I can’t tell
if it’s just that phase of quarantine where literally anything sends me into
wild fits of rage, or if we have truly reached maximum RuPaul. Either way, yes,
Vaginameatagingerminj, it is possible to have too much of a good thing.
The
3.5-hour Drag Race marathon included a 90-minute celeb edition
(see our review/recap here), Untucked and, of
course, our original recipe Race with all our
squirrel-friends. By the time I watched it all, she already done had hourses.
That’s why I
think, despite three strong weeks (Droop, Rusical and Snatch), and even despite
Jeff Goldblum’s irresistible charms, last night’s episode left me wanting.
Or maybe it’s
just really difficult to watch anyone talk about how they’re disengaged from
politics at a time when we are literally fighting for our lives under the most
inept, soulless White House administration of all time, and the GOP continues
to pack courts with conservative justices and meddle with elections to ensure
they stay in power. Or maybe it just needed more dick jokes. Who can say?
Either way, this felt like a pitstop in the larger Race.
I almost would
have preferred the mini-challenge be the main challenge. Instead, the gals got
in (surprisingly good) kitty cat quick drag and gave us twisted cat characters
in the werk room. You know ya boy was first in line to see CATS in
theaters (before they digitally-corrected the fur; I had to see it in its
rawest, most grotesque form).
It’s something
so ripe for parody, and it leverages what the show does best: the absurd.
Painted as kitties, dressed in catsuits, the ladies rolled around an oversized litter
box, scratching post and collection of gigantic of cat toys. Everyone lets
loose and has a good time, but Jackie’s Eartha Kitt-inspired puss tickles Ru in
just the right way.
The sheer
stupidity of the short character improvs goes down much smoother than when the
show tried to get serious … and then immediately punished any queen with any
political gravitas in their presentation. This week, the queens are tasked with
showcasing their political points in a debate moderated by the delightful duo
of Rachel Bloom and Jeff Goldblum.
Before they
even get to the mainstage, there is cause for concern. Frontrunner Gigi, for
example, cops to avoiding politics and the economy because they stress her out.
Widow also seems adrift, but that’s sort of been her general vibe for a while
now. Both Crystal and Heidi heed the advice of Ru and guest Raven to keep it
simple and silly, but Jaida and Jackie appear to be the best set up for success
— just for very different reasons. Jackie is politically-minded and aware, but Jaida
opts to lean into her lack of experience, combative attitude and scathing
one-liners. (Hey, if it can win the White House … )
Under the
bright lights of the debate stage, it’s clear which approach worked best. Jaida
dominated the stage with great timing and the perfect response to whatever was
thrown her way. Heidi and Crystal rely on their natural charms and
personalities for delightful results. Gigi’s lack of political knowledge
hampers her ability to nail the specificity she would need for another one of
the workaround parodies she relies on to compensate when a challenge doesn’t
fall into her natural wheelhouse.
Goode’s debate
was Badde, but not nearly as much of a dud as Jackie and Widow. Ms. Cox comes
armed with a “Secret Canadian” character in her pocket. (Tune in next week
for RuPaul’s Secret Canadian Drag Race, right after Drag
Race, Untucked, All Stars, Celebrity
Drag Race, The Masked Drag Queen, The Great British
Tucking Show …) It’s a one-note joke, and it doesn’t take long for the
judges to tire of hearing it.
Still one note
is one more note than any “joke” from Widow. The Lady Von Du du not understand
the assignment. Instead of crafting a kooky character, she tries to play it
straight. (Or as straight as a mock drag queen debate can be?) If ever there
were a moment for Trinity the Tuck’s “Where are the jokes?” GIF, it’s now.
It’s a
star-spangled runway, and all the ladies deliver, as Bloom and Goldblum (what,
was Troye Sivan unavailable?)
join the judges’ dais. They’re rightfully smitten with Heidi and eventual
winner Jaida for blending character work and point of view. Crystal gets points
for personality. Gigi’s poorly defined performance is attributed to her lack of
familiarity with the target of her parody. (Generous, but OK.)
That leaves
Widow and Jackie in the bottom. Yes, Widow was a no-brainer before the gals
were even out of their black wedding runway looks. (She started the episode —
if not the last few — already defeated.) However, it was surprising to see
Jackie flop so hard, considering how this challenge seems like something she’d
be adroit at.
What makes the
bottom two lip sync especially emotional are the outfits. Widow looks her
season best in a Black Panthers homage that surges with power and pride.
Meanwhile, Jackie is in a red and white striped caftan with a dark blue hijab
adorned with 50 silver stars. They’re performing to Katy Perry’s “Firework,” a
song that, despite any intellectual gripes or personal taste, I can’t resist being moved by.
I’m not alone,
either, because Jeff Goldblum is actually crying by the end of the lip sync. I
know that sounds silly, but think about what we’re watching: Two queer artists,
two people of color, fighting for their actual American Dream, dressed as
iconic representations of not only their individual culture, but the unique
pieces that make up the tapestry of America. Damnit. I’m crying again.
