‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ Recap: The Odds Are Ever In Yvie’s Favour
As the last opportunity to set things straight, some queens won the reunion -- and some, such as the forgettable, unfortunately lost.
Hello Sydney Gays, and, I suppose, allies of Sydney Gays. Sorry (not sorry!) to say there’s no time for you to recover from your Bero Sunday session — there’s simply too much to dissect from this week’s Drag Race reunion.
Given that the reunion episode is filmed the day after the Battle Royale lip-sync tournament finale, it’s easy to read between the lines and see where the final four stands. Last year, Asia was quite emotional — and when we saw Butterfly-gate a week later, it suddenly all made sense.
This year, we’d say it’s clear that Yvie and Brooke are in the top two; A’Keria was a little irritated this ep, and Silky didn’t really get that much screen time, for once. As they film multiple crownings, nobody but Alexis Michelle and the show’s other producers know who is America’s Next Drag Superstar, but this episode flips the switch on Brooke and turns her into a bit of a cold-hearted snake.
Rather than a regular recap, I thought it’d work better to look back to 2011-2016 Channel 7 drama Winners And Losers, starring Blair McDonough of Big Brother S1, and assess who came out on top, and who came out bottom.
‘If I Didn’t Get The Crown, At Least I Got Some Dick’
Nothing but respect for my Federal cabinet.
So, who ‘lost’? Well, Honey Davenport barely spoke, and Kahanna Montese’s attempt to create a storyline with Mercedes over Mercedes posting… their lip sync to Instagram… was pretty transparent.
Kahanna rehearsing that read at home every day for three weeks before the reunion pic.twitter.com/dP3l1YH4Oe
— Kevin O’Keeffe (@kevinpokeeffe) May 26, 2019
Both were early outs, so it’s not exactly surprising they weren’t a focus, but it’s really the queens’ last time to make their mark on the show and reach its massive audience. Soju, savvy from building a YouTube following, came ready with reads and prepared to jump in with comments and quips, likely because she knew she wouldn’t get much otherwise.
“Soju, how’s your cyst?” *Curb Your Enthusiasm theme plays*
Mercedes, too, had lines prepped — and reads written down. On the show, Mercedes wasn’t quite ready to chat about her faith/herself too much, but it seems that she’s taken time to heal from her stroke and breathe, as her words about living as a Muslim drag queen were far more eloquent than “Muslim is not a terrorist”.
But when we talk about #WigGate, we’re all losers (and no, we’re not even going to talk about these queens struggling again to read).
Bless her for some drama, but Ariel’s story doesn’t quite add up, and it’s clear from her earlier behaviour (reading Soju, talking shit about Silky and co. during the evangelical talk show challenge) that she was feeling insecure in the competition, and lashing out where she could. It was all a little tiresome and I was thankful when Ru wrapped it up — and when Ra’Jah threw a wig back at Ariel.
Say what you want, but Ra’Jah knows how to make good TV.
As for the top 4, Brooke is painted as a bit of an ice queen this reunion. First, queens accuse her of ‘chasing clout’ via her showmance with Vanjie — and while she’s clearly a calculated competitor, it seems a little cruel to suggest. It’s evident there’s real and messy feelings between the pair — and it seems Brooke, having never had a boyfriend, wasn’t quite ready to give herself over.
Post filming Drag Race, the two must have been living in very different worlds: Vanjie was already a worldwide star, and Brooke’s life hadn’t changed yet. The inevitable jealousy, resentment and frustration to not just be able to test things out in a ‘normal’ context would have been a massive stress. It’s pretty heartbreaking to see Vanjie so vulnerable, and even if I think Brooke’s actions make sense/feel like we’re not really in a position to judge too much, it’s not surprising fans have taken a side.
“If you look closely, you can actually pinpoint the exact moment his heart breaks in two”
Then there’s the whole Scarlet encounter, where Brooke apparently told a bar audience the entire cast “hated” her. It’s refreshing she owns up to it completely by confirming the comment with a “mhmmmm”, and speaks to her Nerve. But against the love the reunion and Ru threw at Yvie, it’s hard to see her taking the crown.
A’Keria comes off as a complete shit-stirrer this episode, but rather than own it like she should, she fights it. It’s a bit of a shame.
‘I Invite Everyone To Be In My World, It’s A Wonderful Place To Be’
And as for the Winner Winner Chicken Dinners?
Vanjie dominated the first fifteen minutes of the reunion. While her 11/10 personality wasn’t adaptable to all the show’s challenges, she’s an absolute star. Take her mini-beef with Shuga about her silhouettes, for example. While Shuga, girl, was frustrated that Vanjie’s silhouettes were the same, Vanjie says she was frustrated that her personality was held against her in the competition while other queens were pretty flat.
Sure, Shuga didn’t deserve to go home when she did, but she also wasn’t great TV; and that’s how you really win.
A lovely homage to Jasmine Masters.
That’s something that Scarlet Envy understands. Even if she was utterly annoying in the workroom, she was so fun to watch — and I think she’s cemented her chance for All Stars with her quick quips, if not for the “Well, Duh!” moment when Ra’Jah complains that she kept centring herself in conversations.
Yvie has a similar moment in the reunion’s showdown between her and Silky. Ru really takes her side by establishing that Yvie was frustrated by Silky’s laziness in the competition, at one point even using the term “delusion” in her Dr. Phil-esque pseudo psychoanalysis. When the girls tell Yvie she should have talked to Silky off-camera, she spells it out for them: “I didn’t go to do it on the side, because it’s a TV show!”.
When an ugly girl comes for a pretty girl.
Still, Silky redeems herself with a genuine apology for saying Yvie should go home because of her ankle injury, and it seems like the two of them are on amenable grounds. We also learn she gained 30 pounds while filming the season, and while Nina says that’s no excuse for her padding, it’s clear the issue was more about her perception of herself — it adds another layer to why she spirals during the season, offering that vulnerability she refused in Ru’s workroom walkthroughs.
Attitude Check?? Fuck Me…
Speaking of apologies, I am feeling some kind of way about Ra’Jah O’Hara. As Plastique (who handles A’Keria’s comments about pop culture and the like very well) says, her comments were rarely about other people. It’s a shame she got so personal at times (especially with Yvie, who had to see the meanest comments while watching at home), but Ra’Jah is absolutely memorable, and as incredible of a reality TV personality as she is lip-syncer.
She’s a winner in my books, even if she’s the least likely to win Miss Congeniality. That’s clearly Nina West’s title. What a treasure she is.
One week to go, and I think, despite our mixed feelings at times, S11 has been pretty interesting. To paraphrase Drag Race enemy Bebe Rexha, haters can get the fuck off my live chat. This is a place for bad bitches and Rexhards, perverts get the fuck off my live chat! Unless I’m completely wrong about Yvie winning, then it’ll be a place for sad bitches. But, um, I’m pretty confident.
RuPaul’s Drag Race streams on Stan, with new episodes dropping Friday 2pm AEST. Revisit our S11 recaps.
Jared Richards is a staff writer at Junkee, and co-host of Sleepless In Sydney. He wants more Instagram followers so he can do swipe up. Just 9000+ to go!