Live from New York it’s… me writing a recap of that awful episode of Drag Race. But there’s something kind of refreshing about an episode of Drag Race being bad because of the performances and outcomes and not because anything morally reprehensible occurred. Small blessings.
But first! In the aftermath of last week, Geneva is still convinced she shouldn’t have been in the bottom. She says if the other queens want to play the game, she can play the game too. By “the game” does she mean “doing good drag” because she really should’ve started that in episode one. I kid, I kid. But I do think it’s a bad sign for a queen’s ability to improve if they’re delusional about weeks they do poorly. The first step to getting better is being able to take critique!
It’s a new day in the workroom and the queens are doing a sketch comedy challenge called RDR Live that’s a riff on SNL. As a kid of read all 800 pages of Live from New York: The Complete Uncensored History of Saturday Night Live experience, I feel it is my right to say that even during its best years, SNL is a show that is not funny more frequently than it’s funny. But the Drag Race comedy challenges make The Californians look like Wayne’s World. Making a comedy challenge based on SNL? Let’s just say I’m having a good time… not.
There’s some drama as the queens cast their roles. Sapphira and Mirage both want to host. Sapphira lets Mirage take the part and Mirage quickly regrets it. And then Plasma and Dawn both want to do Weekend Update. Dawn, Amanda, and Q have formed a little clique and want to do that sketch together. Dawn, fairly, points out that the other available role is a Barbra Streisand impression. Clique or no clique, of course Plasma should do Streisand! Plasma is upset that she “can’t sit at the lunch table” and I am begging adult queers to understand we are not in high school anymore, we’re all faggots who were bullied, and you’re not always the victim.
Anyway, the roles are cast and Ru and Ross come around to talk to the queens. Xunami, Morphine, Geneva, and Mhi’ya admit they’ve never done sketch before. They talk to Mhi’ya about needing to open up, desperately trying to craft and arc that may or may not arrive.
As the queens get ready for the sketches and runway, Mirage talks about being Apache and performing at Indigenous Pride. Xunami and Geneva then bond over being Dreamers as they talk about DACA. On the other side of the workroom, Dawn is asking about OnlyFans and Amanda says that her day job is ghost writing messages for straight girl creators.
Sarah Michelle Gellar is the guest judge!! The writers — likely the same ones responsible for the sketches soon to come — have Sarah say, “I’ve been slaying bitches for years.” Um… “I’ve been slaying for years” was RIGHT THERE.
The first sketch is about the world ending and has Geneva playing Lindsay Graham even though she clearly did not know — and failed to ask — who he is. Mirage is hosting and stumbles over her words. Then Jane and Megami do a sketch about selling decks filled with dick jokes and it’s at least slightly less awful. Then Ru is the musical guest singing a song where she says “giddy up” a lot. Amanda and Dawn host weekend update with a series of painful “jokes” and Q on as “the brick from Stonewall” in a performance I would describe as… adequate. Finally, Nymphia, Sapphira, and Plasma are three members of a Barbra Shop Quartet which has no jokes other than that pun. Plasma, does in fact, shine — relatively — in this role.
The runway is Everything Every Cher All the Time and it is a RELIEF after those “comedy” performances. I am so horny for Morphine in Cher’s 1989 Academy Award look. Nymphia as Egyptian Goddess Cher and Sapphira as 2017 Vegas Residency Cher are both stunning as well.
The tops are Jane, Q, and Plasma. The bottoms are Mhi’ya, Geneva, and Mirage. They make Sarah Michelle Gellar lie and pretend like any of the performances were good. Mhi’ya does a bad Cher impression that makes Ru laugh and maybe factored into her being safe.
Plasma wins, because her performance was the best and because they’re trying to Jan Q. Mhi’ya is indeed safe which means Geneva and Mirage are lip-syncing to the Buffy theme. Mirage wishes. No, they’re lip syncing to “Dark Lady” by Cher which has a lot of words and Mirage knows none of them.
It sucks because Mirage is a good dancer and is still more fun to watch than Geneva even if there is no sync to her lips. But I understand they couldn’t let Mirage stay when she didn’t know any of the words. Personally, I think it should have been a double elimination.
Mirage is distraught and can’t even bring herself to say an exit line. All the other queens are crying too. It’s awful. Almost as awful as those comedy sketches.
+ They may be friends, but I love that as Q was painting herself to look like a literal brick, she said she was painting herself to be Amanda.
+ I maintain that RuPaul Charles has earned the right to do her little musical numbers whenever she would like.
+ During Untucked, Mirage chugs a drink and then tells a bunch of people she doesn’t know the words to the song. I wonder if that’s why Ru and the producers had her perform. Because, sure, she wasn’t good, but nobody was… and her runway was way better than Mhi’ya’s.
+ Queen I’m rooting for: Morphine, Sapphira, Nymphia
+ Queen I’m horniest for: Morphine
+ Queen I want to go home: Geneva
Finally some drama! After years of camaraderie — with maybe a villain or two — Drag Race has finally gathered together a collection of bitches. Thank God because Untucked was getting boring.
It’s the first post-premiere episode, which means our week two queens and week one queens are meeting. While I maintain that Jane is a bit too eager to embrace bitchiness without backing it up with wit and talent, her assessment of the week one queens was extremely accurate. Mostly that she says she’s a Morphine stan — they kind of have the same mom — and an Amanda hater — she doesn’t know her just based on vibes.
Meanwhile, Plasma flops even harder at bitchiness saying she knows Sapphira sang bass which feels kind of racist and kind of transphobic. Take a lesson from Jane: Don’t punch down identity-wise, do punch down talent-wise.
But Sapphira can’t be bothered, because along with Jane, she’s been gifted immunity potion for her win in the premiere. Ru explains they can use this potion for themself or for somebody else and that more rules will be explained later.
This episode is a ball! The mother of all balls! Look one is Mother Goose (an outfit inspired by a nursery rhyme), look two is Signifanct Mother (an outfit inspired by a famous mom), and look three is Call Me Mother/Father Eleganza (an outfit made by the queens out of menswear).
Another white twink makes the mistake of coming for Sapphira. She’s working on a denim gown which Dawn sarcastically calls groundbreaking. “You can be groundbreaking, I’ll just be stunning,” Sapphira fires back solidifying herself as one of my favorites of the season.
My other favorite Morphine has a little back and forth with fellow Miami queen Mhi’ya. Even after admitting she doesn’t sew — on season 16?? come on, babe! — she says she doesn’t expect much from Morphine because she only cares about being pretty. (It’s working!) Morphine meanwhile tells Ru she doesn’t know Mhi’ya, but she knows of her. “I’ve seen her perform a couple of times. I’ve given her a dollar,” she adds, a smirk on her pretty face.
Ru keeps things light(?) talking to Q about her grandma teaching her to sew but then disowning her. And then she tells Amanda she looks prettier without makeup. I agree?? Out of drag, I’m like oh Amanda you seem nice, you look pretty, I don’t hate you. It’s just her drag! But Ru picked her so I’m not sure why she gets to act surprised.
They’re doing rate-a-queen again, but this time someone is going home. Also they get to pick the top three and bottom three but Ru gets to pick the winner and which queens are lip syncing. Ever the chaos demon, Ru also leaves the results from the premieres.
Group 1:
Group 2:
Morphine is mad that she’s ranked 5th and I’m mad on her behalf!
With talent and charm, Nymphia is the star of this episode. Not only are her looks great — more on that later — but while others are stressing she has time to flutter around the workroom being funny and chaotic. Morphine teaches her to say dirty things in Spanish to which she proudly declares herself trilingual.
The guest judge this week is Isaac Mizrahi along with Michelle and Carson. Without Ross and his botox, this panel is OLD. Good for them! I kind of like the vibe of elders dolling out advice and judgment to baby queens. Feels less absurd than last season when legend Sasha Colby was receiving critiques from peers.
There are a lot of looks this week so I’m just going to highlight some of them. For Mother Goose, Geneva is dressed as Miss Moffat which she describes as 1800s whore but feels more like 1980s sleeping bag. Jane is Pussycat by Fire but looks more like Rum Tum Tugger. The obvious standouts are Q with Man on the Moon, Nymphia with Little Boy Blue (she looks like Orlando!), and, my personal fave, Sapphira as Peter Peter Pumpkin Eater.
The weakest category of the night is Significant Mother. Some of the looks were good, but none wowed me. I did appreciate the sentiment of Nymphia’s Angelina wedding look — personal notes and drawings on the back included. And Geneva dressed as Salma Hayek at the Magic Mike’s Last Dance premiere is an excuse for me to say that movie is very underrated.
The deconstructed menswear looks were much better. Even Mirage who was struggling the whole episode really managed to pull off something that was at least really hot. Morphine is also hot in a denim bodysuit with a witch hat which admittedly has little clarity of vision but is, again, very hot. The obvious standouts are Q with her sculpted collar and Nymphia with her windblown tie look. Outfits like these are why the balls are my favorite episodes.
It’s rate-a-queen and Jane puts Nymphia first to atone for her sins. The final tops are Q, Nymphia, and Sapphira, and the bottoms are Mhi’ya, Geneva, and Hershii. These feel correct.
If I’d been participating in Ru’s version of The Circle, my ranking would have been:
Nymphia wins making Q runner-up for the second week in a row. But, to be honest, there was no way Nymphia couldn’t win.
Mhi’ya is declared safe — Ru and the producers definitely want to see if they can get a quiet queen comes out of her shell storyline — which means it’s Geneva and Hershii lip syncing to “Maybe You’re the Problem” by Ava Max.
It’s not a great lip sync, but Geneva wins. It feels inevitable but I’m still sad! Hershii was so nice! Alas even Miss Congeniality needs to know how to sew.
+ Once again wishing Jane was a bit better at creating drama. During Untucked, she insults Amanda, but there’s no shade to it! It’s just blunt.
+ Hershii worrying that going home means she won’t get more work and won’t be able to provide for her kids broke my heart.
+ Morphine calls Nymphia’s final look one of the best in Drag Race history and I have to agree.
+ Geneva saying she was only in the bottom because the queens were being shady has kind of turned me against her forever. I don’t like when queens lack total self-awareness! Also if that were true, Ru would’ve made her safe instead of having her lip sync.
+ Queen I’m rooting for: Nymphia, Q, Sapphira, and Morphine
+ Queen I’m horniest for: Morphine, my Instagram handle is my full name @drewburnettgregory
+ Queen I want to go home: Amanda, Mhi’ya, Geneva — let’s get some double eliminations started.
Well, there’s always room for improvement. If last week’s premiere part one impressed me, this week’s’ premiere part two left me feeling… hmm. I can’t even imagine how strange that first week on Drag Race must be so I’m hoping we see better from this group. After one episode I just kept thinking: I’ve seen better drag all over the country.
Let’s meet our second batch of queens!
Hershii LiqCour-Jeté is from Los Angeles. She’s Kornbread’s sister and describes her drag as beautiful and stupid. It’s glam camp aunty drag, she says.
Plasma is from NYC. A 65 year old woman inhabiting a gorgeous 24 year old body (her words not mine), she leans hard toward 1950s glamour. She references Julie Andrews, Judy Garland, and Barbra Streisand, and probably celebrates her birthday showing off at Marie’s Crisis.
Geneva Karr is from Brownsville, Texas. She describes herself as very dramatic, very fantastic, Mexican spice. She says she puts the ass in Texas.
Plane Jane is from Boston. More specifically, she says she’s an authentically Russian clown hooker from Boston. She also says she’s a big boobed bitch which she will prove several times throughout this episode.
Megami is from Brooklyn. She started drag as a cosplayer at Comic Con. She describes herself as a loud Latina and says that if some people think drag queens are evil, why not indulge that fantasy?
Mhi’ya Iman Le’Paige is from Miami. She describes herself as a ball of fire full of flips and tricks. She is our resident TikTok star of the season, but at least that stardom is due to acrobatics, not being a twin.
Nymphia Wind is from Brooklyn. She moved there a year prior from Taiwan where she has a big fanbase. She describes herself as a banana Buddha, and, yes, she really does seem to love bananas.
The photoshoot for this group is the SheMV, which I found to be far more inspired than last week’s ring camera. Ts Madison and Ru play DMV employees and photograph the queens while attempting to banter with them. Hershii, Plasma, and Geneva are all really quick with the banter which gives me hope there will be some Snatch Game standouts this year.
As the queens de-drag, Plain Jane is trying so hard to be a bitch, but she’s just… not quick enough. I love the cunty ones! But you have to back up that attitude with a sharp tongue.
Nymphia wins the mini challenge and the Queen Choice Awards talent show is announced. Immunity is also announced which I learned this week can be saved?? It’s not just for the next week?? I’m curious exactly how that will work.
The queens talk about anti-drag laws and then Plasma in a confessional declares herself the underdog. Already?? The Rachel Berry energy is strong in that one. Jane says Nymphia is in it to host Drag Race Taiwan which is less a dig and more good business sense. We then learn that Hershii has two kids and it’s very sweet and made me love her! This chat is interrupted by Becky G, the episode’s guest judge, who arrives at the workroom to say hi.
Derrick Barry is back doing literally nothing and the talent show begins. Geneva lip syncs to an original song and dances and I suppose it’s good, but everyone in the room seems to think it’s really good. Hershii also lip syncs to an original song. Plasma lip syncs and then sings and then does impressions — it’s more theatre kid than theatre adult. Nymphia does a traditional Taiwanese dance and, in my opinion, easily wins.
Less successful is Megami who poorly lip syncs to “What’s Up” by 4 Non Blondes and then holds up cards that say, “If you love drag on TV, love us in the voting booth. Protect queer art.” Jane rightfully points out that Megami has not presented us with any of said queer art that needs protecting? I also think there’s a real misunderstanding of the straight Drag Race audience. The sign should’ve read: “If you love drag on TV, don’t let your conservative families and shitty husbands vote against our rights.”
Mhi’ya lip syncs and does a lot of flips. It’s impressive, but I do think her challenge for the season will be harnessing those abilities into something more cohesive. Jane then lip syncs to an original song about her “burger finger” which includes a big tit reveal and squirting mustard and ketchup on said tits. It’s… extremely fine? I love crass! But there’s nothing actually shocking about this. It’s like the edgy comedy version of Megami’s political statement.
The runway theme is “made you look” which is a fancy way of saying reveals. Nymphia does the life cycle of a banana and it is really well-done even if I’m desperately hoping she doesn’t hold onto the bananas like Tina Burner held onto the concept of fire. Hershii has a big coat that reveals a leather (pleather? latex?) suit dress. Plasma is a tomato pin cushion with three reveals. Mhi’ya removes a yellow jacket to a swimsuit. Geneva is in a shiny mariachi outfit that falls into a dress. (She proudly says, “I didn’t leave anything on the floor. It’s a reveal not a take things off.” I agree! This is my favorite type of reveal!) Megami is a creepy goddess but her only reveal is opening her hands to show they have eyes on them. Jane is a Russian oligarch and then turns into a Boston slut. I love big boobs as much as the next girl, but as a reveal it’s even less interesting than a banana.
Despite telling the other queens the opposite, Jane ranks the queens strategically putting Nymphia last. This works and the top two are Jane and Geneva. They lip sync to “Shower” by Becky G and whaddya know Jane’s tit is out through half the performance. Alas Geneva is kind of boring, so Jane wins, her strategic maneuver a success.
She’s going to need that immunity when she meets those week one queens.
Teleport Us to Mars!! Here Are Some Random Thoughts:
+ Did Mhi’ya actually fall asleep at the DMV or was that a bit? I couldn’t tell!
+ Plasma having a Jan robe… it makes so much sense.
