They say love is a battlefield, which may explain why this season of “The Bachelor” has been so explosive.
Week after week, contestants have been leaving the show in blazes of glory, often dropping f-bombs along the way. And as another season of the hit ABC reality dating series comes to a close, we’re taking a look at the astrological compatibility and combustibility of Clayton Echard and the final three ladies: Susie Evans, Gabby Windey and Rachel Recchia.
All four headed to Reykjavik, Iceland, for Fantasy Suite dates, but the fantasy quickly turned into a nightmare when a certain former tight end let loose, catching feels for the holiest trinity of final contestants.
When Evans found out that Echard had been intimate with Windey and Recchia prior to their date, things got dicey indeed. So, what’s in the stars for all of these jilted lovers?
Bad bull rising
Born April 29, 1993, Clayton is a stubborn, hedonistic Taurus sun with a love-hungry Leo moon. At heart and in loins, Taureans are pleasure seekers and it tracks that Clayton would sleep with everyone. Taurus is ruled by Venus, the planet of love and attachment, and it is thus also fitting that Clayton would tell all three ladies that he loved them; love and making others feel loved is a Taurus specialty. Taurus is also stubborn AF and spiteful to the point of self-sabotage, qualities our boy has in spades.
Another not-so-hot Taurus habit? The staunch refusal to apologize or take accountability for personal failures. Exhibit A: Clayton’s confused, noncommittal, philosophy by way of the locker room response when asked if he had any regrets about his behavior this season. “I can’t say that I have any regrets because if I would’ve done things differently, would it have been my 100% authentic journey? And I think the answer to that’s ‘No,'” he said. “So what I did and every moment while I was there was what I thought was right.”
He continued, “I did some things wrong, but I did everything under my volition and what I thought was best … You stay true to yourself, and you developed some battle scars along the way, but that’s just what life is.” He’s bragging about scar tissue and side-stepping fault like the big bad bull daddy he is.
Moon in Leo
In astrology, the moon reveals our instinctual nature. Clayton’s moon is in the limelight loving, affection-hungry sign of Leo. This lunar placement indicates that Clayton is idealistic and impulsive, going all in awfully early in relationships and demanding a lot of validation from his romantic partners.
Playful with a childlike nature that is at turns adorable and infuriating, these people are about having a good time and bowing out when things get complicated or people issue demands. Very much in love with love, it tracks that a lunar Leo like Clayton could authentically claim to love three women at the same time. It ain’t couth or kind but it could very well feel real to him.
Moon in Leo men tend to pedestal their partners and feel utterly shocked when their beloved fails to live up to their unrealistic expectations. We see this expressed in Clayton’s rapid dismissal of Susie and abject befuddlement at her refusal to give him a second chance.
Add to this already prodigious dumpster fire the fact that Clayton has Venus, the planet of attraction, attachment and aesthetics, in the action without reason sign of Aries. Drawn to adrenaline, the color red and unhinged personality types, Venus in Aries natives fall in and out of love at alarming speeds.
Susie Evans is a lion queen
Former pageant queen and fan-favorite Susie Evans was born Aug. 19, 1993, making her a regal Leo sun with a score-keeping Virgo moon. For all their bravado, lions like Susie are acutely sensitive and require a lot of verbal affirmations that they are loved, seen, appreciated and prized above all others. Symbolized by the king of the animal kingdom, Leos have an inborn need to be No. 1.
With this in mind, we can begin to understand Susie’s intense reaction to Clayton’s admission that he had slept with, and expressed love for, the other contestants. Once a lion is wounded, it takes a great deal of coddling, soothing, grooming, groveling and gift-giving to assuage them. Sadly for these star-crossed lovers, a Taurus like Clayton is far too proud to beg, preferring instead to shift blame and bolster his own defenses.
