RuPaul's DRAG RACE [Season 12]

[Kieran_Frost]

ALEX MARGA
https://www.instagram.com/alexmrg1/


RIK DRAWS THINGS
https://www.instagram.com/rikdrawsthings/


SIMPLE DOODLES
https://www.instagram.com/notanprieto/

[Kieran_Frost]

With episode 5 done, based on 11 other seasons statistics: either Gigi, Widow or Jaida will win. So cast your votes in the poll.

[CellarDweller]

Ok, first things first, Aiden is gone. Finally. No longer need to look at her sour puss.

The next one who needs to go is Brita. I'm tired of her landing in the bottom three, and then start telling everyone how she's this major NYC queen.

Whatever. I live about an hour from NYC and I've been to a few drag shows, I've never heard of her.

Gigi Goode was hysterical as Maria the Robot, and her gender-bending version of the Good Humor man's uniform was well done.

For those out of the US, Good Humor is a brand of ice cream treats that were sold on the streets, out of a freezer truck and driven by the "Good Humor Man". It's a bit of our "Americana".




People are still after Heidi and her face.

And I totally get what Jackie Cox was trying to say.... Everyone KNOWS that there will be a Snatch Game episode. They should really think about a character that would be easily made funny, and practice learning their mannerisms and quotes.

I think we managed to see almost no Sherry Pie, so the editors are working overtime on limiting her as much as possible. Just the right thing to do.

[Kieran_Frost]

I remembered where I saw Jackie's Snatch Game person from... HA! I use the gif "GUILTY AS CHARGED" all the time, and had no idea who she was till now.

Ok, first things first, Aiden is gone. Finally. No longer need to look at her sour puss.

She really hadn't shone the way she could have, or thought she was; and If she comes back for All Stars, I hope she refines her "minimalism" ethos, because it has to be PERFECTION (and her outfits and make-up weren't). Minimalism only works if it's high end, and done perfectly.

The next one who needs to go is Brita. I'm tired of her landing in the bottom three, and then start telling everyone how she's this major NYC queen.

Brita can't win now. Bottom 2 twice, she can't win. So she may as well go; I think it should have been a double elimination. I really don't think Brita has impressed me outside of the first episode? I'd have to go back and check. But by and large the people who need to compliment themselves the most, are the ones who are actually hiding a lot of self-doubt.

For those out of the US, Good Humor is a brand of ice cream treats that were sold on the streets, out of a freezer truck and driven by the "Good Humor Man". It's a bit of our "Americana".

MIMMI
https://www.instagram.com/mejramn/

People are still after Heidi and her face.

I really, REALLY wish I could see Untucked. Why is it not on Netflix this season???

And I totally get what Jackie Cox was trying to say.... Everyone KNOWS that there will be a Snatch Game episode. They should really think about a character that would be easily made funny, and practice learning their mannerisms and quotes.

People have no excuse to pick a poor character for Snatch Game. You've had years to prepare.
DON'T
- play another drag queen
- play two different characters
- play a outraaaaaaaageous reality TV star (they never win -- outside of Silky, who should never have won that challenge)

Why has no one done Judy Garland? Angela Lansbury? Oprah? Sally Jesse Raphael. Ricki Lake! Anyone from ABBA? Joan Frickin' Rivers! BETTE DAVIS!!!! Greta Garbo. Karen from Will & Grace!!! Marsha P. Johnson even. Santino Rice IN DRAG! (that would be hilarious) Why has no-one tried to re-do Marilyn? IF Miz Cracker is on All Stars 5, it's so dark, but it's totally her... I'd LOVE her to do Anne Frank. She would... no, it's 100% her sense of humour. It could SLAY! If I see one more Real Housewives of WHO GIVES A SH*T! Ugh! Jackie was amazing, but you won't win doing that role.

Also... Dahlia Sin posted her "Frozen" look. SO, SO GOOD!!!

[Kieran_Frost]

Okay, we're nearly half way, and based on stats, I think we have (potentially) some clear front-runners:
Gigi Goode. Top 2. MINI (ep#4) W. High. ["Top Toot" ep.5]. W.
Statistically she's doing the best, because of that mini-challenge win. She's competed in 5 episodes, and been top in 4 of them, winning two. Add to that her runways are FANTASTIC! She's a real threat. And because her biggest competition is out the way, I find it hard to believe she won't win the season.