+ Now that we have all our queens, its time for some astrology:
Amanda — Sagittarius
Dawn — Aries
Geneva — Leo
Hershii — Sagittarius
Jane — Aquarius
Megami — Taurus
Mhi’ya — Scorpio
Mirage — Capricorn
Morphine — Capricorn
Nymphia — Leo
Plasma — Scorpio
Q — Leo
Sapphira — Libra
Xunami — Taurus
As a Capricorn sun, Taurus moon, Leo rising, Sag Mercury and Venus, I feel very represented this season.
+ Queen I’m rooting for: Sapphira and Morphine (from this week: Hershii and Nymphia)
+ Queen I’m horniest for: Morphine (missed you this week, babe)
+ Queen I want to go home: Amanda and Megami
This is a recap of RuPaul’s Drag Race episode 1601, the season 16 premiere. Spoilers below.
Hello hello hello! It seems like only yesterday Sasha Colby was receiving her inevitable crowning and now here we are with another season of RuPaul’s Drag Race and a whole new batch of queens. This year Ru promises a whole new approach which — based on past seasons — could either mean complex psychological torture or opening chocolate bars.
But the best part of Drag Race has always been the queens themselves so let’s meet our new arrivals! It’s a split premiere so this episode only introduces us to the first seven.
Q is from Kansas City. An artist and a diva, she says she’s known for fashion. She also says she’s always the grandest person in the room which is certainly the case this time since no one else has arrived.
Xunami Muse is from New York City. She’s Kandy’s daughter, she’s from Panama, and she identifies as straight off the runway — with the supporting evidence that she’s signed with a modeling agency.
Amanda Tori Meating is from Los Angeles. She has a lot of bright colors and a lot of bad jokes. She says she gets her influence from the 80’s which makes sense for both. She has a similar quality to queens I’ve disliked in the past, but her drag isn’t polished enough for me to feel worried about her sticking around.
Morphine Love Dion is from Miami. She is hot. HOT. Crush of the season. She says she’s known for her face and her ass and both are indeed memorable. She’s friends with Xunami and immediately critiques the neck of Amanda’s breastplate showing. Sexy and cunty? Immediate fave.
Sapphira Cristál is from Philadelphia. Her drag is big. She’s an opera singer, a jazz singer, and an R&B singer. She speaks with authority and backs it up with talent.
Mirage is from Las Vegas. She says she’s known as the legs of Las Vegas. A stripper who shops at Claire’s, she gets her inspiration from Vegas itself. She fangirls over a few of the other queens and it’s cute.
And, finally, Dawn is from Brooklyn. She specifically identifies as “from Brooklyn” because she is not like other girls. An ethereal elf goddess, she makes her own clothes and designs her own wigs. She is the kind of queen who will be annoying if untalented and great if talented. So far I’m thinking she’s talented.
Our first seven queens introduced, Ru enters looking like a train conductor which I am going to assume is a reference to the trains flag. To be honest, I’m kind of obsessed with his bright red ascot made of what looks like two gloves tied together.
The first mini challenge is a photoshoot on a fake porch. Ru is behind the door and the photos are being taken on a Ring-like camera. I cannot tell if this is supposed to be in support of our increased surveillance state or satire. It’s always hard to tell with Miss RuPaul. Love Connie shows up as a concerned neighbor and it starts to feel like satire… but I was half-expecting Ru to say, “This photoshoot is brought to you by the Next Door app.”
Dawn won me over during this challenge with her banter and Sapphira wins the challenge with her pose. Sapphira is also horny for the other queens as they de-drag which I’m always going to appreciate.
This week’s maxi challenge is a talent show tribute to MTV’s Spring Break… which means it’s a regular premiere episode talent show but Derrick Barry is hosting as Britney Spears and the stage will have a suggestion of early 2000s Florida aesthetic.
There are a few twists, but it’s less a reinvention of the show and more a return to the past. Sure, this premiere episode lets the queens vote but that doesn’t really matter since no one goes home. (Ugh.) The big twist is the winners this season will have immunity for the following week. This is how Drag Race used to be through season five! I guess after a certain amount of years, you do a 360 and end up right back where you started. Next let’s bring back the grease filter. And Untucked that isn’t boring.
Morphine is solidifying her place in my heart by continuing to be a hot bitch when Charlize Theron walks in! If I was the queens, I would’ve shouted, “I love Young Adult and Tully! Make Atomic Blonde 2!” She’s wearing Dior and gives a corny speech about the state of the world which I will allow because she has a trans kid — and because she’s so hot and talented half the time I even forget her social media handle is CharlizeAfrica.
As the queens are getting ready for the talent show, Morphine reveals that her parents still don’t know that she does drag. Or they pretend not to know. Choosing to go on the show is choosing to be over worrying about it. She also says that in middle school she had multiple girlfriends to overcompensate for her queerness. But if she ever wants multiple girlfriends in a queer way she should give me a call.
Talent show time! Morphine starts off with a solid lip sync and dance to “A Palé” by Rosalía. It’s not reinventing any wheels but it’s good. Then Amanda lip syncs to an original song about her kitty to which Sapphira deadpans she’s allergic to cats. Unfortunately, Ru loves it so maybe she will be sticking around.
Dawn also lip syncs to her own song, but it has a lot of reveals and feels like a strong introduction to herself. She’s followed by Q who is one of two queens to actually do a talent! Q’s Puppet Playhouse involves an optical illusion where her hands are her feet doing ballet which makes it look like a big head on a tiny body. It’s really good!
Back to lip syncs, Mirage lip syncs to an original song but at least she has the floorwork talent to keep it interesting. Xunami also lip syncs to an original song and it’s the kind of thing that would be more impressive if it had been written on the spot for a different premiere format than a pre-planned talent show.
Sapphira finishes strong by singing opera. And not just opera but horny opera about wanting men while doing splits. I love when the queens have other talents, but especially when they filter those other talents through a drag lens. Sapphira has winner energy.
The runway is RuVeal yourself. Morphine is in a white towel dress with a towel head wrap that she takes off to reveal a long wig and a blue bathing suit. Dawn looks like a yeti and then like the bride of that yeti. Amanda is in a skin suit and then becomes a purple alien. Xunami is in a red velvet jacket dress that turns into another red dress that turns into a leather get up. Q looks like Maleficent and then spreads her wings into a butterfly. Mirage is in a blue and orange feathered dress and then reveals titties. And Sapphira is in an elegant blue dress that has several reveals, the last also being titties — tiny ones.
The judges criticize Morphine’s reveal look, but Charlize defends her by saying she’s an ass girl. Yes! The body IS the reveal. Simplicity works in this case! One episode in and I’m already ready to fight the judges on behalf of my fave.
The other important moment from the critiques is learning that Q made her own outfit. It really is magnificent. Q has established herself as one of the frontrunners.
The rate-a-queen is kind of pointless since no one gets sent home. But, for what it’s worth, most of the queens rate Xunami and Amanda lowest.
Sapphira and Q are deservedly the top and are lip syncing for the win and immunity to Beyoncé’s “Break My Soul.” We learn that Q’s weakness is lip syncing. She gives it her all, but it’s no contest. Even with her tiny titties flopping out, Sapphira easily wins with dance talent, comedy, and just pure energy.
And that’s the episode! No one goes home and one queen has immunity. That means this is going to be a long season of Drag Race. But, hey, there’s no clear winner, the queens are pretty talented, and I already have a crush. I’m ready to watch until the summer.
+ Dawn says Amanda has great bone structure but she couldn’t tell when she had makeup on.
+ I did not appreciate Ru’s Florida jab especially in front of a Miami queen!
+ Untucked is so boring! All of the queens are so nice to each other. Even Amanda takes her critiques in stride which made me like her more. Ugh. No more RuPaul’s Best Friend’s Race. I hope the next seven are bitchier.
+ Queen I’m rooting for: Sapphira and Morphine
+ Queen I’m horniest for: Morphine
+ Queen I want to go home: Amanda
This is a recap of RuPaul’s Drag Race episode 1516, the season 15 finale. Spoilers below.
It is still RuPaul’s drag race. It doesn’t matter how many years in a row a trans person wins the main season and All Stars. As long as RuPaul is alive, in charge, and hosting, it will be her creation — for better or worse or worst.
Since spoilers got out for season three, the finales of Drag Race have been the most overly constructed episodes of the season. There are exceptions — I’m thinking rose petals, I’m thinking dead butterflies — but for the most part the finales are for celebration, not excitement.
But this year there sure was a lot to celebrate. First of all, this finale features one of the show’s best top fours, led by a frontrunner who from day one frankly felt too good to even be there. We’re also experiencing a moment of transphobia and violence toward drag that makes this kind of mainstream festivity feel worthwhile.
From the opening moments, this capital P Purpose was emphasized. One of the eliminated queens, Aura Mayari, included a big fan that read “Drag is Not a Crime” with her entrance look. And in Ru’s introduction, she echoed this sentence with an added: “But looking this sickening should be.”
On the one hand Ru’s just-vote liberalism should feel more digestible given our current moment. There is something powerful in the shots of crowded gay bars all around the country, many in states where drag is on the precipice of being banned. But any temptation to be in solidarity with Ru inspired within me a sadness — a sadness that my expectations had been reduced to these crumbs.
It makes me so happy that Ts Madison was introduced alongside the other core judges. It’s so exciting that after all these years the biggest platform for drag has finally embraced so many trans performers and icons. But 2018 was not long ago. I will never forget how the show treated Peppermint. I will never forget that these changes happened despite Ru and his cis producers, not because of them. Trans talent was simply undeniable.
But for now let’s get to the first two finalists! We begin with Anetra. She gives an emotional thank you to her dad and then performs a song called, “Lotus.” Anetra is an undeniable talent, but I think her clarity of drag identity peaked with the premiere. I think she still has some years to go before realizing her full potential and that felt evident in this song. It was totally solid! She’s an incredible dancer! It just lacked a certain spark and uniqueness for me.
Not lacking in any spark was Luxx Noir London. Her song “It’s Giving Fashion” was so much fun! The red jumpsuit to red bodysuit reveal was great and I just had a blast with this one. Carson says she gave all the F’s: fashion, face, and ferocity. I would add the most important F: faggotry. Her boyfriend says, “I love everything about them,” and I have to agree.
We then take a break for the first annual Giving Us Lifetime Achievement Award. This year’s recipient is Bob Mackie and of all Ru’s charades this is actually the one that felt the most genuine. I love when we pay tribute to our queer elders, especially when they’re alive, even when those elders are cis white gay men. Ru gets choked up and it makes for a nice moment. I hope this really does become an annual tradition.
Back to our top four! Mistress Isabelle Brooks is dressed as a slutty nurse to perform “Delusion.” It’s a lot of fun! It’s not the best song or the best performance but it’s totally solid. She also says, “Move over ‘Let Loose,’ ‘Delusion’ is coming through,” and I love that she remains shady to the end. It’s also really meaningful to see her chosen family there including her drag mom Chevelle Brooks who tells her that she made her proud, Houston proud, and herself proud.
Thankfully, the alphabet didn’t force anyone to have to follow Sasha Colby. While her Harry Potter references in the intro were a choice, once she started performing “Goddess,” it quickly became clear why she’s the best. Coming out as a snake, the backup dancers moving her braids like snakes, her looking like a SNACK. She’s an incredible dancer and also incredible at flicking her tongue and both are equally important to me. She also has her chosen family there and has a little education moment with Ru about the Hawaiian word māhū. After seasons and seasons of Ru creating forced biological family reunions, it really is so nice to see queer families in this space.
With the solo performances complete, Ru declares the final lip sync. It’s Sasha vs. Anetra. This was clearly pre-planned and not based on the performances thanks to a detail we’ll get to later. Anetra is great and this decision is fine, even if based on the solos I do think Luxx was robbed. I look forward to seeing young queens Luxx and Mistress back on TV in a future All Stars season.
This is when the show took my cognitive dissonance down with the speed of a death drop. A video montage begins with various people reciting the Declaration of Independence. We’re watching a video and performance in support of drag and apparently nothing says drag like the words of Thomas Jefferson. It gets worse. One of the people in the video is a police officer. He’s given more screen time than the drag king. And the video ends with this mix of assimilationist gays and Kevin Bacon saying, “I am American.”
This goes into a performance by Orville Peck and the season’s music producer of the Wig Loose songs with backup lip syncing from the non-finalist season 15 queens. Well, except Sugar, who does not lip sync and just stands there. Anyone else I might’ve wondered if it was in protest, but let’s be reasonable.
If there’s anything the current backlash to decades of progress should reveal, it’s that we cannot assimilate ourselves to freedom. This kind of pro-America, pro-police, gay-people-are-just-like-you bullshit does nothing except reinforce the institutions and values that have oppressed us for centuries. This is not the time to compromise — it’s the time to refocus on what matters most.
RuPaul is RuPaul and I don’t expect her to bring radical politics. But the inclusion of a cop in this jingoistic montage was a step too far. Nearly three years since the June 2020 protests, fifty-four years since Stonewall, this shouldn’t need to be said. But, to be clear, there is no justification for being a police officer. Any LGBT individuals who choose to be police officers have prioritized their own power and the power of a fascist institution over the lives of other queer people. We are past the point of ignorance. I don’t care who a cop is fucking — a cop is a cop.
Who does Ru think is going to enforce the drag bans she’s supposedly fighting against? Cops — including the gay ones. It won’t matter if a cop is taking pleasure in their own bigotry or just following orders. The outcome will be the same.
This segment acts as one of many reminders that Drag Race will always be a bad platform for great performers. The vast majority of what makes the show worthwhile happens despite the people in control.
One such performer is last year’s winner, Willow Pill! She comes out to her song from the previous finale, “I Hate People,” and gives a really lovely speech. She mentions that it’s been a difficult year for her and gives a reminder that it’s okay to go through a rough time. Then she introduces Kornbread dressed as Beast from Beauty and the Beast who raps about all the queens. Her rap includes Luxx and Mistress, and not Sasha or Anetra. which is why it seems the top two was preordained. Malaysia then wins Miss Congeniality, which seems totally random. Mistress looks as annoyed as she should be.
The show could not win me back after its little pro-cop stunt, but it certainly tried! My love Jinkx Monsoon comes out and sings “When You’re Good to Mama.” I didn’t get a chance to see Jinkx in Chicago on Broadway, so I was thrilled to get a chance to see her do this number. Ru then shows a clip from season five of her saying that her dream is to perform in drag on Broadway. That got me!
Finally, it’s time for the top two to lip sync to “Knock on Wood” by Amii Stewart. Anetra is wearing a white bodysuit covered in crystals with a beating red heart and Sasha is in a big black velvet coat dress. When the song starts Sasha takes the coat off to reveal a purple and pink dress.
They’re both exceptional performers, but Sasha Colby is Sasha Colby. This only becomes clearer when they both do their reveals. Anetra pulling the red string of her heart is fun, but Sasha cracks open her dress and emerges in a bikini that shows off all her perfection.
It’s undeniable. Sasha Colby is crowned the winner of Drag Race season 15. She ends the season by saying: “This is for every trans person past, present, and future because we are not going anywhere.”
After Jinkx performed, she quipped to Ru that she might be Mama, but Ru will always be mother. I hope that’s not true. Let’s shake off the mother we’ve been given and, in a grand queer tradition, choose a new one. Ru has evolved as much as she ever will. It’s time to move on. It’s time for a new mother.
Give us what we deserve. Give us Sasha Colby’s Drag Race.
+ My favorite opening look was Salina’s dress with the slice of cake removed.
+ Loosey was dressed as a literal villain. It was certainly a choice!
