LGBTQ, pop culture, Review, television, Things I Like

REVIEW—RUPAUL’S DRAG RACE FINALE

IT’S OVER; IT’S DONE; AND NOW WE HAVE TO GO BACK TO THE REAL WORLD.

Grade: A++

This, warning (?), is not going to be a recap—a RuCap?—of the finale of RuPaul’s Drag Race season 8. This is going to be a ramble about HOW MUCH I LOVED IT.

So I generally hate competition shows. I always root for the wrong person, I get bad anxiety watching people compete, and by the end, I lose interest. I’m still not caught up on the final two episodes of The Amazing Race, because I just can’t. But RPDR has always held a special place in my heart, so much so that I literally squealed more times than appropriate during the finale.

Source: LogoTV

A running theme throughout this season has been the legacy of winners. For the first time since—I forget which other finale had the previous winners, but whatever—a long time, all eight previous winners—plus a clown—were on the stage. Now in its eighth season, RPDR isn’t a fluke anymore; it’s an empire. And I loved that message, embodied in all the winners, who amongst each other represent a huge spectrum of drag culture. Plus I’m loving Bianca’s curls??!

Now, I’m not gonna prance around the end result. Firstly because I don’t prance—I’ve got bad knees. And secondly because if y’all are reading this, then y’all probably know already. Amiright henny??

Source: LogoTV

So the winner of RuPaul’s Drag Race, season 8, is…

Source: LogoTV

BOB THE DRAG QUEEN.

Source: LogoTV

This season was shorter than last season, which technically had fifteen girls (fourteen, and Trixie came back). But while it was short, it was definitely sweet. And looking at all the girls clustered on stage, you realize how very different they were from last year. I couldn’t imagine Season Seven doing a roller-skating challenge; I couldn’t imagine Season Seven do a funky New Wave singing challenge. And that’s no shade at Seven—they were just birds of a different feather. They were all about the lewks, the glamour, the couture. It just felt a lot more serious. And so it makes sense that Violet Chachki—the sickening, shocking, avant-garde young queen—won against all the odds. This season feels silly, and buoyed by an effusive love of drag. And to me, that’s why Bob won. Because more than anything, he is propelled by this catchy, vibrant love of his craft. And it spills out in everything he does.

Bob won more challenges than anyone else this season; but he wasn’t grating about it. He was just living his life, and said multiple times that he was just happy to be on his favorite show. I predicted Bob’s win early on because it’s simple mathematics—no one has done as well as him that season. You didn’t have the tight race between powerhouse Ginger and wunderkind Violet and sleeper-hit—pun intended—Pearl. You had Bob doing a full-out sprint towards the end.

Source: LogoTV/ Icon Stacy Layne Matthews

Sure, they tried to play up the “underdog” role for Naomi, and the ingénue role for Kim Chi. But it never felt authentic. Naomi was always too sickening to be the underdog; and, I mean, Kim is an ingénue, but she’s also sharp and funny and twisted.

The top three was probably the closest in herstory, because you didn’t have any one that had a certain edge. And the worst part was, they were all so fucking nice. Typically, as Willam pointed out on the Shane and Friends podcast, there’s a certain formula. The Protagonist (Professional), the Antagonist, and the Underdog. So there’s someone to root for, someone to root against, and someone to surprise you. But there was no formula for this top three. Any of them could’ve won and it would’ve made sense.

When I had predicted Bob’s win, I was disappointed because I thought it would be a boring win. But getting to know Naomi and Kim better—seeing how fucking funny Kim is and how innovative and smart Naomi is—the race became tighter and it boiled down to what narrative RuPaul wanted.

Source: LogoTV

If Naomi had won, it would be the full circle of a kid watching RPDR, getting inspired, and getting on the show. And while I used to think that she was a carbon copy of Violet—young, fashion queen—I realize that they’re different. Naomi is the wearer, the charisma of the model.

Source: LogoTV

If Kim Chi had won, it would’ve taken drag into a different realm. She is not a lip-sync artist, or a dancer. She is fully a work of art. She would’ve shifted drag into something artful and away from its club roots.

Source: LogoTV/ Bob could’ve won on this lip sync alone.

And when Bob won, she was the fulfillment of the love of drag. It was crazy, out-of-the-box, wild and effusive. And it was right, for the narrative. Drag is not so serious all the time; it’s brilliant, and funny, and irreverent and shocking.

