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'Bachelor' recap: Roller skating at Milwaukee Art Museum

Alison Sherwood
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Editor's note: Waukesha native Nick Viall is searching for love during his fourth appearance on a "Bachelor"-franchise show. Will he find it? Our reporters will keep you in the loop with weekly updates. 

Viall and Danielle L. enter the Pabst Theater

What happened: Wisconsin got a date (or three) with "The Bachelor" this week, but first we picked up where we left off: Vanessa confronting Nick about his reaction to Corinne's sexually aggressive behavior in a bouncy castle during the pool party. Nick doesn't handle the hot seat well, and this was no exception. He thanked Vanessa for being open with him but told her to have patience with Corinne.

Two women went home in the rose ceremony (Christen and Brittany). Host Chris Harrison announced to the remaining women that their journey around the globe to find love begins now. First stop (drumroll): Nick's hometown of Milwaukee! The ladies graciously managed a few cheers. If Wisconsin wasn't where they were expecting to kick off this adventure, well, don't worry, girls, it wasn't where ABC was planning to start it either (more on that here).

A behind-the-scenes look at 'The Bachelor' in Wisconsin

First stop in Wisconsin: Nick met his parents at The Steaming Cup in Waukesha for a teary exchange about how he's ready to find a partner.

"We don't want to see you on the show again," his dad half-joked.

The women walked around Waukesha's Frame Park, admiring the ducks, and Nick welcomed them, saying, "I hope you guys fall in love with this place, because I love it. It has so much charm."

Then Nick invited Danielle L. on a one-on-one date. The pair walked around downtown Waukesha, where Nick seemed to have many fond memories — you know, memories of jumping in the Fox River on false pretenses and making out with girls at the Waukesha Public Library. They popped into Periwinkle's Bakery, where the display case held "Nickerdoodle" cookies, and Nick and Danielle tried their hand at decorating self-portrait cookies.

Then, what a surprise (or so we're supposed to believe): Nick spotted "an ex," Amber, sitting by the window inside The Rochester Deli. The three sat down and Danielle asked Amber why she thinks Nick is single. Amber won points with Nick by saying he's "heart-driven."

Nick and Danielle sipped cocktails in the lobby of the Iron Horse Hotel, where Danielle opened up about her parents' divorce and the fact that she goes grocery shopping in sweatpants. Nick gave her the rose, then they walked into a cheering crowd at the Pabst Theater and danced briefly on stage while country singer Chris Lane performed.

"The energy in that room was the most amazing feeling I've felt," Nick said.

Next, a group of women headed to Knigge Farms in Omro and got down and dirty with farm chores: milking cows and shoveling manure (poor choice on the white pants, Josephine).

Omro's Knigge Farms hosts 'The Bachelor'

"Being from Wisconsin I'm more of a city boy," Nick said. "Still, Wisconsin has its fair share of farms." Insightful.

You could practically smell the cow poop through the television screen. Corinne, of course, was not interested and proceeded to throw a hissy fit the entire date. She couldn't even imagine asking her nanny, Raquel, to do farm chores, let alone doing them herself.

Later, the beauty of the Paine Art Center and Gardens in Oshkosh was overshadowed by the drama surrounding Corinne. The women confronted her about not participating in the farm activities and her nap during a past rose ceremony (the horror). Corinne vented to the camera with some gold-star quotes like, "We're fighting for a fiancé not a pickle," and a lengthy self-comparison to a corn husk: "In the middle is this luxury yellow corn with all these little pellets of information."

Next, Nick and Raven hung out with Nick's parents, 11-year-old sister, Bella, and Bella's soccer team, watching their game and heading with them to Skateland afterward. This was certainly no helicopter ride, but Nick said it was one of the best dates he's ever been on.

The best part for viewers came in the second half of the date, when they skated around the Milwaukee Art Museum's Calatrava (can that be the next MAM After Dark?). Over dinner, Raven described in graphic detail how she caught her ex-boyfriend in the act of cheating on her and proceeded to beat him with his lover's stiletto. How could Nick not give her the rose after that?

The pre-rose ceremony cocktail party was held at Ramhorn Farm, and was highlighted by a heated confrontation between Taylor and (who else?) Corinne. Who will go home in the rose ceremony? We'll find out next week.

Number of mentions of Wisconsin: Too many to count.

What we learned about Nick: He once "made a girl locker shelves to get a kiss from her." He is not very good at cookie decorating. Or cow milking. Or goaltending.

Best quote of the night: "I didn't mean to offend anyone by taking that nap." Corinne so perfectly encapsulates the drama of the "Bachelor" alternate universe we're plopped into every week.

Women remaining: 15

Coming up next: The drama between Corinne and Taylor continues, and we're told, "One of them won't survive the week." It appears the next stop on this journey for love is somewhere warm and inhabited by alligators.