More like London stop!
Yes, Zach Shallcross’ search for love was briefly put on pause this week as Scholar star contracted Covid while filming in England.
But when Zach is stuck in a hotel room for a few days, the producers cook up some clever ways for him to continue shooting to get to know the contestants.
First there is a Zach-less group date that made us realize the dating competition event without dating and no competition, which groups of strangers only develop close friendships while traveling the world together can be more interesting than it sounds.
But soon after, Charity didn’t screw up from a sad one-on-one date.
(But if you have followed Scholar spoilers, then you know that Charity won’t count.)
Then there’s the sadder remote cocktail party.
And then there’s Greer, who starts melting down over tea and then keeps freaking out when her virtual date with Zach goes poorly, all of which is every bit as cringe as it sounds.
All told, this is easily one of the saddest, most awkward episodes of Scholar in event history.
And that’s really saying something.
The ladies are doing their best to enjoy their time in London, but double bus tours and pint pubs don’t seem like much fun.
The players may have thought that the scheduled rose ceremony would be postponed, but that was not the case.
However, Zach’s face is seen through the process of a giant monitor like some Orwellian nightmare from the future in which all dating takes place through the screen.
Going into the ceremony, it didn’t look good for Greer.
During a difficult “virtual cocktail party”, he compared Zach’s situation to the situation when his bout with Covid affected his monthly sales figures.
For some reason, Zach was there not having, and which is dead comparison in brutal fashion.
Still all messed up from the trauma of her earlier tea, Greer was reduced to tears once more.
And when he predicted that he wouldn’t be joining any other players in the next round – well, everyone seemed to be speechless with that prediction.
But, in the end, he lived to cry another day.
In Greer’s place, it was Mercedes and Kylee who were sent home by Virtual Zach.
The latter has been quiet all season and may not get a chance even if Zach stays healthy and the London trip is planned.
As for Mercedes – well, she and Zach may not have had the strongest relationship, but her firing was still one of the most frustrating in the show’s history because of how unfair it was.
By all rights, this week’s rose ceremony should have been postponed, but with all the international travel, the show is running on a very tight shooting schedule.
Fans don’t seem to mind when the pandemic is limited Scholar to one shooting location for each season, and the situation probably allowed for more flexibility.
Perhaps all that globetrotting attracted the attention of potential contestants and was a consolation prize for those who were eliminated.
Either way, the show must go on, and Zach will be breaking hearts in some foreign country next week.
Hope everyone stays healthy.