New Queens, new night, new season…
Here we are. Back back back back, AGAIN for a new season, new night, new time, and a whole new crop of stunning queens ready to take the world by storm. Who will be crowned the winner of Season 12? Will it be a look queen, a pageant queen, a comedy queen, or a conceptual queen? We have one hour, and a whole new group of gals to get familiar with so let’s get started.
Right out of the gates, we’re introduced to New York queen Brita, and I hope she’s not filtered because she looks promising. Next up is Nicky Doll. She’s serving Carrie Bradshaw in Paris with her awful Russian boyfriend and slipping in Chanel realness. Nicky is originally from Paris, but considers herself a New York queen. Widow Von’Du is next, and I love a curvy queen in a sequin jumpsuit, always, so she looks promising too. Jackie Cox is next in the werk room, and we have yet ANOTHER NYC queen. Brita explains Jackie isn’t really a “look” queen, and therefore she doesn’t know how far she’ll make it in this competition. Oh Brita… it’s almost as if you haven’t watched the last five seasons of this show. What a shame. Next to make an entrance is Heidi N Closet, with her best impression of Shakira doing that tongue thing at the Superbowl. Heidi is a queen from the south and she is making it KNOWN. Gigi Goode enters the room and Nicky Doll is SHAKING because she’s a fashion queen baby, and her birth mom is a theatrical costume designer. Werk. Crystal Methyd is next and she’s dressed as a green clown. I can’t wait for Michelle to maybe clock her on it later. Crystal makes seven, and Ru has already cut it off. It looks like we’re going to have another two part premiere. Although it is nice to meet all of the girls at once, I can’t lie… It’s a lot easier to keep track of new names and faces. I’ll take the win.
Ru enters the work room where the confused small group of queens await. Ru is seizing this year to make a political statement of drag. She tells the first seven that they are in fact the first of two groups and announces that the first mini challenge is a two look fashion show. If we’re re-using challenges from season seven, one of these looks better be as iconic as Violet’s sequin jumpsuit. As expected, the queens choose a lot of pastels, bright colours, and flowers for their spring looks. Florals for spring? Groundbreaking, obviously. I will give it up for the few queens that did step outside of the box and served something different (I’m looking at you Gigi and Crystal). The fall runway is up next, and the looks are more dynamic for sure. If we’re looking for the look queen of the season, I think we’ve found it in Gigi Goode. She’s 21, and she’s already stealing the show from more experienced queens.
Following the fashion show, the queens untuck, and the real fun begins. Everybody loves Crystal out of drag, including me, because she has a One Direction tattoo, and in turn also has all of my respect and love. Ru enters the werk room and unleashes the first maxi challenge of the season. A rap competition, which shouldn’t be too nerve-wracking because they’re only performing it for the season’s first guest judge, Nicki Minaj. As expected, some queens are having an easier time writing their verses, and some are nervous about dancing, while the other half are obviously experienced dancers. They all have to work together, so if one goes down, they all do. Good luck ladies. Not-shockingly, arguments break out during the practice period. Tensions are high. It was honestly, a headache to watch, so that’s all I’m going to write on the matter.
Back in the werk room, the queens are getting ready for their first mainstage. The international queens (Jackie, and Nicky) connected over what it means to be queer in their home countries, while others are still going over their lack of rehearsal yesterday. After standard judge introductions, it’s time for the world premiere of I’m That Bitch, and I’m a little nervous about it. For a rehearsal that looked like a lot of it was arguing, these queens TURNED IT OUT. Most importantly, Nicki Minaj really seemed to be enjoying it, and that’s what counts most. Yes, some queens were stronger than others, but as a group, they performed well together. Out on the runway the category is SPARKLE, and the queens showed up and out with dazzling, fantasies. During the judge’s critiques, they mostly had great thing to say, except Heidi N Closet, who used her emergency room visit the night before as an excuse, and it actually worked, on the twelfth season of this show, so good for her.
After some deliberations, Ru saves Brita, Jackie, Crystal, Nicky Doll, and Heidi. This leaves Widow, and Gigi (surprising) as our first bottom two of the season. JUST KIDDING! Widow and Gigi are actually the top two (GAGGED!) and will lip sync to be crowned the winner of the week. The two deliver an explosive performance of Nicki Minaj’s “Starships.” If this lip sync is any indication of how this season will be, we are in for a TREAT friends. After about 389 consecutive drops and splits, Widow is crowned the winner, and it is so well deserved. Nobody is going home this week, and we get to meet even more next Friday!
Frontrunner of the week: It’s so hard to choose as everybody had a strong performance this week, but GiGi is a fashion queen with a comedy queen personality, and I think that will go far in the competition.
Most memorable moment: Crystal having One Direction tattooed on her chest in Arabic. We have decided to stan forever.
What we’ll see next week: We meet the second half of our season 12 queens, and Robyn guest judges!!
Missed a week?: Read our RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 12 recaps right here!
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