Jackie Cox ["Top Toot" promo looks] High. High. High. High.
SHE'S A SNEAKY QUEEN! She's been in 5 episodes, and again, top in 4 of them. That's very, very impressive. IF she wins the Madonna RuSical, and stays high, and wins the most challenges over all... she could take the crown. But she really needs a win. REALLY REALLY needs one.

Widow Von'Du. W. ["Top Toot" ep.4]. High. High.
Of the queens left, I think Widow is the only other one who MIGHT start being competition for Ms Good (along with Jackie, if she starts winning). She's statistically still in the running to win (having won within the first five episodes). She has a unique take on her silhouettes and runway, which I admire. AND she's beating Gigi in a lipsync.

Jaida Essence Hall W. High. Low. Low.
I like Jaida a lot, I think she's very polished and can be super fun, but she's been in the bottom 3 a fair (for a winner) so early in to the run. And acting challenges are letting her down.

Crystal Methyd. Low. Low.
THE WILD CARD, who could pull a Raven and make it into the Top 2. I don't know why, but I see a dark horse in her. She just needs to start bringing it.

Heidi N Closet. Low. High. Bttm2.
Jan. ["Top Toot" ep.3]. High.
They won't win, All Stars will be better for them.

Brita. High. Bttm2. Low. Bttm2.
Will not win. Period. End of.

[AS PER MY RULE, MONDAY ONWARDS: SPOILERS ARE ALLOWED... I've updated the tally on the OP and un-spoilered my review]
During my reviews I do 'trophies'; and thought this season I'll keep a tally of them, to see how it stacks up against how the queens progress. More for my own amusement than others, but... enjoy.

Kieran's "Trophy Hall of Records"
7 - Gigi Good [MINI TROPHY - 1]
2 - Widow Von'Du / Dahlia Sin / Jaida Essence Hall / Jackie Cox
1 - Nicky Doll / Rock M. Sakura / Crystal Methyd / Jan / Heidi N' Closet [MINI TROPHY - 1]


The Glittered Raspberry
Brita - ep1
Jan - ep2
Crystal Methyd - ep3
Aiden - ep4
Brita - ep5
Brita - ep6

[Kieran_Frost]

RuVIEW [EPISODE 7]
Aiden is gone... and I really wish I could watch Untucked. I don't know why Netflix isn't showing it this season, like they did for Season 11 (which is still on there). I am missing some serious DRAMAAAAAAA! From the fallout, I think Gigi handled herself brilliantly, very calm, apologetic, while also not caving to 'snapping back' (SIDE BAR -- she also looks SO beautiful). Do we think they didn't congratulate Gigi for her win, or did that get edited out (in a shady way) to add to the drama? I enjoy the str8 shootings truth bombs Widow gives IN CONFESSIONALS, but I wish she was more forthright to the face. Maybe she is in Untucked, I don't know???
Apolo-lie
verb, plural a.pol.o-lies.
1. a fake apology



NO MINI CHALLENGE!!! AGAIN!!! Ughhh! Anyway... to the challenge, and it's time for THE RUSICAL!!! Much along the same lines of "Cher; the Unauthorized RuSical" in Season 10; the queens are going to have to each sing and dance in a different period of Madonna's ever changing world. I think Madonna is a great person to pick, she's had such re-invention; and it was a smart choice to have them pre-record the singing (not Asia line flubs this time). Not happy they get to choose their roles as a group, this is where a mini-challenge winner would have come in handy. Grumble grumble grumble. AT LEAST do "a pink pill" mini-event like with "Gay's Anatomy".
SIDE BAR: loving this Ru look, with the red turtleneck and purple jacket, one of his best workroom lewks.