I’m really excited to see what Bob will do with her year. Violet really refined her craft and traveled with Battle of the Seasons. She sat in the front row of fashion shows, she was photographed by Marc Jacobs. She burst into the fashion scene, and it was right. But Bob isn’t that kind of queen. She’s a performer first; and I will gag to see what she does as the Reigning Queen.

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Stray Obsergaytions:

I thought Robbie was going to come out in wheels.

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Chi Chi looked STUNNING.
I swear that Kim Chi’s song purposefully had a lisp built into it.
Kim’s “Fat, Fem and Asian” is an amazing commentary on how fucked up we are.
I felt like Ross was trying a little bit too hard for a tagline. “Kim Chi is the main course, and who’s hungry???!”
Is every queen gradually shifting over to Trixie’s style of make-up? There was a definite family resemblance when Chi Chi walked onstage.

Source: LogoTV

The biggest gag of the season was the Gay for Play dancers wearing kimonos #KimonoGate

Source: LogoTV/ Look at the hunger in Naysha’s eyes.

Naomi had the best looks this season.
This deserves more than a bullet point but oh well—Violet Chachki’s final lewk. Historically, the Reigning Queen comes back in full force to hand over her crown and looks sickening. Jinkx Monsoon came back in a huge beautiful green gown. Bianca Del Rio came back in glittery silver Statue of Liberty realness. And Violet did not disappoint. She was in a huge gown, corseted for years, and served something that was scary, spooky, off-putting, alluring, and beautiful. And she proved—beyond measure—that she is the ultimate fashion queen. We bow down.
#CucuGotCongeniality
Raja wearing a kimono and revealing the ultimate Madonna lewk underneath was this season’s best redemption storyline.

All hail our reigning queen!

Source: LogoTV/ Walk into the world purse first.

Review, television

REVIEW—RUPAUL’S DRAG RACE: DON’T JUDGE A BOOK BY ITS COVERGIRL

(recapped while listening to Beyoncé’s Lemonade)

Grade: A+

This has been, hands-down, my favorite episode so far of this season. The drama was high, the outfits were incredible, and the emotion was intoxicating.

The episode starts with the final five walking in after the elimination of Thorgy Thor. I’ll admit, I was upset that Thorgy was eliminated. I felt that she was never given a fair shot, at least against Bob, but after watching her get a little salty, I was kind of…not glad, but not as sad, I suppose. So we have the final five: Naomi Shambles, Big Ole Bottom, Cheech N. Chong, Devil Barry, and Kimmy Chi.

The main challenge this week is the annual ball, giving us Literary Couture in the form of Baby Drag, That’s My Mama, and Autobiographical Eleganza Extravaganza. But first, the queens read each other 2 filth with puppets. I’ll be honest, I was a little surprised that they did so well. Last week’s smear campaign left a lot to be desired, but the queens really dug into each other.

Source: LogoTV

Bob had Kim, Kim had Chi Chi, Chi Chi had Bob, and Naomi and Derrick had each other. Naomi and Derrick really ripped into each other, and it was less of a read and more of a long overdue kill session. Chi Chi was the winner, and she honestly deserved it. After the puppet session, tacking on two months to my therapy, I realized what’s struck me about this season. The queens feel a lot closer than previous seasons, where there were some serious divides (Bitter Ole Lady Brigade vs. Beauty Kweens; or Jinkx Monsoon vs. Roxxy, Alaska and Detox). But that made the reading feel a lot more intimate and personal, like sisters fighting.

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After the puppets, Naomi and Derrick tear into each other some more, without the comforting—albeit frail—barrier of a cardboard puppet theater between them. Naomi is frustrated because Derrick literally can’t understand what the judges are saying to her in critiques. Naomi is saying, “Dude it’s very simple—do drag.”

What struck me like a fat lightning bolt during this tiff was that Derrick doesn’t actually do drag. She’s a female impersonator, which is a subtle—but important—distinction. Derrick has never learned to carve her face, or be anyone except Britney. In a lot of important ways, she has never undergone the strenuous task of doing drag. And that’s what’s been missing for her—and what clicked for me. The reason she’s struggling in a drag competition is because she’s not a drag queen.

RuPaul slinks around the WERK room while the queens are working, trying to get everyone to join in on some sort of mass sadness circle jerk. “What are your problems with your mother?” she asks each queen, salivating when the queens drop their sob stories. Talking to any queer person about their mother is a great way to juice up television, so I can only imagine that RuPaul was so excited for today’s filming that she didn’t sleep a wink the night before.

