybe they did once, but it doesn't stand out to me. It's kind of ridiculous that she is meeting his parents when they have yet to have any real physical intimacy. Speaking of physical intimacy, I'm surprised ABC didn't fake us out one more time with a preview of one of the bachelors having some issues in the bedroom. Didn't they show us that during every commercial last week and this week we didn't see it once? Very annoying.

Anyhow, Michael and Jills do partake in some serious kissing on his parents' driveway - in complete high school style. Michael has fallen in. He's really into her. I kind of feel bad for him - he's a sweet guy and I think Jillian likes him a lot, but is not in love with him.

Next we're on to Kiptyn in Encinitas, CA. Jills is squeaking with pleasure when she meets the Kipper. She's wearing an adorable blue dress and they drink some wine by the beach. You can tell that Jillian is pretty nervous to meet the family. They drive up to an incredible house and an adorable little dog runs up to them. Eve and Earl (the parents), sister, brother Bryce and girlfriend Nancy are there to greet her. Holy cow, Kiptyn is LOADED. If his kind personality and good looks don't get her, the house certainly will. They take her outside where they show a hot tub covered in tape with the word "CAUTION" written all over it - a tribute to Jillian's steamy hot tub scenes from last season with Jason. Obviously, Kiptyn's parents are huge fans of the show. I thought it was really odd that they gave Jillian lasagna and wine taste test. That's sort of a snobbish thing to do - I would never be able to pass a test like that and trying to impress people that are into that kind of stuff would have been a big turn off for me. Also, both of his parents speak French - and are sure that Jillian knows this and can be impressed by it. Seemed like an unnecessary detail to me.

Kiptyn's mother pulls Jillian aside and starts grilling her. Again, turnoff. The mother asks if there's something that she could change about Kiptyn, what would it be? Jillian says she's used to "working for her happiness." Kiptyn's mother tells her that is wrong. As Jillian says, "She didn't bat an eye." The Boyfriend says, "She couldn't bat an eye. There's too much Botox." Eve says that Kiptyn has a little spark that she hasn't seen in a long time. Later on in the night, Jillian gets into an adorable bathing bikini and gets some hot tub time in Kiptyn. Eve overlooks the two of them from the window inside and inspects them. She seems like she'd be a high maintenance mother in law. They should wrap her in the "Caution" tape from the hot tub. Once in the hot tub, Kiptyn and Jillian kiss, however, it seems to go a bit awkardly.

Carmel, CA is next to meet Jesse and his family's winery. Holy cow again, these guys are all loaded. Is there a net worth requirement to be on this show? Jillian runs toward him squeaking, "How are youuuuu?" Jesse greets Jillian in a beige blazer and a tractor. She's wearing a ridiculously trendy half French braid in her hair. Jess and Jill sit in the fields and chat about their relationship. Looks like Jesse got a haircut and those hairs went to his chin. There's a little goatee action. Jesse admits that in his relationships - he takes a while to figure things out. Jillian gets to meet Joseph, Betty (his parents) and his brother, Jacob. They are Hungarian. Jake looks like he could start up a banjo band. Jillian says she's low maintenance - and is a bit defensive about it. You can tell that Jacob is the black sheep in this family - and seems to not believe at all in the Bachelorette process (which may mean he's perfectly normal). With his long hair and ridiculous goatee (did Jesse grow his to fit in?), Jacob starts interrogating his brother, "Do you love this chick?" Jesse says he's on the 5 year plan with Jillian. Jesse talks about opening up a wine bar with Jillian.

Jacob admits there's a bit of excitement in his brother's voice. Then Jacob gets his turn grilling Jillian. "Have you guys been naked together?" asks the brother. What kind of a question is that for trying to get to know someone? Jillian says he's a "late bloomer." Putting in the good word for his brother, Jake calls Jesse an "emotional ice cube." Probably the best part of the date is when the whole family starts rocking out together and Jillian dances with Jesse's whole family. It actually looked like a lot of fun. Jesse's brother tells him, "Yeah, you should marry her." There is some making out, and it's clear Jillian likes him.

It's Austin, TX and Jillian is on her fifth and final hometown date to meet up with Wes. More squeaking and she's in Wes's arms. Wes says he has a huge surprise for her. He opens a door and Wes's band is there. This is NOT, however, a surprise for the audience - as we have the seen the preview of Wes's band about 30 times at this point. I kind of feel really bad for Jillian at this moment because she's so immediately thrilled and excited by the band, and yet ABC wants us to hate Wes because he's using her for publicity and because he already has a supposed girlfriend. Wes does say he has a new CD coming out, and his appearance on the show might actually hurt his sales with his sleaze factor. I really hope we get to the bottom of this. Weren't you hoping that Laurel would call up Jillian at some point tonight or just show up at her hotel room and say, "Yes, Jillian, I am Wes's girlfriend." We need some kind of finality and closure on this point.

Meanwhile, Jake appears - he's concerned for Jillian and was told by Wes several times that he has a girlfriend. I wonder if ABC set this up so that she doesn't end up picking Wes in the end and getting dumped at the finale. That would make for horrible television. But given Jillian's decision - she has made it clear that she wants to be the one to figure out whether Wes is telling the truth or not. In a Top Gunnish pilot suit, Jake arrives and is ready for action.

