The New 'Bachelorette' Is Here So Bring On The Roses

Colton's fence jump is behind us and he made his decision about who he wants to be with, but the next most important thing about his season of The Bachelor was finding out who the next Bachelorette would be. So when it was announced on the finale that Hannah B. is the next Bachelorette, fans were ready. Maybe most were, more than anything, ready for the virgin jokes to finally end, but Hannah B. seems like she's ready to fall in love and hand out roses on her terms.

It didn't come as much of a shock to most fans, who heard the rumors floating around during the last couple of weeks of The Bachelor. Hannah B. was a clear frontrunner for The Bachelorette, as were Hannah G. and Caelynn. Some even joked that the "Women Tell All" special was like a collective audition tape for The Bachelorette. In the end, though, producers found Hannah B. most deserving of the chance to fall in love again. And honestly, she seems like the breath of fresh air we all need after Colton's season.

During The Bachelor this season, Hannah B. was rarely seen without a huge smile on her face and that's the kind of optimism people like to see from the Bachelorette. Even when Colton was breaking up with her, she had that infectious smile on her face. I am here for more of that going into her season of The Bachelorette.

Although Hannah B. didn't spill the beans about being chosen as the next Bachelorette, she did tell Entertainment Tonight ahead of The Bachelor finale that she was open to it.

"I would love to have that opportunity because I did evolve so much as a person on the show," she said, of being chosen. "I came in so terrified of what this thing was and if I wanted to be vulnerable with producers, with the girls, with Colton. And then by the end of it, I laid it all out on the table. I freaking roared."

She said that she would love to continue to evolve and come into her own as the next Bachelorette and starting in May, fans will get to watch her continue on her journey.

Every season, the Bachelorette has a meaningful story arc that makes her deserving of the coveted title in the show that comes after The Bachelor. Hannah B. may have started out as the former pageant queen who brought her rivalry with Caelynn to The Bachelor mansion, but she was mature enough to squash her beef with her fellow Bachelor contestant.

She also stole Colton's heart, to an extent, and was the only woman he took home to meet his parents this season. At the end of the season, Cassie also met them, but it was under different circumstances. Eventually, Colton realized that his feelings for Hannah B. weren't strong enough to keep her in the running and he sent her home. It was heartbreaking to watch, especially since it seemed to come out of left field for her, but she's ready to put all of that behind her as the new Bachelorette.

Carly Waddell, who competed on The Bachelor Season 19 and then two seasons of Bachelor in Paradise, told Page Six that she saw Hannah B. as the perfect candidate for the next Bachelorette. She said that Hannah B. as the Bachelorette "would be honest with people and she doesn’t seem to have an ego." Waddell added that Hannah B. also has the right personality to take on the role with ease.

Carly is basically a Bachelor Nation fortune teller after having so much experience in the franchise, because Hannah B. is the next Bachelorette and she could make for a pretty fun season come May.