Well into its third season, Bachelor Pad, ABC’s mashup reality television show combining past contestants from The Bachelor and The Bachelorette, continues to use and abuse its formula of dramatic outbursts and vanity cases to fill its Monday time slot. Episode four of Bachelor Pad pushed all of the right buttons to signal tears and feuds, and it wasted no time cutting to the chase. Early in the episode the Padmates played a game show in which they were asked questions ranging from personal sexcapades to Bachelor/Bachelorette-style trivia, all in the name of stirring up controversy.

Later, Jaclyn and Ed went on a staged romantic date in an empty Dodger Stadium, while Chris B. bedded Jamie in an attempt to ruffle the feathers of his partner, Blakeley. Ultimately, Jamie, who was hopelessly falling for the disinterested Chris, got screwed twice when Chris elected to take Sarah on his one-on-one date the next night instead. Their date, action movie-themed, mind you, ended in the hot tub, and the couple did not return to the house until morning. The rose ceremony concluded with Dave and Jamie packing their bags and opening the door next week for another hot mess of drama and deceit.

Next week, the final 12 contestants will move one step closer to the show’s $250,000 prize, the driving factor behind the series. “I definitely wasn’t there for love,” Ed told TV Guide last week of his intentions this season. “I absolutely was there to win. I treat it just like any competition and I had someone at home that I have always kind of had feelings for even though I was single on the show.”

The fourth installment of this third season drew an average of 4.1 million viewers, which marked a 21% bump from the previous week and was the highest viewership since the July 23 premiere. But apparently the backstabbing wasn’t enough to outlast re-runs of How I Met Your Mother and 2 Broke Girls on CBS, which drew 4.4 million and 4.6 million viewers, respectfully, during the first hour. Bachelor Pad was also outlasted by NBC’s series premiere of Stars Earn Their Stripes, which garnered just over 5.1 million viewers.

For more on Bachelor Pad and The Bachelor:

Bachelor Pad 2 Season Premiere: TV's New Low

VIDEO: Bachelor Pad 2 Finale Reveals Winners

Justin Rego Blasts Kasey Kahl On Bachelor Pad

VIDEO: Ben Flajnik Debuts As 'The Bachelor'

Another Bachelor Breakup: Pavelka And Giraldi Split

RECAP: Ben Flajnik Gets Naked On 'The Bachelor' Episode 5

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