Hello my petite treats and welcome back to RuPaul’s Drag Race Rucap, my critically panned review series of our favorite reality show on television apart from Little Women: LA. This week is a special edition because I actually watched the episode as it aired, in an incredibly (incredibly) seedy gay bar in Boston. The alcohol was dirt cheap and the patrons were ugly as sin but there was no cover and the affair was hosted by none other than Katya so it wasn’t all that bad. For those of you wondering, Katya is as funny in person as she is on the show. I had the opportunity of seeing her perform at Northeastern a few years back so it’s a bit surreal to see her now that she’s an F list celeb. She provided commentary on the episode during commercial breaks, giving us some insight on the show without ru-vealing any real secrets. It was actually kind of fun to watch the show with a group of gays, who were so invested in what was happening on the screen. Drag is to gay men what women’s basketball is to no one. But let’s get to the actual recap shall we?
There is no particular drama at the start of this episode. People are confused why Kandi is still there, but no one is too upset to see Kasha go. The only palpable tension is between Pearl and Miss Fame, the latter upset that the other is still here. This season has had little drama in comparison to previous ones. There haven’t been any Phi Phi vs Willam or Phi Phi vs Sharon or Phi Phi vs the prison system kind of fights this season. While Violet may be bitchy, this season has no clear villain, which is both good and bad. It’s good because it means minimal distractions; it’s bad because it’s less fun to watch.
For the mini challenge the queens play a weird game that is essentially just an excuse to look at packages (which, I’m certainly not complaining about). After Ginger is made the winner RuPaul announces the week’s main event: a Real Hollywood style acting challenge entitled, Whatever Happened to Merle Ginsberg. Oh MG, the lost judge of RuPaul’s drag race, whom everyone has forgotten about. At least she isn’t as hated as Santino though.
The teams are as follows:
Katya, Ginger, Kennedy
Violet, Max, Kandi
Pearl, Jaidynn, Miss Fame
The queens you expect to do well are the ones who excel. Jaidynn can’t remember any of her lines, Kandi can’t do anything, and Miss Fame has word vomit to the extreme. Kennedy, Violet, Max, and Pearl are either meh or passable and only Katya and Ginger shine. It’s nice to watch Kandi fail at yet another challenge because you know it means she’ll finally be sashaying away (bitch has sent home too many good queens).
The runway look of the episode is Death Becomes Her and the special guest judges are Merle and preteen pop star sensation Ariana Grande. Overall the looks are campy and fun, showing personality we haven’t seen for all of the queens. Katya serves shark attack realness, Violet walks down the runway with an 18 inch waist, and Kennedy is a fucking chicken. Katya is named the winner of this week’s challenge, which let’s be real- belongs to Ginger. I mean don’t get me wrong I love Katya, but I think Ginger was the true star in their scene. I feel that they gave Katya the winner solely to spread out the wins and make it appear as if all of the queens have an equal chance of winning the competition. Kandi and Jaidynn end up in the bottom two and both deliver high energy lip sync to Ariana’s song Break Free. In the end Kandi is rightfully sent home and Jaidynn lives to see another day.
QUEEN RANKINGS
Ginger
Ginger delivered another stellar performance this week as Danny DeVito playing Michelle Visage. Her runway look may not have been the most flattering but it was also campy enough to secure her place in the top two. The only thing that makes me worry for Ginger is that the show has already crowned so many comedy queens that people have been finding the format too predictable. Ru may choose a different winner solely to stir controversy and mess with viewer expectations.
Katya
This was Katya’s week. She had the best one liners, managed to be on a team that wasn’t entirely horrible (no thanks to Kennedy), and her runway look had us in stitches. Katya has been the heart of this season so far, providing self-deprecating commentary that is both relatable and hysterical. She may not have started off at the top, but she’s slowly working her way there.
Pearl
Pearl is finally getting her shit together! While she may not be the most naturally gifted actor, she is no doubt putting in her best effort, which makes her redeemable. She managed to get through an entire episode without whining and her runway look was wonderfully grotesque. Congratulations Pearl, I like you again.
Violet
Violet is slowly dropping her persona as most insufferable contestant in RuPaul’s Drag Race history. Her bitchy attitude was nowhere to be seen this week and her incredibly elaborate runway look was breathtaking. It’s clear that she’s no actor but she slays the runway every week and proves that you don’t have to be old to be polished. During the viewing, Katya said she thought Violet was the most talented queen on her season; I’m starting to see why.
Max
Max didn’t get a whole lot of love this week. It seems that her shtick is no longer as entertaining to the judges as it used to be, her solid performances and inspired runway looks. Max needs to get out of her head and embrace the ridiculousness of the show if she wants to make it to the top three.
Miss Fame
Miss Fame is the second most bizarre queen to ever be on RuPaul (the title goes to Tammie). She has no grasp of what an internal monologue is and she is so stuck in her head that she can’t take any direction. Her runway looks are polished, but her brain is scrambled that she can’t really succeed in any acting challenges. We haven’t seen her lip sync yet and I think it’s a deliberate choice on the part of the judges’ panel. Once Miss Fame lip syncs people will finally see how little stage presence she has. I mean come on, have you seen videos of her performing live? Watching paint dry is more fun.
Kennedy
Bitch was a fucking chicken.
Jaidynn
I’m starting to get tired of Jaidynn. She’s a pretty girl, but she wears some pretty heinous outfits and struggles to deliver in the acting challenges. I had high hopes for her, but now I’m starting to think Jaidynn will never truly shine in this competition.
Kandi
BYE BYE BEARDED HOE!
Is this why I'm still single? 