3x01 - "Oath"
It's been six months since the events of the season 2 finale. Rachel did some soul searching on a farm, Quinn has been trying to pick up the pieces of her career, Jeremy went to rehab and anger management, and Chet has picked up a new 20-something model to be his girlfriend.
This time around, when Chet and Quinn pitch a new season of Everlasting, the suitor -- or rather suitress -- is an Elon Musk-type female tech-mogul named Serena who has represented the many women who have sacrificed personal time for professional success. At the office, Chet pricks Rachel with a random pricking device, twice, as if to take an oath.
Let the games begin! 27 guys enter the mansion, and something bad is about to happen. Serena gets hammered, and Rachel finds her boning the jockey, instead of kissing the guy in a moment where we wonder whether consent is an issue. Poor Serena, she is totally clueless and has no idea what she signed up for. This gives me a flashback to last season's controversial taping shutdown of Bachelor in Paradise where Corinne and DeMario engaged in a drunken romp and the rest is history.
On with the elimination ceremony. Quinn's commentary was everything throughout this ceremony, and the shortest guy gets the ax. Then, here comes Chet vs. Quinn again over his young girlfriend Crystal. Also, at the end of the show, one of the guys prepares to sleep in the hammock when Rachel catches him. Rachel then rebuffs Jeremy's attempts to apologize. Jeremy revealed he did whatever he could to prevent her from going to jail and Jay stops this sweet moment. Rachel then asks him: "Are you there for me?"
And what is Madison doing fooling around with an older man? The episode ends with Quinn in the editing room, in an interesting fashion.
Grade: 9.5/10
I gotta admit, last season was pretty wild and pretty enjoyable. This season is beginning the same way, but compared to the second season, this is an improvement according to multiple critics. The only complaint I had against season 2 were that some of the storylines were unresolved -- police brutality, anyone? With this third season premiere, I am feeling underwhelmed with Serena so far, but it is too early to tell. I really liked Darius from last season and the result of the finale where he finally leaves dodge with Ruby. I hope Serena's character gets developed into the dynamic female character with heart and not just someone who is clueless.
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is my review of the season 3 premiere of UnREAL. Remember, dress to kill, folks, and stay tuned for next week's episode Mondays at 10pm on Lifetime!
