3 seasons of The Bachelor franchise we wish were streaming

The Bachelor has been one of the longest-running franchises of all time, but unfortunately, not all of the seasons of the original series or its spinoff shows are available to stream. Looking back to the past, here are the three seasons of the franchise I wish I could easily rewatch.

1. The Bachelorette: Season 7

Okay, so I might be biased, as Ashley is one of my favorite Bachelorettes, but this season of The Bachelorette was so unique!

We must discuss Bentley. BENTLEY. This really was a whirlwind. Night One, a contestant named Bentley steps out of the limo and was clearly one of Ashley’s favorites from the start. He was attractive and charming, I guess? 

The plot thickens. We discover Ashley had heard from a friend (Bachelor Nation Royalty Michelle Money) that Bentley was only going on the season to promote himself and his business, and would leave after a couple of weeks. 

That proved to be true, and Bentley left the show as Ashley had what has to be one of the longest crying episodes ever filmed on television. We had a very heartbroken Ashley for almost half the season until Bentley was summoned to Hong Kong (!) a few episodes later for closure. 

This was really something. 

Overall, Ashley was such an engaging, funny, relatable Bachelorette. Season 7 also had a very likable final two: Ben Flajnik and J.P Rosenbaum. Long live season 7!

2. The Bachelor: Season 16

Ben Flajnik’s season of The Bachelor was all about one person: Courtney Robertson. Truly one of the best “villains” of all time. She now has a great podcast, After Reality.

In today’s day and age, “villains” on The Bachelor can often seem contrived and overly produced. They also often lack charm. Season 16 had none of these problems!

Not only did Courtney carry off her villain edit with charm, but she also completed a nearly impossible task for a villain: winning the season!

Of course, it wasn’t that easy. But Courtney resisted blaming the show or the other girls for everything, instead embracing her experience and making the most out of it after, with her (insanely entertaining) book, I Didn’t Come Here to Make Friends.

Need I say more? Courtney is reason enough to rewatch season 16!

3. The Bachelor: Season 13

One of the first ever truly dramatic endings! 

I’m sure we all remember Jason Mesnick’s season like it was yesterday. 

Jason was down to his final two: Molly and Melissa. During his breakup with Molly, she warned him that he was going to “end up hurt again” and Jason ran up to the balcony for a major sob fest before his proposal to Melissa. 

Something didn’t feel quite right.

Indeed, several weeks later, Jason and Melissa met again for a private recording of After the Final Rose, during which he told her that he was getting back together with Molly.

Oh, the pain. This was still solidly in the era of tabloids, and headlines like “Bachelor Betrayal” were plastered all over the magazines. 

The good news was that Melissa had a massive press tour and rose to even greater fame as a contestant (and eventual All-Star winner) of Dancing With the Stars. 

Meanwhile, Jason and Molly went on to have an amazing, rainy, televised wedding! 

A happy ending for all. But never forget the drama.