MADONNA: THE UNAUTHORIZED RUSICAL
Early Madonna (Jan). She did so good this challenge, she had the best voice, her moves were so natural, and she was having fun. It all felt effortless; which is very impressive... THAT SAID... I did get 'boy' from her performance. Being trained in musical theatre AS A BOY, learning to deliver on stage AS A BOY doesn't mean you perform the same when in drag. And I wasn't impressed, personally (considering she had had the biggest advantage), of her trying to avoid going first. To quote Valentina: That's not fierce. That's not a star.
Boy Toy Madonna (Jackie). She looked quite a bit like Madonna here; the hair is perfect! And I could forgive the singing. It reminded me a lot of Eureka's Cher; she started off nervous but got into the swing half-way through, and was impressive in moves and playfulness.
Cone Bra Madonna (Brita). This was... look, she wasn't terrible; no-one was in this challenge. And the deep voice WITH THOSE LYRICS is perfect, and funny af. But I just didn't feel she was Madonna. And it wasn't her race (Jaida WAS Madonna), it was her manly shoulders in that iconic look. WHY fight for Cone Bra if that top won't give a feminine illusions? Her energy was good, but this is (arguably) the most iconic Madonna. And it didn't feel special in this RuSical.
Sex Madonna (Jaida). WOAH! Jaida is a woman. She was sex. She was hot. She was everything. I thought this was top 3, personally. Just stunning. Possibly the most sexual moment on Drag Race since Raja vs Carmen's lipsync?
Enlightened Madonna (Crystal). This was stupid fun; and I loved her adding the repetitions to her lyrics, that was a smart move. The "yas god!" at the end made me chuckle, in fact of all of them this was the only really funny one (where as the Cher RuSical was much more amusing). My biggest gripe: she looked like Madonna in every detail BUT the make-up. I wish, for this challenge, she'd done normal make-up to create the illusion; because it spoiled a good performance. And yes, she can't sing, but neither can Madonna, so... #shade
Femmepire Madonna (Widow). I didn't mind it, it was safe, kind of boring, but not "bad". I didn't get Madonna in the moves, or the attitude. It was too sassy, Madonna isn't sassy; she's got major attitude, very much a "this is me, deal with it" but it's not playful. Sass is playful, Madonna is very much a b*tch attitude, not a sassy attitude. I will add, as a dancer, Widow didn't show it. And her complaining about her knee, I'm sorry but Yvie has a degenerative disability and complained less. SUCK IT UP! For the combo of her complaining and being unimpressive in a dance challenge when she got to pick her Madonna she gets the Glittered Raspberry!!!
Madonna Forever (Heidi). I wish she had done old make-up; that would have been cute. Was she Madonna? Maybe not. But she did such a great job, I don't understand why she was in the bottom. It was one of the best dances, hardest choreography, and so effortless. I really loved watching her perform.
MADONNA TROPHY: Gigi as Unapologetic Madonna. OH MY GOD! The moment she walked on stage, she instantly looked the best. THAT WAS MADONNA! Like Silky embodying Oprah in season 11, this was just brilliant. I couldn't take my eyes off her. She had the hardest choreography after Heidi and added such variety. The cheeky wink, into a back-flip, the iconic 'heel trot' into a lift and flip; it was just all... SO GOOD! And she didn't want that role, but she faced it head on like a true star.

And before we talk about the runway, let's talk about RuPaul! THAT LOOK! Oh, the red dominatrix; this was everything. Not since her facekini in season 10 have I been so shocked, and so in love with a look. I love fun Ru, and I love she can still surprise us after 17 seasons.

CATEGORY IS... NIGHT OF A 1000 MICHELLE VISAGES


TOOT
Jackie. All Stars. This was SO GOOD! It's not necessarily the most iconic look, but it was done to perfection and the detailing was crazy good. Of all the queens she gave the most Michelle persona.
Gigi. Soul Sister. It's not a reference I know, and it's quite basic in design, but she SOLD it; and was silly trapping the nails in her hair! The choice to RuVeal the nails further down the runway is exactly how you do it (Nicky's cape look and Jan's parachute cape look would have benefited from this level of precision)
Brita. Season 10 Finale. I liked this, it's a great colour on her and I loved the choice (it's a great dress for her figure). I wish the peek-a-boos had been closer to her skin tone for the detailing (I don't care about the earnings). #sorrynotsorry
Jaida. All Stars Icon. I LOVED THIS! It's an icon(lol)-ic look, it was done very well, and the breasts were perfect.

BOOT
Crystal. RuPaul Show. Like the Madonna challenge the make-up was the wrong choice and spoiled the effect. It didn't give the illusion, it was just Crystal. As for the look itself, the detailing wasn't there. The hair wasn't styled the same, there was no blue on the shoes, the jacket wasn't pleather in the original. It's splitting hairs but I didn't get Michelle from this. AT ALL.
Heidi. On the Set of TOWIE. I... no. It was "vaguely" the same look, done in a Heidi way. It felt like Heidi scrolled through photos of Michelle to find a dress she "sort of" already owned, and used that for the challenge. It looked great on her, but that wasn't the assignment.
Widow. RuPaul Show. The details were right but... I didn't like this. It was basic, but not fun (like Gigi's). It was detailed like Jackie's, but not iconic. I just... wouldn't have picked this one.
RUNWAY TROPHY: Jan. Glamazonia Airways Michelle. This was not only so smart, as it's an iconic look for Michelle, but the addition of a leopard print suitcase put it over the top. She looked so good and sold it on the runway. The breasts were epic.