Jillian is sitting around waiting for Wes to come pick her up to meet his family when she gets a knock at the door - it's Jake the Pilot. Jake says he's not there to get her back. Jake has a hard time telling Jillian this, but he finally tells her that Wes has a girlfriend, and her name is Laurel. Wes has confided in Jake about it and mentioned her at least three times. How on earth can Jillian get upset about Wes when Superman is sitting in front of her?? It's kind of ridiculous that she'd get emotional when the cutest guy ever cares enough about you to fly back to Texas to warn you about something. Jake says he will be there for her if she needs him. Can we just name Jake as the next Bachelor right now?

Jillian puts herself back together and greets Wes. Jillian announces that she needs to talk to him. She asks him if has anything to tell her about her past or anything. Jillian says that Jake says that he has a girlfriend. Wes says that he had a girlfriend Laurel and she's still one of his very good friends. Wes denies it currently being the case, claims he's being honest, that he's "not that good of a liar." The Boyfriend thinks he's a snake. Jillian asks if he wants to clear it up with Jake. She calls Jake over, and Jake says, "He's there for Jillian...and he'll hold (Wes) accountable." This guy is like the sheriff of Texas. I love how he greets Wes at the door with his hands on his hips. I wouldn't have been surprised if he took a pistol out.

Jake says he came down there to make sure that Jillian doesn't get her heartbroken. Jake asks Wes to look him in the eye and tell him that he never told him (Jake) that he has a girlfriend. Jillian leads Jake out in the hallway where he bawls his eyes out over the railing. Is this ABC's campaign to show a heartbroken man who needs to be the next Bachelor? The Boyfriend thinks he's going to throw himself over the railing.

"Do I trust the all American perfect guy or do I trust the all-Texan badboy?" says Jillian. Is this a rhetorical question? You never trust Wes. That's the answer. After some more sweet talking, Wes convinces her to come meet his family. We meet his mom Carolyn and his three sisters. They sit down for dinner, and they tell his family why they are so late. Wes's family convinces Jillian that he does not have a girlfriend. Wes calls Jake a "backstabbing, piece of #)$@_$!!" If this guy doesn't have a girlfriend, he definitely has something about him that makes him untrustworthy.

Being back in LA, Jillian gets another knock on the door and it's Ed in Argyle!!! I have to say, I have been and still am a HUGE ED FAN. It totally made my night after some long hometown dates. Ed says that he realized he made a big mistake and needed to "reprioritize what he's doing and he wants another shot." Props to Ed for putting the over-demanding job on hold and taking a risk at love. Either his boss got a lot of heat for making him come home early or Ed realized that Jillian was too good to let go. Ed said he got pretty emotional and was breaking down a little bit after he left. He says he felt terrible and kept thinking about it - that he made a bad choice and he'd never want to do it again. Ed says she should let him come back. Is she allowed to let him come back? What are the rules here? They seem to change every season.

Ed says he doesn't think there's anyone else on the show that's more compatible with Jillian than him. He promises not to let her down anymore. She looks instantly happy. Jillian says she gets so many butterflies. Her concerns, however, are that they have lost a lot of time together, that she will not get to meet his family, etc.

It's the night of the rose ceremony. Jillian appears in a gorgeous strapless, butter colored chiffon gown. She looks beautiful. Chris sits her down and asks her questions we all know the answers to. She says she's not sure she could accept a proposal from Ed without meeting his family. This is the first time we hear her talk about possibly getting engaged to any of them. Jillian makes an interesting point re: evil Wes - she'd rather make her own decision, be wrong and get burned then follow someone else's lead, be wrong and get burned. I'm not sure either of these are preferable, but whatever. Jillian claims she loved each and every one of the hometown dates. I have to agree, there weren't any dead pigeon burial moments. In fact, it was quite the opposite - she seemed to blend in wherever she went.

It's the rose ceremony and all 5 guys have arrived. Once Chris the Host announces that Ed is back, Michael looks so upset; he knows he's a gonner. The look on Ed's face when Jillian shows up in her gorgeous gown is priceless. Roses go to: Reid, Kiptyn, ED!! and Wes (boooooooo!!!). Jesse gives her a hug and walks away. Michael comes over to Jillian and gives her a big hug. Michael said that for a girl that just broke his heart, he can't say a bad thing about the girl. He said there are 100,000 small things between them. He says he "straight up loved that girl...would have been on his knee right now." Him and Jesse seem like really nice people. In the end, I think Michael was just too young - not in age - but in experience. Jesse seemed a bit reserved to me for Jillian's personality, though the fact that his family owns a wine vineyard speaks volumes (and really, what more is there to say?)

Kiptyn's family sings during the credits about "The Bachelorette Blues," - with Kip's dad on guitar and his mother dancing next to Jillian and Kip. Pretty funny.

So overall, a much more interesting show than last week. The Wes drama is getting old. I'd like some closure on this. Second, I couldn't be happier that Ed is back. I thought he was a frontrunner before, and think he has a chance of winning the whole thing. After meeting Kiptyn's family, I'm a bit turned off by them. Reid seems cool and I liked his family, but he's a bit quirky still. Ed is the all around solid guy - he works hard, realized he made a mistake, and is coming back full force to claim his woman. I'm cheering for him.

What did you think of this week? Do you think Ed will go all the way? Are Kiptyn and Reid still at the top of your list? Do you believe Wes that he doesn't have a girlfriend? Are you angry at Jillian for getting rid of Michael and Jesse? Let's hear it!