I was not unhappy when Atlanta's Andi Dorfman eliminated Marcus Grodd last Monday after hometown visits on "The Bachelorette."
However nice and attractive he is, Marcus is an incredibly leaden presence on TV. He somehow made stripping last Monday look dull.
The Dallas sports medicine manager certainly fell in love with Andi from the get go, but Andi couldn't muster mutual feelings. Nick's bad boy ways, Chris' romantic gestures and Josh's studly looks were far more appealing.
ABC, in its fine wisdom, cast Marcus on "Bachelor in Paradise," the spinoff of the spinoff, which debuts Aug. 4 and runs for seven episodes. In the press release, ABC wrote, "He’s coming to Paradise in an attempt to mend his broken heart and see if he is ready to love again."
On the phone during a press conference last week, Marcus was exactly as advertised: earnest, sweet and boring to a degree that a serious dose of caffeine couldn't even help. The most entertaining moment was when the ABC publicist shut down a reporter from Rumorfix when she tried to ask Marcus about possibly being engaged to someone he met on "Paradise." (The guy claims he's single.)
Otherwise, Marcus said fairly predictable things.
"I was pretty closed off and guarded" coming into the show, Marcus said. "I just became very close to Andi and decided to open up more."
He wouldn't say who he thought would win Andi's hand in marriage but based on his words, my guess is he's favoring Josh Murray, Aaron Murray's brother.
He couldn't muster much in the way of negative words for Nick Viall even though it was clear he wasn't a big fan. On the show, he avoided the confrontations between Nick and the other guys, choosing to lay back. "He was a good guy," Marcus said without enthusiasm. "He just didn't make the best decisions."
Marcus also sensed that Nick was uncomfortable being in a house full of competitive guys. "He approached [the competition] different than the rest of us," he said.
He liked Josh, the Atlanta man who he said had a major advantage because he could see the chemistry between the two and better yet, Andi and Josh lived in the same city.
Marcus wasn't so sure if Andi would be keen on living in Iowa with Chris Soules.
Ultimately, he was glad to make friends with several of the guys though (surprise!) not Nick.
"Chris and Josh are probably my best friends from the show," Marcus said. "I would always side with them before Nick."
Besides Marcus, four others from Andi's season made it on "Bachelor in Paradise' which is shot in Tulum, Mexico (which is where I had my honeymoon!): Marquel Martin, Dylan Petit, Cody Sattler and Tasos Hernandez .
TV preview
"The Bachelorette," 8 p.m. Mondays, ABC
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