Halo

All of the 9ers are hiddy this episode. I mean, Dylan would look good if his clothes weren't for a man thrice his size. As always, Bray is a 100% nope. That fucking duster! Donna's hair looks like it was squeezed out of a tube, and Clare Chancellorsdottir is the 90s-ist whatever that ever whatevered. The belt is just so stupid! If Val weren't there, ole Cat Butt would look the best.

I have to say that Bray Rays are the best thing I've heard all day.

Of course I remember 5-7-9! It's where I bought red jeans with the ankle zippers and double v-neck sweaters in middle school using the money I earned in my babysitting empire.

I had really stopped watching by the time Erica comes back as a hooker--I was a poor 20-something with 3 jobs and no cable, who read Danny Drennan's recaps online in the library--so I don't really remember how that came about. Was Iris as bad a foster mom as I imagine? Did Erica run away from Hawaii and end up on the streets? Was she still intellectually slow when she came back all aged-up? I can't wait to find out.

I was a dancer, and used to do that, too (regular tights under leos in dance classes, fishnets as "fashion"). Only I did it more in the 80s and never in the late 90s. Fishnet tights as top worn under a scissor-cropped Smiths tshirt, with a lycra mini? Yeah, I was that guy.

Navel, eyebrow, and tongue piercing here. The navel never healed right, probably because my damn pants came up too high, so I ended up taking it out after the third infection. Not sure how long I had the eyebrow, but I was lucky that it healed without a scar. The tongue lasted several years until I felt like very trashy woman on Jerry Springer had them and I removed it. My tongue still has the hole! I don't think the Bev 9ers had navel piercings, but if Val was a real person, I bet she would have.

Braless slip dresses were common where I lived, but the dress paired with baby tees were, too. I mean, it's not super warm in Seattle, so you'd have to wear a jacket/cardigan/flannel outside with those get-ups, regardless. I have to say, those bias-cut satin dresses were oddly flattering, although skimpy. Most of us wore at least a thong/g-string with the dresses, and some wore boy shorts under there (I think I usually had on tights). It was a strange time for clothing. Our jeans were big, but our dresses and tops were tiny. Remember the "shirts" that were basically a piece of fabric that barely covered your boobs, with some strings attached to tie around the back? Often paired with a maxi skirt? It only got worse in the late 90s and early aughts.

Looking at the visual aids from the cult intro episode, I renew my happiness that the sacklike floral skirts and dresses never appealed to me in the 90s because they are hiddy. And WHY was everything BROWN, for all that's holy? I've never understood that and never will. The brown lipstick is back and as ugly as ever--I bumped into one of my grad students at the makeup counter in the bookstore and she asked my opinion of some terrible brown and I had to tell her I hated it in the 90s and I hate it now.

Did you get your work suits at Express? I sure did (on sale). My off-hours look was still 90s rock club non-chic and I wore black acrylic nails and Mac Viva Glam for pretty much the rest of the 90s. That's still a great lipstick, so glad they brought it back .

So much word. I can't belive I was on Brando's side in the fight with Kelly, but he was completely correct and his tone had a point for once. Too bad he actually called Val's mom, but I LOVED that he said he couldn't explain why he was asking if she knew Val went to Jamaica. Busted being a snoop!

I grew up little-C catholic (ELCA Lutheran) and we always had our Christmas Eve candlelight services at 10pm. They weren't torturous for kids at all--mostly beautiful music and a short sermon about the Baby J, plus our pretty church bathed in candlelight. Also we had a cry room, also also I often held/entertained fussy babies or toddlers in church when I was a teenager, just to help out. Andrea and Jesse are both hysterical assholes in this episode. Like a baby in a CATHOLIC church is a novelty.

I don't follow that rule, either. I don't look like a dELiA*s catalogue, like Tori, but some things are good the second time around. Jesse Vasquez was terrible, and I remember thinking he was Not Cute, but dang, 56-year-old Mark Espinoza is so much foxier than the 30-something version. Who knew?

Also, regarding the cock walk: I just assume Brando is just waddling due to his raging case of hemorrhoids and is wearing shin guards because women keep kicking him with their 90s clompy platforms.

Are we all 42? The story checks out, as that's the approximate age The Gang would be today (not the actors).

