There was no
mini-challenge this week. Instead, the ladies were instructed to show up in
full face to shoot Ru’s latest music video for “The Realness.” Unlike previous
videos, the task at hand isn’t all that demanding. There’s no complicated
chiffonography or hairography, just floatography, which basically means lying
on your back and mugging. Somehow, Kim Chi still manages to fall while lying
down. It’s actually just sort of pathetic. As for the rest of the video, there
really wasn’t the kind of acting-heavy component that, say, Jinkx, Alaska and
Roxxxy had to deal with. Instead, the ladies are basically just told to do
their thing, pose, dance, whatever. (Kim Chi must be thanking her lucky stars.)
For whatever the video lacked in complex choreo and concepts, it allowed for
the queens to really show what each of these gals does best.
On the
runway, the final four brought their best drag, and RuPaul brought her best
attempts at getting the ladies to cry. First, she whips out photos of each
queen as a child and asks the queens to give their younger self a message. Each
queen imparts some wisdom about being true to yourself and some permutation of
the “It Gets Better” mantra, but Kim Chi is particularly touching. She breaks
down completely in tears, but bounces back for one final quip about imploring
her younger self to take some dance lessons. Well played. It was a powerful
moment, but whatever happened to the Tic Tac lunch with Mama Ru?
The queens
were also asked to make their case for why they deserve the crown. The downside
of having such a strong final four who actually seem to like and respect one
another is that they all sort of held back when really asked why they deserve
to win over the others.
Finally, all
four queens did a tepid lip sync that failed to really allow any one of them to
connect with the audience. Personally, I would have preferred a standard
one-on-one lip sync with two queens really vying for a spot in the top 3. But
maybe that’s just my personal drag queen bloodlust.
On to the rankings!
1.
Since day one, this has been Bob’s crown to lose.
Aesthetically, she’s a competent queen, but she’s clever and cunning in a way
that elevates everything she does. Her humor is sharper than it needs to be
(check out this
beyond brilliant performance that masterfully blends slapstick,
pop culture and racial commentary with hilarious results), and she’s got that
something special that makes her compulsively watchable. I would watch a Bob
Netflix special. I would watch Bob lip sync a bar down. And I will cheer when
Bob is awarded the season eight crown.
2.
You know, it’s been hard to overlook Kim Chi’s deficits
in dancing, but let’s take a minute and give it up for the gurl. Most queens
would be lucky to have one or two runway looks as exciting and inventive as Kim
brought every single week. Seriously. Every single one of her runway looks has
been downright killer. On artistry alone, Kim Chi can’t be beat. Then, she’s
got that sweet spirit and heartwarming journey on her road to self-acceptance.
You can’t help but root for her. As we’ve learned, however, America’s Next Drag
superstar needs to do more than just look the part. She needs to run for
office, sell workout videos, star in children’s shows, do celebrity
impersonations, and dance dance dance to Lucian Piane songs. I love Kim, I do,
and I think she’s going to have a great career, but I don’t think she is the
right fit for this championship.
3. She may
have stuck to the middle of the pack for the start of the competition, but Naomi
Smalls has risen to the top. Part of me wishes she would’ve been cast
a few years from now. Would she have been even sharper? Could she have been
unstoppable? She has such respect for drag that you get the impression she’s
always giving 100 percent. When it comes to serving fashion, Naomi can slay
with the best of them. She may be Drag Race’s finest poser, and
she’s fought hard to measure up on comedy, dancing and characters. Had Violet —
another young, high-fashion queen — not taken the crown last season, I might be
more enthused to see a Naomi win.
4. Au revoir, Chi
Chi. It was a valiant effort. Unfortunately, it just wasn’t meant to be. In
this tight top four, everyone has to be best in class. Bob is for sure one of
the world’s best comedy queens, Kim is one of the top look queens, and even
Naomi is a powerhouse poser. I don’t know if Chi Chi could out-dance, say,
Alyssa Edwards or Kennedy Davenport. She is good, but this season demands
greatness. I’m glad she came as far as she did, and I really hope this platform
gives her career a nice boost.
What do you think of the Top
4?
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