LIPSYNC
I feel bad; I love Jackie, I didn't want her in the bottom but it wasn't right for Heidi to be in the bottom. She did so well in the challenge; yes she wasn't "Madonna" or "Michelle" but she nailed the choreography, and performed better than almost any of them. This is partly why I think VERY OCCASIONALLY there should be a lipsync for the win (between Jan and Gigi) and just eliminate Brita. She was clearly the weakest of a strong challenge. As for the lipsync, it was fine. Probably Brita's best performance, so it's nice for her to go out on a high (of sorts). I don't love lipsyncs that turn into "stunts" without feeling right for the song. I found the moments Heidi was playful and silly, and just using the words, far more effective. This song needed some cabbage patch, and old school moves. This was not a deathdrop song.



OVERALL
This is an incredibly strong season, and this was yet another challenge were no-one was terrible. Where a lot of them did a fantastic job, and the Top 3 could have been a Top 6. It's one of the best performed RuSicals to date, and while the lyrics weren't as fun as Cher: the Unauthorized RuSical, the actual end product blew the others out of the water. A fun runway round out a good episode, but not episode will get 5 stars without a mini-challenge. #sorryboutit
~ rating: ★★★★☆ [grade: A-]

[Kieran_Frost]

[AS PER MY RULE, MONDAY ONWARDS: SPOILERS ARE ALLOWED... I've updated the tally on the OP and un-spoilered my review]
During my reviews I do 'trophies'; and thought this season I'll keep a tally of them, to see how it stacks up against how the queens progress. More for my own amusement than others, but... enjoy.

Kieran's "Trophy Hall of Records"
8 - Gigi Good [MINI TROPHY - 1]
2 - Widow Von'Du / Dahlia Sin / Jaida Essence Hall / Jackie Cox / Jan
1 - Nicky Doll / Rock M. Sakura / Crystal Methyd / Heidi N' Closet [MINI TROPHY - 1]
LEFT TROPHYLESS - Aiden and Brita (maybe in the reunion or finale they'll get a trophy for their look... but I doubt it)


The Glittered Raspberry
This is awarded once per episode to the queen who is, for what ever reason, being a basic b*tch. Like the Golden Raspberry given to "Worst Actor/Film/Writing" the day before the Oscars; it's not a trophy you want.
Brita - ep1
Jan - ep2
Crystal Methyd - ep3
Aiden - ep4
Brita - ep5
Brita - ep6
Widow - ep7

NO MINI-GAMES RANT!!!
Why are we back to Season 9, and not doing mini-challenges? I think they are a great way of giving the queens another chance to impress Ru, another chance to separate from the herd, and they were so fun. The improvised one, the photobomb, the photoshoot, the fake slap, PUPPETS!!! READING??? Imagine having never met Lil' Poundcake; Asia being slapped by Ru, Alaska's "I got a tear away gurrrrl, UNDERNEATH MY TEAR AWAY!!!" or Thorgy's Frida Kahlo realness? We better get the Reading challenge, or I'll send a strongly worded letter of annoyance!!! Grrrrr.

[CellarDweller]

Brita is gone. Finally, no more "I'm from New York" speeches.

I think that Jackie's attention to detail is what made her safe in the last challenge. I thought she made a good Madonna, and her choreography wasn't off, but she was not getting the sensuality of Madonna. As for Heidi, she needs to stop getting into her own head and perform the way she needs to.

We saw of lot more of Sherry Pie in the Untucked portion, but that was to be expected, as she was safe with the other two queens, so there was no choice, she couldn't be edited out.

[Kieran_Frost]

Brita is gone. Finally, no more "I'm from New York" speeches.

Are you sure, I feel Jan's taking up that baton without missing a beat...

I think that Jackie's attention to detail is what made her safe in the last challenge. I thought she made a good Madonna, and her choreography wasn't off, but she was not getting the sensuality of Madonna. As for Heidi, she needs to stop getting into her own head and perform the way she needs to.

