And so we’re back! From outer space! Better late than never, right? Don’t answer that. Jet lag from a Christmas vacation and the eruption of awards season upon our return kept us from getting to a recap of the premiere of season 17 of RuPaul’s Drag Race in a timely manner, but we couldn’t allow our unbroken string of recaps going back to the very first episode to, well, break, so here we are. Three days late and a dollar short. But don’t go thinking we’ve lost interest just because we’re tardy to the party. As a show, the OG RPDR can be pretty tired and stale, but as a franchise and phenomenon, Drag Race still has the juice and we still get excited every time a new crop of queens sashays through that Werk Room doorway. Speaking of which, let’s get assessing.
LEXI LOVE
Kind of bitchy in a “I’m keeping it real” manner, which could either wind up being refreshingly unpretentious or just mean. The look is fantastic.
JOELLA
The entrance look is fantastic and she had a lovely time reconnecting with her pop goddess Katy Perry. She makes a good first impression, but she also seems to be a bit of a spotlight grabber.
KORI KING
Not the most original look in the world, but it’s fun and cute. She’s an unrepentant bitch. Should be interesting.
LYDIA B KOLLINS
We enjoyed two things about this season’s cast so far: they’re diverse in their drag styles and quite a few of them are craftsy and creative in a way that’s much more appealing than some A-list queen showing up with the very best costumes money can buy. Lydia’s one to watch. The entrance look is cute but doesn’t go far enough.
ARRIETTY
She’s weird, which is good, and craftsy, which is great, but she could probably stand to dial it back on the bitchiness and flirting a little.
JEWELS SPARKLES
She’s funny, sparkly, and gives great confessional. She’s among the more polished of the queens and we think she’s a major contender.
LANA JA’RAE
From the harsh makeup to the cliffhangers, this was one of the worst entrance looks we’ve ever seen.
SAM STAR
MEGA polished and bitchy in that southern queen way. The other queens dismiss the pageant girls to their detriment. These bitches come prepared, with a competitive streak so red hot it’s practically radioactive.
ONYA NURVE
Great name, funny soundbites. Dowdy entrance look.
SUZIE TOOT
What a puzzler this one is. Clearly has the chops and the energy. She’s charming and funny in confessionals and she’s got a great hook. We just don’t understand why the drag is so ugly. It’s not even particularly accurate as period drag, although that’s no sin. But her whole approach to her look is strange to us.
HORMONA LISA
There’s something a little half-assed about this look. The styling choices aren’t up to the level of the dress. She sauntered in with quite the attitude, but she must have figured her unusual method of getting cast was going to meet up with a lot of side-eye from the other queens. Rather than apologize or be timid about it, she’s going for the jugular. Should be interesting.
CRYSTAL ENVY
She’s clearly fierce and pretty, but we thought this look was aging and unflattering.
ACACIA FORGOT
It’s technically fine, but this is utterly generic and forgettable drag. We suspect that critique is going to apply to her all season.
LUCKY STARZZZ
Big fun weirdo. We fear the machine is going to grind her up and spit her out if she doesn’t figure out how to bend her drag to Ru’s will.
Despite her awful look, Lana won the cute-but-too-long Squid Game-inspired mini challenge with some world-class posing.
In one of the episodes many twists, the queens had to decide among themselves who would be competing in the first week and who would be competing in the second. It was a good one, because it forced the queens to size each other up, make strategic decisions, and not get bitchy about it because it’s too early to form grudges.
Jewels number was high-energy, funny, and nearly flawless. Like we said, she’s a contender.
We don’t get what Arietty was thinking. The alien makeup married to the cultural drag made no sense and she didn’t seem to have much of a plan except to play with her skirt.
The puppet looked terrible, but the idea was intriguing. Unfortunately, Lydia did nothing with it and stepped out from under it in a look so generic we forgot who she was for a second. In unrelated news, those may be the skimpiest Pit Crew “costumes” ever, so thanks for that, MTV.
The judges seemed pretty dazzled by Lucky’s number, but to us, it just looked like a messier take on Jewel’s bit. Pretty insane costume, though.
Joelle’s number was cute, but unambitious and it didn’t really go anywhere.
Acacia demonstrated the difference between having a skill and having a talent. She can sing and play guitar, but she can’t command a mic or an audience at all.
Suzie was funny, stupid, and very polished. Her drag remains puzzlingly unattractive.
Category Is: Masked for Masked Singer! ✨ Which lewk are you seeking out? #DragRace pic.twitter.com/NEgWNLSZH8
— RuPaul’s Drag Race (@RuPaulsDragRace) January 4, 2025
The runway category was a little dumb, with a lot of the queens opting to just throw a mask over an existing look. We didn’t like Acacia’s snowman. Joelle’s look was pretty, but she chose the wrong wig for it. Jewels looked stunning. Arietty recovered from a poor performance, with a killer look. Lydia and Lucky both got a little overwhelmed by their costume designs, which is always a risk with their kind of drag. Suzie’s idea was cute, but the execution was only so-so and the makeup remains ugly. Kori served up major dark glam, which was a pleasant surprise. Hormona’s look was just okay. Crystal’s idea was cute, but the dress was dowdy. Lexi’s look was just drag makeup with an astronaut suit. Lana’s cat suit was fine, but like a lot of the looks, a bit underwhelming for a first runway. Onya’s concept was sound, but the look was a mess. Sam served up pageant flawlessness, which we expect her to do all season.
The queens put Acacia in the bottom, which seems about right, although Arietty and Lydia deserved to sweat it out a little. Acacia will lip sync for her life with next week’s bottom.
Jewels and Suzie faced off and, to our surprise, the latter won the lip sync, proving that the judges are pretty charmed by her quirky ways.
Although maybe it was because Michelle needs a project and is looking forward to yelling at her all season.
Legendary Children: The First Decade of RuPaul’s Drag Race and the Last Century of Queer Life, a New York Times “New and Notable” pick, praised by The Washington Post “because the world needs authenticity in its stories,” and chosen as one of the Best Books of The Year by NPR is on sale wherever fine books are sold! It’s also available in Italian and Spanish language editions, darlings! Because we’re fabulous on an INTERNATIONAL level.
[Photo Credit: MTV via Tom and Lorenzo]
Previous post:
Pamela Anderson, Josh O’Connor, Mikey Madison, Harris Dickinson & More in W Magazine’s 2025 Best Performances Portfolio Next Post:
Golden Globes 2025 Red Carpet Rundown: The Gentlemen
Pamela Anderson, Josh O’Connor, Mikey Madison, Harris Dickinson & More in W Magazine’s 2025 Best Performances Portfolio Next Post:
Golden Globes 2025 Red Carpet Rundown: The Gentlemen
-
RUPAUL’S DRAG RACE: Drag Queens Got Talent – Part 2
-
Meet the Queens of RUPAUL’S DRAG RACE Season 17!
-
Pop Style Opinionfest: T Lo Saw WICKED and They Have Opinions!
Please review our Community Guidelines before posting a comment. Thank you!
