[QUOTE=[I[B]]MadisonL[/B];2411568;]I watched the finale tonight with my dad, who had only seen the F4 RC - and picked his favorites as Tessa, Danielle, and Bevin in that order. (This is why I'm such a Daddy's girl, I suppose!) Anyway, I made him give me his 'middle-age' and male view on what was going on, and he said: Andy is so in love with Tessa that she shouldn't have any doubt in her mind that he'll choose her. Bevin is aggressive and passionate and that makes him feel great now, but I don't think he truly wants that in a long-term marriage.
I watched the episode on the West Coast having read the East Coast spoilers line by line. I admit that I was horrified by Andy's declaration of love to Bevin, partially because I wanted him soooo badly to choose Tessa, but also because I felt that he was cheapening his proposal by declaring this all around. And yet, when I watched everything unfold, it was all kind of...tame? I have to say that Andy sounded a bit tipsy when he was talking to Bevin - he was slurry his words, he looked sleepy, and he was being more squinty-eyed and touchy-feely than usual. Andy seems like he could handle a few drinks, but I really don't think he was 'all there' mentally...I don't know if this was a conscious decision on his part, or if I'm just going crazy. Nevertheless, when he finally did whisper the 'I love you, Bev', it sounded bittersweet.
I feel like I should be outraged that he said this to Bevin less than two days before his proposal to Tessa, but I cried during the non-RC. I think Andy did love Bevin - he loved her passion, her drive from the beginning, her heart on her sleeve...in a sense, everything that was missing from his relationship with Tessa. I think it did break his heart to have to turn her down, not because she was the 'right choice' for him, but because he knew all along how emotionally invested she was and how crushed she would be. I hope Bevin is able to surmount the feeling of "Why does this always happen to me???" and instead look at love with a new, fresh perspective - and of course, I do hope she finds her true love.
NOW, the happier topic. For all the build-up of this season...as soon as Andy read the note, I knew he was a goner. This was what he had been waiting for for soooo long - this was why he wooed her, chased her, courted her, dazzled her, and pleaded with her to stay - for those very special words: "I am in love with you." And as frustrated as I became at times by Tessa's reluctance, I can't complain any longer, because it's true - when she said those words, you could hear in her voice and see in her eyes that she meant it. And you could hear the little hitch of hope and joy in Andy's voice when he read the line about Tessa not wanting to go back to the way her life was before she met him.
He stares at Tessa whenever he's around her, he always touches her in one way or another, he gets this goofy grin on his face whenever she talks about how happy she is to be with him, his face lights up when she laughs, and there is truly something sweeter about his demeanor when he's around her. I think that Andy was truly surprised to feel so vulnerable - after all, he was THE bachelor and the women were supposed to be fawning over him. Yet, here was a woman who had completely captured his heart, and he couldn't let that go. By the end, it wasn't even the thrill of the chase...there was just something magical about their relationship, and I think it changed him.
Yes, I do see Andy as a very confident (and probably egocentric) self-made man, but I believe that Tessa is very much his equal. I think he's proud to have her as his fiancee/wife, and I honestly believe that he'd consider himself to be the luckier one of the two. That, in a sense, validates this entire season for me - that was the love story I've been wanting to see for so long. That was why I was squealing for joy the second Tessa stepped out of the limo (by Dad thought I'd gone insane), that was why I was waiting for the realization to strike Tessa, that was why I wanted to sun to shine through the clouds...
Um, okay, I'm done. Sleep sounds like a good idea. Now I am actually excited to see tomorrow's show, because I hope that Bevin has been able to pick herself up and look forward - and of course I want to see Andy and Tessa glowing.
P.S. How much did TPTB strike gold with Tessa and Andy's storyline? To have Tessa be so doubtful in the beginning, have Andy chase her, have Tessa wait until the last second to tell him her feelings, have Andy be waiting for those words, and to have Tessa regret having wasted all that time in the beginning. Well, if she hadn't, Fleiss would have had NO chance concealing the love story...they might as well have performed the FRC in Tahoe.[/[/I]QUOTE]
WOW Madison
What a beautiful tribute here, and you summed up so much of what I was feeling and thinking. Thank you. So great that you watched it with your Dad...I actually had a friend come over who had never seen TB before, and so it was interesting to get her perspective. She stated from the getgo, it couldn't be anyone but Tessa, and for her the bottomline was that Andy and Tessa had "fun" together, and for my friend that was key. She also commented how he looked and acted so differently around Tessa. And I felt bad for Bevin, but I think from the beginning, she was a consolation prize...that if Tessa did not come through with her feelings. And Tessa came through with bells on!
My favourite parts of tonight, where when Tessa commented on "what a cute butt. Not you Andy, the horse."And I cried when Andy read out Tessa's note, and she finally declared her love for him. It was so emotional. My friend commented on how genuine she is, how honest she was then, and Andy was putty in her hands. We also both loved when he opened the gift, and how much it meant to him. He seemed in awe and marvelled at the time, thought and work put into it. He was more than touched by her thoughtful gesture. And I loved hearing him mentioning what was on it, like astronaut etc...obviously many conversations they had had, but we were never privy to. I cried during that sequence and so did my friend. Loved "I freaking love you. I freaking love you Tessa!"
I also noticed when he picked out the engagement ring the woman said something about the ring being simple and elegant, or some such wording...and he commented it was perfect...and I knew he was thinking of Tessa when she said it,
I wish the proposal would have been longer, much more time spent on Andy and Tessa, and much less focus and time spent on Bevin. We never saw the song, the dogtags etc etc...I wish Andy would have stated that he loved Tessa more during the proposal and would have gone into more detail of why he loves her and made it more of a tribute to their love. I could rage on for 5 minutes about the qualities Tessa has that I love about her. **sigh**, so not enough time spent on that for me. Loved the sunset in the background, the spinning her around, and Tessa's shocked expression, and I am thrilled for Andy and Tessa. They are perfect together. But I have got to comment, that if I was Tessa, and saw what Andy did and said to and about Bevin...I'd be a bit choked right now...and Andy would have some major grovelling to do. Thanks again
Karey....loving the hammock