It’s a great,
emotional lip sync that’s all heart. It’s relatively stunt-free, gag-free. Just
two folks performing the absolute hell out of this number.
In a vacuum,
I, once again, would have considered a double-save, if only to stop Jeff
Goldblum from crying. But! Widow’s really fallen off steadily for a few weeks,
and it felt time for her to go. My heart breaks a little for the Kansas City
queen who is clearly immensely talented, but just seems like she’s not ready
for the kind of challenges this competition throws at you OFF camera (the
stress, the self-sabotage). That’s not a knock on her character, but something
that should be considered by producers when crafting a contest that challenges
competitors but also supports their growth.
Not to get too
political.
Let’s see
where the ladies stand ahead of next week’s makeover challenge in our rankings
below!
1.
It was a rocky week for Gigi, no doubt, but
she’s earned enough good(e)will the past few eps to have a little humanizing
stumble. The grace period won’t extend another week, but something tells me
she’s going to ace the makeover. I loved her Revolutionary runway, of course,
but Gigi killing it on the runway is a given. She’s still out ahead of the pack
without a clear challenger. (Or at least one that hasn’t been disqualified and
subsequently — and rightfully — scrubbed from the season.)
2.
Jaida is rising at a great time in the competition. She managed to slip
under the radar in the comedy- and acting-heavy challenges, but she always
turns it out on the runway. She’s also got a razor tongue, which she used to
great effect this week. She had hands down the best lines of the night (“I
don’t debate, I argue;” “I’d like to retattle the retittle to the rebuttal;”
and, of course, “Look over there!”) Jaida came into this season knowing she’s a
star. As the field has winnowed down, I’m having a tougher time arguing. I
would love to see Jaida slay the final music video, and I can only imagine what
sort of incredible creations she has in store for later runways. This was her
week through and through, and it was well-earned.
3.
There are a lot of things about Heidi that
says she can’t win this season. She’s too unpolished, too unfamiliar with the
sort of zeitgeisty, gay, pop-culture fascinations that are necessary to
exchange bon mots with the other queens. Maybe people don’t take her seriously,
because of her accent or genuine sweetness. However, if you step back, I don’t
think anyone left, not even Gigi, has as high of a ceiling as Heidi. Out of the
remaining queens, she’d be the one I’d be most excited to see win this one. I
don’t know if she will, or if I can justify it using the Ru-bric (pun intended)
that’s been established over the last dozen seasons, but she’s got IT. She has
personality and charisma and charm and likability that can’t be taught. With
the right access and resources, anyone can have beautiful clothes. (Taste, I
know, is not as easy to come by.) Heidi just has something you can’t learn, and
she doesn’t even realize it. That’s what makes her so amenable to feedback and
quick to implement notes. That’s going to accelerate her growth as an artist a
lot faster.
4.
Jackie reminds me, in a way, of BenDeLaCreme during season six. She’s
good, she’s got a point of view, but sometimes the vision in her head doesn’t
quite match up in practice. She put all her œufs in that one Canadian basket,
so when it didn’t pan out, she cracked. (Hey-o!) She looked gorgeous on the
runway, but I wish she rehearsed a better elevator pitch. The presentation
became a little convoluted, about religion but not really religion, but more
about representation, the travel ban … Jeff Goldblum’s incredibly inelegant
(being extremely generous) aside about homophobia and misogyny in Islam was way
too complex to even attempt to address in this arena, but it felt like the
wheels were coming off her explanation even before that. It might be the edit’s
fault, but I had a hard time being moved, because I had a hard time following.
In a way, her lip sync performance conveyed much more than her explanation to
the judges. Still, Jackie is a great advocate and another interesting
perspective on the queer community.
5.
Crystal continues to climb. She’s the wildcard for me now. She could go
home next week, or she could make it to the end. It all sort of depends on her
ability to continue to take her schtick and keep it catered to the assignment.
She was so funny during the mini-challenge, I actually thought she deserved the
win more. It just felt like a more original character with a little bit more
variety in jokes. She was smart in her handling of the debate challenge, even
if she seemed to just be shooting for safe. On the runway, she had the weakest
lewk, but it wasn’t too egregious.
6.
I sort of already spilled a lot on Widow,
but her fate was truly sealed when she backtalked the judges. RuPaul has this
weird libertarian, “pull yourself up from your bootstraps” mentality, which
served him well through the years, but lacks a lot of nuance and understanding
that Ru is sometimes quick to dismiss as just the illusions of the “ego” or
whatever. Personally, it feels like it flattens the world a bit and narrowly
frames success. Yes, Widow could have taken some earlier stumbles in stride,
instead of internalizing it. But that’s not the kind of skill someone can just
learn to turn on and off in the middle of a high-stakes competition. It do take
nerve, but it takes care, too.
How would you
rank the queens?
SOURCE: TOWLEROAD
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