A frontrunner emerges as the RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars come in for a photo finish
The queens serve up a sing-sang-song as the competition tightens
TV Reviews RuPaul
As a song, “Show Up Queen” is not exactly a bop. But we can’t have everything we want, and the seventh episode of this All Stars season checks enough boxes that it’s hard to muster any real disappointment. After all, the girl group numbers can’t all be “UK, Hun,” right? There’s not a ding-dang-dong in sight, but “Show Up Queen” (the episode, not the tune) still gives us a satisfying yet hotly-contested win, a clear but contrasting bottom two, some heartfelt weepery, a handful of good jokes, a fun runway, and a good lip-sync that could have been great were it not for a Tayce wig going on the lam.
All that, and a world-class sight-gag. Who could ask for more?
Well, Pandora, for one. After more than a bit of wonky judging this season, the “Show Up Queen” critiques are right on the money, for the most part. This week, that’s bad news for Pandora “I’m a Legend, Dahling” Boxx, an iconic Drag Race veteran who’s just never been very good at the sexy sexy dancey dancey stuff. Must all drag queens be great dancers? Of course not. But the ability to sell the hell out of a combination, especially when you’re not feeling all that confident, is about as essential as knowing how to use a sewing machine. You can win Drag Race without it, sure—but it’s a hell of a lot harder to do so.
That’s especially true of a season in which the queens are fairly well-rounded. Not all the All Stars are good at all the things, but nearly all of them can at least hold their own in pretty much any challenge. As the competition tightens, though, that skill becomes somewhat less valuable. Neither of the queens in the bottom two turns out a disastrous performance, but this is All Stars—“not disastrous” will only get you so far. And in “Show Up Queen,” despite the fact that they hold their own, both Jan and Pandora get shown up.
Interestingly, while their performances are very different, each lands in the bottom two—and it’s a pretty clear bottom two—for the same reason. It’s the writing. In Jan’s case, the issue is one of misunderstanding the assignment. (Also, I suspect, misunderstanding what RuPaul meant by “funk.”) It’s understandable that Jan can’t help but dwell on the judges’ repeated requests for sincerity, honesty, vulnerability, and all the other words they use while trying to tell Jan that she just needs to ease off the gas a little—that she should stop trying to tell us who she is and simply be who she is. But this is the exact wrong time to fixate on that. Unless you’re J. Lo, telling people how real you are is a fairly surefire way to give the exact opposite impression.
For Pandora, though, it’s not so much that she misunderstood the assignment as that she missed an opportunity. This isn’t a “cherry pie gift certificates” situation—Pandora can write about anything, and perform it in any way she sees fit, so long as it’s inspirational in some way. Michelle isn’t wrong when she says that the “ha-ha-has” are a bit of a waste, and while the sentiment behind Pandora’s verse is right on the money, the lack of specificity and all the dead air pretty much confine her to the bottom two. You don’t have to sing or dance to do well in one of these challenges! Just ask Lawrence Chaney!
A close bottom-two makes for really good TV—as evidenced by the Alexis Mateo-announce tie vote—but so does a close race for the top. As has often been the case this season, the win could have gone in a couple of directions. For my money, Ginger has the best verse, and Kylie, Ra’Jah, and Trinity all do really well in terms of both writing and performance, the last two in particular. But both Ginger and Ra’Jah take some criticism for their stagewear looks, and we’re at the stage where that kind of thing counts. That leaves Trinity and Kylie as the top two, and while Kylie’s runway look is gorgeous, Trinity’s is, well, this:
Add in a terrific runway presentation and we’re looking at a winner, baby. And as the queens discuss in this episode, TKB’s second win makes her the frontrunner, at least for the moment.
Things can change quickly in Drag Race land, however, as Jan and Pandora can attest. Jan exits All Stars (for now) with some strong performances and great looks behind her; I, for one, wish her All Stars return hadn’t come so quickly on the heels of her first season, but I’d be shocked if we don’t see plenty of Jan in the future. Pandora’s wait was far longer, but as this is her second All Stars go-round, it’s unlikely that she’ll be back for another. Let’s hope that she manages to pull out a win next week, because if she doesn’t, I suspect she’ll have to pack up her silly-string-shooting brassieres and leave the werkroom behind.
