As if discovering the cruelties of love wasn’t enough, stars of the dating series then had to rehash the unpleasantries of Season One.
On hand to guide them through the trials and tribulations of The Ultimatum: Marry or Move On Season One were happily married couple Vanessa and Nick Lachey, who front the series.
At the reunion show, the hosts sat down with the 12 participants in the social experiment to discuss what the experience was like, and how their lives had changed since it all.
What Happened At The Ultimatum: Marry or Move On Reunion Show?
As was to be expected, the reunion show was the definition of entertaining, with tears, triumphs and tricky questions in abundance.
Newsweek has got you covered on exactly what went down when the 12 participants of The Ultimatum: Marry or Move On sat down to talk Season One.
Baby Bombshell
The reunion show kicked off in spectacular fashion when Madlyn and Colby, who got married during the finale show, revealed they were expecting their first child together.
Arriving at the reunion show later than the other reuniting cast, Madlyn sported a billowing beige dress, which showed off her growing baby bump, before she revealed she is due to give birth to a baby girl.
Vanessa, 41, then presented the married couple with a baby goblet as a gift for the couple, and the first “The Ultimatum baby”, as the presenter put it. Shortly after, Colby explained how he’s “blown away” by how his wife has been handling pregnancy.
“My sister recently had a baby just last year, so we got the full experience of how the whole process of the pregnancy [works] and she has no problems, no aches, no nothing. She’s an absolute champ about it”, he said.
Nate Finally Addresses Awkward Proposal
Nate and Lauren’s experience was cut short when the pair decided they wanted to leave the experiment early, as an engaged couple in episode three, titled New Bed, New Partner.
But viewers will remember Nate’s proposal came shortly after Hunter, 28, asked for Alexis’ hand in marriage. Reflecting on the moment, Nate expressed: “This experience did help me, and I said this before. It made me realize that all these amazing people here, all the great dates that I went on—Shanique, April, every single one of ya’ll. Still, no one held a candle to Lauren, to me.”
On the topic of kids, he added: “The other part of us not really feeling the experience might be a best fit for us was because, with this one issue [having children], who’s gonna help us solve it, you know?”
Lauren, 26, then interjected: “We sought out expert advice. We did a little bit of outside work, with going to therapy.” She then announced that they had agreed to have one child, for now, but did not divulge when they would like to have a kid.
Wedding Bells Are Ringing
Alexis, 25, discussed her impending nuptials with Hunter at the reunion show, telling her fellow cast members and the hosts they were in the thick of planning their wedding day and had called on her fiancé’s mom, who is a wedding planner, for help.
On what happened after Hunter, 28, proposed to her, Alexis said: “We moved in together for the first time. We’d never lived together. And that whole chapter has been amazing. I’m so happy that it happened that way. I love him so much.”
When asked how she felt about finances in their relationship, having made it a big topic of discussion during her time on the show, she explained that, “was a really big thing for me, kind of in the beginning. And now living together we both contribute equally. It’s not as important.”
April and Jake Butt Heads
As attention shifted to Jake’s experience on the show, April took issue with her ex-boyfriend proclaiming that his feelings during their two-year relationship were “disregarded”, as inaccurate and told Nick, 48, she “didn’t buy” what he was saying.
To Jake’s remark, she said: “Watching it unfold I could tell immediately when Jake and I moved in that he wanted to be back with Rae. I was very distraught and I was at my lowest point probably realizing this has already been checked out.
“And being at my lowest instead of my person that I walked in checking in with me, and seeing him checking in with Rae. It felt disrespectful. It felt like my three weeks were taken when I was with Jake, he was out checking on Rae and her mental well-being, and how things were going on with Zay. And I didn’t get those three weeks with Jake.”
In response, Jake said: “You brought me on the show with total disregard for my feelings. I never wanted to go on the show in the first place.”
Later, April proudly revealed she was in a new committed relationship, with someone older who would like to marry her and they have had discussions about children and are now living together.
Rae and Jake Talk Romance
The last fans of The Ultimatum: Marry or Move On saw Rae and Jake had agreed to go traveling together. But Rae was quick to explain that did not happen, and that she thought it was “insensitive” to go away together so soon after the Netflix series concluded.
Rae then went on to admit she and Zay had given their relationship another shot once the show ended and commended Zay on being a “better communicator”. But Zay was less than impressed by her words and called her out for not being truthful about what transpired after the series.
A visibly upset Rae then admitted she was emotionally unavailable and apologized to Zay for not being able to give him what he deserved. Before revealing she had dated a girl since Zay and she was trying to understand her sexuality.
Shanique Discusses Sexual Chemistry With Zay
Shanique, who had brought Randall on the social experiment, spoke openly about her sexual chemistry with Zay, detailing that they had got to know one another physically. However, the information was news to Rae, who got into a heated argument with Zay about not telling her this had happened earlier.
The focus then turned back to Shanique and Randall, who admitted they had broken up after the proposal for six months but rekindled their romance before appearing on the reunion show.
The Ultimatum: Marry or Move On is available to stream now on Netflix.