It was a tough week, NO ONE did horribly. So yes, maybe the runway was the dealbreaker, and in that case, Jackie 100% beat Heidi on the runway.

We saw of lot more of Sherry Pie in the Untucked portion, but that was to be expected, as she was safe with the other two queens, so there was no choice, she couldn't be edited out.

I still haven't see Untucked!!! GRRRRRR! But they've edited her out enough. We have to see her in the challenge, so the episode makes sense, and as you say, in Untucked if it's only 3 of them, almost no conversation would make sense without her being there. I think the series has made it's point by removing her so much, and that's good. It's solidarity with the victims, but the series still makes sense.

Also, Cheyne has finished "issue" 4, 5 and 6 of his comic cover fan of the episodes. I LOVE THEM!!!

[Kieran_Frost]

IT'S FAN ART FRIDAY!!!! I've picked my three favourite pieces of fan-art from this weeks episode that convey the best things about it (in my opinion).

TUINK TOM
https://www.instagram.com/_tuinktom/


MARIT
https://www.instagram.com/maritoniee/


JOAO VICTOR MATHIELO
https://www.instagram.com/jvmathi/

[Kieran_Frost]

RuVIEW [EPISODE 8]
Brita is gone... and... I wish her well. But before the day is done we get into the saltiest crocodile tears of the season. I'm still undecided about this: is it delusion, tea, or editing shade? On the one hand I don't recall seeing Jan and Brita interact, certainly not to the extent to justify her weep lament of "she was my best friend" FOUR TIMES in two minutes. Ginger Minj you're safe! But this could also be a shady edit, to add delusion to an honest moment they cut all the interactions between Brita and Jan all season. Unlikely. Both Jaida and Jackie question what's motivating these excessive tears, and personally something felt 'off' with the whole thing. Maybe Jan's make-up and contacts for the runway were throwing me off, and reading as more "b*tch face" than is truly there? I don't know.

"Now Crystal I know the judges are always saying your makeup is... terrible.
So I got you the Season 1 filter... it's just a towel you put over the lens of the camera" ~ Gigi Goode

It's a new day in the 'You Betta Werk Room' and Ru's entrance look... that Klein, Epstein & Parker red floral print was ADORABLE! Still not sure about the hats, but it wasn't the main focus, so all is good. AND WE FINALLY GET ANOTHER MINI-CHALLENGE AGAIN!!! So happy!!!
THE GIFT... OF SHADE
Crystal & Jaida. I really liked Crystal's high-pitched, dumb girlfriend voice; but her jokes were a little recycled (Miz Cracker made the "covering two faces" joke about Aquaria during the Reading challenge in Season 10). Jaida had some great clap-backs, and her joke about a work of art "you know the one that's screaming, ahhhhh" was brilliant.
Heidi & Jan. They looked a mess, of everyone they looked the least put together. Their clap-backs were a lot funnier than their actual planned jokes; but Heidi handing Widow luggage "to help you pack for when you get sent home" was HILARIOUS!
Widow. Widow looked so good, that haircut is great on her and while her clap-back "life has not been kind" is now a very used joke on Drag Race, giving Heidi a new mug had me in stitches.
MINI TROPHY: Gigi & Jackie. They looked amazing, and their characters were serving me Real Housewives of Total B*tchville (Gigi the modern rich b*tch, Jackie the 60s 'sweet apple pie' but total b*tch, b*tch). They dominated the game, with joke after joke after joke. The first joke was theirs, the last joke was theirs, they reacted to the other teams jokes hilarious, and clapped back without missing a beat. Slayyyed it!

DROOP!!!
In no way inspired by Gwyneth Paltrow's Goop. The main challenge is selling an unnecessary but very expensive product on "Droop." LIVING for the return of the fierce broc-ally Dahlia Sin. Honestly, one of my favourite parts of this season is that bloody broccoli coming back week after week. The advertising challenge is a staple of Drag Race; and we always think of Alaska's iconic adverts as the ultimate goal of what can be achieved. "Your make-up is TERRRRRible!"