+ During Luxx’s intro, she says that while she leads with confidence, she still has feelings. This seems like a response to the racism and hate she’s received online. The Drag Race fandom really can be the worst.
+ Mistress notes that Sugar and Spice are only five days younger than her even though they’re her daughters.
+ I loved seeing Kerri Colby and Kylie Sonique Love dancing together during Sasha’s number.
+ Wild that Michelle asked Sasha why it took her so long to be on the show. Ma’am. Ask your friend RuPaul Charles?? Anyway, glad Ru got a bit less transphobic so we could get a season of television with the one, the only, Sasha Colby.
+ And that’s another season! Thanks to everyone who read my recaps. My frustrations with RuPaul and the show aside, it does still feel meaningful to see all these talented performers on TV. I hope a cis person never wins Drag Race again.
This is a recap of RuPaul’s Drag Race episode 1514. Spoilers below.
I love this top four! Ru had me convinced the show was doing a top three this year and while I do think the finales were in need of a shakeup, I was not pleased with that possibility. This is the best top four since the show started doing a top four finale in season eleven — they all deserve their place.
With Loosey gone, this episode is low on drama and big on feelings. Even with the specter of an elimination hanging over the queens, they spend most of this week celebrating themselves and each other.
The main challenge is a music video — with verses of course — to Ru’s song “Blame It On the Edit.” While three of the queens are writing, Luxx takes a nap. A sign of confidence, for sure, but one that will prove itself earned.
The Tic Tac lunch is back, but its origins as a fatphobic dieting joke at least go unmentioned. Sasha goes first and gives Ru exactly what he wants — talk of her saboteur and talk of trauma. She says that she’s uncomfortable with winning and her people-pleasing comes from an old wound of wanting her mom to love her. She then shares that her dad died by suicide and left everything to her which felt like a complicated sign of approval to his trans child.
Anetra’s lunch is a bit lighter — a bit — with her talking about being soft-spoken because she had to be growing up Mormon. Michelle tells Anetra that her lip sync against Marcia was Michelle’s favorite of all time. Anetra then shares that her love of ballroom comes from the internet not actually being a part of the culture — something that has led to some controversy and discussion.
Mistress was also not allowed to be outspoken as a child, but that’s why she’s so outspoken now. She calls out Loosey for being two-sided and Ru says, “We call that an undercover cunt.” I gasped. Mistress ends by saying that she just wants to make her drag family proud shouting out her drag mom Chevelle Brooks.
Luxx, a young queen with a supportive family, acts as a foil to the others. It’s clear Ru sees in Luxx the future that she wants for queer people. Luxx also talks about planning every outfit off stage as well as on — something very evident in her incredible crop top jean suit. Ru is also very excited to find out Luxx went to a high school named after Cicely Tyson.
Music video time! They’re all dressed in a sci-fi aesthetic and look amazing — especially Sasha who is referencing Barb Wire. Mistress struggles with the choreo, which is made even more difficult by the fact that they have to film immediately after learning it. Meanwhile, Luxx picks it up immediately.
While Sasha is dancing, Anetra says, “Sasha is so hot. Am I lesbian?” And while I do not have an answer for her, I do have an answer for me and that answer is yes very much so.
There’s no guest judge this week and the runway theme is Drag Excellence. Anetra is dressed as a grand empress with blue velvet dress with white tassels and pointy white hair. Luxx is in a bridal look, less slutty than usual but still gorgeous. Sasha is in a crystal dress covered in rhinestones with discs on her arms and orchids in her hair. And Mistress, with my favorite look of the night, is in a sixty pound (!) gold dress with beaded cheetah print.
The video performances are as strong as the runways. Even Mistress pulls it off by leading with confidence and having a strong verse. But amid all this excellence, Sasha Colby is easily the standout. She’s remarkable.
The critiques are mostly just gushing, followed by more emotion as the queens talk to their younger selves. Sasha calls drag the love of her life and the picture of baby Sasha in pigtails was so cute I died.
While the judges deliberate, Ru mentions that she challenged herself to have an elimination every week. I did appreciate how the season moved along, but I do think there were times double saves were in order as well as double eliminations. My ideal would be one double save and one double elimination when it’s really earned.
By this point, it was clear that the bottom would be Anetra and Mistress. And, I’m going to be honest, even though I loved Anetra from the beginning, I felt myself leaning toward Mistress.
The queens come back out and Sasha gets her fourth win of the season. Luxx is safe. And Anetra and Mistress lip sync to “When Love Takes Over” by David Guetta and Kelly Rowland. It’s not a song suited to Anetra’s acrobatics so it ends up being a very equal lip sync. And thankfully no choice has to be made.
After all that talk, both queens make it to the finale. As they should! Anetra, Mistress, and Luxx all equally deserve to lose to Sasha Colby.
+ Mistress points out that she is the only queen from her half of the premiere to be in the finale.
+ Mistress also notes that, in her opinion, Malaysia didn’t look anything like her picture.
+ I’m obsessed with Luxx calling herself The Gatekeeper for being involved in all the various “gates” of drama.
+ I just finished watching every George Cukor movie and his second to last movie is a US-USSR co-production kids movie called The Blue Bird where Cicely Tyson plays a cat. She’s great, as always, but I can’t say the movie is worth a watch unless you’re on a lot of drugs.
+ During Untucked, the girls realize the first letter of their names spell SLAM. It’s cute. I would attend the SLAM Tour.
+ Next week is just a reunion episode, so there will be no recap from me. I’m very excited to watch, but there won’t be much to analyze other than summarizing whatever delicious drama we have in store.
+ Queen I’m rooting for: Sasha Colby
+ Queen I’m horniest for: Sasha Colby
+ Queen I want to marry me: Sasha Colby
This is a recap of RuPaul’s Drag Race episode 1513. Spoilers below.
It could be so simple. Watching a bunch of queens drag up teachers — including a kindergarten teacher! — as they chat about queer acceptance shows how easy it could all be. But bigotry doesn’t exist because it’s complicated. It exists because people are greedy and fearful, selfish and entitled.
It’s the makeover episode and in what I’d consider the show’s biggest political swing of the season, the queens are making over teachers. The Rusical may have directly addressed the drag bans, but this feels like the challenge that actually seems like it could stir up controversy. (By controversy, I mean images from it could appear behind Tucker Carlson as he whines.)
But first we start with Salina’s exit. Her mirror message reads: I guess I got what I deserved. This is clearly a pointed message to Loosey and Anetra for saying she deserved to go home.
Speaking of deserve, Loosey is saying she didn’t deserve to be in the bottom. Sasha says, “Okay let’s get rowdy,” and rowdy they get. Luxx says she 110% believes what she said about Loosey last week and tensions begin to rise even higher.
It’s a new day in the workroom and it’s time for a mini challenge. Norvina from Anastasia Beverly Hills is there to introduce the game show Spill the Tea. The queens have to lift up pictures of each other to answer various questions, like which queen makes them laugh the hardest. It’s all fun and games until they’re asked who is going home next and everyone picks Loosey including Loosey — because she wants to win the game.
Her strategy works which means she wins $5,000 worth of makeup and the chance to pair the queens with their makeover partners. Loosey chooses Mrs. Wallace for herself, an older white woman. She then pairs Mistress with Ms. Tang, a queer Latina with the closest body to hers. And Anetra with Mrs. Mahoney, a thin woman who is also half Filipina. It seems like Loosey is in her congenial era until she gives the one Black teacher, Mrs. March Banks, to Sasha instead of Luxx. Luxx gets Ms. Reyes, who by far looks the least like her new drag mom than any of the others.
I don’t begrudge Loosey for playing the game — even if historically pairing queens with someone more challenging has failed as much as it’s succeeded. But there is something weird about matching the queens up by race except for the Black queen and Black teacher. I don’t think Loosey was thinking about that — but that’s kind of the problem, right?
The longer episode gives us a lot of meaningful time with the pairs. Mrs. Mahoney tells Anetra that Drag Race is her favorite show and they bond over being Filipina. Meanwhile, Loosey bonds with Mrs. Wallace over their big boobs — one in drag, one out of drag. We also get Sasha learning from Mrs. March Banks that she has two kids and watches Drag Race with her husband. Also, she wants padding.
The highlight of the episode is the relationship that forms between Mistress and Ms. Tang. Ms. Tang is queer and first generation and Mistress tells her how meaningful it would’ve been to have her as a teacher. It really is worth remembering that not only should queer teachers be allowed to be open about their lives but that it’s actually beneficial for all the queer students to have that life model. Ms. Tang cries as Mistress talks to her and it’s just really lovely.
Later, when doing the walkthroughs, Ru seems surprised to learn Ms. Tang is queer, which feels very telling from Ru and what his queer world looks like. Even though Ms. Tang only came out a few years ago in her late twenties, she now looks more clockable than me on laundry day.
Luxx makes the mistake of getting thrown by Loosey’s shady pairing. Sure, it’s going to be more of a challenge, but that isn’t Ms. Reyes’ fault! Luxx is so concerned with doing well in the challenge that she fails to really connect with Ms. Reyes — at least at first.
Eventually, Luxx learns that Ms. Reyes’ kids are queer and that she stopped going to their Catholic church in support of them. This melts Luxx a bit and she finally starts to connect more with her new daughter.
The guest judge this week is Hayley Kiyoko, who shares the fun fact that she was in love with her first grade teacher Ms. Spear. If I know anything about Hayley’s taste in women, Ms. Spear was definitely straight.
The first pairs to grace the runway are Sasha and her daughter Ferocity. Their resemblance is great, Ferocity is walking well, and the enhanced padding is a fun touch.
Loosey and her… Aunt Lala also have a lot of resemblance, but as Mistress says that isn’t necessarily a compliment to Lala. Also just call her your drag daughter! Age doesn’t matter!
I’m biased, because I’m always going to be rooting for the gays, but Mistress and her daughter Madame Thang were my favorite. They were very similar without looking as identical as some of the other pairs. They were also totally in sync on the runway.
Luxx and her daughter Asia Azul have the least resemblance. Asia is in a proper dress while Luxx is half naked. And Asia’s dress only has lining the color of Luxx’s outfit. The one thing I’ll say about this pair though is that Luxx made Asia look gorgeous. I do think that’s an underrated part of these challenges — yes, resemblance matters, but for the people being in drag for the first and maybe last time it’s also nice when they get to really feel themselves.
The last pair is Anetra and her daughter Alexa. They are in nearly identical pink and black velvet outfits. I don’t know why I didn’t feel more enthusiastic about them! Like they did the assignment, and did it well. And I do like the outfit. I guess I prefer when the looks are in the same family, but still different. When the queens are backstage, Ross says that this pair is proof you don’t have to look similar which feels very odd to me, because they do look similar, they’re just different heights.
The judges mostly give praise, only calling out Luxx for the lack of resemblance and Loosey for a discordant runway and missing some design details. Believe it or not, Loosey will not agree with these critiques.
They have the teachers lip sync to Ru’s “Champion” and it’s very sweet to watch the teachers all have fun. They all win, but honestly Ferocity was the real winner! Mother Sasha taught her well.
Mistress is safe. Sasha is safe. Anetra wins. Again, I’m fine with this. (I love Anetra obviously.) But, personally, I would’ve given the win to Mistress.
This means Loosey and Luxx are lip syncing to “For the Girls” by the guest judge herself. Luxx fights for her life and I was HORNY. This might be the shadiest lip sync I’ve seen. Every flip and turn from Luxx seemed to scream, “SEE I’M BETTER THAN YOU.” And she is.
Luxx wins. And, for the last time in the workroom but certainly not the last time in her life, Loosey feels slighted. She says she deserved to be in the finale. I’d argue she deserved to be eliminated in the first episode when she couldn’t hit a note in front of Ariana Grande.
I guess everyone is entitled to an opinion. And Loosey certainly knows something about being entitled.
+ Unlike Loosey I can admit when I’m wrong. So let me take this moment to say I was absolutely wrong about the hour long episodes. Since having the hour and a half episodes back, the show has been so much better. I didn’t realize quite how much those rushed edits were hurting.
+ There was some drama this week with a video being posted of Salina calling out Ross. But World of Wonder swooped in because soon enough Salina was on Twitter apologizing. I do think the judges, Ross especially, were not open to Salina’s drag! And I think it’s fair to question Ross’ fashion knowledge!
+ I was worried about these teachers’ jobs given how things have escalated since last summer. But since they’re given trips to Palm Springs at end, I’m guessing they’re all based in Los Angeles. And, hopefully, LA is still a safe place to be a teacher and be on Drag Race.
+ Untucked was a lot of fun with Mistress stoking the ever-growing feud between Loosey and Luxx. I don’t need to get into specifics, but I do think Anetra is right in her confessional when she says that someone else’s opinion about your drag just shouldn’t bother you this much.
+ I also really appreciated Anetra saying that even for people who do have biological family in their life, chosen family can be really important.
+ And speaking of chosen family! Kerri Colby sends a video message to her mom! Also, has anyone else seen this video of Kerri Colby at the chiropractor? It’s dripping with sexual tension.
+ The “next week on” says only three queens will be making it to the finale but I don’t buy it. They’ll all do well and Ru will have four like almost every other year.
+ Queen I’m rooting for: Sasha
+ Queen I’m horniest for: Luxx destroying Loosey in that lip sync
+ Queen I want to sashay: None of them! All four deserve to be in the finale!
This is a recap of RuPaul’s Drag Race episode 1512. Spoilers below.
The last few weeks have been hard. Every day there is a new anti-trans law passed, proposed, or discussed. Every day the Internet is abuzz with discourse about the value of trans existence. The wave of anti-drag campaigning and legislation was never just about drag — not when it began before this season of Drag Race filmed last summer, not now that the vitriol has only increased. It’s always been about controlling gender nonconformity and transness, it’s just the latest attempt at using fear of queer people to win broken elections.
It’s been a long time since Drag Race has felt radical — maybe it never did. The wild notion of “drag queens on TV” became more and more palatable the bigger the platform. The queens have managed to inject the show with a political edge, but the show itself has always prioritized RuPaul’s dollar sign liberalism.
It scares me that Drag Race is starting to feel radical. It scares me that a fucking Rusical called Wigloose could make me emotional. But that’s just where we are right now. And that’s why it’s so important these queens are still being bitches.
We begin this week in the aftermath of Marcia’s elimination. I still can’t believe she was ousted the week before the Rusical, but at least it allowed Loosey to win something this week: excellence in reminding me of the worst gays in the NYU drama department.
It’s a new week and yes the Rusical is called Wigloose and is set in the 1980s and it’s about a small town that has banned drag. Ru tells the queens they can decide their parts for themselves because if there are two things RuPaul will do it’s watch a man drown and make good television.
Mistress wants to be the villain, Preacher Teacher. Sasha wants to be Carl, her nerdy husband. And Anetra wants Mama Bacon, the loving drag mentor. These three go unopposed. Drama starts when Luxx and Salina both say they want either Heaven Bacon (the lead) or Christian (his friend). Loosey says she also wants Heaven Bacon. Nobody wants Tuck (Heaven’s other friend). Salina tries to be smart and say that she’ll take Christian and they can battle it out over Heaven. But the battle does not end quickly!
Luxx is rightfully saying that the character description for Heaven is a young gay kid from the big city and that fits better with her. Tuck is a country jock who just wants to do drag and that fits better with Loosey. Loosey starts waxing poetic about why she connects to Heaven and Mistress is like bitch come on you just want the lead stop being fake. Then Loosey flips out about being called fake. There’s a lot of back and forth with both Loosey and Luxx ultimately giving in. The final result is Salina gets Tuck, Luxx gets Christian, and Loosey gets the chance to drag down the entire drag musical.
