This 'Bachelor's' love story one to savor

OMG -- did you guys see the "Bachelor" finale last night? Navy doc Andy chose social worker Tessa, then got down on one knee and proposed and she said yes. It was awesome.

I've always been fascinated by "The Bachelor," because it's a microcosm of the dating world. It's crazy concentrated -- the show is filmed over six weeks, and by the end, the bachelor has to narrow 25 chicks down to one -- and crazy edited (no lie, those folks should win Emmys), but it still has plenty to say about how we act in the different stages of romantic relationships. Watch and you might start questioning what you would do in such situations. How far are you willing to go to get -- and keep -- someone's attention? When you're pursuing a relationship, is it because you see it as a competition you want to win, or are you more concerned with if you two are compatible? How much of yourself are you willing to sacrifice to gain the affection of another? What if you really mean it when you say "it's not you, it's me"? How do you cope with rejection?

This particular bachelor, Andy Baldwin, might have been the best one yet, because he was so dang focused. Dude was in it to win it; he came in looking for a wife and left with a fiancee, so he's well on his way. (Many of the past Bachelors have said they were looking for love, but it was more like they were looking to get laid.)

And even though Andy seemed almost too good to be true -- smokin' hot doctor who wants to be an astronaut, lives in Hawaii, is goofy-fun, adorably geeky and loves kids -- throughout the series he was, for lack of a better word, remarkably real. He got nervous and tongue-tied. When he had to send women home he agonized over his decisions and was visibly upset when they left, often to the point of tears. Near the end, he told both Tessa and Bevin that he loved them .. and you believed him. (Yeah, it wasn't cool to tell a chick you're pretty sure you're gonna dump that you love her, but he seemed caught up in the moment ... and it was obvious he really did care about her.)

Tessa, the woman he chose, was also real. She had reservations about meeting the love of her life on a TV show, but she got to know Andy. By the end of the show she was in love and terrified of telling him, because she would allow herself to be vulnerable. And isn't that a recognizable struggle?

So, yeah, two people seem to have found love on reality TV. And I think viewers are rooting for them because we all love a good love story ... especially one with a happy ending.