The following was provided by ABC:
On the premiere of this newest edition of ABC's popular romance reality series, which will once again take place in New York City -- Charlie's hometown -- 25 women, including the series' first single mom, barely have a chance to get settled in their rooms at the Roosevelt Hotel.
Thinking they have a day to prepare for the start of the show, the girls are ambushed and told that they'll meet the then undisclosed Bachelor in just five minutes. A mad dash ensues - women not dressed, without makeup - as they congregate to learn Charlie's identity and immediately begin a rapid dating session with him, trying desperately to make a good first impression - some disarming and funny, some feisty.
During the rapid dating, Charlie hands out two roses to those women who have impressed him the most, only to have host Chris Harrison surprise him with the news that he will have to immediately eliminate five women.
After the 20 remaining women move to their loft in Tribeca, Charlie calls to make three group dates. The stakes are raised and the competition gets fierce as the power is put in the ladies' hands to decide among themselves who will accompany Charlie on each of these group dates. The ladies know that there are now NO rules, and that at any moment roses could be won or lost.
On the first date, which is full of surprising behavior, some of the ladies accompany Charlie to a neighborhood pub to play pool and raise a glass of cheer. The next group date takes the women to a nightclub where they dance the night away. But the pressure is already too much for one woman, who walks out and leaves. On the final group date, the remaining women play a no-holds-barred game of volleyball and rock climb at Chelsea Piers.
A few of the women come to the first rose ceremony with nothing to worry about, since they already have roses in hand. But for the others, emotions run high in this stripped down ceremony, and cat fights break out as the women face off and dish the dirt on each other to Charlie as he hands out his remaining roses.