Ru comes to the workroom to do a little trauma check in while the queens prepare. He starts by talking to Sasha about her mom who told Sasha she wouldn’t get into heaven. They don’t speak anymore. Then she talks to Anetra who says that drag saved her life and she tells an anecdote about going to DragCon as a baby queen. And, finally, Ru tries to get Salina to realize that being in the top six means she can let go of her feelings that she doesn’t belong — it would help if the judges got her drag more, but no matter.
While all these emotions are spewing, Loosey is CARRYING ON. She’s crying to Salina about how she was bullied for being gay and that’s why she can’t handle being bullied by Mistress and Luxx. Excuse me?? Babe, we’re ALL gay here! You can’t pull that card. In fact, you have no oppression cards to play in this setting. Sorry. She then says that she led Luxx to a win last week, which is just absurd.
I have not been a fan of Loosey from the beginning, but this week I loved her. It feels deeply important to me that the political landscape never gets so bad that I can’t despise an annoying faggot. When drag becomes loving sisterhood tied into a sweet little package, we are in trouble. Let these egos at each other. Remind us all that even though we’re all part of the same fight, our humanity has not been robbed and part of being human is getting to hate your sisters.
The queens go to the choreography session with Miguel Zarate. There are various insecurities and struggles that pop up but the only thing I want to talk about here is Luxx’s outfit. She’s in this see through white top and tight light wash jeans and I’m obsessed.
As the queens get ready, Loosey asks Mistress who she’s pulling from to play the villain and Mistress says this person she competed against named Doosey DaDuca. Loosey can act innocent, but she was obviously pushing buttons with that question, and I’m delighted by Mistress’ response. The queens then talk directly about the anti-drag laws being proposed. Sasha wisely notes that while it’s important to be loudly yourself, sometimes you do have to consider safety about where and when.
With this context in mind, the Rusical really worked for me. If Luxx had been in the lead role, I might have even cried. Unfortunately, Loosey is so stale at the center. She reminded me of certain Broadway understudies or touring cast members who have the vocals for the part but have no charisma or acting chops. Well, except the Rusicals are lip synced, so it wasn’t even Loosey’s vocals. Like she’s fine. She’s totally competent. That’s what she’s been all season. Simply competent. There are worse things to be in life — nothing worse in a reality competition show.
The real standouts for me were Sasha and Anetra. Sasha is having so much fun in boy drag and it makes the character’s girl drag reveal really shine. Anetra gives her part a lot of emotion and really sells the sentiment and genuine meaning. Mistress definitely has a showier role than Luxx and Salina, but I felt like all three did well, if not quite shining like the top two.
The judges this week are Michelle, Ross, and Orville Peck, a person I must admit I don’t know much about except that apparently he never shows his face. The runway theme is Everybody Say Glove. I’ve been tough on Loosey this week, but I have to admit she definitely had one of the six best runway looks of the episode. Drag Creature from the Black Lagoon that’s just a bodysuit with little gloves has the same energy as that picture of the woman with the bag of chips on her head.
Anetra has a really cool rave look with spinning lasers on her hands, Mistress looks gorgeous in a yellow gown with jewels dangling from her gloves, Luxx is an emo kid with two arm casts signed by her real friends from home, and Salina has giant red gloves and a pink skin tight suit. While Salina’s look isn’t my favorite, I do love how clearly her it is. I’d rather something feel uniquely someone’s style than appeal to me personally.
The runway winner for me was hands down (no pun intended) Sasha’s skirt and top made of baseball gloves. First of all, I love baseball. Second of all, it’s the one look that really deconstructed the theme. Third of all, Sasha Colby marry me.
Overall, the judges praise all the queens with the softest praise going to Loosey and the largest praise going to how horny they all are for Sasha as Carl. Then, because television is a beautiful medium, Ru asks the queens who should go home tonight.
Loosey starts by saying Salina, based on track record. Anetra echoes this sentiment. Mistress says, “I’m tired of being at the Sasha Colby meet and greet.” And just when I was worried all the queens were going to go the two most boring routes — base it on track record or base it on toughest competition — Luxx is here to save the day. She goes down the line one by one complimenting the queens until she gets to Loosey who she calls generic. It’s an iconic Drag Race moment in the making. Salina then also says Loosey — likely because Loosey said her after having cried on her shoulder. And then Sasha goes the safe route, saying Loosey and Luxx because they each have two wins so they’re competition.
I don’t usually recap Untucked but if you’re wondering if this moment leads to backstage drama, the answer is obviously yes. Mistress abandons her safe route, saying flatout that she doesn’t fuck with Loosey. And Salina calls out Loosey for saying her name when she knows there are people Loosey dislikes. Oh and Loosey and Luxx bicker a bit more about who gave up the part to whom.
Back onstage, Mistress is safe, Luxx is safe, Sasha is safe, and Anetra wins!! So deserved! That means the lip sync is between Loosey and Salina and the song is “Running Up That Hill” by Kate Bush.
The fact is there’s a reason Ru always says this is their last chance to impress him. The winner of the lip sync isn’t necessarily who wins — track record is also considered. And so, I think it’s safe to say Salina won this lip sync. I get why Ru sent her home. But this was Salina’s best lip sync by a mile. She was feeling the song deeply and she managed to use her giant red gloves for pathos as well as humor.
Loosey LaDuca was, once again, simply competent.
+ All the talk of eras was killing me this week. I especially loved when Mistress said, “I’m not in my emotional era anymore,” and when Luxx said, “Not me in my political era.”
+ At one point, Salina says she’s waiting for Mistress to enter her skinny era, which frankly just felt sad considering Salina talking about her own insecurities with fatness later in the episode. Like i’m always going to think a fatphobic joke has fallen flat, but this one especially just felt like internalized shit coming out and I wish the editors hadn’t included it.
+ I loved Luxx’s runway look in general but special mention to those pants.
+ Sasha choosing to play Carl brings me so much joy,
+ Anetra gets nice messages from her best friend (who is single) and her dad during Untucked.
+ Queen I’m rooting for: Sasha
+ Queen I’m horniest for: Luxx
+ Queen I would roast even if drag was illegal in all 50 states: Loosey
This is a recap of RuPaul’s Drag Race episode 1511. Spoilers below.
Oh standup comedy. A thing so many people do and so few people do well. Including 15 seasons worth of Drag Race queens.
Yes, it’s standup comedy week but before we get to that the episode begins in the aftermath of last week’s lip sync. Another queen is gone and Loosey is once again saying that she thinks she should have won. The fact is Luxx is — almost — as over-confident as Loosey, but I like Luxx so it’s okay. Also biases aside Luxx seems to be having fun with it, a tongue-in-cheek confidence. Loosey just seems desperate to prove herself.
It’s a new day in your the workroom and Luxx is continuing her spat with Loosey from the previous week. She asks why Loosey didn’t have a pregnant belly for her Beyoncé look and Loosey says Beyoncé wasn’t showing. Which is false. Then in the confessional Loosey says that she doesn’t care about this argument because she came in second last week and Luxx didn’t. Which is also false!! They were both equally in the top and both equally lost to Sasha.
This is our first episode of the season back at 90 minutes which means we get a loose edit and a mini challenge! It’s, to quote Ru, a “Harlem vogue ball” in quick drag. Sasha does more in this mini challenge than some of the other queens have done all season. She’s just remarkable. Anetra is also great and she wins — probably because Sasha can’t win everything.
The main challenge this week is The Bubly Comedy Festival — sponsored by Bubly! — where the queens will perform as comedy duos. They pick different colored Bubly cans — Bubly! No calories, no sweeteners, all smiles — to choose their teams. Luxx and Loosey end up together, which is obviously the result of producer meddling. Sasha and Anetra end up together. And then, lastly, Marcia and Mistress. This means Salina is on her own — until Ru gives her the choice to steal one of the queens and she snatches up Mistress. It’s a good thing Marcia says her name three times, because that’s the closest she has to a team this week.
Because Anetra won the mini challenge, she gets to pick the order. It’s going to go Marcia, then Luxx and Loosey, then Anetra and Sasha, and, finally, Mistress and Salina. When asked how she picked this order, Anetra declines to answer.
While Marcia is panicking, Luxx makes a tapeworm weight loss joke that made my eyes roll all the way back to 2003 when that joke might’ve been acceptable. And, speaking of eyes and headaches, Anetra has an ocular migraine! I cannot imagine being in that workroom with a migraine and having to keep on doing Drag Race rather than lying on a bed with all the lights off.
Ali Wong is the guest judge this week and she and Michelle meet with the queens to workshop their material. Marcia isn’t really hitting any punchlines, although I thought the suggestion of Ross and Carson doing Death of a Salesman to be funny — would’ve been funnier if she’d picked a two-hander like Waiting for Godot. (Yeah, Marcia, I know theatre too!) Luxx is also struggling with punchlines — she has them written, she’s just not enunciating.
I don’t want to be overly critical of Loosey, but she just makes it so easy! Luxx makes a joke about her not having rhythm and she actually says that she won LaLaPaRuza. Bitch, you beat Spice! You did not win. COME ON.
Salina and Mistress do okay, but Salina talks too much. And Sasha and Anetra kind of bomb. Watching this I felt hopeful because usually in these challenges the queens that bomb the rehearsal, kill on the mainstage. But I guess they all kind of sucked in rehearsal so it didn’t matter. Sasha says that she really doesn’t want them to be the bottom and that’s fine with me. Top, bottom, whatever Sasha and Anetra want, I’m a switch, I’m in.
The next day, Luxx and Loosey are psyching Marcia out as they get ready. The two of them together really are an overpowering duo of confidence and mind games. On the other side of the room, Mistress tells an emotional story about breaking her ankle in drag and when her mom came to the hospital, she was more concerned with the drag than Mistress’ health. Mistress is very clear that her mom has crossed too many lines and that she has no intention of mending that relationship. It’s refreshing to watch Mistress subvert the Drag Race Heals Families storyline. She has a family. Her drag family.
I’m not really sure how to write about this “comedy” performance. Usually, there are a handful of queens who are incredible and a handful that totally bomb. In this case. all the queens kind of… soft bomb. I mean, the edits try to tell a different story. I guess we’re supposed to see Luxx and Loosey referencing Shangela’s sugar daddy speech as some sort of comic triumph, but I wasn’t laughing. Marcia is extremely neutral and Sasha and Anetra just can’t seem to cohere their bits. Honestly, Salina and Mistress were probably my favorite. There was at least a fun energy to it.
The runway this week was Ripped to Shreds. Marcia is dressed as a winning pageant queen who was torn apart by her competition. It’s fine. I’m less concerned with it being similar to Loosey’s look a few weeks ago and more concerned with it being similar to what Marcia has been doing all season. Loosey is Nosferatu which is at least quite different from what she’s been doing all season — at least on the runway.
Luxx absolutely wins with her Liberace Mad Max look inspired by something Ru wore in 1986. Not only was the original look a great reference pull, but the way Luxx has updated it is just stellar. Sasha, Anetra, and Mistress all look great as well — Sasha in a ripped jean dress, Anetra in a pink and dark green lotus flower catsuit, and Mistress in a burnt tribute to Madonna’s “Material Girl.” Salina’s look is a tribute to her mother crossing the border and I agree with Ali Wong that it would’ve been more interesting if she’d made the whole dress out of the blanket material.
Ts Madison is back as a judge, which is always a treat! The judges mostly say what I expected even if they liked Luxx and Loosey more than I did. (I guess they have to praise someone since we already did the LaLaPaRuza.) I was also surprised they weren’t more complimentary toward Salina and less complimentary toward Mistress instead of being somewhat neutral on both.
Mistress and Salina are safe. Loosey and Luxx both win. Marcia, Anetra, and Sasha are in the bottom. And Sasha is, rightfully, safe.
Marcia and Anetra lip sync to “Boss Bitch” by Doja Cat and OH MY GOD WHAT A LIP SYNC. Marcia is solid, but Anetra gives one of the best lip sync performances I’ve ever seen. SHE JUMPS OVER MARCIA. It’s wild. Anetra really is special. I really hope she’s in the top two of the season with Sasha.
And so Anetra wins and Marcia sashays. I can’t believe she won’t get to weaponize her BFA in next week’s Rusical.
+ People had been asking why RuPaul hadn’t made a statement about the wave of anti-drag legislation spreading across the country. He finally did and now I have to ask, why did anyone want him to make a statement?? It was the exact kind of empty liberalism you’d expect from Ru.
+ I liked Ru’s dress made entirely of tabs from cans!
+ I really thought Ru crying over Luxx had clenched the solo win for her. I was excited to see Loosey have a meltdown.
+ Mistress gets a message in Untucked from her drag mom!! Is this the first time one of these messages from home has been from a drag mom rather than biological family or a partner?
+ Queen I’m rooting for: Sasha
+ Queen I’m horniest for: Sasha
+ Queen I want to sashay: Loosey
This is a recap of RuPaul’s Drag Race episode 1510. Spoilers below.
Finally, a challenge I would nail. Watching Drag Race, I’ve often felt like I’d be great at sharing my trauma and bonding with a bunch of queers, if only I knew how to sew… and dance and lip sync and do makeup beyond the basics. Anyway, this is why my dreams are limited to being a guest judge. But this week the queens are doing something I can do — celebrity interviews!
But first! We begin with Mistress calling Spice — a person who is one (1) year younger — her daughter, while admitting it was her time to go. Gay motherhood is a flexible concept! Almost as flexible as Loosey’s scorekeeping. She insists she’s won three challenges because of two mini challenge wins, as if that is ever how the show has worked. Thankfully Spice’s mom is there to psychologically torture Loosey in return.
It’s a new day in the work room and there’s no mini challenge for Loosey to win. There’s just an interview maxi challenge and the queens are split into three groups. Sasha and Marcia are interviewing Charo. Anetra, Malaysia, and Loosey are interviewing Frankie Grande. And Lux, Mistress, and Salina are interviewing Love Connie. The best part is the queens get to watch each other’s segments from backstage.
First up is Team Love Connie. Salina opens by struggling to get Connie to have short answers. Luxx embraces the chaos and does a good job with a golf cart drive around. And, for the first time this season, Mistress bombs her baking segment. She just can’t get Connie to engage with her and fails to get on Connie’s level.
Next up is Team Charo. Sasha is fangirling as they make a salad, but struggling to harness Charo’s chaos. But, like a pro, she stops trying! The segment ends up being so much fun and by far the best performance of the episode. Marcia is not quite as lucky, as she doesn’t seem capable of understanding anything Charo says.
Finally, Team Frankie Grande. Loosey opens with a sitdown interview and lets Frankie Grande get away with claiming a Medicine Man placed a poisonous spider on him?? Frankie is the least interesting guest, so he’s easy enough for Loosey to interview, but my God are we not going to question that claim at all? Like, okay, this segment is fine. Loosey does fine. She’s better than Malaysia who bombs the cooking segment. But my favorite here was Anetra doing the walk and talk.
The runway is Night of a Thousand Beyoncés! Or, as Anetra jokes, Night of Eight Beyoncés. While they’re getting ready, Sasha posits that she is maybe the inspiration for Sasha Fierce. I’d believe it! Mistress, however, does not.
The guest this week is Ts Madison who is always a welcome addition to the judges panel. Luxx comes out looking stunning in an exact recreation of the Bob Mackey dress worn to the 2006 Kennedy Center Honors. Anetra is once again showing off her hot butterfly chest tattoo in her recreation of the On the Run Tour. But the real winners of the runway are Sasha recreating a look from the BET awards and Mistress doing Destiny’s Child at the 2001 Grammys with puppet heads as Michelle and Kelly.
