Action, romance, suspense, secrecy, heartbreak. No, I’m not trying to describe a James Bond movie, I’m talking about the TV show The Bachelor. It recently had its twentieth season finale in March.

Now I know what you’re thinking, “Daryl, you watch The Bachelor!?” And I would quickly answer, “No, I don’t just watch The Bachelor, I live for it!”

Weekly, I devote two hours of my Monday nights to my TV screen. I laugh at all the funny and silly moments, gasp at the “OMG!” moments and sometimes even shed a little tear at the emotional scenes, which happen every episode. It’s a blast.

At first when I got into the show, the fact that it might be a little girly never really crossed my mind, but I can see why some people, especially guys, would be a little surprised about it. Most would think of it as romantic and lovey-dovey kind of show, so girls are the only ones who’d really be into it, but I disagree. Tons of other shows like Game of Thrones or The Walking Dead are definitely more action packed and gory than The Bachelor, and could be seen as more male oriented shows and still millions of female fans tune in to watch them regularly. I feel like the same standard should go for The Bachelor.

Even though it is a reality show you could say I’ve learned a lot from watching and discussing it. Things like different ways to communicate or how to pick up on body language, tone and most importantly, I’ve learned that trying to balance 25 different relationships all at once probably isn’t the best idea.

However the thing I value most from the show is the friendships I have been able to build thanks to it. Almost every week I’ll talk with Mrs. Oyler or Mrs. Sherman and some of my friends about our favorite moments of the latest episode, our predictions for who will get sent home next week or who we think might end up with The Bachelor.

I’ll admit this show has its crazy moments and it is a little unusual to hear a guy gush over a show about love and relationships, but I’m definitely thankful that I stepped away from the status quo and fell in love with the show. Rest assured, I’ll be setting my DVR for this upcoming season