Magic Carpet Merkin (Jackie Cox). I really enjoyed her advert, she was organized and she knew what she wanted, and could visualize it in her mind the end product (which is key). The 60s throwback, the magic stop-pause-reset, it was all really good. I didn't like it cutting to a club though, I wish it had been more clever, a club is so modern and this hearkened back to a simpler time so perfectly.
"Sure, Jan" (Jan). Ugh! This reminded me so much of Cheryl Hole. Shouting loudly, and smiling lots does not charisma make. The segments where she was dressed as Jan looked great, and were amusing(ish), but she never connected the dots. If your humour has to be linked to the gifs of someone else... mayyyybe this isn't the right path to take.
Luxuratuck (Jaida Essence Hall). Firstly all those takes of her covering the mic was making me chuckle. She looked amazing (as always) and starting with "that terrible actress from Gay's Anatomy" was brilliant. It was silly, she did a great job, and seeing a fishy queen being this silly makes me believe she'll make Top 4. She's unique.
Goode Night B*tch (Gigi Goode). She looked perfect, and the idea was fun. It just didn't work, and I think I worked out why. It was too referential. She was combining Katya, Detox and Alyssa's adverts, and those style just... doesn't go. The funniest part was "Hi... I'm better than you." She should have trusted herself to be the personality needed, rather than copy others.
Heidi's Hydrates (The artist formerly known as Heidi N' Closet). LOL! That made me laugh. I love Heidi, she IS personality. And her segment of tears after tears made me laugh harder than anything else this season. And I applaud her for the whistle, the flatulence and hair-loss jokes. But RuPaul gave her the name. Bob Harper coached her in the advert on how to make it funny. It was the funniest, yes. But it felt... more like a group effort.
Throaté (Widow Von'Du). What happened? Why did she keep switching camera? That joke did not work. Neither did monotone wink wink. Oh, it was just... I felt sad for her.
ADVERTISING TROPHY: Magic Mullet (Crystal Methyd). The problem with these adverts is they can look cheap or dated (Alaska switched to black&white to combat that, smart); Crystal was made it 80s themed, because the retro quality of it aided her advert and oddly made it look the most high-end. GENIUS! The Atari effect, that AHS workout. The fact the mall guy was wearing the wrong colour mullet!!! She sold the product, she made me laugh and her concept was delivered beautifully. Kudos.

CATEGORY IS... BLACK WEDDING
Hmmmm... I wasn't very happy with this runway. I felt a lot of them went VERY literal; and few things excited me. Well... let's be fair, ONE thing excited me and that was Crystal. One of the reasons I included a Morticia gif at the start was... COME ON! If there was a runway to basically BE Morticia Addams, it was this one. She actually did wear a black wedding dress!!
(soft)TOOTs
Gigi Goode. This is very beautiful, facts BUT the classic Christian Dior 'new look' silhouette has been done very famously on this stage by Violet Chachki in the "Bearded and Beautiful" runway in season 7. Had she added a black transparent veil that went head to toe, or something to make it MORE than the silhouette, it would have been perfect.
Jackie Cox. I got funeral more than wedding from the top half of the look. It needed a longer, softer veil for wedding. But she told the story SO WELL in her performance, that it's a toot. Just.
Heidi Ho. It's the best she's looked on the runway. The End.
Jaida Essence Hall. Now this one, I actually GOT wedding dress. It looked like a black wedding dress. She did the assignment. She looked beautiful. Had the assignment been "little black dress" and she wore a little black dress, I would be equal as enthralled. #SHADE
BOOT
Jan. It's a pretty dress. I didn't get the smoking moment coming from her bouquet???? What was that? I felt holding the bouquet so close to her breast ruined the effect of the top half, and that was the showpiece. And "I don't" didn't work. It was a valiant effort, but it's a boot.
Widow Von'Du. I loved the shimmer and the veil and the make-up with the black eyes was everyyyyyyything, but I did not get wedding dress. At all.


RUNWAY TROPHY: Crystal Methyd. COME THROUGH CORPSE BRIDE!!! It was brilliant; the dust she smacks off it, the way she walked, the half painted on lip, this was fantastic from beginning to end, and easily the best of the night. One of the best of the season.