With Spice gone, I know Loosey is an easy target. But how can she do the 2011 VMA baby bump reveal without a baby bump???
Marcia and Anetra are safe — personally I would have thrown Anetra in the top and Marcia in the bottom and had no one be safe. Luxx, Sasha, and Loosey are in the top — although Ru also makes my same point about Loosey not following up on the spider story. And Mistress, Salina, and Malaysia are in the bottom — with only Malaysia receiving all negative critiques.
Sasha wins!! Loosey looks pissed off. Mistress earns her safe spot with the runway. That means it’s Malaysia and Salina lip syncing to “Single Ladies.”
Part of Salina’s wig comes off and she still wins. She just wanted it more! Malaysia has been slowing down throughout the season. This happens every year to a handful of queens. This show is hard and that challenge invigorates some and exhausts others. It was her time to go and I think she felt it. I can’t blame her! Again, I literally could not do anything these queens do except, in this one case, interview a celebrity.
+ Ru asks Sasha if she’s ever hosted a TV show and um… Sasha should take over for Ru after she retires!! It’s so obvious!! She’d be amazing!!
+ I had no idea Love Connie was the gay man in the “bend and snap” Legally Blonde scene! Genuinely fun fact from interviewer Luxx.
+ In Untucked, Anetra calls Marcia a thesbian… a lipstick thesbian.
+ I appreciated how much Mistress owned fucking up the challenge.
+ Luxx’s family dropped by with a sweet message!
+ Speaking of sweet messages, Ts Madison comes backstage for a pep talk and at the end has a really lovely moment with Sasha.
+ Queen I’m rooting for: Sasha Colby
+ Queen I’m horniest for: Anetra and her butterfly tattoo
+ Queen I want to sashay: Loosey “Three Challenge Wins” Laduca
This is a recap of RuPaul’s Drag Race episode 1509. Spoilers below.
The last TikTok queen has left the building. It was never about millennials vs. Gen Z — Luxx is 22 and Mistress is 24 — but it was a bit about queens from drag communities vs. queens who had gone viral on TikTok. And the drag queens classique have won.
We begin in the wake of Jax’s untimely exit. Marcia is being cunty and saying it was time Jax leave — as if most of her times in the bottom weren’t totally unearned. Sure, we saw Jax lip sync five times. I’d have been happy to watch her lip sync five more. We saw Spice lip sync four times and my soul will never recover.
It’s a new day in the work room and we’re celebrating an actually monumental moment in Drag Race herstory. It’s the show’s 200th episode! We’ve come such a long way since Shannel’s wig fell off while she sang “The Greatest Love of All” in a vaseline filter.
To celebrate, we have one of our first mini challenges of the Real Friends of WeHo season! And, to be honest, it reminded me why initially I didn’t mind the shorter episodes. The queens are photobombing “iconic” Drag Race moments and Anetra wins by jumping in Willow’s bathtub from the classic season of… last year. If the moment happened in the last three years since I’ve been doing recaps, sorry, it’s not an iconic moment.
Making up for this shrug of a mini challenge, the maxi challenge this week is a ball! A Crystal Ball! There are three looks: 1) a riff on Ru’s classic racing suit, 2) a take on the eleganza looks from past balls, and 3) crystal eleganza, outfits made from scratch involving crystal.
Loosey says she’s been waiting for the ball, because her drag delusion is a permanent condition. Marcia is salty because Luxx is taking stuff she wants. And Sasha, my perfect genius, notes that everyone is taking silver so she goes for gold. The metaphor writes itself.
Carson comes to the work room, and he and Ru give advice to the queens as they work on their looks. Now, this is the part where I miss the longer episodes. I would’ve liked more time spent on these feedback sessions. But we do get them encouraging Spice not to do the same silhouette and EsTitties to keep things simpler. EsTitties cries as she talks about struggling emotionally and Ru, the one note therapist, brings up her inner saboteur.
We do have some time for the queens to partake in a bit of RuPaul’s Trauma Race. EsTitties says she has a gay brother which prompts Anetra to talk about how her mom doesn’t speak to her. She was kicked out of her house and never got to say goodbye to her siblings. But she then reconnected with her biological father and he’s been her biggest supporter.
The guest judge this week is Julia Garner, someone I’ve been a fan of since Electrick Children (2012). She’s, unfortunately, kind of a nothing judge! I don’t know if it’s because of the tight editing for three runway looks or what, but she barely says anything! I guess being a talented actor and being a talented Drag Race judge require different skills.
The first runway looks are also the weakest. It’s a narrow prompt, but no one really does anything that impressive with it. Mistress’ look with sayings from different big girls of Drag Race past was my favorite.
The next group of looks is much better — even if once again Mistress has my favorite. She goes with a beach ball look and it’s fun and fashion and I’m obsessed. Close runner ups are Luxx doing a Thierry Mugler inspired hair ball look and Sasha’s bag of weed look. Anetra’s candy look is simple, but hot, and, if there’s one thing I’m going to do it’s take time to be horny.
The crystal looks are a mix of boring and overwhelmingly gobsmackingly gorgeous. My faves will not surprise. Mistress’ dress with fringe crystals on the arms is beautiful. Luxx is barely covered by her ice crystals but it works great. Sasha is a golden coral goddess. And Anetra has one of my favorite ball looks in Drag Race herstory. It’s a tight dress with a low v-cut and a crystal spinal column. It’s stunning and dangerous and everything I love about Anetra’s fashion.
Marcia, Malaysia, and Luxx are safe. At first, I thought, Luxx safe?? But then Mistress, Sasha, and Anetra were announced in the top and I thought, well, okay, that’s correct. EsTitties, Spice, and Loosey are in the bottom.
The edit feels super weird as they skip the judges deliberating. Sasha wins, something I will not complain about since she hasn’t won many weeks where she deserved it. But, personally, I would’ve either given it to Mistress for consistency across the three looks or Anetra for that final look.
Loosey is safe. (Boooo.) Spice and EsTitties are lip syncing to Lil Nas X’s “That’s What I Want.” Does Spice know that lip syncing means actually mouthing the lyrics to the song? Does she just think it’s dancing around being silly and occasionally singing the chorus? Luckily, this is no longer my problem, because EsTitties easily wins and Spice sashays away.
I know some of you loved Spice, so for everyone out there with bad taste, I’m sorry for your loss.
+ I went to Bosco’s face reveal party last week and Sasha performed “Misery Business.” It was transcendent and it’s made me a full Sasha devotee. No more “she’s so good, she doesn’t need my support.” She may not need it, but she has it. Like, I love you Anetra, but Sasha needs to win this. And then marry me.
+ Mistress was poking Loosey all episode. I loved Mistress so much.
+ Ru debuts her new song, but the less said about that the better. She’s earned the right to force us to sit through anything, and you know what? She sure did that.
+ Queen I’m rooting for: my wife, Sasha Colby
+ Queen I’m horniest for: Anetra
+ Queen I want to sashay: Loosey
This is a recap of RuPaul’s Drag Race episode 1508. Spoilers below.
Life’s not fair. This is a thing adults often say to children. When I was a child, I’d always respond, “Well, it should be.” The adults would laugh at my naïveté, waiting for me to grow up and understand. It never happened. I’ve never understood. Life should be fair. And so should Drag Race.
We begin in the wake of Aura’s sudden departure and Jax’s remarkable performance that caused it. Instead of talking about that or even celebrating Mistress’ challenge win, we continue with Loosey’s absurd stance in Untucked that she should’ve been in the top. Yes, the top of my list: Queens I Want to Go Home.
The next week all the queens are making fun of Loosey’s delusion and she won’t even own it! She’s forgetting that the post elimination workroom and next week workroom are edited back to back.
The maxi challenge this week is a Lip Sync LaLaPaRuza. I appreciate that they’re just doing it instead of pretending like all the queens equally bomb a challenge like last season. There are no guest judges and the way it works is Bruno picks bingo balls with the queens names and whoever’s name is chosen picks their opponent and then their opponent picks the song. One of the villains in this episode is those damn bingo balls — or the producers who manipulated them.
Malaysia is chosen first. She makes the mistake of picking someone she thinks is weak rather than someone she knows is weak or someone she knows will pick the song she wants. That person is Marcia and the song she chooses is “Boys Don’t Cry” by Anitta. Turns out Marcia is not weak and wins easily.
The balls once again fail us by choosing Loosey who then makes the obvious choice of Spice. Spice chooses “Do You Wanna Touch” by Joan Jett. Loosey has the sex appeal of an old sock you find under your bed covered in dust and hair. But she still beats Spice, who feels like an annoying twelve-year-old who won some sort of “appear on Drag Race” contest.
Loosey walks backstage acting like she’s the Queen of All Queens and not the truth: she chose the easiest queen to beat and then barely beat her.
The next ball chosen is Luxx who chooses EsTitties who chooses Celine Dion’s “It’s All Coming Back to Me Now.” They both do a good job, but EsTitties wins. She performs the emotion and is just funny. As Luxx walks back, Mistress says, “You still look good bitch.” Luxx flips her hair and says, “Always.”
Mistress is picked next and has to choose between Jax, Sasha, and Anetra. She goes with Jax because she thinks that she’ll pick the song she wants: “Tell It to My Heart” by Taylor Dayne. It works. A few things can be true: 1) Mistress and Jax both do a great job, 2) Acrobats don’t always mean the better lip sync, but 3) Jax still should have won this lip sync. However, Mistress wins because RuPaul is committed to this weird thing of eliminating lip sync assassins during LaLaPaRuzas.
Everyone backstage agrees with me and expresses their surprise at Mistress who responds in her wonderfully Mistress way.
The last lip sync of round one is between Sasha and Anetra. Anetra picks “I’m In Love With a Monster” by Fifth Harmony. While this episode has a lot about it that’s frustrating, it’s hard to be too mad when we get this incredible matchup. This is finale quality lip syncing. Better because they aren’t relying on so many tricks. They’re both just so good. Sasha wins. In a fair world, Ru would’ve done a double win because the numbers are odd anyway.
Next round, Malaysia goes first again and this time makes the smart choice and picks Spice. Spice chooses “Don’t Go Yet” by Camilla Cabello because she knows Malaysia doesn’t know the words. The only problem? Spice also doesn’t know the words. This is an embarrassing lip sync and it’s obvious that Malaysia knows it. Spice seems totally oblivious. I’m grateful that Ru saves Malaysia even though there were only losers with this one.
Then we get a threeway lip sync between Luxx, Anetra, and Jax to “The Right Stuff” by Vanessa Williams. It’s an absurd amount of talent on the stage which makes it even crazier that Ru picks one winner (Luxx) instead of two.
So there’s a bottom three: Spice and two of the three strongest lip syncers of the season. I get that having either Jax or Anetra go against Spice would be a waste of time. But then, they shouldn’t have let it get down to these three! The solution is not to let one of the queens save someone.
Anetra’s name is chosen and she chooses to save Spice. As she says in her confessional, going against Spice wouldn’t have been fair. But should there be a queen this far into the season that requires a participation trophy? Anetra earned my respect and love forever for taking this risk and going against a stronger competitor. And I’m happy to watch her and Jax perform “Finally” by CeCe Peniston. But it still sucks that this is how it ends.
Jax goes home on an episode geared toward her strengths. Spice, Malaysia, and Loosey get to sneak by with some truly horrendous performances. Life’s not fair. But it should be.
+ I have once again not watched Untucked live. The Real Friends of WeHo has really ruined it for me.
+ I love that EsTitties is rooting against Loosey because she wants to see her snap.
+ Sasha Colby, marry me.
+ Jax is going to KILL on All Stars.
+ Queen I’m rooting for: Anetra
+ Queen I’m horniest for: Anetra and Sasha fighting to the death (my death)
+ Queen I want to sashay: Spice and Loosey
This is a recap of RuPaul’s Drag Race episode 1507. Spoilers below.
Lights! Camera! Action! This week on Drag Race the queens had their big acting challenge. And I’m filming a short tomorrow that I wrote and directed and am starring in so if my energy is chaotic in this recap that’s why!
We begin in the aftermath of Robin’s elimination. Weirdly enough no one is gushing at my love Jax for having an incredible lip sync and instead are continuing the week’s drama.
Mistress is being Mistress (I mean this as a good thing) and saying her whole team should have been in the top. She then starts bringing up Malaysia getting upset in Untucked. Marcia looks like talking more about this is the last thing she wants. But Mistress doesn’t care! She’s here to be a drag queen and make great reality TV.
There’s some increased tension when Mistress feels like Sasha is trying to turn everything into a teachable moment and Malaysia isn’t wanting to talk things out. The feud will continue into another week…
And that new week brings the return of The Daytona Wind. Ru talks about this like it’s Snatch Game, and not a mildly funny bit done for the first time last season. If you’ll recall, I didn’t even recap that episode because Untucked was so good I had to write all about that.
Everyone wants to play the character Fancy but since Aura won last week, Aura gets to give it to herself. After that the parts get assigned quickly and with no drama. Well, except, it turns out Mistress and Malaysia are going to be scene partners.
Until the lip sync, this episode belongs to Mistress Isabella Brooks. She pauses from her Malaysia feud to play on Aura’s insecurities — or, let’s be fair, lack of certain talents — and suggest they switch parts when Aura starts struggling. It works. Aura takes the smaller part and Mistress gets to shine.
This season The Daytona Wind is a sitcom and RuPaul himself is in the director chair. Spice is struggling to take a single direction because Spice is struggling to do anything except the exact same thing she always does. Aura is also struggling, proving that Mistress had a point. Meanwhile, Mistress and Malaysia are both thriving — and thriving together.
The next day as they do their makeup, Mistress and Malaysia talk things out. I have Fast and the Furious on my mind because of the new trailer, but I love this Fast and Furious approach to conflict. If I may explain: throughout its nine movies (plus two shorts and spinoffs), the antagonists of one Fast movie are often part of the family in the next. Sometimes this feels absurd — but when the stakes are drag shadiness and not, you know, trying to kill people with cars, I love it! Fight hard, make up quickly. Who has time for grudges when we’re all a bunch of queers?
Harvey Guillen is the guest judge and the category is Puffer Please. Loosey does a basic look with a Stay Puft twist and Spice looks like a contestant on The Bachelor going on a one on one during a winter season. But the best looks of the night did something fresh with the prompt! Sasha looks incredible in a black and yellow look that felt like something Rihanna would wear to perform with Beyoncé. Aura and Anetra are also really hot. But it’s Mistress who wins without a doubt. She’s deconstructed a puffer jacket to highlight her body and looks so hot and so fashion and I just loved this look lots and lots.
The less said about The Daytona Wind the better. I get that chaotic editing and a laugh track help make up for some of the weaker actors in the cast, but the editing tricks need to actually be funny and fun to watch. Most of these fell flat. I mean, Anetra is playing a power lesbian and Sasha and Lux are playing a lesbian couple, and I still didn’t enjoy it! And not just because they identified Anetra as a lesbian by making a joke about lesbians not liking nuts. Come on!! It’s not even that jokes like this are transphobic — it’s that they’re hack!
The best part of the whole thing was the very random Danny Trejo cameo at the end. Sure, bring on Ariana Grande, whatever. But Danny Trejo? Now that’s something I didn’t see coming. Or the best part was when Ru said the surrealist touches were an homage to Tim and Eric, which feels like something she had to say for legal.
Loosey, Sasha, Lux, and EsTitties are safe. Mistress, Malaysia, Anetra, and Marcia are the top. And Spice, Aura, and Jax are in the bottom. I would’ve made Marcia safe instead of having four tops, but otherwise I do agree with this judging. Yes, even Jax. She just couldn’t figure out her character this week!
