Bachelorette Blowup: Hometowns Lead to Emotional Walls, Surprise Broken Heart, Final 3

Bachelorette Jenn Tran visits four hometowns where she discovers just how many of her suitors are still holding back ahead of a Rose Ceremony that leaves the rejected man both shocked and heartbroken.

Jenn Tran is afraid of having her heart broken even as she is breaking hearts every week. But that's the price you pay when you're The Bachelorette.

This week, there were four hearts on the line, not counting hers, as Jenn headed across the country for Hometown Visits from Connecticut to California. There were emotional moments with family members, plenty of tears, and a surprising amount of walls still up at this stage of the game.

Honestly, suitor after suitor left both us and Jenn feeling like maybe things weren't where they needed to be with an engagement looming just a couple of weeks away. Could the Bachelor format be ... flawed?!?

In all honesty, it just felt like there was more uncertainty at this stage this season than we've seen in most of the prior seasons, which was a bit unexpected. Usually these people are all in and dropping the l-word all over the place, if they haven't already, by this point.

We also have another bone to pick with the producers and editors this season. Jenn is funny! There were so many great one-liners and snappy comebacks, how have we not seen more of them before this? There's no way this is something new, so that means you've been holding back!

A lot of people thought Jenn was a bland and uninteresting choice when she was first announced as the Bachelorette, but now we are getting a glimpse of just how much personality she has. Yes, she's guarded and a bit reserved in some ways as the lead -- which isn't quite the party persona of her Bachelor stint -- but she's got a lot more personality than we've been allowed to see.

We get that the guys have been giving some juicy stuff this season, but you gotta come through with your franchise lead, too!

Speaking of the guys, we were loving the Final 4 grabbing drinks after their Hometown visits to catch up. We always hear about how close the contestants get during their time on the show, but it feels like we hardly ever get to see it with the show so rigidly structured. It was great to see this moment.

Did us seeing it mean the Hometowns themselves were a bit of a dud? Not at all, though they weren't perhaps as explosive or controversial as some past visits we've seen. Nevertheless, they were certainly impactful for Jenn, and we did get something meaningful out of them.

After seeing and hearing how Jenn feels about the Final 4 this week, we were totally confident we knew how the rest of the season was going to play out. And with tonight's elimination ... well, we were right so far.

Happy in Houston

Devin has been the most open and genuine guy on this whole journey, and pretty much from the beginning. Does he have any walls? Based on that strip tease (which they actually told his family about), we'd argue no.

Even Jenn had to admit that she'd never have picked Devin (who she compared to Pete Davidson) as a Final 4 contestant based on first impressions. But it was his heart that opened her up to their possibilities.

Right off the bat, he immersed her into his world by inviting her to join a running club he's part of ... and it's a lot of people! Luckily, Jenn's an athlete and had no trouble keeping up. In fact, she said she felt right at home with his friends.

At one point while running, Devin asked her if she thinks love is a sprint or a marathon, and Jenn shot back that it's a relay race.

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That night, Devin revealed that he does have one wall he's been holding onto, and that's his fear of telling Jenn that he loves her. He did, however, hint about it earlier in the day with his friends when he casually said, "She loves me--" before realizing what he'd just said.

Devin was urged by his mother, though, to not hold back his feelings. How can she pick him to be the one at the end if he's not even being real with her about what his heart is telling him? Yes, it's a risk. Yes, he can wind up heartbroken, but it's worth it because ... she could also choose him.

After meeting with his family, Devin sat Jenn down and took a chance on love by telling her that's exactly what it was. He's in love with her.

Fun in Fairfield

One thing that's been consistent when Jenn and Jeremy get together is that they're going to have a good time. In keeping with that spirit, Jeremy took her to Stew Leonard's, which is a wacky grocery experience with animatronics, costumes -- basically it's Chuck E. Cheese's with fruits and meats.

As always, the laughs came easily, but even as they were enjoying their day, Jenn was expressing her reservations about the relationship and concerns that there wasn't a bit more depth there.

Jeremy had been open about being a little slower to offer up his heart, and that's certainly been the case. The problem with that, though, is it can look like you're just looking for someone to date casually rather than someone to move toward something serious with.

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His family was surprisingly even more hesitant about the relationship than Jenn was, and not necessarily because of Jenn. His sister Emily was pretty upfront about him possibly not being ready by the end of this journey for an engagement, and Jeremy has been saying much the same.

He's just having fun right now and taking it day by day. But that can be the kind of relationship that suddenly finds itself ten years in and nothing has grown or progressed. Does he want a serious relationship or does he just want to have fun with someone?

He did share that his feelings continue to grow, as do hers, but are they growing fast enough?

Suspicious in San Diego

Jonathan headed to Hometowns looking for clarity about his relationship and his feelings with Jenn, needing validation from his family before he could understand his own feelings.

In talking with them, he went so far as to question whether Jenn is even being real with him or if she's presenting what she wants him to see, or perhaps America to see as the Bachelorette. That's a pretty huge thing to lack clarity on at this stage of the game.

They bonded over lacrosse during the day, but while Jonathan was seeking clarity, Jenn was hoping he'd let his walls down a bit and let her in. She's not seeing the totality of him, either.

When meeting with his brother Zach, Jenn got hit pretty hard with some questions about her feelings for Jonathan, how serious they were, and if she really sees a future with him. Zach is being protective, but he also appeared to be expressing uncertainties evident in the air from the couple themselves.