LIPSYNC
Ignoring the first two episodes where the winners performed, I feel the lipsyncs this season have been, for want of a better word: pretty poor. So I was very happy that we finally had someone stop doing stunts, and start delivering the lyrics of the song! It's still not up there with Dida Ritz performing "This Will Be", but it was still very good. I actually preferred this to Widow's first lipsync performance. She sold the song, while Kenya Michaels jumped around her irrelevant to the lyrics. #tea

OVERALL
Another very enjoyable episode. I got my mini-challenge, so I'm all kinds of happy. I love the advert challenge, no, it didn't deliver an iconic advert like "Red... for Filth", but did keep my chuckling through-out. A rather uninspiring runway let down an otherwise juicy episode, and for once it was the right bottom 2 (I disagree about who won though, ha!).
~ rating: ★★★★☆ [grade: B+]

[Kieran_Frost]

This... is... HILARIOUS!!!! You have to click on it, it's Heidi's breakdown, done in old school SNES style. I was crackling up! Sadly I can't post it as a video, grrrrr.
https://scontent-lht6-1.cdninstagram...0e89d212cedbea

[AS PER MY RULE, MONDAY ONWARDS: SPOILERS ARE ALLOWED... I've updated the tally on the OP and un-spoilered my review]
During my reviews I do 'trophies'; and thought this season I'll keep a tally of them, to see how it stacks up against how the queens progress. More for my own amusement than others, but... enjoy.

Kieran's "Trophy Hall of Records"
8 - Gigi Good [MINI TROPHY - 2]
3 - Crystal Methyd
2 - Widow Von'Du / Dahlia Sin / Jaida Essence Hall / Jan / Jackie Cox [MINI TROPHY - 1]
1 - Nicky Doll / Rock M. Sakura / Heidi N' Closet [MINI TROPHY - 1]
LEFT TROPHYLESS - Aiden and Brita (maybe in the reunion or finale they'll get a trophy for their look... but I doubt it)

I didn't think anyone had a "basic b*tch" moment this week; Widow wasn't delusional about her performance, she knew she did badly, and was honest about it (so I don't kick people when they are down).

The Glittered Raspberry
This is awarded once per episode to the queen who is, for what ever reason, being a basic b*tch. Like the Golden Raspberry given to "Worst Actor/Film/Writing" the day before the Oscars; it's not a trophy you want.
Brita - ep1
Jan - ep2
Crystal Methyd - ep3
Aiden - ep4
Brita - ep5
Brita - ep6
Widow - ep7
NOT GIVEN - ep8

[CellarDweller]

I have to say, I was really happy with how well Jackie Cox did. Her mini-challenge win was deserved, her jokes were too much. The "Magic Carpet Merkin" really did give me the throwback "Genie" feeling, and I thought she looked great on the runway, but I do agree that her dress may not have been 'wedding' enough for a full win.

I will say, I also laughed at the "Magic Mullet" commercial. When she was banging the wigs with a hammer, that was so funny.

I'm not sure how I feel about the lip-sync. Jan was all over the place, but WVD was really emoting the song. If WVD had gone home after lip-syncing a Chaka Khan son in front of Chaka, she would've been devastated.

[Kieran_Frost]

I have to say, I was really happy with how well Jackie Cox did. Her mini-challenge win was deserved, her jokes were too much. The "Magic Carpet Merkin" really did give me the throwback "Genie" feeling, and I thought she looked great on the runway, but I do agree that her dress may not have been 'wedding' enough for a full win.

Jackie is back on top. In fact, of the 7 competitive episodes she's been apart of, she's be "high" in 5, and low in 1. She's slaying it. Gigi and Jackie (for me) are the strongest of the season, because they excel at the most range of challenges.

I will say, I also laughed at the "Magic Mullet" commercial. When she was banging the wigs with a hammer, that was so funny.

I really felt the combo of runway and commercial, Crystal should have won. It was so funny; every part was thought out. I'd love her to suddenly burst forth and pull an Alaska (winning two challenges at the very end, and ending as one of the strongest).

I'm not sure how I feel about the lip-sync. Jan was all over the place, but WVD was really emoting the song. If WVD had gone home after lip-syncing a Chaka Khan son in front of Chaka, she would've been devastated.

Jan was doing Jan (Cf. trying too hard, giving too much, and being too eager to impress). Widow did so well, but I wish Jan had given her a fight (rather than signed her own sashay).

[Kieran_Frost]

I've updated the OP tally after today's episode, and it occurred to me I completely forgot to do fan-art Friday. Apologies; here are my three favourite from LAST week's runway...

JOSE C. HERNANDEZ-RUIZ
https://www.instagram.com/j.c.art/


RIK DRAWS THINGS
https://www.instagram.com/rikdrawsthings/


SIMPLE DOODLES
https://www.instagram.com/notanprieto/