Mistress wins — as she should — and Jax and Aura are lip syncing. I think Aura’s outfit should’ve saved her but oh well. The song is “Sweetest Pie” by Megan Thee Stallion and Dua Lipa. And oh my God, Jax does it again. I really thought she was going home but there was just no way to send her home!! I thought she did a great job last week, but this was a whole new level!
She shantays. And my guess is the producers started scrambling because next week is a lip sync lalaparuza and that doesn’t feel like a coincidence.
+ I couldn’t watch Untucked this week! Let me know what I missed.
+I hope Danny Trejo goes backstage during Untucked. Tell me Danny Trejo goes backstage during Untucked.
+ If you want more of my musings on the Fast and Furious franchise, I wrote a whole essay.
+ I’ve loved a lot of Marcia’s runways, but I’d like to see the judges drop the specific makeup note and more generally push her to do more glamor. That’s the bigger issue as far as I’m concerned, and makeup is just one part of it. Like with Spice, it’s about wanting variety.
+ I’ve never watched What We Do in the Shadows so I’m not familiar with Harvey Guillen, but I thought he was a really good judge!
+ Queen I’m rooting for: Jax to lip sync a bunch more and then Anetra, Mistress, or Sasha win.
+ Queen I’m horniest for: more and more… it’s Anetra
+ Queen I want to go home: Spice
This is a recap of RuPaul’s Drag Race episode 1506. Spoilers below.
I have thoughts!! Some weeks it’s like okay I need to recap Drag Race because it’s my job to do so, but this week I simply must share my opinions with the world and by the world I mean anyone reading this recap!
We begin with all the queens being shady about Malaysia ranking among the tops. Sure, it was impressive that she pulled it off with only one sewing class, but was it top impressive? They say no. Well, specifically, Mistress says no.
It’s a new day in the workroom and the challenge this week is Golden Gal Girl Groups. To celebrate the occasion The Old Gays™ come out instead of the Pit Crew and offer very brief words of wisdom because they’ve gotta make that hour timeslot.
The queens are split into teams but then they have to figure out which group gets country, metal, and hip-hop. I feel like it’s more common for this kind of drama-starting to occur with individual casting and it’s fun to see the fights break out amid group dynamics.
The groups are Jax, Anetra, Loosey, and Robin; Sasha, Aura, Malaysia, and Spice; and Mistress, Lux, Marcia, and EsTitties. Mistress’ group says they want metal and Sasha’s group says they want metal too. All the groups seemed to agree on anything but country and Jax very wisely sees an opportunity, whispers to her group, and they go, “okay fine you two fight we’ll take hip-hop.”
And fight they do! Since Mistress was already poking at Malaysia, she feels more determined not to give in. Finally, Marcia says they need to settle it. They end up picking from a hat. Malaysia picks metal. I love the shadiness of this episode. Mistress really is everything Irene Dubois wanted to be. (Remember her!)
During the recording montages, the first two groups are strong with only Robin and EsTitties struggling — or Robin and EsTitties being edited to be the ones struggling for narrative. With the metal group, my main takeaway from the recording was Sasha Colby marry me.
The shadiness continues as the groups do their choreo. Everyone is rooting for everyone to fail, but in a way I found fun and true to the way Drag Race used to be before all the queens seemed media trained.
While they’re getting ready, Sasha says that being old is a badge of honor especially as a trans woman. She gives the younger girls a little history lesson about how the drag clubs in Hawaii during the 60s and 70s were raided every week and how everyone had to wear pins that said, “I’m a boy” because it was illegal to “trick” cis men. (Trust me, they knew.) I loved the detail about the trans women wearing their hair over the pins and then flipping it back when the cops came.
Obviously Sasha is not that old that she experienced this, but she did come up around queens who did. She gets emotional thinking about how big of a platform she now has on Drag Race. I do wish the producers would allow conversation about the current backlash toward trans people and drag, rather than only showing linear progress narratives. But maybe it just wasn’t as present last summer when they filmed.
It’s time for the shows! Ru comes out in the tiniest little silver dress and I was reminded that she’s actually only four years younger than one of The Old Gays.™ Good for her! Also the guest judge this week is Meg Stalter which is fun because I literally started watching Hacks today. (I know, I know.)
All three of the performances are really strong. With the country group I’d say Mistress was the best followed by Luxx. I expected more from Marcia given how much she talked about being on Broadway.
The metal group is really split with my main thought once again being marry me Sasha. Aura is also good! Malaysia is just okay and Spice gives the weakest performance of the night.
And finally the hip-hop group, which I also thought was solid even if it definitely felt the messiest. I do think Anetra was good, even if she admittedly did drop some words, and I thought Loosey had the best old lady makeup, even if she was still bland to me personally. Robin was also just okay. But I thought Jax was great?? I know I’m number one Jax fan — but I really, really loved her in this.
The runway is tie dye and it’s edited so quickly I barely had a chance to notice any of the looks. Anetra walked out looking very hot and by the time I looked up from writing “Anetra omg,” she was no longer on-screen. They do take time to let Meg Stalter be funny which I appreciated, but God give us another few beats on these looks. One thing I did clock is Marcia had a fun bloody nose look, but it was not tie dye.
The top is Mistress, Aura, and Sasha. All good picks. But the bottom is Anetra, Jax, and Robin?? Okay fine Anetra wasn’t word perfect on a lip sync challenge during a strong week, I guess she can be bottom. And Robin was bland so she definitely earned her spot. But Jax?? They critique her for standing out too much?? That’s a wild critique. Like yes, working with the group is important but if your group is weaker, still being great is not a bad thing.
Aura wins. She wouldn’t have been my pick of the three, but I get it. And I do think her runway was great.
To be fair, Ru says it was a strong week and they’re splitting gray hairs with the bottom. Anetra is safe. Jax and Robin lip sync to “In Your Room” by The Bangles.
Here’s the thing about putting one of the strongest queens in the bottom two when she doesn’t deserve it — you get an incredible lip sync. Robin’s strength is also dancing so this was just an all-time great regular season lip-sync.
And, thank God, Jax shantays. I still think Spice should’ve gone before Robin, but at least Jax gets another week to be judged unfairly by the judges. I hope the redemption arc the producers have for her doesn’t have to wait until All Stars.
+ Ru seemed genuinely delighted by Meg Stalter and that brought me a lot of joy.
+ I did watch Untucked because I knew there would be drama. But mostly I just got more time to hang out with The Old Gays.™
+ Just kidding there was some drama, too. Malaysia gets upset with Marcia because Marcia wants to stop talking about the group fight. But the big Malaysia/Mistress blow-up is being kept for later.
+ Queen I’m rooting for: Jax (and Sasha, but she doesn’t need my support)
+ Queen I’m horniest for: Anetra
+ Queen I want to sashay: Spice (I don’t even dislike her anymore! She just hasn’t done anything since Sugar left and it’s time for her to go.)
This is a recap of RuPaul’s Drag Race episode 1505. Spoilers below.
Luxx! Noir! London! Week one I declared my favorites as Jax, Anetra, and Sasha, but now a fourth addition is necessary. Luxx is amazing and I love that she knows it.
We begin in the wake of Sugar’s elimination. As RuPaul says, if you’re not watching Untucked, you’re only getting half the story and last week that was true. We learned more about the twins and their family trauma. Too bad less people were watching, because of MTV’s groundbreaking LGBTQ+ reality TV series — excuse me, their GGGGG+ reality TV series. (The plus stands for another G.)
Last week, Spice suggested that she couldn’t keep doing the show if Sugar went home, so, of course, that’s what the producers have done. But with Sugar’s encouragement and the support of the other queens, Spice is going to give a solo act a shot.
This season the top queens seem very concerned with who was second and who was third, which, to me, is very silly, because fighting whether you’re silver or bronze just reminds us you weren’t gold. Luckily, the queens have a chance to get out their cattiness! It’s a new week and we’re starting with the reading challenge.
Based on the quick edit, I thought Sasha did the best. But my favorite joke was Luxx telling Marcia Marcia Marcia that her wardrobe looks like it’s from Marshalls Marshalls Marshalls. Unfortunately, neither of these queens win and instead it goes to Loosey who I’ve decided is my new enemy now that the twins have been halved and humanized.
The maxi challenge this week is turning home decor into runway looks. That’s right! It’s a design challenge! The queens are split into three fashion houses: The House of Kressley (Anetra, EsTitties, Jax, and Robin), The House of Matthews (Loosey, Marcia, Malaysia, and Sasha), and The House of Visage (Luxx, Amethyst, Spice, Mistress, Aura). Each queen is making an individual look, but the teams need to coordinate.
With the shortened runtime, I missed Ru’s walkthroughs before Snatch Game. Luckily, they’re back this week. It’s always nice seeing the queens mentor each other, but I also like when Ru gives her little platitudes of questionable wisdom!
This season has a lot of very sewing-competent queens. Which makes sense since it’s season 15! The exceptions seem to be Malaysia and Amethyst — the latter getting a lot of help from Luxx and Aura but still floundering.
Elimination day! As the queens get ready, Jax talks about being adopted by white parents. She says that her parents didn’t acknowledge the specificities of raising a Black child nor of being a Black child in an almost entirely white part of Connecticut. Thankfully, she moved to New York after high school. Spice then talks about how she and Sugar secretly kept dolls up through middle school and would dress and make them up as a precursor to their drag.
The judges this week are Michelle, Ross, and the one, the only, Janelle Monáe. The way Marcia reacted to Ariana Grande is how I would react to Janelle Monáe.
The runway starts with The House of Visage. Given New Jersey couture, they’d initially planned to do a royal look but switched to animal print after talking to Ru. Mistress is great, Aura is good, Spice is fine, Amethyst is bad, and Luxx is incredible. She made zebra print pants and has a matching purple head wrap and flowy top and it’s by far and away the best look of the night. And overall it’s a solid night!
The House of Kressley was working with gay ranch chic and have turned it into schoolgirl looks. I thought this was the strongest house overall! Robin and Anetra had really great, clean looks, and while Jax and EsTitties were a bit messier I felt like they still showed a lot of creativity. Jax especially, with her Heathers-inspired croquet look, was a lot of dykey fun.
And, finally there was The House of Matthews, with their Palm Springs summer wear. Sasha is a pro and a babe. Marcia has a fun look. And Malaysia actually put together an impressive outfit! I thought Loosey’s pantsuit was ugly but I’ll own up to the possibility that I’m just a hater.
The tops are Luxx, Robin, Sasha, and Malaysia. The bottoms are Amethyst, EsTitties, and… Jax?? Everyone else is safe. Personally, I think Spice or Loosey or even Aura should’ve been in the bottom before Jax. I did appreciate Malaysia making it to the top and learning that she took a sewing class before coming on the show. I mean, just one class so clearly she has a knack for it, but I still appreciated that effort paying off!
Luxx wins! Jax is safe. (Thank God.) Which means EsTitties is lip syncing for the first time and Amethyst for the third. Their song is “Q.U.E.E.N.” and, personally, I think there should be a Janelle Monáe song every season, even when she’s not a guest judge.
EsTitties wins the lip sync easily, but I thought this was Amethyst’s strongest performance. We all knew she wouldn’t survive a third time in the bottom so maybe she was able to just have fun with it.
Goodbye to Amethyst, the first Connecticut queen — for about five seconds before the other four arrived.
+ Remember when Shea, Jujubee, and Miz Cracker lip synced to “Make Me Feel”??
+ I appreciated EsTitties talking about how she’s used to creating outfits due to not having a lot of money. She has a real maximalist style and I get if it doesn’t work for you, but I appreciate her creativity.
+ I watched Untucked live this week, because how could I miss Janelle.
+ Okay, we learn Marcia is also a twin?? She has a twin sister.
+ Anetra talks about not having a relationship with her family and I really appreciated that she didn’t immediately give in to the “chosen family makes it better” talking points. Like yes, chosen family is great! But having fraught or completely absent relationships with biological family is still really painful.
+ Queen I’m rooting for: Anetra, Jax, Sasha, Luxx
+ Queen I’m horniest for: Jax dressed as Heathers
+ Queen I want to sashay: Loosey
This is a recap of RuPaul’s Drag Race episode 1504. Spoilers below.
I was wrong. Last week I seemed to be the only person who was in support of the shorter format, and this week revealed why. For an acting challenge it worked, but for double Snatch Game?? Not so much.
We begin in the aftermath of Poppy’s departure. Amethyst is having an existential crisis because she’s always thought of herself as a comedy queen and she’s failing at comedy. Meanwhile, Sugar says she’s done apologizing for being too much. I guess she means apologies in the RuPaul sense of the word, because I haven’t seen them. We then get some fun back and forth between Luxx and Loosey arguing about who was second and who was third.
It’s another day in the workroom and Mistress is having some fun. Spice asks if Amethyst plays baseball because “three strikes you’re out” and then reveals Mistress told her to say it. I may not like the twins but I do love Mistress mentoring them — and using them for a joke.
Ru announces the double Snatch Game and everyone is rightfully shocked. Also a shock — Ru splits the groups based purely on where the queens are standing?? The producers must have set them… right?
The first group is Marcia as Tim Gunn, Luxx as Amanda Lepore, Malaysia as Saucy Santana, Mistress as Rosie O’Donnell, Anetra as Gordon Ramsay’s sister Gorgenia, Robin as real housewife Karen Huger, and EsTitties as the Virgin Mary.
Marcia is definitely the most solid of this first group, even if it’s all a bit expected. Luxx, Malaysia, and Robin don’t bomb but also don’t do much of anything. EsTitties is crass and loud but that’s different then being funny. Mistress is funny as Rosie but she’s not doing a good Rosie! It’s not a good impression! It’s not specific! I think my favorite of this group was Anetra?? At least, she tried for something even if she got fewer jokes off.
The second group is Loosey as Joan Rivers, Sasha as Jan Crouch, Jax as the Mona Lisa, Sugar as Trisha Paytas, Amethyst as… Tan Mom(?), Spice as Miley Cyrus, and Aura as Bretman Rock. Loosey is by far the best of this group, though like Marcia, Joan Rivers and her Joan Rivers jokes just feel so basic. I wish Jax had been funnier because, again, the Mona Lisa is a choice! Sasha does a solid job even if we don’t see much from her. Amethyst is also fine, even if she once again made me uncomfortable more than she made me laugh. (Full disclosure: no idea who Tan Mom is, even after googling.) I thought Sugar did just as fine as everyone else. Aura bombs. Spice bombs and is offensive to Miley, a person I honestly didn’t think I cared enough about to get offended on her behalf.
Remember last year when Snatch Game was so bad that Ru made ALL the queens lip sync? This was worse. Or, at least, I think it was worse, except I didn’t see enough from most of the queens to really know if it was as boring as it seemed or if it was just cut short.
Some Snatch Games have had more people bombing, but they at least had more people taking risks and being funny. The only people we see more than two jokes from were Marcia and Loosey and not one of those jokes made me actually laugh.
Thankfully, the runway is better. Amandla Stenberg is the guest judge and the theme is Beautiful Nightmare which appealed to me as a Halloween Gay.
I don’t usually write about all the looks, but I need to focus on some positive so here we go. Marcia is a child’s nightmare of what a dentist would look like. I don’t agree with the judges that Marcia needs to be “more drag” but I do think this runway had less of an impact because she’d already done a teeth bit with the braces in her talent show.
