'...and DON'T *bleep* IT UP!' -- the RuPaul's Drag Race thread

About time for this, I figure! Fifth season premiered yesterday.

condragulations

Quite right!

this show is kind of fascinating in a "gender is all performance!" way - everyone congratulating each other (incl the judges) on how well they achieve some kind of archetypal female-ness

Okay come on, I KNOW I'm not the only person on here watching.

I promise to start now.

Marilyn Monroe should've been in the bottom. She didn't do anything.

Yeah that was an epic flop. I like Ivy well enough but that made me go "Whuh?"

Jinkx, Alaska and Roxy were the best overall, but Jinkx just owned it period.

I like Ivy too and I think she was lucky she didn't have to lipsynch against Lineysha. I didn't expect her to do so well (but her Celia Cruz was unforgiveable).

Deep clusterfuck, that. Also what WAS Detox thinking.

um hi I just started watching season 5 online having never watched and omg I'm hooked

I'll be caught up in no time :D

Don't forget to watch Untucked, an essential part of this show!

Yeah I just figured that out...gotta love these bitchy girls. MORE drag homework? *twists arm*

Very good. Join us, join us...

Shanté, you stay!

Season 2 still the best so far, I think.

I just binge-rewatched season 3 over the weekend on Netflix and I might have to vote for that one. Then again I just like Raja a hell of a lot, so.

Yes for Raja and Manila. But the rest, not so interesting. Yara-Sophia maybe...

It actually came down to the right final four I thought, Alexis was a character in her own right. But yeah Yara (Xara?) was next level.

I still haven't seen season four! For some stupid reason it's not on Netflix -- it was for about two seconds and then went away again without explanation. (Already know who won, obv., but I'd like to see it happen.)

Wait what!! Can't you watch it on logo online or something? We can't in Canada but I thought you could in the US.
Season 4 was pretty good, although they tried to create too much unnecessary drama. But I'll let you see by yourself.

You can see the Untucked episodes from season 4 on the site but not the main shows. Since you can buy all the shows from iTunes maybe they want to go that route? Who knows!

Makes sense. If RuPaul had a dollar everytime she mentions iTunes...

Hey, house payments are probably up there. (And I don't begrudge Ru ANY success and trappings.)

I don't either. At least she's very upfront and funny about it.

Fun fact we learned during the All Stars season: Jujubee's real name is actually Airplane!

Hahaha yeah I remember thinking "Wait, what?"

I also love that Manila's real name is the none-more-Minnesota Karl Westerberg.

Lol wow

Almost caught up on S5 now yay!

Every single time Alyssa glams up for the runway all I think is JOAN COLLINS JOAN COLLINS JOAN COLLINS

I don't know why but I think I like Detox. Jinkx is great but I dunno if the unglam thing is going to hold out for her or not. I love her for it, but it could wear thin.

I will say this, have started following her on FB -- win or lose she seems to be having a blast and is booked for other live appearances and things and more this year already, so I like to think of her as winning already!

Meanwhile, it's a little surprising to see such a mostly white group at this point. Not that I think the show is biased, appears to be more luck of the draw season by season in terms of who survives.

that little edie impersonation was fuckin awesome in the last ep. too bad her fashion totally sucks.

I found s2 streaming on Amazon Prime, so yaaaay

Meantime:

http://www.slate.com/blogs/browbeat/2013/02/27/drag_race_grey_gardens_and_jinx_monsoon_why_the_queens_need_camp.html

I do have to quibble with some of the assertions there -- while Sharon's success in 4 is great, in 3 Raja was more than a little disruptive herself -- as was Manila really; if anything Alexis was the one let go at the end precisely for being full pageant.

I haven't watched all the seasons, but I don't get the impression that they are only seeking pageant or necessarily favoring that. And while I noticed the lack of "camp history" in the S5 girls, isn't there an argument that maybe a lot of queens are trying to let go of that, like that cliche of teens not wanting to know about older music? I mean, I'm bummed that they don't know who Little Edie is but maybe when they see Jinkxs win they go find out. And it doesn't mean they're any more terrible for what they don't know of their history. If anything, it's kind of fabulous that they all came to that same place *without* it.
I dunno. That article seemed a little too buttclenched.

Related but I think better expressed post, linked off the official site

http://www.newnownext.com/drag-race-jinkx-monsoon-snatch-game-little-edie/02/2013/

Oh and in checking Twitter Alyssa DID apologize to Ms. Perry.

