Charity Lawson‘s season of The Bachelorette brought many highs and lows, grand adventures in love and romance, and a love-hate relationship with a suitor named Brayden Bowers.
Yes, the earring-wearing, scarf-loving, first-impression-rose-winning man vying for Charity’s heart did one of two things with a majority of viewers: he either swept you off your feet or left you wishing you’d never tuned into this season. There was little to no grey area where Brayden was concerned, but a few fans saw something in him that we couldn’t look away from, despite how hard we tried (and trust me, we tried).
So during The Bachelorette: Men Tell All, we eagerly anticipated seeing Brayden grace our screens again for a few reasons. Yes, we’re hypnotized by the earrings and his smile, okay? However, we also wanted to see what he had to say for himself and what he would say to Charity about their time together.
Towards the end of the episode, Brayden began to win the hearts back of some fans who had sworn off him, thanks to our Golden Bachelor, Gerry Turner. When Gerry took the stage to wow us with his charm and make us cry with how he spoke of his wife, Toni, Brayden stepped up as his biggest fan.
Now, we’re sure you’re lamenting in your head about how it was probably an act because Brayden loves getting screen time, but we’re here to challenge you on that. Well, part of it, Brayden does love screen time (and we’re not strictly opposed to him getting it), but he genuinely looked ready to put on Gerry’s Number One Fan t-shirt and guide him into a wonderful premiere season of The Golden Bachelor.
Brayden’s antics on Charity’s season might have you scratching your head, wondering why anyone would want to be guided to love by Brayden but hear us out; he wasn’t offering him sage advice on finding the one; he was cheering on the grandZADDY everyone quickly fell in love with and filling him in on current lingo.
Call him the Gen-Z Yoda sidekick that Gerry needs, but we’re here for the Brayden/Gerry bromance we saw blossoming on the screen tonight.
Honestly, we’ve never needed anything more than this.
Brayden really is Gerry’s number one fan, and we’re a little smitten by the idea.
Brayden is Gerry’s biggest fan 😄 #GoldenBachelor #TheBachelorette #MenTellAll pic.twitter.com/knC8tg6nO3
— Shari Baldie (@ShariBaldie) August 15, 2023
We want this friendship to go down in Bachelor Nation history.
Fans also really want to see Brayden navigate Gerry on how to handle being called a grandZADDY again and again and again.
Brayden telling Gerry that “Grandzaddy” is a good thing 😂 #GoldenBachelor #MenTellAll #TheBachelorette pic.twitter.com/Yc3UJxWYRZ
— Shari Baldie (@ShariBaldie) August 15, 2023
We like to think that there’s truth in the idea that most things happen for a reason (the jury is still out on it being everything), but perhaps this was Brayden’s journey; instead of finding love, he was meant to build a bromance with Gerry. While Brayden was infuriating during some of Charity’s season, there was something there that we couldn’t look away from — he’s just charming enough to be the one that shows Gerry the ropes, and we didn’t miss the moment he wiped tears from his eyes when he heard Gerry speak about his late wife.
You’re welcome in advance for the influx of tears you, too, must be experiencing.
Maybe Gerry’s impact on Brayden would be just as beneficial for him, and we certainly hope to see the duo on our screens once more.