‘RuPaul’s Drag Race Down Under’ S2E7 Recap: Murray Bartlett Said Slay And So There Was Slay
Two separate references to Queen Elizabeth II in this episode have us wondering what the 'Down Under' cast and crew knew...
In the words of the dearly departed Molly Poppinz, “Oh Naur!”. Can you believe the Down Under finale is next week? There’s something to be said for an eight-episode Drag Race season, even if it does mean some queens get the chop far too early.
This week’s semi-finale saw our top four take on the makeover challenge of a family of one gay man Keelan and his dad, uncle and cousin. Call me sentimental, but these episodes tend to be genuinely heartwarming more often than not: this week’s felt particularly special, with Kween and Spankie really connecting to their queens-in-training.
Spankie’s chemistry with her cheeky partner-in-crime uncle Paul was fun (and a chat about having both cared for their dads was very sweet, too), but the episode was Kween’s from start to finish. Watching her mentor the quiet, straight cousin Tyler with patience and empathy was like a masterclass in how to be a generous, warm teacher and person.
Repeatedly throughout the competition, we’ve seen Kween’s immense emotional intelligence and ability to read people (which is why her comebacks at Bev hit so hard: they got to the root of it immediately), and how she carries herself in difficult conversations or situations with real grace. Taking time to sincerely connect and appreciate Tyler for who he was, Kween showed an interest in others that can’t be faked (I’ve tried).
Emotionally, this was a big challenge for her, making over a straight Polynesian man who is there to support his queer family member: that’s gotta feel beautiful but also hurt, all at once, and to be able to express the importance to Tyler without putting too much weight or pressure onto him is just so impressive.
Maybe I’m being myopic, but I can’t think of another queen that seems to control the show’s own emotional weight and make it follow her lead. The way Kween approaches things, whether a makeover 0r Hannah’s past offensive performances, makes the show slow down or change tact: there’s a lot of breathing space this season for moments to just be rather than be over-produced, and I think Kween’s werkroom conversations and confessionals are a big part of that.
I’d love for any of the top three to take the crown, but I have a feeling it’ll be Kween: she’s the heart of the season.
“As Queer People We Get To Choose Our Own Family” – Murray Bartlett
Before we jump into the challenge, Courtney got referenced again! #Un-Blocked! Obviously, this is a way to subtly prepare us for her taking over from Ru’s duties with Vanity taking the Michelle role, and then the two of them buy Arq with their mad check. There are also not one but TWO separate references to Queen Elizabeth II this episode: what did these queens know???
We also find out Molly imagined that the top four would have had Minnie and Yuri and not her — as she says throughout the episode, she never imagined making it this far into the competition. I hate when queens say this, they’re giving editors the ability to establish that they’ve “already won”. It’s signing your own elimination order.
To pair up our queens, our top four play a game of ‘paper scissors rock’, which is apparently ‘rock paper scissors’ in America because they value brute imperialist strength above any sort of considered approach. (Though I guess paper is also pretty colonial, covering up space and claiming dominance. Scissors are perhaps the only tool with decolonial potential, as they could cut through the mythology scrawled on the page. Drag Race!)
Molly wins and makes the mistake of picking the gay, thinking that he’d be the easiest to make into a queen. Unfortunately, she forgets that the only people who are more annoying than straight Drag Race fans who yell “yes hunty” and tug at a queen’s wigs are cis-gendered gays who put on a wig and instantly feel like Alyssa Edwards with the Annie Oakley hair.
To be clear, I’d be this excited too!
From what we see, Molly is feeling the pressure this episode and so doesn’t quite connect to Keelan like the other queens do their partners, ending up getting a little frustrated by Keelan’s excitement. She probably knows the writing’s on the wall if she doesn’t front up: her one win was in the first episode, and she’s been consistently safe to low since then.
We also get a shot of Kween carefully shaving Tyler that cuts immediately to Molly doing up her partner, who has a giant piece of blood-soaked toilet paper on his face.
It’s not just Murray Bartlett this week, with Norvina of Anastacia Beverly Hills filming a little pre-recorded message for the queens too. She comes off like a completely normal human who is definitely not a robot.
The Runway Theme Is ‘Opposites Attract’ And We DON’T Get A Paula Abdul Lip-Sync?
There’s no questioning that Kween’s runway is the best of the week — Tyler as Sister Kong is stunning, and their evil/good sister runway storyline makes sense.
I mean, duh.
And a great canvas to begin with, too.
None of the others look…um… that great, but Spankie and Flash Jackzon scrape through with their chemistry.
Hello Pizza Slut? Is your refrigerator still running? Yes? Oh well you better go FUCK it then!
Men like these have to be uncles: they can’t be dads even if they have children. They exude uncle.Kween and Molly had the easier jobs of the night as they were painting people around their age, while Hannah and Spankie probably weren’t used to painting older skin, which would require different skills. But Molly runs out of time while getting ready, and has to rush the makeover to the point that Kandy Flippinz has to dress herself. I think Molly wasn’t thinking about how this challenge is very much judged on the “inner transformation” too.
Honestly, she was right: the skirt should have gone up.
She looks miserable only in this screenshot, I promise.
Hannah’s partner may look the worst of the night but she has the best name, Helle Gator. That should count for something.
Real “couple Halloween costume but only one person is into it” energy.
We love this man whose spoof created THREE gay sons. That’s power.
Instead of a Paula Abdul song, we get a Michelle Visage x Steps lip-sync between Hannah and Molly. The edit barely shows Molly, which makes me think it was pretty close but it’s her time to pop off. Finale next week!
RuPaul’s Drag Race: Down Under streams on Stan in Australia, with new episodes each Saturday at 4pm AEST.
Jared Richards is Junkee‘s Drag Race recapper, and a freelancer who writes for NME, The Big Issue, The Guardian and more. He’s across the internet as @jrdjms