TV

‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ Recap: Finale, It Has Happened To Me

It all comes down to this.

by Nic Holas  25 June 2017

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Warning: contains spoilers. (SPOILER? I hardly know her.)

Now, Sasha away!

Delete your data analysis and throw out your abacus, because this season’s grand finale of RuPaul’s Drag Race bucked trends and ignored all the previous “rules”… and I was here for it.

Out of all four queens, Sasha Velour was statistically the least likely to take the crown, but that is exactly what she did in a revamped finale format that saw the four finalists compete in sudden death lip syncs.

Settle, petal.

Everyone loves a kooky underdog/outsider – Sharon Needles, Jinkx Monsoon and Katya all were positioned in this role in their respective seasons or during All Stars. Even so, this is perhaps the first time a queen has flown so far under the radar only to end up snatching the crown.

Sasha Velour’s win is a celebration of intelligence. Given the current climate of US politics and media, in which history is ignored and facts don’t matter, it is refreshing to see someone with brains being rewarded instead of belittled. How strange that a reality television competition between queer folks in frocks can convey that message better than the current political administration.

And that message was abundantly clear onstage during the finale. The word “AMERICAN” hung in the air, blinding the enormous face of RuPaul himself as his Season Nine girls entered through a doorway made from his red lipped open mouth. Beneath it all boomed Ru’s voice on the entrance music, singing “I am American, American, American / Just like you, too.”

This isn’t to say that Sasha’s three competitors, Shea Couleé, Trinity Taylor, and Peppermint, weren’t smart or talented.  Each of the four queens more than deserved to be there, and a victory from any of them would have been significant for a variety of reasons. Interestingly, the two queens who seemed least likely to take the crown ended up being the last two standing, with Peppermint making erstory as the first openly trans woman to enter the competition and go as far as she did.

PEPPERMINT

The next chk chk boom girl?

As RPDR turns a corner towards its historic (herstoric?) tenth season, it has given its devoted audience a format shakeup that is perfectly timed, and speaks to the potential staying power of what is now a mainstream pop culture phenomenon. No longer can RuPaul Charles claim to be an outsider, what with his Emmy and recently awarded star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame (oh hey there, 45).

Consider Yourself Shook, Format

That shakeup started last week, when the traditional series catchup episode (essentially a best-of clip show) was replaced with a fiery reunion filmed studio-style, with no hooting and hollering live audience. Since Season Four (AKA the start of the RPDR Golden Era), the reunion has taken place on the live stage as part of the crowning, with queens reflecting on their on-set behaviour and how they were portrayed to the world.

This return to a “closed set” reunion allowed for more time and focus on the key moments of the season, which this year largely meant breaking down Valentina’s aggressive fandom and revealing that she is a Latin American Psycho.

Hombre Slice is definitely beloved, and nowhere more than in the Spanish-speaking world. So it’s no surprise that Valentina was voted Miss Congeniality, although the ruckus immediately afterwards started by Aja suggests that next year, Miss Congeniality may be renamed Miss Fan Favourite (which would be a far more fitting title).

All that reunion drama the week prior gave us time for a finale that was all (tightly edited) killer and no filler. Before getting down to the lip syncs, Ru sat down with each of the four queens for a one-ono-one interview.

For a moment, it seemed like Shea was getting the winning, humanising edit after revealing that he lost his father and sister to cancer just one month apart. This was precisely the reality TV narrative of loss/struggle/drama that was missing from Shea’s journey.

We also got to see a warm video message to Peppermint from her friend and trans superstar Laverne Cox. This provided another chance to help bridge the divide felt by the trans community, who have long been critical of the show (plus we all got to bask in the aural magnificence that is Cox’s husky, honeysuckle voice).

The other video message that we need to discuss was from Katy Perry to Sasha Velour. It is no small irony that pop’s reigning problematic princess would have been set up to send love and support to the most politically conscious, historically aware queer queen on the show. Was Judith Butler not available?

But it was the sudden death lip syncs that really fucked with the format, making this the best grand finale of RPDR to date.

Two In The Sync

Peppermint vs. Trinity

Trinity was chosen (by a spinning wheel) as the first queen to lip sync, and she in turn chose to “battle” Peppermint. This felt somehow pre-planned, or rehearsed (why would you choose to go up against the queen known for being a lip sync assassin?) but Trinity turned it out. Both queens opted for tearaway reveals – Trinity exposing her surgically enhanced derriere while Peppermint transformed her gladiator skirt into a full gown.

Until that point Peppermint seemed held back, either by her costume or double wig. Trinity delivered more high energy moves across the lip sync, more comfortable on a larger stage performing for the live audience. Peppermint seemed to be performing more for the cameras. Regardless, Ru declared Peppermint the winner and sent Trinity away (probably to pack for All Stars 3).

Shea vs. Sasha

THIS was the lip sync of the night: two queens that the internet has been shipping since their flirtatious dual win early in the season. Shea the most likely winner, Sasha the fan favourite. Earlier that evening, Shea had even admitted she didn’t want to lip sync against Sasha due to their close friendship.

Shea delivered a tight, pitch-perfect lip sync to Whitney Houston’s ‘So Emotional’, but it wasn’t enough to save her from the artful intensity of Sasha Velour, whose acting chops and creativity were paired perfectly with the histrionic banger. Watching these two hug it out after Ru declared Sasha the winner made me hope World of Wonder gives these two a reality show spin-off.

SASHASHEA

I want these two to be my Dads…in more ways than one.

Sasha vs. Peppermint

That left us with Peppermint and Sasha, in a regal lip sync to another Whitney Houston number (RIP Nippy, come back to us) that was devoid of any major gymnastic moves. Instead, we got two queens just doing what they do best. In Peppermint’s case that meant tight dance moves and attitude, and in Sasha’s it meant telling a story. Both were great, but Sasha had the night stitched up after her rose petal reveals.

Looking back, this season has been kinder than previous years, and more attuned to the political climate by highlighting the issues LGBTIQA people are facing: grief around HIV/AIDS, global violence, body dysmorphia, higher-than-average mental health problems, and more. It’s perhaps fitting that the queen to take the Season Nine crown is one who tells us that “drag queens have always been keepers of our queer history. We make it, we tell it, we remember it, we misremember it, and we love it. And I’m so glad I got to help bring that tradition onto the show.”

All hail your reigning queen, Sasha Velour.

See you next season, squirrel friends!

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RuPaul’s Drag Race is fast-tracked from the US each Saturday on Stan. Read more Drag Race recaps here.

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Nic Holas has written for The Guardian, Sydney Morning Herald, Archer Magazine, and Hello Mr. You can find him on Twitter @nicheholas, or in his role as co-founder of HIV movement The Institute of Many.