During her opening toast on Monday’s premiere of The Bachelorette, Jenn Tran declares that she’s looking for a “ferocious love”—something “fiery,” as one of her contestants concludes. But season 21 kicked off on ABC without any major explosives. Both the two-hour episode and a supertease of the season’s remaining episodes suggest something of a slow burn.
This decades-old franchise did offer dogged viewers a few fresh developments on Monday. Night one filming takes place at a new location—the Hummingbird Nest Ranch in Simi Valley, California, which was also used for the short-lived Bachelor spin-off, Listen to Your Heart. No reason is given for the temporary switch, and by episode’s end, the remaining men are already headed to Australia—the earliest international travel we’ve ever seen on the series. And 26-year-old Tran is breaking ground herself: the physician’s assistant student from Boston is now the first Asian American lead in Bachelor or Bachelorette history.
After placing fifth on Joey Graziadei’s season of The Bachelor, Tran was crowned the new Bachelorette as a relatively unknown entity. But her casting is long overdue for a show that has weathered several racism scandals and habitually cast the same carbon-copy white man for The Bachelor. “It was really hard for me to believe I was everyone’s first choice,” Tran says in the premiere. “I felt like I was in somebody else’s shoes.” After greeting two female Asian fans in a park during her opening package, Tran discusses the responsibility she feels “to make her heritage proud.”
Later in the episode, Tran and contestant Thomas N—who has dual citizenship in the U.S. and Vietnam—bond over their immigrant parents and hopes of teaching their children Vietnamese. Tran gets emotional speaking about the ways her mother sacrificed her own dreams so her daughter could succeed. But there aren’t any other Asian contestants among Tran’s suitors, which she herself found frustrating. “I can’t really speak to the casting process and the decisions that were made, but it is unfortunate that there weren’t a lot of Asian men this season,” Tran told Glamour ahead of her season. “Asian men haven’t always seen themselves in this position, and I am hoping that me being here and Thomas N. being there, that the both of us can inspire other Asian men to realize that they can do this too if they want.”
This season’s other suitors are a mixed bag of potential red flags. Marcus, a former Army ranger who survived six deployments and a near-death experience on his last mission, packs an American flag in his suitcase and tells Tran his life goals are as follows: “Serve my country, go to outer space, and find my person.” Sam N. is a 25-year-old entrepreneur—whatever that means—who reveals he’s “a virgin” upon exiting the limo, before clarifying that he’s “a love virgin” and “Jenn-tleman.” More gimmicky jobs and limo exits follow: Spencer is a “Pet Portrait Entrepreneur;” the jovial Hakeem shows up with a sea of Up-esque balloons tied to his back because “I am ready to pop off;” and Devin gives off “a Pete Davidson vibe,” according to Tran. Some of these gags stretch exhaustively into the evening. “Lovesick” creative director Jonathon is transported in on a stretcher, wearing nothing but a hospital gown (a rose chyron covers his seemingly bare backside) and bandages obscuring his face.