In terms of compatibility, Leo and Taurus have a good time together until the going gets tough. Both signs prioritize luxury, looking hot and indulging in the finer things in life. However, when challenges arise, their fixed modalities declare all-out war. Fixed signs like Leo and Taurus are the least likely to compromise, apologize or surrender — a defiant energy exhibited by both Clayton and Susie in their fantasy suite showdown.
Astrology 101: Your guide to the stars
- The 12 zodiac signs
- What are the astrology houses?
- Here’s what each planet represents
- Sun, moon and rising signs: Get to know your Big 3
Differences become the draw for Clayton and Pisces Rachel Recchia
Clayton admitted that he had the strongest physical attraction to Pisces uber-babe Rachel Recchia. In love and corporate mergers, we are often drawn to people that possess what we lack, and in the case of fixed, practical Taurus and mutable, dreamy Pisces, the two have very little in common. Clayton described the flight instructor as a “calming presence” and relayed that their initial conversation was natural with base notes of fate.
As a water sign, Pisces can intuit the feelings and expectations of others and flow accordingly. In true fish fashion, Rachel describes herself as a “hopeless romantic” in search of “crazy, insane love that makes sense to no one else but her and her soul mate.” Elementally, water softens earth, an effect effervescent Rachel seems to have on Clayton.
Capricorn Gabby Windey is a fellow earth sign
Capricorns like Gabby Windey are all about strategy baby, and hers was to make a memorable, albeit bold, first impression, greeting Clayton with a pillow with his picture on it and the cheeky phrase, “I just want to sit on your face.” This intro is unsurprising given that when two earth signs like Capricorn and Taurus collide, carnality is common ground. Ruled by stern planet Saturn, Capricorns are about no bulls–t, the tactical win and long-term success.
As Gabby tells Clayton post-dune buggy adventure, “I don’t want you to not explore your options. I want you to and because of that choose me.” Coming correct with the confidence Gabby, we love to see it, as this exchange illustrates there’s a dry sensibility, shared humor and general ease betwixt these two.
Clayton takes note of this in a confessional interview insisting, “Things with Gabby are easy and they make sense. There’s no fear, no pressure, no stress. It’s just about like seeing how we can grow.” Indeed, despite Clayton’s douchery, out of all the possible couplings, he and Gabby’s shared element of earth holds the most potential for future growth.
Will Clayton Echard end this season engaged or a ‘Bachelor’?
Clayton initially billed himself as “a Midwest boy who just wants to find love,” yet his on-air behavior suggests that the love of one woman just wasn’t enough, making him the subject of intense scrutiny and open hostility. As Bachelor Nation braces itself for the final rose and the fallout of Clayton’s confession and Susie’s exit, the question remains: Are any of these hapless humans destined for a happily ever after?
Whisper-voiced, plane-flying Pisces Rachel and stalwart Taurus Clayton are an example of opposites that attract but will inevitably exhaust one another. We hope she gets herself a freewheeling Sagittarius that will dry her tears, feed her Flaming Hot Cheetos and be her co-pilot in love and life. In terms of astrological compatibility, Clayton and Gabby stand the best chance of making it in the long run, though if it doesn’t shake out, a sex-positive Virgo with bald ambition would make a great mate for our girl Gab.
A possible Clayton and Susie reunion would inevitably create the highest stakes, highest drama conclusion to this sordid story, but if those dreams are dashed, we hope Susie finds herself a lion king in a fellow Leo and Clayton finds himself through some combination of therapy, seclusion, celibacy and micro-dosing. In any case, we’ll be watching to see how the petals fall, the cookie crumbles and the internet reacts.
Astrologer Reda Wigle researches and irreverently reports back on planetary configurations and their effect on each zodiac sign. Her horoscopes integrate history, poetry, pop culture and personal experience. She is also an accomplished writer who has profiled a variety of artists and performers, as well as extensively chronicled her experiences while traveling. Among the many intriguing topics she has tackled are cemetery etiquette, her love for dive bars, Cuban Airbnbs, a “girls guide” to strip clubs and the “weirdest” foods available abroad.