This. Is the best caption for a Donna pic in all of history. Also my brother had this shirt in red. In that exact size. I always have to get out the laptop and follow along with the visual aids while listening to the podcast. Those are the mornings I don't get out the door on time.

damn, beat to the punch. Sorry.

Nah, I also said I don't find Alaska smug. I don't think anybody was rude about, to be honest. We just have a variety of opinions. I'm an unapologetic Alaska fan, but she was a crazy mess this episode. It did seem like something more was going on with her, and you may be right that she cares too much. You know she has literally NEVER been in the bottom before, right? I went back and looked at her progress during Season 5 to be sure, and she was low three times, but never once landed in the bottom two. She's also been really successful post-RPDR and maybe hasn't ever learned how to handle losing anything. That's totally not an excuse, just a potential reason for it. I completely agree that she is laser-focused and all about her craft, which can go too far. I danced ballet my entire childhood at a fairly elite school and I've seen a lot of meltdowns from high-strung, overachieving performers. It's never a good look. I'm still rooting for Katya and Alaska. I REALLY wanted Katya to win a LSFYL! I'm betting she would have sent Roxxy home if she won. Can't wait to find out.

My best friend's mom made tomato aspic at Thanksgiving one year when we were teenagers and she got so mad when friend and her brother kept calling it "ass pick," and refusing to eat it. I'm sure she saw it in a magazine. I really enjoyed Dr. Martin saying he doesn't care for aspic and being nice to Ray. Too bad he and Cindy Walsh never ditched their spouses and ran off together. Both deserved better.

That's what I thought she meant, too. Tatiana really does seem totally great, and while nice, still funny and willing to call people on their b.s. She's no fool--you won't catch her having a sequence moment.

I literally drink mink by the pint, and sometimes I go through a half gallon in a day. A dexa scan reveals my bones are off the charts hard, so I feel pretty good about my choices. It helps that the only beverages we had regularly when I was growing up were milk and water.

Right? I love Katya and lived for her leg air guitar, but I felt like her LSFYL was lackluster in spots while I couldn't keep my eyes off Alaska. I wouldn't have been mad if Katya won, but I agreed with Ru on this outcome. I'm split on the decision to send Tatiana home--Alaska made a good point backstage that while Roxxy was in the bottom several times, Tati literally wasn't there for weeks. Hard to compare or really know what's fair. Personally, I think Tatiana's ad was a little flat, and thought Roxxy's was a notch better/more creative, while Tati's runway killed and Roxxy's was good but nothing spectacular. It's a virtual tie in my eyes. I've been hard on Roxxy in the past, but have softened to her over the past couple of weeks. Maybe I'm extra soft because now that Phi Phi's gone, I really like everybody who's still around, though Alaska and Katya are my faves.

I couldn't resist going back, and it seems like some queens change (Alyssa, Phi Phi) and some haven't (Detox, Alaska, Roxxy). It really changes the dynamic from regular seasons, like when poor Acid Betty had to LSFHL in pregnant Madonna drag.

I thought they were both great, too, but have to wonder if they coordinated their outfits on purpose. The almost-identical cuts of the costumes paired with thigh-high boots can't be a coincidence, right? I'm also wondering if the queens will change clothes for the lip sync going forward--this only started with Phi Phi in her weird catsuit, if I'm correct (other than shoe changes).

Shady shade! A clip that would normally start the next episode is already up on Logo.tv. It shows the immediate post-Phi Phi chop mirror reaction. Seems like Ru/the producers HAVE HAD IT with her and her negative campaign against them. Personally, I think the truth lies somewhere in between Phi Phi's version and what we see on tv, but she's looking increasingly bad as she makes her media tour of sadness and recriminations.

Disclaimer: I watched the first few seasons of this show when it was on, but once I was living on my own without television, I was only a casual watcher and might have missed some nuances (lol). But even back in the 90s, I hated the retroactive canonization of Donna by the writers/producers, which didn't seem to mesh with the way the character was first shown and also seemed like a suck-up to Old Man Spelling. Listening to this podcast has made me appreciate Donna a little more, and hate Saint Kelly a lot more. I totally agree with you all who point out that she has moments where she's the better friend.