Just like Devin's mom urged him to be honest and open with his feelings, Jonathan's sister Kristy told him that if this is what he wants, he has to stop holding back.

At the end of the date, Jonathan did tell Jenn he was falling for her, but they danced around the more serious words.

Tentative in Tacoma

Marcus has his walls up so high, Jenn isn't even totally confident how he feels about her. She seems more scared of the possibility of Marcus rejecting her at the end of this than the other way around.

He has that military reserve, and perhaps residual emotional stoicism from his traumatic childhood in the foster care system with his sister, but even he seems frustrated at his own inability to let his guard down.

There was basically no day portion of this Hometown Visit, with it instead a massive get-together with Marcus' sister Gabriella, his mentors and a whole slew of close friends, including his Army Ranger buddies.

Marcus admits that he's not yet in love with Jenn, but also worries that he'll miss out by holding his heart back too much for fear of rejection. His sister told Jenn she'd never seen him like he is with her, while urging Marcus to let his walls down and tell her how he feels.

Jenn admits to Gabriella that she's falling in love with Marcus but doesn't know where he stands. After talking with his sister, Marcus finally told Jenn that he's falling for her, too. It's a step, but can he really open up enough?

Final Farewells

It was a bittersweet night out for the fellas after their Hometown Visits, but so sweet to see some of their bonding together without Jenn. There's such an awkward tension in the air as they're all vying for the same woman, but camaraderie from going through the same journey.

The guys were even more honest with one another than they've had the nerves to be with Jenn about how they're feeling. Marcus, in particular, started feeling deeply insecure that he was further behind than the other guys emotionally ... or maybe it's just his fear of opening up.

Before we get to who Jenn let go, we'll open up about our thoughts on how this was going to play out, based on those Hometowns, and specifically what Jenn said during them.

Immediately, it looked like Jeremy was in trouble. She reiterated that he's a fun date and they have a great time, but she needs something more serious and more real and she wasn't sure he was there. His family did little to alleviate that, leaving us confident his end was here.

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Jonathan and Marcus were in similar situations as Jenn needed them to let their walls down and be more vulnerable. Both got some encouragement from their families and both were able to do so finally, but Jenn herself seems to have stronger feelings for Marcus, which we think will give him the edge.

In the end, though, there's been nothing quite like the easy openness of the unlikely relationship between Jenn and Devin. Perhaps he appeals to that party side of her that she's set aside (mostly) for this journey, or perhaps he's just been so genuine since Day One, that appeals to her.

Devin was the first to express that he loves her, and we're pretty confident she's right there, too. It seems like it's his to lose ... if he can handle the growing pressure he feels with other guys still around.

In the end, we were right about Jeremy (you'll just have to believe us) and he was surprised to be sent home. It's telling that he was out of touch with Jenn's deep hesitations and concerns about the depth of their relationship. Had he been more invested, he might have seen it.

Hometowns Chatter

(random asides and comments -- not necessarily strategy, but entertaining and sometimes revealing)

• "I didn't know you were so popular." --Jen (meeting Devin's Good Guys Run Club)
• "Some of them like me." --Devin
• "Do you guys call him Pete Davidson, too, or is that just me?" --Jenn (to GGRC)
• "I just accept you for who you are." --Jenn (while talking with GGRC)
• "Yep, she loves me-- " --Devin (accidentally lets the l-word slip)
• "I don't want to tell her I love her and then for her to turn around and tell someone else that she loves them, too." --Devin (to Temo)
• "Don't hold back … You're not gonna be the one if you don't [tell her]." --Jennifer (to Devin)
• "Welcome to Connecticut. My favorite park." --Jeremy (to Jenn)
• "Looks very discreet. Did you take me here to kill me?" --Jenn
• "You like popcorn?" --Jeremy
• "Sure, I love some glazed nuts." --Jenn
• "Do you see a future with her? --Emily (to Jeremy)
• "I do. We'll see how the next few weeks go." --Jeremy (time is running out, bro)
• "I don't feel the need to rush into deep stuff. It'll obviously come up." --Jeremy (to Karen)
• "She seems like a nice girl." --Karen
• "You barely know her." --Jeremy
• "I think the word of the day is clarity." --Jonathan (about Jenn meeting his family)
• "He ate a grape after we stomped our feet in it. That was when I knew." --Jenn (to Jonathan's family)
• "This time that I've gotten to know her, is this what she wants me to see, or what she really is?" --Jonathan (to Lisa about Jenn)
• "Not one time did she bring up looks." --Lisa (to Jonathan about Jenn)
• "She's waiting for me to figure out how I feel and I don't have the answers that I'm looking for, so I'm terrified." --Marcus
• "It does make me scared. I don't know exactly how he's feeling." --Jenn (to Sue)
• "So, which one of you is going home?" --Jeremy (at Final 4 drinks)
• "Maybe I should be more nervous, but I feel very, very calm right now." --Jeremy
• "Honestly, there's this, like, feeling of shame being not there yet. What are those guys doing that I'm incapable of right now? It does make me feel like there's something wrong with me." --Marcus
• "Beautiful night for some heartbreak." --Jeremy (at Rose Ceremony)

The Bachelorette is ready for Fantasy Suites next Monday at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.