RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 10 is a masterclass in Drama. We have a villain (The Vixen). Mayhem Miller, our ingenue. And Eureka O’Hara (not of the pageant O’Hara’s) fills the role of pot stirrer. A tough elimination leads to recriminations. Did Mayhem throw Monique Heart under the bus? Monique thinks so but the truth is murkier than that. In exasperation, Mayhem throws down the gauntlet. Monique picks it up, dusts it off and slaps Mayhem across the face with it. This. Isn’t. Over.
MINI-CHALLENGE
The quick drag mini-challenge is photobombing a green screen. Upstage Kate Middleton. Fondle Nick Jonas. Flash Beyonce. Aquaria wins free Taco Bell for a year $1,000 in Postmates bucks. And the pride of accomplishment.
MAXI-CHALLENGE
With the sounds of, “Vanjie…” echoing down the hall, RuPaul ask the queens for 3 lerks for the Global Warming-inspired Last Ball on Earth. Let me whisper the categories in your ear: Alaskan Winter Realness, Miami Summer Realness, and Martian Eleganza Extravaganza. The workroom turns into a flutter of crafting and couture. This season, all of the queens know how to sew. Some of them do it professionally. Asia O’Hara is full time fashion designer for queens, cheerleaders, and Dolly Parton alike. She considers herself the black Martha Stewart (not to be confused with the black Bill Gates) and doles out help like she’s buying Miss Congeniality votes. Asia thinks she’s benevolent but really, she gets off on being Mother.
We dig a little deeper into the Season 10 cast. Miz Cracker worries that her look is too conventional. She was raised by a mother that sent her into the streets to create art before dinnertime and a father who greeted her successes with, “Now you have to win again to prove it’s not a fluke.” Blair St Clair goes on a tear in her talking heads but yadda yadda yaddas the actual shade. The queens clock Monét X Change on her lazy pussycat wigs. In New York, when she performs in a romper, no tuck and no wig, the crowds go wild. But this is Drag Race. By the time RuPaul calls it out, she feels the pressure.
RUNWAY
Michelle Visage and Ross Matthews are joined by guest judges Tisha Campbell-Martin (of Little Shop of Horrors) and Logan Browning. With a quick shout out to Global Warming, Cyborg RuPaul introduces a dystopian future: Alaskan Winter Realness bikinis, Miami Summer Realness furs, and Martian Eleganza Extravaganza (location, location, location). The pageant queens (Asia, Monique) are pageant. The art queens (Aquaria, Miz Cracker) are arty. The Martian lewk is the only one made from scratch and it shows. A thimbleful of queens bring the goods. Aquaria’s David Bowie-inspired pasties exceed expectations. Miz Cracker’s eye for detail propels a simple bodysuit and boots to the next dimension. But when Asia walks the runway in Shangela and Alexis Mateo’s Twinbots costume, the party’s over.
Top three: Kameron Michaels, Aquaria, and Miz Cracker
Bottom three: Monet X Change, Dusty Ray Bottoms, and Asia O’Hara
Winner: Aquaria
LIP-SYNC FOR YOUR LIFE
Monét X Change and Dusty Ray Bottoms perform Pound the Alarm by Nicki Minaj. Dang. This isn’t a face-off I was expecting so soon. No filler queens. Dusty is ready to fight for her spot but she’s in her head. Monét lets the performance flow through her. She has the judges laughing, cheering, pounding the table. The beat drops and Monét kicks it up a gear. This is her night, her stage. Monét X Change, shantay you stay. Dusty Ray Bottoms, sashay away.
Next week: The queens’ improv skills are tested on the Bossy Rossy Show. And they do a lot more than shift each other’s wigs a little bit.
Loved the interplay and werkroom chat. Eureka and Monique doing donkey kicks was enchanting. I wanted to go cook them a nice Midwestern pot of soup and biscuits.
Rooting for the Middle America ladies. Blair St. Clair is realllllly media savvy.
It was classy that everyone admitted Asia helped them. And I bet the cameramen had a ton of footage to back that up.
Loving, absolutely loving the extra long time format and Untucked. I watch it in bits when I have a minute, then go back for a full run in the evening. S10 is wonderful for rewatching. Eating up the costume work and stage presence. So much better than fake drama.
Wishing WoW would let the pro seamstress queens have DIY shows. Or…Great British Baking Show style fiber challenges. I would love to watch Bendela and Valentina go head to head french sewing silk blouses.
I totally want to watch that show! Project Drag Race.
Yasss! I would have them make cosplay costumes for wheelchair bound cosplayers. Remake old prom gowns into new couture.
So much to watch there.
Chi-Chi DeVaine would be great at that!
Yes! I’d watch that!
I just don’t like this 90 minute episode, followed by Untucked. It’s too much at once. I find myself watching the beginning and the finale and ignoring the middle. I think most of these queens are totally forgettable. I have no interest in who wins this season.
Understand. I never have time to sit through 2 hours. Hence the bit-watch.
See, I love the kinder queens. The bitchiness is less savage. And The Vixen, who speaks and behaves as we all did in high school near Chicago.
Is it me or is The Vixen a bit two-faced? She seems very polite around Ru and then when he’s gone, she’s very combative.
After last week’s episode and wanting to just hug Dusty Ray, I wasn’t ready to see her go. BUT that lip sync was one of the best. When Monet teased the first split she made the real one everything!
I finally broke down and read the recap because I could not DVR two hours on a Thursday night. At nine I have Scandal, the final season, with the final episode this Thursday, and whatever Bravo show I recap during that time slot. To make matters worse, this episode has YET to show up on Demand.
I don’t understand how Asia was in the bottom three. Did she spend too much time helping others?
I am having trouble remembering who everyone is at this point in the competition. Especially after not seeing an episode for two weeks.
Also, as an FYI the shows that Charter did put up on demand have a very short after show where Michelle Visage interviews the departing queen. I fount the one I watched not worth the five or so minutes of my time, but your mileage may vary.
Asia was terrible on the runway. Just pathetic. She had to have an excuse. But she sure is a beauty!