S09.E10: Makeovers: Crew Better Work

[OnceSane]

Quote

The queens make over members of the ``Drag Race'' crew; singer Kesha and gown designer Zaldy guest judge.

[Eater of Worlds]

Yikes, Nina.  Her message started out with "Debbie Downer is gone.  Sue me!"

[Primetimer]

Even out of drag, these guys seem pretty awesome. And in drag? FABULOUS.

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[Nerdlove]

I had to pause it but the final message was, "Debbie Downer is gone. Sue me! Shea Coulee, I hope you have trouble cleaning this. Love you all!" I think the "sue me" thing is just her attempt at a catch phrase. Sigh.

I don't know what to say about the show exactly, especially since I'd had it spoiled, but I do have to say that WOW DID RU LOOK GORGEOUS TONIGHT. I usually don't really care one way or another about her looks -- I actually am kind of more into his boy looks -- but tonight? whew! Head! to! Toe! Is it just me?

[CaioF]

Again, no surprises for me since I got hit by the spoilers. I was wondering what would put Shea on the bottom and wow at her sister looks... Seems like she went out of time and I´m on Michelle side here, that wasnt no excuses for that. So we got the top, middle and bottom right and spot on critics. Peppermint really got outshined by her sister (hilaaarious) and still needs to step out on her wardrobe department. Sasha is finally giving the thing that was missing on her on the first half of the competition: FUN! 

Now, I have to say, prior to tonight I would say Shea would be the most well rounded queen of the season.. But after her lip sync and watching Trinity go from beauty pageant, to fierce, to fun, to fashion/outside the box (last week) and show her self as a fierce lip syncer, I think she is the one showing she has it all. Lets see how the rest of the season plays, but Shea lip sync didnt own me/was too basic and I was expecting some waay more fierce from her. I even found Nina´s a little more endering in moments.. If she wasnt a walking dead queen, IDK if the results would be the same.

Edited May 27, 2017 by CaioF

[apollonia666]

1 minute ago, CaioF said:

Now, I have to say, prior to tonight I would say Shea would be the most well rounded queen of the season.. But after her lip sync and watching Trinity go from beauty pageant, to fierce, to fun, to fashion/outside the box (last week) and show her self as a fierce lip syncer, I think she is the one showing she has it all. Lets see how the rest of the season plays, but I Shea lip sync didnt own me/was too basic and I was expecting some waay more fierce from her.

It wasn't the sickest ever, but I thought Shea's lip sync was more than solid. I appreciated that she didn't do any tricks or death drops. Granted, that gown might be why but I suspect she consciously chose not to.

I could watch Sarge/Wintergreen all day! When she was just making the whole panel crack up with her facial expressions I was SCREECHING.

[Ruby Gillis]

8 minutes ago, apollonia666 said:

It wasn't the sickest ever, but I thought Shea's lip sync was more than solid. I appreciated that she didn't do any tricks or death drops. Granted, that gown might be why but I suspect she consciously chose not to.

I wish they had a better song to lip sync to.  Since they obviously wanted Shea to stay and to also give her a story arc by putting her in the bottom, they should have picked a song that suited her.  

[hoosier80]

I think Nina would even be in a foul mood if she'd won the whole thing.  She is a Debbie Downer. 

I worked with a woman like that years ago.  I'd say it's a nice day outside today.  Her response:  well, it's too hot, cold, sunny (yes it would be too sunny!), cloudy - you name it.  Never was anything good.  She had bitched about not being promoted.  Got promoted, then bitched about being given other work or more work to do.  Oy.  Nina just hit me the same way.   It's just too much to be around someone who is that consistently down all the time.  You have to work hard to not get yourself in that frame of mind, plus you do start to distance yourself from them, out of a self preservation instinct I think. 

It's too bad because Nina is talented.  The rest of the girls had to have felt relief after she left.

The lip sync was ok.  I thought Shea was a bit more energetic, and it was definitely time for Nina to sashay away.

[annewithaneee]

Even though some of the songs are bops (like tonight's "Cool for the Summer", I am so going to get a speeding ticket someday soon for feeling my oats far too much driving along to that one), I think bubblegum isn't right for LYSFLs. Not this current crop of Disney girls and their peers, anyway. I've found pretty much all of the Taylor Swift, Selena Gomez, Ariana Grande, Demi, and especially that god-awful Meghan Trainor song to be really boring and set up most of the queens for a lackluster performance. They just don't work for a grown-ass queen. I get that Beyonce and Rihanna might be a little too pricey, but there are other options! It also wouldn't hurt to pull out some mid-aughts goodies like "Dirrty" and "Glamorous" and "One Two Step" and whatnot. And why have we never had a rap track (that I can recall)? I mean, come on, Missy Elliott, Lil Kim, and Nicki Minaj all have a lot to offer, both for those who are looking to show off their insane precision and the ones who can flip and shablam all over the stage. Basically, I don't blame Shea for that lip sync not being uber exciting...she didn't have a ton to work with.