And what do you know: next week is Snatch Game Of Love, a perfect make-or-break situation for the queen behind what’s arguably the best non-winning Snatch Game performance ever. Sexy sexy dancey dancey may not be Pandora’s strong suit, but being funny sure is. She could triumph, but at a time in the competition where “good enough” isn’t good enough, her victory would have to be decisive, indeed.
Stray observations
- Kate’s Corner: “After last episode’s bobble, season six is back on track. I didn’t love the main stage performance, but the episode was a hoot. It also clearly delineated the top five—Pandora will need to slay the Snatch Game of Love to make it through the next elimination. Highlights: Ginger blending into the wall, TKB and Ra’Jah slaying the challenge, and another near-iconic lip-sync. If only Trinity’s wig had stayed on! Lowlights: The actual song was pretty forgettable and Untucked was a snoozefest. Also, I’m running out of patience for the game within the game. Stop teasing us and game on already!”
- Untucked: Wow, this Untucked was dull. All the good Untucked-style content was in the actual episode. I think my favorite part was when Eureka asked Ginger if they could go talk for a minute and then they talked about… exactly what they would have talked about while Pandora and Jan were talking to TKB.
- It’s really too bad about Trinity’s wig. It takes a lot to beat Trinity in a lip-sync, and it’s happened twice now.
- Bam! forever.
- “I promised my dog when I left I was gonna buy us a house, and $10,000 is not gonna be enough.”
- Give Ginger an Emmy for the wall bit. Maybe one of my favorite Drag Race moments ever, honestly.
- I’m surprised we haven’t seen more interaction between Kylie and Pandora. Kylie’s “humble pie” lyric reminded me that those two were on the same time for that weird-as-hell cherry pie gift certificate challenge.
- My gif-s to you for the week: Drag.
39 Comments
It was Jan’s time. I just don’t think there was anything left to… see here, really. Ru is right on the money: she’s technically perfect, but lacking the human element, the imperfections that make us compelling. She just wants to please, almost compulsively, but can’t seem to wrap her head around the fact that what would please is actually learning about her as a person: faults, struggles, imperfections and all. It’s very BFA musical theater. You can teach how to hit the steps and notes, but not star quality.
Yes, even her talking head saying that she thinks she’s being eliminated because she’s a threat just makes it clear she ain’t gonna get it because maybe there’s not much to get with Jan.
When Jan said that, I looked at my wife and said “I believe that.” When she gave me the stink eye, I clarified: “I believe that Jan believes she was eliminated because she’s a threat.”
Tick. Why not? Look, he’s turned into a bloody good little performer.
Bernadette. That’s right. A bloody good little performer. Twenty four hours a day, seven days a week. I thought we were getting away from all this shit!End scene
I dunno, is it really that clear a top 5 plus Pandora? I think it’s a pretty clear top 4 plus Pandora and Eureka. The ‘scorecard’ might show Eureka with a marginally better performance on the season, but they are both winless and I remember Pandora’s highlights slightly more than Eureka’s.Next episode will be really important. I can’t imagine this All Star season will be won by someone with a bad performance in Snatch Game, a la Monet and Trixie, so it’s basically do-or-die for Eureka and Pandora.
As much as i like Eureka she seems to be here not for competing but for doing a favor to producers in order to fill the cast. She hasn’t been memorable this season. Pandora at least had her moments with Ridiculous and Coven Girls.
Yes, I would say Eureka has the most “I honestly don’t give a fuck” attitude ever on this show. She doesn’t come across as above it, but it all feels like she’s just at work doing her job which is fine.
Given how much larger this cast is than the usual All Stars season, I just can’t imagine that’s the reason. But it’s really something. She’s managed to be both loud and forgettable at the same time.
I have always felt this was Ginger’s season to win, and she’s lived up to that expectation so far.. but the way the crowns have been dolled out the last few seasons, I think we all know who has been pre-picked to win. Regardless of how good or bad they do from here on out.
What does that mean? Who do you think is the pre-determined winner?
I wish they would read Trinity for her makeup because she has a beautiful face and she paints it really sad looking, but deserved win although Kylie also brought it.Also Ginger was giving such controlling aunt vibes, but overall girl can perform. And gosh, I just want Pandora to just open that box and let us experience her full beauty.
Kylie also brought it. Kylie brings it every episode. She’s not only consistently stunning on the runway, but she’s excelling in most of the challenges. It’s clear that she has her head in the game.I continue to enjoy AS6 for the maturity shown by her, Ra’Jah, and TKB. The cast may be full of “loud bitches” (translation: Eureka), but even they’ve toned it down a notch. If Pandora can pull off a great performance next week (and the rest of the cast doesn’t suck), this will be my favourite AS season aside from 2.
