Millions of men and women turn on their televisions every Monday night to watch "The Bachelor", 6.6 million, to be exact.
"Monday night is kind of a big night around our house," Kristie Bear, a Boise-based event and party planner, says. "We like any reason to get together and have a party."
Watching ABC's "The Bachelor" gives Bear and her friends, male and female, a reason. That's right, even the husbands and boyfriends get in on the "Bachelor" viewing action.
"If you can't beat them, you join them, and, if they're smart, every Monday night, they better be here," Bear says.
"I think there's a competitiveness... that the men enjoy," Amy Janson, a long-time fan of the show, says.
Bear and Janson say part of the fun is picking a favorite contestant and cheering for them to win the heart of the bachelor throughout the season.
For fans that can't get enough of the show, there's an official "Bachelor" Fantasy League competition. ABC is using sister-company ESPN's fantasy sport technology to host an online game similar to fantasy football, but instead of picking players and teams to win games, league members take weekly quizzes and pick contestants to get the final rose.
For those who don't watch the show, this all might seem pretty silly. Die hard fans, though, say that's the point. It's all about escaping into the TV fantasy world of the show.
"It's all silly fun," Janson says. "With everything going on in the world and how your mind can get wrapped up in so many things, it's just so refreshing to watch something that's silly and mindless and we can just laugh, and I think that's what we really need right now."
"The Bachelor" airs Monday nights at 7:00 p.m. on KIVI 6 on Your Side.