This was by far my favorite makeover episode ever! It was ingenious to bring in makeover-ees who already knew the show and the queens well, and it also sidestepped the annoying gay panic moments some of the other straight men have had in past seasons. Obviously, being comfortable around drag queens was a given for these guys, and I found them all delightful. Also, they avoided some of my judging pet peeves from past seasons, where they couldn't seem to decide if it was more important for the queen or their sister to shine. This was just breezy and fun, and I thought all of the looks were at least okay, other than Nina and her sister's. Duncan and Sarge both cracked me up so much! I do wish we'd gotten a little more biographical info on all the crew members, and/or maybe a behind-the-scenes clip of some of them interacting with the queens in prior episodes. Like, if Duncan runs a notoriously tight ship like Sasha said, I'd love to see a quick little fun snippet of that in action. But really, no complaints, and I'm glad to see how the season has been on an upward progression, I'm liking it more and more each week.

[themajormotoko]

I agree about Nina on a lot of points.  I have been in that constant state of depression and anxiety.  It's a killer and it drives people away.  I hope Nina is able to find the kind of help she needs.  It will be a long road and not at all easy. She is a talent but needs to change the tape that keeps playing in her head.

I hope Alexis is the next to go.  Her attitude is annoying.  I am pulling for either Shea or Sasha, but would be just fine with Trinity or Peppermint.

[okerry]

I had not been enjoying Ru's runway looks so much this season - until tonight. My dear gods, but that was beauty incarnate. I thought she looked great before, but this topped anything I've seen up to now.

Sarge stole the whole show. Can we crown Sarge for this season?

If we can't have Sarge, I'm still down with Sasha.

Bob & Katya's commercials are still better than anything else on the whole show. Well, except Ru's runway tonight. Still dead from that.

[themajormotoko]

Sarge was a hoot! He was loving it and you can tell.   They all seemed to have fun and were comfortable with doing drag.   I loved it!

[Glade]

I couldn't believe that the lipsync song wasn't Kesha's Tik Tok! That would have been amazeballs. Trinity had the drag resemblance tonight, but I'm still never going to be behind her basic pageant ass. I loved Sasha's looks more, and was impressed that she didn't make the mistake of reaching for a bald cap. Nina predictably flatlined, and I'm glad she's gone, her outfits never matched her makeup skills.

[HunterHunted]

It looks like our final 3 are pretty much settled: Shea, Sasha, and Trinity. Fourth place is between Peppermint and Wintergreen. That's how much of non-muthafuckin' factor I find Alexis to be.

Nina is a mess. Her makeover person was sitting there trying to prop her up. What the fuck is that even? I know they do some level of psychological screening and monitoring to make sure that things like Russell Armstrong's suicide, the Megan Wants a Millionaire murder, and Tanya Cooley's rape don't happen again, but Nina appears to be clinically depressed. She's unbelievably paranoid. She's on set filming for at least 12 hours everyday and given very little down time. She's sequestered in a hotel and unable to contact her support group without producer authorization. She shouldn't have even been cleared to be on the show.

I can see how the producers may have thought that they were casting another Jinkx Monsoon or Katya, but Nina isn't that performer. Nina's drag is quirky and weird like Katya and Jinkx, but they were slightly more confident and optimistic performers. They are also more intellectual than Nina. They weren't particularly defensive about their style of drag and Jinkx was always adamant that her purpose on the show was to do the best Jinkx drag that she could do. Nina still does her Nina drag, but is already defensive, angry, and suspicious before a single word is uttered in praise or criticism.

On 5/26/2017 at 8:58 PM, annewithaneee said:

Even though some of the songs are bops (like tonight's "Cool for the Summer", I am so going to get a speeding ticket someday soon for feeling my oats far too much driving along to that one), I think bubblegum isn't right for LYSFLs. Not this current crop of Disney girls and their peers, anyway. I've found pretty much all of the Taylor Swift, Selena Gomez, Ariana Grande, Demi, and especially that god-awful Meghan Trainor song to be really boring and set up most of the queens for a lackluster performance. They just don't work for a grown-ass queen. I get that Beyonce and Rihanna might be a little too pricey, but there are other options! It also wouldn't hurt to pull out some mid-aughts goodies like "Dirrty" and "Glamorous" and "One Two Step" and whatnot. And why have we never had a rap track (that I can recall)? I mean, come on, Missy Elliott, Lil Kim, and Nicki Minaj all have a lot to offer, both for those who are looking to show off their insane precision and the ones who can flip and shablam all over the stage. Basically, I don't blame Shea for that lip sync not being uber exciting...she didn't have a ton to work with.