Trinity’s make-up has been so weird this season. And i dunno why Pandora’s being so timid. For someone who has so much experience both in life and drag race her demeanor doesn’t make sense.
her makeup honestly gives me season 1 vibes, but then she can really turn it out like a season 1 queen too.
Pandora was the only queen I was looking forward to this season. 5 episodes back, she needed the classic Cher slaps, “Snap out it!”. I think Ru and Michelle have been giving her mercy saves most of the season. Me too.
You’re not wrong about Trinity’s makeup. I’m not sure what happened—it was so much better on her first season. I still think she’s stunning, one of the best runway queens we’ve ever had, and an all-around talented performer and entertainer, but the makeup is just a bit off this season.
The elephant in the room is that, let’s be real honest here, Trinity’s face is not the most… I’ll go with “fishy” for now. Bad skin and an odd dental “situation” means that makeup (especially in HD and fully lit) can only do so much. She has to rely on her talent, not her looks. Which is refreshing.
Jan was, unfortunately, a mismatch for this season. The only clear storyline for this season thus far has been “personal growth and redemption”, and it’s been too soon for the former, and she didn’t need much of the latter. I can’t help but think that, with a little more insight, a few more years, and a little more human experience, Jan could have taken the season. Maybe she’ll be back for AS11.
There have been too many All Stars seasons period. We should only be on All Stars 3 right now, but no… we have to have them every year and that means (a) filler queens and (b) queens we only just saw. Jan was relevant enough in her season to warrant an AS appearance, but a few years away would’ve meant a different, more mature queen – instead we get the same happy cheerleader we got two years ago.
Agreed. On this season, the slam-dunk proper All Stars are Ginger, Eureka, A’keria, Silky, Yara, and Pandora. Nobody else did well enough in their original run to automatically warrant an All Stars season, but if you accept that it’s an annual thing and a lot of runner-ups aren’t interested, Trinity and Jiggly and Ra’Jah make sense.Honestly, ever since AS3 let Milk and Aja in, it’s been clear that calling it all All Stars is a stretch. It’s half stars and half filler, and because of the elimination format, some filler makes it very far.
Ginger is possibly my all time fave, but this is also her second All Stars run. It seems like if you’re open to doing it, they’re open to having you back on. I’m sure it’s not just about winning – Keeps you in the consciousness of fans especially at a time when proper shows aren’t an option.
Yeah, but that’s also part of the problem – even with two-time All Stars, the producers have to go DEEP to fill out these seasons. And while Ra’Jah, for instance, has turned it this season, nothing from her original run indicated she should make an All Stars season. Doubly so for Serena ChaCha.I mean, where does it end? Bring back Alisa Summer! Let’s see Magnolia Crawford again! Kalorie Karbdashian Williams, come on down!
I mean, where does it end? Bring back Alisa Summer! Let’s see Magnolia Crawford again! Kalorie Karbdashian Williams, come on down!And why not? It’s not like we got to see their full range of talents in the twenty seconds that they were on their respective seasons. It all comes down to the type of All Stars you want to watch: if that’s a competition between the best contestants who have appeared on this show, then by all means limit it to the top four of each season. That means, of course, that there’s going to be automatic frontrunners, and that will result in few surprises and long stretches of dullness, such as we had to endure in AS 4 and (especially) 5.If the desire is for an entertaining show with an unusual cast with the potential to surprise, though, this is the better way to go. I’ve heard that Magnolia Crawford has left drag, but I’d actually like to see Alisa on stage again. Bring on those fire titties!
I’m thrilled to see less successful queens from seasons past again, that’s all well and good, but is it All Stars?Just change the name to ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race: RuDemption’ or something, because, not to be pedantic, but if anyone ‘qualifies’ to be on All Stars (linguistically understood to be the best-of-the-best) then what’s the point of it?
I’d love to see a season for first- and second-elimated queens. They could do the RuDemption season instead of an All-Stars one year, which would hopefully refresh the All-Stars pool a bit
I kind of feel like the show blew it’s load a little with AS2. I mean, look at that cast: Katya, Ginger Minj, Alyssa Edwards, Adore Delano (who sadly noped out), Rolaskatox (even if I think the Ro of that trio has always been a letdown), Tatianna … the only filler queens there are Roxxy and Coco Montrese, in my opinion, and others will say that’s arguable. (Ms Andrews did get all the way to the end, after all.) After that, you’re starting to run out of genuine all stars who haven’t already won a crown.