Also this exchange is interesting (notice it's everyone else BUT Jinkx and Michelle who get riled up -- and as Michelle notes, in noting the obvious, there's always editing).

https://twitter.com/JinkxMonsoon/status/306550634079977473

This is better than what they showed on the show:

http://www.newnownext.com/jinkx-monsoon-little-edie-rupauls-drag-race/02/2013/

My Top 5 Snatch Game contestants from all seasons:

1. Sharon Needles as Michelle Visage
2. Pandora Boxx as Carole Channing
3. Tatianna as Britney Spears
4. Jinkx Monsoon as Little Edie
5. Alexis Matteo as Alicia Keys

Only three eps in (S5; no previous exposure to the show). Anyone care to rank the hottest queens out of drag? So far from S5 I'm into Lineysha and, oddly, Ivy.

xpost I just watched the S2 Snatch Game, Pandora's Carol Channing was hysterical, so good.

Lineysha's gorgeous. Ivy's not a crazy answer either, that bone structure really is something else. I was thinking about her terrible Marilyn and found myself wondering why the hell she didn't do Joan Rivers. Eh. Hindsight

Yes she would've been a great Joan Rivers!

Yeah, I know this is probably the exact rongest angle to take on the show, but I'm finding it very interesting navigating my impressions/levels of attraction to certain contestants when they're in drag vs. when they're not in drag.

Alyssa's *almost* attractive but it's like her lips are too big for her and she keeps tripping over them when she talks. Beautiful eyes though.

Coco's blue contacts freak me out. I keep expecting them to shoot lasers

Haha Alyssa looks like Will Arnett in AND out of drag.

Hottest out of drag:

S1: Jade
S2: Tyra, Raven
S3: Raja, Carmen, Mariah
S4: PhiPhi, Lashauwn
S5: Lineysha

xp otm

Well, actually, in drag he often reminds me of Hugo Weaving.

xpost elmo otm! Defnitely Will Arnett out of drag. In drag as mentioned upthread I just get constant Joan Collins, lol

Don’t get me wrong.

I love Reba McIntyre, and I LOVE “Fancy”

But they chose THAT song
For THAT assassin? Or maybe it was chosen before the assassin was idk

But that was a real non starter of a lipsync and a waste of a song because they couldnt do anything with it! neither of them are that kind of performer.

That’s a Sasha Velour or Latrice or Chad Michaels track. DRAMA. Not dancin.

Plus Kennedy did not know the words.

Oh god, why do I dislike Cracker so much? If she wins, I swear to God I will tear this place down with my bare hands, you watch me.

Still putting all my hopes on Shea or Juju

Plus it looks like the singing/dance challenge so its Shea’s to lose

Also: REUNION! :D

Yeah that was a...weird lipsync, to put it mildly.

Surely Shea's to lose.

lol Blair going hard for deluded Valentina vibes, she is so far from reality

what did she say, something like how winning allstars isnt based on winning?

and how the problem w her standup was that her nails made it hard to turn the pages of her not book

*in skywriting over the studio*
BITCH! PLEASE!

i am glad she’s gone. she should have been kicked off ages ago.

*note book

that lipsynch was dreadful, and especially as the one happening on this week's Canada Drag Race was spectacular (even if the episode of CDR itself was otherwise rubbish)

Yeah, they really pushed the "there are 29,000 words to this song" angle in Untucked but that was a pretty low energy final (?) lip sync for the season.

lmao what an absurd song to pick for a lip sync

watching Blair post-judging was unbearable bcz it's someone who is clawing in desperation against the fully inevitable, they know it's inevitable, they know they can't change it, they're just kinda panicking

especially as the one happening on this week's Canada Drag Race was spectacular

Yes, forgot to mention that earlier, it was prime stuff.

Willam's last two recap eps on the Race Chaser pod have been ... testy. Delightfully testy, but testy for sure.

Rather!

new uhhhHHHHHhh ft trixie and katya coming august 5, hopefully captures some of the old magic

Both are also equally perplexed by the LYFYL song choice this week too. (Willam: "World of Wonder should issue an apology for wasting the talents and the time of Miss Kennedy Davenport! This is like Nina West to do a wet T-shirt contest! Wrong queen!")

(like ASKING Nina)

And they were right about it all.

Canada's Drag Race settling into a good groove. Crazy/ridiculous drama, a good design challenge, stuff and things! The personalities and approaches are all coming clearer too -- and Snatch Game next week!

