Somehow, Jenn's Brother James Tran Is The Bachelorette's Breakout Star

Yes, Jenn Tran's journey on The Bachelorette drew to a chaotic close weeks ago — but as disturbing information continues to come to light, Jenn's brother James Tran is again being lauded by the audience.

The most recent finale of The Bachelorette will likely go down in reality TV history for a number of reasons, almost none of them good.

To start, the morning after the finale, fans demanded the entire Bachelor franchise be held to account, after watching the producers (and Devin Strader) break Jenn's heart anew on national television.

While the finale "is what it is" so to speak, Bachelorette fan outrage didn't coalesce in a vacuum, and it became increasingly more substantiated as time went on.

Not content to let all the outrage peter out, Jenn's erstwhile fiancé, Devin, was so chagrined by reactions to the finale that he decided to doxx Jenn via Instagram Reel before deleting the post.

That wasn't even peak fan outrage — a few days ago, Reality Steve uncovered records of an arrest and a restraining order involving Devin, and fans angrily accused ABC of failing to protect their lead, Jenn.

Once again, Devin chimed in, this time with a nebulous refutation of the claims.

In response, an ex-friend called Devin a "pathological liar."

Editor's note: This article contains brief mentions of sexual assault, abuse, or other related topics that could be triggering for some readers and survivors. If you or someone you know is in need of assistance, please visit RAINN.org. The National Sexual Assault Hotline (1-800-656-4673) is available 24/7.

This article also contains mentions of domestic violence, or may be otherwise triggering to survivors. If you or someone you know is in crisis, please visit thehotline.org to connect with confidential help. Assistance is available 24/7/365.

Incidentally, both of Jenn's final two suitors – Devin and Marcus Shoberg – were the subjects of accusations concerning their past behavior, claims which came to light only after The Bachelorette was actively airing.

In the immediate aftermath of the finale, one man involved with it – Jenn's older brother, James – was praised for a whole host of reasons.

As we previously observed, James Tran was relentlessly protective in the first two hours of The Bachelorette's finale, and he did not make any attempts to conceal that fact:

Jenn's brother James Tran did his best to protect his younger sister from 'emotionally unavailable men,' and up until a classic and brutal reality TV twist ending, it looked like Marcus was the less safe choice in that respect.

In our finale recap, we mentioned James' vigilance, and even apologized for initially deeming his concern excessive:

"In the first hour of the finale, Jenn's brother James seemed almost like a cop, grilling her suitors and repeatedly saying Jenn had a history of falling for 'emotionally unavailable men.'

"In those scenes, it seemed like James was being overbearing and judgmental. (We're sorry we thought that, James.)"

The morning after it aired, James was commended as "the only good guy onscreen."

Given his unvarnished concern for Jenn, you might expect James to have "gone off" after the finale — but instead of expressing anger, he issued a calm, measured statement via Instagram about the entire fiasco.

He kind of took the high road, but didn't hesitate to call the episode "needlessly cruel":

Bachelorette Jenn's Brother James Tran Speaks Out On 'Needlessly Cruel' Finale

"The only good guy" on the stage, James Tran, had something to say about that shambolic Bachelorette finale.

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Bachelorette Fans Are Still Praising James Tran

As mentioned above, alarming information about Bachelorette star Devin Strader continues to trickle out.

Weeks have passed since the finale aired, and fans have yet to forgive producers for what they see as ABC dropping the ball with respect to Jenn's safety.

On top of everything else, novel accusations against Devin have exacerbated the whole controversy.

But in light of that new information, Bachelorette fans have again turned their attention to James Tran.

On September 19, a screenshot of a September 3 tweet about James was shared on Reddit's r/thebachelor:

That tweet was published while the finale was airing, apparently before viewers learned that Jenn and Devin had already broken up ... and consequently, before James' concerns were validated in the final hour.

And to avoid barreling toward a misunderstanding here, "clocked" means "noticed" in this context, not "punched in the face."

The prescient tweet read:

"ABC needs to bring Jenn's brother back every season as a consultant for the final decision. He's clocking these men #thebachelorette"

In retrospect, the tweet spoke even more loudly to fans, and the news about Devin sparked discourse.

On the original Twitter/X thread, one person replied shortly after the finale ended, musing:

"Jenn's brother definitely has a knack for seeing through the guys! His insights would be invaluable each season.

"Jenn's brother should be the official vetting expert for every season! His intuition is on another level."

Another called James "the big brother I always dreamed about," a third said "dude called it," and one commenter gushed:

[James Tran] may be the only man I trust.

Over on Reddit, a top-level comment said that James wasn't just "clocking" Devin and Marcus — he was actively investigating them.

Several Reddit users asserted that James interacted with the subreddit, and even verified his identity with moderators:

"I don't think he 'clocked them,' he came on the sub asking for relevant information and people brought it to his attention beforehand."

Another commenter said they "would rather [the network] just put the show on hiatus until they can figure out how to do basic background checks on contestants before [allowing] them on the show."

Yet another objected to the nature of "the discourse," considering it to be victim blaming of both Jenn and James.

As the commenter rightly pointed out, aside from "vibes," no one knew about the new allegations involving Devin until this week, and suggesting otherwise is kind of Monday morning quarterbacking:

"I hate the discourse around red flags. Nothing could have magically told Jenn or Jenn’s brother that she had a final two with a history of sexual assault and violence.

"We didn’t know until people very clearly told us. People were defending Devin until the burglary report came out. This isn’t a laughing or joking matter. Real lives are at risk here."

That particular observation is important, in large part because it implies that all harm can be avoided if caution is exercised — when, in actuality, blame belongs squarely on those engaging in abuse, not those subjected to it.

Whether James Tran "knew because he got Reddit tea, not because he has special senses" or not, Jenn's brother indeed seems to be the most beloved Bachelorette personality to emerge from her season.