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Side bar: I imagine that RuPaul sleeps in one of those elevated hospital beds, in full drag.

Just as she’s leaving, RuPaul informs the queens that in addition to their three looks, they’re going to do a Jerri Blank-inspired dance from Strangers with Candy, as Amy Sedaris and David Sedaris are the judges.

The queens literally drop dead from exhaustion, and the rest of the hour-and-a-half long episode is just black screen.

Just kidding! Chi Chi leads the choreography, but tbh I’m gonna skip this part because it’s boring and all you really need to know is that they wore essentially Party City mouthpieces for teeth and Derrick made me very uncomfortable. Also does Chi Chi look like a Muppet? Lmk.

Source: LogoTV

Runway Lewks:

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Kim Chi: Kim won the challenge with her continuous “blossoming plant” storyline, incorporating a truly beautiful, no other words, Mama Drag look, inspired by her mother. Her emotion entranced David Sedaris and won her a rightful victory. Kim Chi excels at design challenges, and her Autobiographical Eleganza look was floaty and springy and haute couture, and made entirely out of paper. Kim was the only queen to entirely incorporate a cohesive storyline into her outfits, much like Roxxy Andrews and her Sugar Ball outfits.

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Naomi Smalls: I think what I like most about Naomi is that she incorporates her drag persona into every outfit she does. You can always tell it’s her. Her baby drag look was a little disappointing—haute couture diaper, making Lisa Rinna and her Depends adult diaper fortune ejaculate into flames—and a little derivative, her Mama look was entrancing and very Little Hunty on the Prairie. And finally her Eleganza was sickening, a ballerina-meets-Inkheart fantasy. I figured she would do more of a traditional tutu—to show off her legs—but her carefully constructed black-and-white dress, complete with platinum hair, excellent eyes and a bold red lip were better than I could’ve imagined. Love her.

Source: LogoTV

Bob the Drag Queen: I was honestly disappointed with Bob tonight. Thank god, because her winning was getting exhausting. Her baby drag was very Flintstones meets Real Housewives of New Jersey. Her mama look was sweet, and cemented that she is the drag Viola Davis, if she ever wants to join Derrick in the ranks of female impersonation. Her eleganza was a flop, as she completely didn’t even include paper and stuck with cardboard.

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Derrick Barry: I’m gonna start with the positive; I’m glad that Derrick tries hard, and that she’s willing to try new things. That being said, her looks sucked. Her baby drag was Ariel from The Little Mermaid, her mama look made me have to think about her parents having sex, and her ELEGANZA WAS A FUCKING CORSET LIKE ALWAYS. But yes, Derrick, congratulations on blocking out your eyebrows and painting on two caterpillar dicks.

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Chi Chi DeVayne: Tbh, Chi Chi was a little bit cheated out of a win this week. Her looks were fully realized and absolutely beautiful. She’s absolutely the best dark horse in the race, and I’m not even mad. I used to hate her, but over the last few episodes, I’ve warmed to her. Even though she sent home Thorgy, her emotive and evocative lip sync last week cemented her place in the top four. Her mama drag was beautiful and she actually looks just like her mom. And her eleganza was a frosty, Swan Princess confection of paper. She also had the best accessories hands down. Loved it, Cheech.

Bob and Derrick are in the bottom two, and Bob—obviously—wins. But for a minute, I was afraid—RuPaul has so blatantly kept Derrick in the competition for no reason that I worried that maybe she would keep it going. But Derrick leaves, and dammit, the emotion he showed in this episode made me not hate him.

Overall, this episode was sick. The storylines made a nice circle, and the girls all like each other, and almost—ahem, Derrick—everyone’s outfits were some of the best Drag Race has ever seen. We need more unconventional material challenges. They made the best runways. Also I’m in love with our final four!

Source: LogoTV

Stray Observations:

KIM CHI IS A G0DDESS.
I think Naomi Smalls in drag is turning me straight. I’m in love with her.
Seriously, does Chi Chi look like a Muppet?
Bai Derrick!!

Source: LogoTV

The Wunderkindof

Too good-looking to be this funny. Politics. Pop Culture. Millennial Ramblings.

Tag Archives: RuPaul

REVIEW—RUPAUL’S DRAG RACE FINALE

IT’S OVER; IT’S DONE; AND NOW WE HAVE TO GO BACK TO THE REAL WORLD.

Grade: A++

REVIEW—RUPAUL’S DRAG RACE: DON’T JUDGE A BOOK BY ITS COVERGIRL