Yay the right queen won yay!

Anyway so we’re getting another series only they’re going full reality TV for the Vegas revue? Definitely a different full-on VH1 tone than the Werq the World documentaries, and I’m not sure it’ll work but we’ll see...

a good finale but not like, super memorable

glad the winner won bc i love her forever

I truly wish the tie hadn’t gotten used up last season. That was an absolutely deserved winner but at this point I wanted a crown for a particular one of the other two too.

Juju’s runway look was UHMAZING

Yeah that was beyond next level. Maybe just a crown via popular acclaim?

I'd love to see Juju and Shea do something together. They have really good chemistry and seem genuinely kind and interested in other people. Plus Juju is one of the funniest queens they've ever had.

I teared up when Shea talked about her dad and how proud he would be of his son.

always my fav moment of the season:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0UI2IfC3pws

Aww, poor Juju.

Yeah you can see her heart breaking for a second before she starts clapping.

Canada version is really difficult for me - the contestants are all exciting in different ways and the runways have been incredible. But the judging has been a disaster. I've got a lot of goodwill for Stacey but she isn't doing much and JBC is actively unlikable, while Brooke's unease is palpable and all their collective decisions have been... questionable.

Really happy with the AS5 winner though!

Yeah it's kinda clear not having a real central judge personality for the Canada version is an issue. I can understand Ru not wanting to do more on top of everything else but still. The contestants do make it, though.

Anyway I have to salute tonight's episode of CDR for the lip sync and for introducing me to this:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dildo,_Newfoundland_and_Labrador

Also to Mary Walsh, who was probably the best guest judge so far. Snatch Game was often very good but nobody impersonated a Canadian!

I wish someone had done kd Lang or maybe even Grimes. Or Moira Rose.

But although I had no idea who JoJo is, I thought Lemon killed it and would have won if her Céline hadn't sucked so bad.

JoJo is her own universe.

https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/jojo-siwa-glitter-covered-empire-849071/

Brooke's unease is palpable and all their collective decisions have been... questionable.

Brooke needs to lean into the "those who can't... judge" instead of appearing vaguely apologetic about it all the time.

Lemon is the spit of Andrew Rannells.

New episode from Canada tonight, but also there's this:

https://aux.avclub.com/sasha-velour-previews-nightgowns-forever-talks-digital-1844613173

Last night's Canada episode was pretty good in general but yeah, the judging's getting weirder/worse? Can they just give it to Stacy to handle, maybe?

Next week's the makeover challenge and this is a very interesting thing to learn!

Next week on Canada’s Drag Race!

We are so excited to announce that several newcomers we assisted to safety will participate in the iconic Makeover Challenge on next week's episode of Canada's Drag Race!

Catch us Thursday at 9 EDT on @CraveCanada #CanadasDragRace https://t.co/wSynSPmy9F

— Rainbow Railroad (@RainbowRailroad) August 14, 2020

How awful -- I'd heard she was sick:

https://ew.com/tv/rupauls-drag-race-queen-chi-chi-devayne-dead/

As much as I love seeing Chi Chi perform “And I Am Telling You”, this lip sync to Blondie’s “Call Me” IN FRONT OF DEBBIE HARRY always gives me the most energy pic.twitter.com/0ao46LIoFO

— Punani Dasani (@MicahTheModest) August 20, 2020

I'm so devastated. She was incredibly sweet when I chatted with her out of drag on a street in Toronto after Season 8. A great queen and a great soul gone way too soon. RIP.

On a much less serious (and less consequential note all around), that Vegas Revue series starts tonight:

http://www.vh1.com/shows/rupauls-drag-race-vegas-revue

Surprised they didn't call it the RuVue.

Meantime last night's Canada's Drag Race was simultaneously the best episode and the most annoying judging, which is saying something. They've GOT to revamp for next season. But the makeover guests were fantastic and what a lovely grand prize. (And given I was guessing that Ru might show up at the end of the series I guess we're getting Michelle instead -- that is if next week's episode is the final one.)

I remember reading that Chi Chi was diagnosed with an illness with a very pessimistic diagnosis a few years ago, but can't remember what it was. Was it kidney-related?

It was, yes. She had been put on dialysis last month. A friend in Shreveport knew her through mutual friends and the grief there is profound.