Luxx is a zombie bride who has been drowned by her husband, cinder block tied to her ankle and all. I love it. Malaysia is a show ghoul which is more beautiful than nightmare. EsTitties is in a skin suit and eating titties which is more nightmare than beautiful. Mistress, Anetra, and Robin all do spider looks and I’d rank them: 1) Anetra, 2) Mistress, 3) Robin.
Loosey’s Snatch Game and personality may not have charmed me as much as most, but her drag queen Jason Voorhees got me. As did Sasha as a Tim Burton-esque witch and Jax as Medusa with Perseus’ head in tow.
Amethyst is Gaga with blood spurting out of her chest when she presses her boob. (It’s fine.) And Aura has exposed vertebrae on her back. (It’s cool.) Finally, Sugar and Spice are both haunted dolls and it’s about as underwhelming as their collective Snatch Game performance.
The top is Marcia, Mistress, and Loosey. The bottom is Aura and the twins. Everyone else is safe. Loosey wins. (I do, in fact, think her runway is what pushed her ahead of Marcia.) And Sugar and Spice are lip syncing against each other. I love television!
The song is Pat Benatar’s “You Better Run” and surprise surprise the twins have decided to do choreo with one another. It’s somehow both chaotic and very boring. In the end, Sugar goes home and Spice stays. And honestly? I’m no longer rooting against Spice. I’ll give her a chance! Let’s see her thrive solo.
That said, watching this lip sync, I wonder if RuPaul Charles thought, “Hmm so it wasn’t trans women who ruined my show — it was TikTok.” That’s what I was thinking.
+ The emotional debrief this episode is Loosey talking about being bullied for being gay and living in the town she grew up in. I’ve gotta say… I find Loosey really annoying. She deserved her win this episode, but I hope it’s the last one. Glad you’re out and proud now though, babe!
+ I’m not against people doing internet and reality TV personalities for Snatch Game. But like pop stars, they usually bomb. Open to theories in the comments.
+ Another thing lost with the time cut is no mini challenges. I’m torn on whether I care. They’d kind of lost the spark in recent seasons if I’m being honest.
+ Last thing I’ll say about the time cut is I do think it will work better as the season goes on and personally I think they should have done hour and a half for the first half the season and then gone to an hour for the rest.
+ More distressing to me is Untucked isn’t after Drag Race? I’m supposed to wait around for an hour? I have not seen Untucked. Tell me what I missed in Untucked. (Just kidding I’ll watch it when it’s streaming.)
+ Queen I’m rooting for: my three loves (Anetra, Jax, Sasha)
+ Queen I’m horniest for: this runway it was Anetra
+ Queen I want to sashay: Amethyst then Loosey then Spice if she hasn’t proven herself
This is a recap of RuPaul’s Drag Race episode 1503. Spoilers below.
From supersized to bite-sized! Last week’s gargantuan two-episode premiere is in the past and the new hour-long (plus Untucked) format is here to stay. I know it’s to promote MTV’s Rich Fags of WeHo or whatever but can I be honest?? In this case, I am not a size queen. I love the new length.
We begin in the aftermath of Irene’s departure, a queen we’ll barely remember in two months when the show ends. (Sorry Irene.) Robin and Amethyst carry over talk of their past fling from Untucked and say that it ended mutually. In the confessional, Amethyst said she ended it. I’ll give it to her — she needs a win.
The maxi challenge this week is afterlife infomercials. It’s the kind of themed challenge that makes you go, wow we really are on season fifteen, huh? As the winner of last week, Anetra gets to pick her team first. She goes with Luxx, Sasha, EsTitties, and Marcia. As the winner of the lip sync, Amethyst gets to pick next. She goes with Loosey, Aura, Spice, and Poppy. The leftovers are Jax, Mistress, Sugar, Malaysia, and Robin.
There is immediate tension on the leftovers team, because Sugar won’t shut the fuck up pitching a concept that makes no sense. I don’t need to justify my annoyance with political righteousness, but if I were to do that I’d bring up Sugar saying “cracked out Beyoncé.” I know her whole thing is dressing like an ignorant white girl from the early 2000s — doesn’t mean she has to talk like one.
My fave Jax shares my annoyance and tells Sugar to switch spots with her. After that, Sugar is very displeased. Mistress is also annoyed that Jax is taking charge, but somebody has to! Sorry, sorry, childhood group project trauma is coming out.
If you were wondering how the editors were going to fit all these queens into an hour, the answer revealed itself in the next segment. Michelle is directing the three teams and we get a brief look at Sugar riffing and Jax feeling like the concept isn’t working, Sasha freezing up a bit, and Team Amethyst kind of bombing, but we don’t spend a long time on any of them. I loved this! Usually with acting challenges we see the jokes played over and over so the finished products fall kind of flat. I loved getting just a taste.
What isn’t cut for time is the queens sharing their queer trauma in the work room. Malaysia talks about growing up Baptist and feeling like being gay is a sin. But now her mom is her biggest supporter. Mistress says she also grew up religious but her family wasn’t as accepting. She was kicked out at 17 and had to support herself through drag. Amid the challenges and competition, Drag Race has always been a snapshot of queer lives. I’m glad that hasn’t been lost.
The judges are Michelle, Ts Madison, and country singer Maren Morris. I didn’t know this person previously and she wasn’t the best judge, but everything she said in Untucked was really sweet so she won me over. But the most exciting part is definitely that Ts Madison is a regular judge.
The runway theme is metallic and there are a wide variety of looks including Anetra paying tribute to Chromatica, Marcia paying tribute to the Tin Man, and Jax paying tribute to Mortal Kombat which is apparently her namesake. And my absolute favorite look was Mistress. She wasn’t the only queen who went with gold but I think she did it best.
We watch the final videos and wow is Team Anetra’s good. All the previews were trying to make it seem like Sasha flops, when she’s actually the hands down winner. Everyone in the video does a good job and it’s just astronomically better than the other two.
Team Amethyst’s is the worst. The jokes feel basic and all the performances are meh.
Given the chaos, I thought Team Jax — let’s call it what it is — turned out decent. I liked the concept of heaven for drag hags and felt Sugar was used perfectly. But Jax barely says any of the words she wrote and I knew that would be a problem.
The tops are Sasha, Luxx, and Loosey. The bottoms are Amethyst, Poppy, and Jax. Michelle praises Sasha for taking direction well and it just goes to show sometimes showing up perfect isn’t necessary! The judges tell Amethyst to stop contouring her nose so much, they critique Poppy’s basic outfit, and question Jax’s shoddy video looks in comparison to her excellent runway.
Loosey is safe. Luxx is safe. Sasha wins. No question.
Jax is safe which was deserved even if part of me wanted to see her kill a lip sync. I know she would’ve done a better job with “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” than Amethyst or Poppy that’s for sure. It’s not that either is bad — just underwhelming.
Amethyst plays it straight, Poppy goes for jokes, and, in the end, Amethyst shantays. When it comes to Diana Ross, RuPaul wants a respectful rendition and Poppy popped her pussy all the way home.
+ Poppy is very casual about the possibility of going home during Untucked and it made me very happy she lost the lip sync. It pissed Mistress off and it pissed me off too! Not to be such an earth sign, but why are you there if you don’t want to win?
+ I don’t love Amethyst but now that she’s been in the bottom twice, I’m hoping she has at least one episode of redemption before going home.
+ Sasha looked so hot in the workroom in those high-waisted pants.
+ Loosey getting in the top for doing a three star Dolly Parton impression? I don’t even know if that’s out of four or five stars and either way it wasn’t enough for me.
+ Queen I’m rooting for: Jax and Anetra
+ Queen I’m horniest for: Sasha
+ Queen I want to sashay: Sugar
This is a recap of RuPaul’s Drag Race episode 1501. Spoilers below.
Let’s start with a harsh reality. In the nine months since my last Drag Race recap, drag has become a culture war. A deadly culture war. Of course, gender nonconformity has long incited violence from fascists, but now drag — specifically Drag Story Hours — have become conservatives’ latest bullshit “save the children” campaign.
It’s gotten so bad I’ve found myself defending Nina West.
Here’s the thing, racers. I know the temptation in the face of attack is to unite — but when it comes to drag, being a cunt is how you unite. So my recaps will be just as catty as past years. And, thankfully, this year has enough queens who will be right there with me. Season 15 will not be RuPaul’s Best Friends Race.
This was a two hour and 15 minute premiere — with no commercials for the first hour! — plus Untucked and there are 16 queens this year so let’s jump right in for our first introductions.
We begin with Irene Dubois, Bosco’s drag sister and one of the bitches of the season. Unfortunately, this alien queen of Seattle forgets that bitchiness needs to be backed up with performance.
Next up is Luxx Noir London. She says she’s the prettiest queen in all of New Jersey and personally I’d believe it. Irene immediately starts in on Luxx saying her 40-inch wig isn’t 40 inches and making a brick joke.
Before any fights can break out, enter Aura Mayari. She’s from Nashville and describes herself as Beyoncé + Rihanna + Justin Bieber. Yes, she can dance. Or at least she’s hot enough that people have told her she can dance. Irene says she’s already out of breath.
Marcia Marcia Marcia walks in with her wig covering her face. She flips it back to reveal a broken nose — a reference to when her Brady Bunch namesake got hit with a football. She has a BFA in musical theatre and has been on Broadway.
Then we have Anetra. Six letters, three vowels, as she’ll later inform us in song. She’s from Vegas and calls herself sexy glamorous. With her metal spiked leather headpiece — and jokes about being broke — I was sold.
Next up is Malaysia Babydoll Foxx looking like a furry fantasy as a glamor fox. She’s the first queen from Miami and her day job is celebrity hairstylist and makeup artist — clients include City Girls.
This season is the TikTok season — more on that later — and first up is Princess Poppy whose I’m homo… phobic intro is apparently a reference to her viral TikTok. Ru loves a girl who can brand! True to her name she’s very princessy but she says her performance style is eccentric.
And finally, the legend herself, Sasha Colby. Former Miss Continental, Kerri Colby’s drag mother, and someone who is arguably too good for this show, Sasha is the obvious frontrunner. Trans queens will continue to dominate.
Speaking of legends, Ornatia walks in. For those of you who weren’t watching in season six, Ornatia is the fake head attached to Vivacious’ entrance look. But this time it’s guest judge Ariana Grande hidden in the outfit! Marcia loses her mind.
Ariana Grande was a guest judge back in season seven. She clearly has a real love for this show and it’s nice to see her back. I’m just surprised Ru let her overshadow his entrance!
He makes up for it by announcing the prize money this year is $200,000 and that the mini challenge is a recreation of the season one sprayed-in-the-face photoshoot.
We have a lot to cover so here are my quick notes from what amounts to a hazing ritual: Aura is extremely horny and extremely hot. Lexx deserves to win. Irene does win.
The main challenge for the week is the One Night Only talent show extravaganza — but first a group number! There’s some back and forth between Aura and Marcia about who will choreo and Sasha tries her best to manage the children.
While they’re still figuring it out, this gargantuan episode rewinds for a new beginning. We have eight more queens to introduce in the workroom. It’s a lot for one episode — but at least the premiere is over after this week. Ultimately, I think I prefer an overwhelming first night than spending three weeks before the season actually gets started.
The first of the next group is Salina EsTitties, an LA queen based in WeHo who identifies herself as a “chola from the hood.” She notes that she does TVfilmcommercial work so we’ll be blessed with that talent if she makes it to an acting challenge.
Next is a very exciting Drag Race first. Amethyst is the “mean queen of Connecticut” and is proud to say she’s the first queen — nice or mean — from the state. She also says she’s the first queen on the show to go viral on TikTok. Too bad when she finds out about the brilliant homo… phobic joke.
Not the only TikTok queen and not the only Connecticut queen?? Poor Amethyst. But lucky us because the next queen from her state is Jax. Jax says she’s the Simone Biles of drag — a pint-sized competitive gymnast with the style and energy of a preppy cheerleader. I love her.
But that’s not all! Connecticut Queen #3: Loosey LaDuca. She’s a construction worker by day and has been doing drag for 12 years.
Then we have Mistress Isabelle Brooks who is from Houston and says she’s big, beautiful, and glamorous. She’s shady and — unlike Irene — she’s good at being shady. The other queens make fun of her for wearing a kitten heel but she says the fat queens always twist their ankles and she’s not taking any chances.
Three Connecticut queens was weird, but four is hilarious. Robin Fierce is Diahann Carroll meets Mariah Carey meets Beyoncé and yes she is also from Connecticut. She and Amethyst have hooked up but she says not to ship them and I will respect that. (Also because I like Robin more than Amethyst.)
And that’s it! Those are the fourteen queens competing this season!
Ugh. Fine.
There’s also Sugar and Spice — twins, TikTok stars, and my mortal enemies. They are so annoying! And not in a fun way!!! They have barely performed offline and they don’t stop talking. They’re immature for 23, and 23 is already really young.
Ornatia comes out again but this time it’s actually Vivacious and she’s just there to introduce Ru. The mini challenge is a tribute to the season two premiere — still with wind machines, no longer with a Gone with the Wind reference. Progress!
Sugar is struggling. Spice takes off her wig (???) and then also struggles. Salina does the best. And Loosey wins.
The other group is finally getting their choreo together when Ru arrives, the new girls in tow. Ru says that yes there are 16 queens BUT a queen is actually going home this week. I wish it was two queens. Two queens who look the same.
Back in the work room, those two queens are learning the lesson that Mistress and Irene being bitchy to each other doesn’t mean they’re enemies — it just means they’re drag queens. There’s also some discourse about social media vs. IRL drag but I don’t care about that.
The judges this week are Michelle, Ross, and Ariana in a cone bra. Everyone keeps making Wicked jokes and that really tickles me because the Wicked movie isn’t coming out until TWENTY TWENTY FOUR.
Despite the chaos, the opening number turns out pretty well. If only I could say the same for the talent show. It’s not that most of the acts are bad! I just feel like… if all you do is lip sync for a talent show, it better be really, really good.
Unfortunately for most of the people who do something different, the risk doesn’t pay off. Princess Poppy’s parasite puppet lip sync is decent. But Loosey who sings live, does not sing well. Amethyst who sings “All Around the World” with an actual baby she can’t find, doesn’t make it more than a one-note joke. And Irene absolutely bombs with her bit of… making ice water.
But let’s talk about the standouts. Sasha Colby does a lip sync to “Zombie” by The Cranberries and it is truly special. Marcia does an inspired dance to “Make Love to You” dressed as a horny teen girl — and dreaming about Ross Matthews. And Anetra and Jax also lip sync but Anetra incorporates breaking wood boards with Tae Kwon Do and Jax LITERALLY JUMP ROPES WITH HER HAIR. Have I mentioned that I love Jax?
The runway theme is “Who Is She?” where the queens are tasked with showing a look to introduce themselves. Aura was one of the mid lip syncers but her real talent was being hot which she shows again in a leather and lace look. Sasha is once again a step above in red and black with a bead-dangling hat. And Anetra is wearing a gold and black futuristic look that she sewed herself.
The bottoms are Irene, Amethyst, and Loosey. The tops are Marcia, Anetra, and Jax. I wish Sasha had been in the top too but I’m just not sure which of those three I’d replace. She’s safe along with everyone else — including the twins, who, alas, did earn that.
Loosey pleads for her life and it works — Irene and Amethyst are the bottom. Anetra wins! Anetra and Jax were my favorites even before the talent show but now I feel like I can’t call them my favorites because it makes me seem like a fair weather fan. Sorry I just have taste!
The lip sync is to “Seven Rings.” It starts out close, but by the end it obviously goes to Amethyst.
I hoped Irene would have a good night. Alas, it was goodnight Irene.
