Last week we noted that the vibes with this bracket felt a little off. They’re still off, but we’re starting to think that has less to do with the makeup of the bracket itself as it does with the whole bracket concept.
Granted, this is still a slightly goofy pairing of queens where their styles don’t quite mesh but they’re not distinct enough from each other to make for interesting pairings or clashes. Maybe it seems off to us because there are no Black queens or trans women in the group.
But after watching another bracket figure out its alliances and how to distribute points (pretty much straight-up trading back and forth, unlike the other brackets), then figure out who gets to play which parts in a musical number, we started realizing how repetitive it’s all seeming, especially since there’s been no real payoff. We’re in the eighth episode and it feels like the “real” competition hasn’t even started yet.
All of the queens competing in the semi-finals have absolutely no idea who they’ll be competing against. We’ve yet to see anyone lip synch for their life. We’ve yet to see anyone get told they’re going home. And the challenges are starting to feel too samey. Still, we think the bracket idea has been a net good for a tired format. We just think it’s going on a little too long. We just want it to wrap up so we can get to the semi finals.
The show paid its dues to its corporate masters (Paramount) by staging a mini-challenge based entirely on Paramount IP Clueless celebrating its 30th anniversary. While we can – and do – roll our eyes at any overly obvious branding or corporate synergy moments on this show, a Clueless-themed photo shoot was actually a pretty cute idea that lends itself to drag interpretations.
The queens separated themselves into two groups for the challenge, although there doesn’t seem to have been any reason for having teams at all, except that the two groups were supposed to be in opposition to each other during the number. There were the usual scenes of smack-talking and lyrics-writing and choreo, but it all felt a little flat and boring because this group just doesn’t have that spark.
There’s no real reason for this screenshot except that Lorenzo think’s he’s dreamy.
The number was… fine. These are all-stars, so no one did terribly. We got the sense that all of them were working very hard to get through it, which doesn’t make for an exciting performance. Alyssa had some trouble with the lyrics, but that was the only notable weak part and it was completely understandable. Ginger was great because she’s always great with performing challenges, but if we were to pick the top two, it would have been Denali, who looked amazing and worked like hell, and Acid Betty, who was funny and fun and surprisingly energetic.
Category Is: Night of A Thousand Mileys!  Which runway came in like a wrecking ball? #AllStars10 pic.twitter.com/Zw7WVLbg98
— RuPaul’s Drag Race (@RuPaulsDragRace) June 21, 2025
This was a cute idea for a runway category.
This was shockingly good. Acid Betty does fantastic costumes, but we wouldn’t have credited her with pulling off this kind of glamour drag. This was the best entry in the bunch because the inspiration was clear and obvious, but she took the design to more outrageous, more drag-like levels.
Too literal, strangely unflattering, and an odd choice because it’s not really one of her iconic looks. If she’d told us she was doing Ann Margret or Tina Turner, we’d have believed it.
Very cute, probably a little too literal, but the reveal was nicely handled.
It’s cute, but it looks a little craftsy, which was always going to be an issue with this inspiration because it already looked a little craftsy when Miley wore it.
Doing a fairly literal recreation of one of Miley’s least interesting looks ever is certainly a choice. We give her credit for going off the beaten path and for executing it well, but there was little chance a look like this was going to dominate a Drag Race runway.
It’s a cute interpretation of an unexpected inspiration and it couldn’t be better suited to her. Little changes, like enlarging the grommets or putting her in a halter, were very smart ways of tailoring the look to her.
Denali and Ginger faced off for the lip sync, but it really should have been Denali and Acid Betty. We fear that shenanigans are afoot. We don’t think Ginger won that lip sync, although we can see the argument that she interpreted the song better and that her performance was more suited to it than Denali’s frantic popping and locking.
We like Ginger and we think she’s among the more talented queens in Drag Race herstory. We also think she’s probably the most all-around talented queen in this bracket. But we also think she’s been getting praise and wins she doesn’t quite deserve. It’s the Alyssa Edwards All-Star package deal.
Come see us in DALLAS this month for Pride, where we’ll be giving a talk on the drag and trans legends who changed the world and we’ll be handing out signed copies of our book! Details here!
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: Paramount Plus via Tom and Lorenzo]
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