Lovely posts from the Vixen:

When I first saw Chichi on tv it made me believe that one day I could be there too. I first met her as a fan and I burst into tears. She hugged me, then we smoked!😉 We’ve traveled together a lot since then. it’s an honor to call her sister. Zavion will forever be missed.😔 pic.twitter.com/JTK3eRKzVF

— The Vixen (@TheVixensworld) August 20, 2020

I remember making such a big deal about bringing her onstage. I just wanted her to feel the love that so many have for her. She’s incredibly humble & deserves more than the world gave her. I’m glad she’s free from pain. I hope she feels the love today. Rest In Peace sister... pic.twitter.com/NldCB7HevZ

— The Vixen (@TheVixensworld) August 20, 2020

Sclerodermia, which caused her skin to shrink and harden on her body and affected her internal organs. In the worst cases the kidneys give up, which is what happened.
(x-post)

Terrible. What a horrid way to go.

Again, maybe a little light here in contrast -- the new Erasure video from the other week (good song too), with many a familiar face:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A8NqwW0hJ9w

Meantime last night's Canada's Drag Race was simultaneously the best episode and the most annoying judging, which is saying something. They've GOT to revamp for next season. But the makeover guests were fantastic and what a lovely grand prize.

I agree, the episodes are fantastic and the judging keeps making them unsatisfying in the end. There's no way Scarlet should've won the puppet mini challenge and I thought she should have been in the bottom 2 instead of Lemon. The refugees were so amazing and inspiring.

So something I missed from a few weeks ago is that we're getting Drag Race Holland starting next month, on Wow Presents+ so it'll be easy enough to track. (Manila and Latrice will continue the Chop by commenting on that.). Could be fun!

The Vegas Revue series is definitely a bit of a strange bird -- especially coming after the second season of Werq the World, a much different approach. I guess they decided to go all in to Real Housewives approaches for the Vegas stuff! A bit of a weird fillip but sure I'll keep watching it.

Plus looks like we get a doc on the Drag Race UK queens tour, with bonus Alyssa, next month as well:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tzKj8r-wpfA

Oh and season 13 and All Stars 6 confirmed, big surprise, etc:

https://ew.com/tv/rupauls-drag-race-renewed-season-13-all-stars-6/

Whew so that Vegas series really turned messy last night, in a not really interesting way I think. Kinda hope they don't do something like this again, though I have a FEEEELING that whenever Vegas itself comes back in full they'll do an inevitable second series.

Also Canada's Drag Race ended on a solid enough note! Rita Baga a more consistent winner for me frankly but no problems with Priyanka. Kinda liked how they just had a combination reunion episode/grand finale in studio, felt more right, really.

Revelation for me these last couple of days -- I finally am getting around to watching Drag Race Thailand (for some reasons WOW Presents + just has season 2 now?) and honestly this may be my actual favorite *format* of the whole shebang. Only four episodes in but the big difference is -- so far at least but I can't see them changing too much -- they pretty much throw aside any kind of 'let's create an emotional moment/talk about how society doesn't understand' discussions, whether honest or shaped by a production team, so none of the therapy, in brief. I'm not going to speculate on the reasons why, having zilch expertise on Thai culture, expectations, etc. and what an audience in general expects in turn, but the resultant focus of the episodes is on the competition as such, with occasional little background comments here and there but mostly on a sharp but still somehow good-spirited back and forth in the confessional edits and in the Werk Room (which is really nicely designed in turn, and I like what they do with the changing screens, the little miniature stage, etc.). There's a lot of nuances I'm sure I'm missing, I'll add, and there are occasional comments that reflect this -- it could well be things are being said/conveyed in ways that a non-Thai audience just won't get or understand the full impact of. Also the two main hosts/judges are very entertaining, and the judging itself is noticeably different as well -- no 'say nice/witty things initially, then talk/critique on the return,' more just straight up reactions positive and negative right in the moment and then a summary when they're all back out. Yeah it's reality TV, expectations, etc, but really it almost feels like a breath of fresh air in general.

None of them would have made a bad winner but I'm still in disbelief that neither Lemon nor Jimbo made the final. The judging on this was really bad - not just the decisions but the critiques they were based on were not following any internal logic, people were getting praised for real weaknesses and sent home for minor quibbles. Priyanka having a TV background really helped her - she obviously knew how to play the game and ensure she got good screen time with a fairly neutral edit.

Yeah, built in advantage. And if they had Scarlett Bobo out, Lemon and Jimbo in and then made a final decision from those four, that would have been solid enough.