A’keria was solid in her season but, like Jaida, was only really known for one moment (“Look over there!”). All Silky is, is Kandy 1.0 in that she had no business being there, but gets clicks on social media for being insufferable. Jan is good enough to be deserving, but when you have AS seasons to fill every year? Your number comes up sooner than expected.
“I’m glad I have a catchphrase. Who are you again?”Have to disagree with you on most of your points. Editing made these queens annoying to different audiences at different times, but I’ve seen nothing to suggest that they haven’t been “deserving” of All Stars; the queens’ talent is usually the only thing saving All Stars from being a complete trainwreck. It’s the challenges and the writing and the editing that are terrible — not the talent.Look, I get it: Scarlet Envy can’t be an all-star because she didn’t land in the top four, and Ra’Jah can’t either because she has those weird glasses in confessionals. We can call this Drag Race 13.5 or Drag Race: Losers’ Lodge if it makes it go down easier, but I can’t ignore the fact that this cast of filler queens is the most enjoyable since AS2.
My jaw almost hit the floor when Milk turned up. There’s stretching the term “all star” and then there’s just laughing in its face.
And now we’re getting an international all-stars season AND an all-winners season.
instead we get the same happy cheerleader we got two years ago. It’s not even that long. S12 and AS6 were filmed a year apart. In fact, All Stars 6 started filming like 3 months after S12 finished airing so Jan had only 3 months of literally no outside-of-Drag Race-experience due to COVID.
Poor TKB, two challenge wins and zero dollars to show for those wins. I still don’t know that she’s a front runner and am worried they’re setting her up for a “almost got to the end” narrative.Having said that her win was well deserved and I felt it was the first challenge win in a few episodes where the winner was correct.Jan just didn’t quite get the assignment and it was her time to bounce. At least she got her win at long last.The whole game within a game is being dragged out way too long and now there are more eliminated queens than those remaining in the show. So I don’t think they’re coming back to partner with the remaining queens. They’re probably going to compete amongst themselves (lip syncing? a challenge for one to emerge as a winner?) and one will come back.
You get 5k for winning before the lipsync, so she got 10k at least 🙂
if anyone deserves an emmy this episode, it’s Alexis for this reveal. Most people would’ve just said it was a tie outright but for her to reveal one and THEN the other, creating a moment of high drama, THAT is as genius as Shangela’s speech to eliminate Chi Chi (may she rest in peace) when Trixie was CERTAINT it was her lol
Also, I loved the “I go two free lipsticks, bitch!” line.
“I got two free lipsticks, bitch!”That was everything, and it finally answered my question as to whether the queens get to keep the lipsticks after the show wraps.
To me it seems certain (barring any outrageous fuck-ups) that it’ll either be Trinity or Kylie getting the crown, and I think TKB may just have the edge. Kylie has been delivering the looks week after week and by God is she sex personified, but Trinity has such a level of poise and confidence that it’s hard not to see her as a winner. (And tonight’s runway look was stunning.) I love Ginger so much and thought this might be her season, but I think she’s just a cut below the other two.
It’s funny you say because I’m convinced it’s between Rajah and Ginger!
Unless you’re J. Lo, telling people how real you are is a fairly surefire way to give the exact opposite impression.No t, no shade; that delusional shit didn’t even work for J~Lo.That said, totally agreed that both Jan and Pandora really missed the mark this week. I don’t disagree with Pandora staying over Jan, it was the latter’s time.Though now I’m doubly disappointed that Pandora was robbed of the Goth challenge win, because it seems highly unlikely that she’ll ever get one – unless a miracle happens with the Snatch Game next week.*sighsOh, well; at least Kylie is still doing well and has a decent chance at the crown.Ginger is as entertaining as ever, and while Eureka seems to be there just for the gig, it’s nice that she’s not as annoying this season. I don’t have too much of an opinion on Ra’Jah this week, which is an improvement because I thoroughly disliked her on S11. Lastly, I fully concur with everyone else who clocked Trinity’s makeup this season – it’s been varying degrees of ‘not great’, aside from her Beyonce performance. It’s really odd, because TKB is such a fierce queen, and we know she had the skills to beat a mug flawlessly back in S6.