+ The sun signs of all the queens:
Amethyst – Aquarius
Anetra – Cancer
Aura Mayari – Pisces
Jax – Aries
Loosey LaDuca – Taurus
Luxx Noir London – Virgo
Malaysia Babydoll Foxx
Marcia Marcia Marcia – Scorpio
Mistress Isabelle Brooks – Cancer
Princess Poppy – Aries
Robin Fierce – Libra
Salina EsTitties – Libra
Sasha Colby – Leo
Spice – Cancer
Sugar – Cancer
Irene Dubois – Cancer
+ Sasha says she couldn’t let Kerri be the most famous Colby and I do love that as the reason for her being on the show.
+ The funniest part of Irene’s bit was Marcia reacting in character.
+ If I needed another reason to love Sasha, she talks about her mommy issues in Untucked.
+ Also in Untucked, we learn that Amethyst was a very bad texter and Robin was very busy and that’s why it didn’t work out. I say this as a well-documented lover of air signs, I guess this is what happens when two air signs try to date.
+ Queen I’m rooting for: Jax and Anetra — the season of the athletes! Other queens I really like: Sasha, Marcia, Mistress, Luxx
+ Queen I’m horniest for: Aura and Sasha
+ Queen I want to sashay: Sugar and Spice
This is a recap of RuPaul’s Drag Race season 14 finale. Spoilers below.
Good things come to those who wait! The never-ending season has come to an end and the rightful winner has been crowned.
We’re in Vegas, baby! The season 14 queens all walk out and the looks are elevated. Since there’s a top FIVE we need to hurry up and get to them but obviously I need to share the other trans queens’ looks. Kornbread is dressed as Beauty AND the Beast — full beast face but Belle’s yellow dress and a giant red rose. Kerri is Tranos!! The meme come to life — Kerri is there to celebrate all the trans girl infinity stones she’s collected. And Jasmine’s high concept is just “hi I’m on HRT looking pretty with a big blonde wig and shiny dress.”
Now onto our top five. Angeria is in a truly remarkable blue showgirl dress with a gigantic feather back. Bosco is dressed as demon Lilith with red hair — face credited on Instagram to estrogen, filler, and laser hair removal. Daya is also an elevated showgirls with thigh high boots and lots and lots of purple feathers. Camden is a horse carriage which is a fun idea but the wheels are the wrong way?? And, finally, is what I first interpreted as a slutty lobster but is actually inspired by animes like Kill la Kill and Demon Slayer — sorry I’m not an anime trans but I’d become one for Willow !!
The next order of business is Michelle coming out dancing to “I’m That Bitch.” She’s there to give Ru the key to the city of Clark County — Vegas — and to announce that April 22nd is now officially RuPaul Day. Ru says the last time she was given a key it had cocaine on it.
We begin the individual queen introductions and performances with Angeria. Her intro is so charming and reminded me why I love her! Like seasons seven and eight, the queens will be lip syncing to original songs written for them — sung by someone else. Angeria’s is called “Check My Track Record” and while Angeria is always fun to watch, I did feel like this song was a little unspecific for her. Afterward, when Ru is asking her questions is when she really shines. She is a pageant queen after all. Also shining? Angeria’s parents! Her dad especially is so sweet as he answers Ru’s questions and offers support. They seem really genuine and it’s lovely to witness.
Next we have Bosco who is in her intro as a lifeguard along a Vegas pool. I desperately wanted to be there and pull a stunt like in The Sandlot with Wendy Peffercorn — but with better consent. She says that when she got on the show she wanted to prove she was a great drag queen but eventually her goal shifted to just showing off that she’s hot. She succeeded!! Her song is called “Devil” and she comes out looking like an angel. Her wings end up being backup dancers and then she’s revealed to be dressed in a demon outfit teeth and all. It’s good but it should’ve been longer! During her interview, Bosco talks about her affinity for villains and then Ru turns to Bosco’s boyfriend — who is trans! — and fellow drag queen Lucy Lips. It feels like Lucy is doing an audition and I wish her the best. Ru then asks Bosco another question and as she stutters she says, “The estrogen is slapping right now!” and then dabs. Cut to Gigi Goode laughing in the crowd.
Daya’s intro is very Daya as she talks about clawing her way back to the top and saying it like it is. Her song is called “Fighter” and she comes out dressed as the dragonfly she consumed. The performance is good! While I think Angeria had the best entrance look and the second best pageant answers, a fun thing about this episode is I do think these performances are each better than the last. Daya’s answers are boring though as she talks about being raised in an outspoken household and being bald. She’s joined by her boyfriend and fellow Crystal family member Lux Methyd. She impresses less than Lucy Lips.
In Camden’s intro, she says that now she feels like Rockstar when before she felt like a little mouse. Her song is called “I Fell Down (But I Got Up)” and it’s very Queen and very good. There’s a very good wig reveal and some even better dancing. Her mom and drag mom are both there, and her mom is wearing a shiny hat and looks like the most British person ever. Camden’s pageant answers are just pretty good but her performance was truly so excellent for the first time all season I was hoping she’d be top two.
Last, but certainly not least, Willow Pill. In her intro video she’s dressed like a dude from the 70s and she talks about wanting to represent people with disabilities and people dealing with illness. Her song is called “I Hate People” and is so funny and so Willow. She looks like a flower and then the front of her petals are removed to reveal two more Willow heads on each side. Then at the end another face is revealed on her crotch. It’s brilliant! It’s drag! I love her! And I love her even more once Ru starts on his bullshit again saying, “Your resilience has been so inspiring, how are you doing?” and she replies, “I don’t think that’s any of your business.” She plays it as a joke but it’s also a really sharp reply and have I mentioned I love her? Well she says the heads are named Carson and Ross and then she reveals the crotch one again and calls her Michelle. Willow’s mom and sister are there and her sister talks about shopping with Willow for her first drag look at Forever 21 — not H&M. Ru’s last question for Willow is how she’d describe drag to aliens. She replies, “Mental illness and rhinestones.”
Next, the queens from Drag Race Live perform a number called “Losing is the New Winning” which starts with Jaida, who might actually say that winning is the winning. Then there’s a tribute to Hot Chocolate, a famous Vegas queen. Finally, it’s time for Ru to announce the top two queens. Continuing the Vegas theme, it’s revealed on two slot machines. First queen: Camden. Second queen: Willow. They’re told to go backstage to prepare for the lip sync and the other three queens are thanked.
Symone is back!!!!!!! She’s wearing a crop top and ripped jeans, but in the fashion Symone sort of way. Even a year later I maintain that Symone is one of the best queens to ever appear on the show. She introduces LaLa Ri who looks gorgeous in an outfit I don’t know how to describe — it’s like these gold pieces are orbiting around her? She announces Miss Congeniality and the winner is… Kornbread! Obviously, I’m not going to complain about Kornbread winning anything, but I do think this should’ve gone to narrator of the season, Thanos herself, Kerri Colby. But if Kerri were to lose to anyone I’m happy it’s Kornbread.
It’s final lip sync time. Camden comes out in a British crown and little white dress with poofy sleeves. Willow comes out in a suit that would make David Byrne jealous — in fact, it’s so big that it appears as if Willow is only wearing the top half and Willow has to use fake arms. Ru announces that the winner will get $150k and second place will get $50k. All of the effects and graphics are overwhelming. Vegas + reality TV finale + RuPaul = insanity.
They’re performing Cher’s cover of ABBA’s “Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight).” This is such an excellent lip sync!! Both queens are so different and lean into their strengths. Camden dancing, Willow camping it up. Willow’s first reveal brings her from the top half of the suit to the pants. Camden does another trip reveal to a red corset. Then Willow does another reveal to a violet corset. Not only are they now matching but they start to dance together. They even seem close to kissing! Then Willow does a somersault and the song ends. And they really do kiss on the lips! It’s not a make out but I’ll take it.
Because both queens did so well and both queens are winning money, there isn’t much suspense. But I still shrieked when RuPaul announces that the winner is… Willow Pill! Always ready with a joke, Willow thanks Kornbread’s ankle.
And that’s the season! Congratulations to Willow Pill and congratulations to me for having my favorite win the second year in a row.
+ It is so cute seeing Ru and Michelle stand next to each other on stage with their massive height difference.
+ Bosco and Camden both dabbed while giving their pageant answers. Big year for dabbing.
+ When Ru announces that all the losing queens will get $2,000 — which they deserve because being on the show is expensive!! — Jasmine shouts, “I finally won something!” Babe, what you won is being hot and trans.
+ This week’s dispatch from Drag Race scholar Gaby Dunn is the observation that in some ways this top two was a repeat of season 11: the ballerina vs. the weirdo. The weirdo always wins!!
+ I’m obsessed with the special preview for All Stars 7. I am so excited to have Jinkx Monsoon back on TV and so excited for the whole cast and so excited for Naomi Campbell. I’m less enthused about the Nancy Pelosi jump scare.
+ Speaking of All Stars 7, I will not be recapping it because the Paramount Plus release schedule is too weird. But I will be watching and I’m sure I’ll be sharing plenty of thoughts on Twitter dot com.
+ Thank you for reading my recaps this season! Truly such a blast to watch and write about a season with so many trans queens and so many hot queens. Coincidence? Absolutely not.
+ Remember to support your local queens!!
This is a recap of RuPaul’s Drag Race episode 1415. Spoilers below.
Welcome to the first clip show since season four! Just kidding, it’s the reunion. But there sure were a lot of clips! Gone is last year’s individual queen performances, back is a good ol’ fashion look back.
We begin with the queens entering one by one. Willow is wearing a look inspired by The Nanny and Kornbread is wearing Willow’s entrance look but instead of “Angle” her shirt says “Ankle.” Kornbread loves Willow and loves reminding us that she’s the best.
After a bit of catch up and discussion about the chocolate gag, they move to Kornbread’s unfortunate exit. She jokes that Snatch Game would’ve been better if she stayed. When asked about her family, she says that she needed the platform to express her feelings in a space where her family could not give a rebuttal. Ru loves contrived family forgiveness as much as I hate it, but I appreciated this reframe from “my family accepted me once I was famous” to “my family accepted me once I had a space to communicate with them uninterrupted.”
Speaking of interruptions, Jasmine cuts off Kornbread once again as Kornbread is discussing their conflict. Kornbread says that she doesn’t talk behind anyone’s back and that’s why she was hard on Jasmine to her face. Jasmine, to her credit, seems to appreciate it.
Less appreciated by Jasmine is her conflict with Daya. Daya says she doesn’t regret saying any of what she said. Jasmine says Daya spent the whole season coming for her. Jorgeous adds that it felt like the vitriol toward them was personal. Alyssa says Daya was the bitch of the season — which she was! — and she starts crying. June makes a joke about only being on the show for 48 hours but wanting to defend Daya. Maddy also defends Daya. Jasmine says Daya hasn’t made an effort to know her after the show. And then Kerri swoops in with a measured response emphasizing that Daya has gotten death threats and no matter what else that’s inexcusable.
Okay! So I think that last part is important because my main feeling here is… the Drag Race fandom sucks?? I do not like Daya. I think she doesn’t have enough uniqueness and has too much nerve. I don’t think she’s exceptional enough to get away with her behavior. She’s just pretty mediocre! And while she’s undoubtedly received hate online, she’s also received a lot of love. No one should face the intensity of the Drag Race fandom, but she’s been treated far better than past “villains” who weren’t white and were more justified — especially personal favorite of mine The Vixen. But having a villain is fun! Daya is fine! The fact that the fandom is so fucking weird and aggressive that I can’t openly hate her, annoys me. Like yes, death threats are bad because DEATH THREATS ARE BAD — but also they result in our villain crying instead of getting to embrace villainy.
Honestly, do you know who has embraced villainy best? Bosco. She’s been just as bitchy as Daya but she’s so much better at doing it with a joke. Maybe the problem with Daya is her talent at being shady is equal to her talent at other aspects of drag — not that great.
From fights to romance. We start with discussion of Alyssa as trade of the season before moving on to the Camgeria romance. Why are we focusing on an early season flirtation instead of the real thing that seems to have developed with Angeria and Willow?? I mean I see no reason the whole top five can’t fuck but if I’m shipping anyone it’s those two. We also learn that Jorgeous and Orion had a showmance but it didn’t last long because Jorgeous ghosted. I love that Kornbread was the only one who caught on during filming.
And I love Kornbread and Willow’s friendship!! Kornbread shows off her Willow tattoo and talks about them being friend soulmates.
Ru introduces Maddy as the first straight queen on the show even though she’s not even the only straight queen in that room. Unless Kerri, Kornbread, Willow, and Bosco want to give me a call. (Sorry, Jasmine, you’re too young for me.) I’d get into the whole Maddy thing again if I didn’t find her too boring to think about. Maddy is so mediocre she makes me want to apologize to Daya Betty.
I did enjoy watching Bosco’s face as Jasmine and Maddy discuss their fight. And I enjoyed Kerri calling them Miss Mouth Almighty and Mister Straight. And I enjoyed Willow saying that fight was when she realized she was on Drag Race.
Shoutout to Jasmine for being the center of this reunion! Next up is her coming out. Jasmine says the day that episode aired she came out to her dad and he said, “Okay. I’ll call you tomorrow.” This is framed as a positive, but I don’t know?? I’m forever asking this show to have higher expectations for straight family. I think Kerri does a great job adjusting the Drag Race narratives to be just a bit more nuanced. And it’s so lovely seeing these five queens on stage together. Kerri says they’re the sisterhood of the traveling estrogen. Ru says, “You are all my teachers.” Too bad he couldn’t have learned these lessons before insulting Peppermint.
Like Daya, Bosco doesn’t apologize for her fight with Camden. She says she was a bitch but drag queens are supposed to be bitches. Then she jokingly yells nice things at Camden. This is what I’m talking about!! She knows how to make fun of herself and own her villainy. I love Bosco.
Next is a toot or boot that ends with Maddy winning the golden boot for her farmer look. I really think Ru likes having Maddy around just to mock her.
Some queens from the Vegas show ask fan questions and we learn that Kornbread did give Daya $1,000 to eat that dragonfly. Orion is then quite cocky about how well she would’ve done in the challenges she missed, to which Bosco asks: What season were you on?
The library is open — as if it wasn’t already — and Alyssa and Orion are so bad. “How can her last name be story when she can’t even read?” Maddy says, the one time I’ve liked her. Kornbread then tells DeJa that she and Jesus have a lot in common — they both have twelve followers.
Finally, Daya has a little apology moment with Jorgeous and Jasmine and then we check in with our top five. Ru asks them all what their highest and lowest moments were. Angeria says her lowest was Snatch Game and her highest was Ru saying he didn’t expect her to get this far. Bosco says her lowest was when everyone said she should go home and her highest was winning by shit talking. Daya says her low and high was being sent home first. Camden says her low was the girl group and her high was winning three challenges. And Willow says her low was when Kornbread left and her high was the spaghetti bath.
That’s the end! Ru gives us a hint of the format next week. It’s going to be five solo performances and then a top two lip sync. But will the solo performances be lip syncs or original songs like seasons seven and eight? I’m rooting for original songs! Imagine how horny Bosco’s original song could be!
+ Kerri, Jorgeous, and Alyssa opened for JLo?? That’s so cool.
+ This whole episode, Bosco and Kornbread were loving the drama so much.
+ Kerri is deemed the narrator of the season.
+Usually Mean Girls plays on VH1 before and after Drag Race, but this week it was Titanic and I was so tempted to save my recap for the morning and just watch it. Titanic is James Cameron’s best movie and that is the hot take I will leave you with because you already know I’m #TeamWillow.