Agree with you completely about these teeny bopper bubblegum songs not being great for lipsyncs. It made me wonder why the show couldn't dig into the musical catalog of one of VH1's sister assets under Viacom. It turns out Viacom has almost no musical assets. It has 2 labels one for comedy albums and another for Nickelodeon albums. 

On 5/26/2017 at 9:58 PM, Glade said:

I couldn't believe that the lipsync song wasn't Kesha's Tik Tok! That would have been amazeballs. 

Kesha was still in the middle of her lawsuit against Dr. Luke and Sony when this was filmed. There is no way that any of the parties were going to OK the use of the song because they all hate each other so much that they're willfully spiteful just to fuck over the other party.

Edited May 28, 2017 by HunterHunted

[CaioF]

Untucked this week is pretty much all the queens having a good time, praising each other hard work with the boys and Nina dead behind them till she return as the phantom of the negative energy going on about give up on the lyp sinc. In other hand, very nice from the guy that was paired with her watching her in the bottom/eliminated and getting really emotional.

Edited May 27, 2017 by CaioF

[Sile]

3 hours ago, hoosier80 said:

I think Nina would even be in a foul mood if she'd won the whole thing.  She is a Debbie Downer. 

 

My dad would put it this way:  She'd bitch if she was hung with a new rope.

I started this season not being a fan of Sasha (I actively disliked her after the cheerleading challenge), but she's pretty much my horse at this point.  I don't know if it's me, her or a combination of both, but these last few weeks have been a severe turnaround.

Adding to the Ru looks incredible tonight!

Edited May 27, 2017 by Sile
show thoughts

[Nerdlove]

I wish Sarge could... I don't know. Just be everywhere, somehow, as like, the perfect antidote to toxic masculinity. I mean, he's named SARGE and had been in the army, and kind of gives off a vibe like he might still be in the army, and yet -- ? Not at all dismissive -- much less scared of or disgusted by -- of gay men or gay culture, or femininity. In other words, I love Sarge.

I also loved Aaron, the tattooed, pierced guy who worked with Nina. What a perceptive, kind soul. He really tried to reach Nina and it might have even worked a little tiny bit.

Really, all of the guys seemed really sweet and really game.

Ross Matthew's dumb gag where he held up a leg with a high heeled shoe? It was SO DUMB but it actually really made me chuckle.

The shot of the crew members all in wigs and heels, and then Ru's comments to the crew afterward, made me tear up a tiny bit!

Someone on Reddit was saying that Ru's makeup tonight was done by Darienne Lake. Whoever it was, Ru looked lovely. It actually reminded me of the makeup Michelle Visage had for a few episodes last season, when she looked so stunning. I wonder if Ru was like, "Zaldi gave me a damn gorgeous gown, I need a really, really, really good mug tonight. Get someone who knows what they're fucking doing, please."

More thoughts:

- Couldn't the crew guys have shaved the night before they came in? (I know the answer to that.)

- Shea seemed genuinely sad to think that it came across as if she didn't care about her drag sister.  She let out a Farrah style whine or two about it! It was endearing as heck.

- It was really fun to watch RuPaul's banter with Duncan on stage. Duncan is an assistant producer, and judging by the queens' reaction to him, must be an important and imposing presence during filming. So though he works under Ru, he's probably only a notch or two below Michelle in terms of importance. So this is banter almost between equals. I don't know, I dug it.

- It was also fun to watch the judging table get into that huge giggle fit. They seemed more vocal throughout, and really, they were a lot o fun too. Zaldi knew what he was talking about and had life to him.  And Kesha was obviously having the time of her life.

- I got really irritated by Sasha during the princess challenge, when she made that insufferable "Princess of Self-Doubtia" or whatever it was. But she has really, really, really grown on me. For me, Sasha and Shea are running neck and neck in terms of both whether I think they could win, or should win.

Edited May 27, 2017 by Nerdlove

[GreyBunny]

Sarge stole the show!  He's like the lovechild of Michael Chiklis and Divine.  I know that his comment about being on season 10 was a joke, but really, THIS MUST HAPPEN.
 

[Corgi-ears]

This made me laugh and laugh. I mean, she made Aaron lie down and outlined him, like he was a dead body on Law and Order SVU. Priceless. Nina Bo'Nina's Seamstress School for Beginners: would definitely watch.

Edited May 27, 2017 by Corgi-ears

[Xazeal]

This was a fun one. So glad we seem to be completely done with the sad makeup stories, and I'm so glad Nina is gone. I don't dislike her, but like the queens, I'm exhausted. And with Nina not knowing how to sew, she would've failed next week's challenge anyway.

Now, I actually like Cool for the Summer, but when I heard it would be the lip sync song this week, I had a feeling it wouldn't be great. Maybe I just have no creativity or imagination, but I wouldn't really know what to do with that. It feels more like a runway song - and indeed, both of them spent a lot of time just strutting the stage. I think Shea at least showed a lot of fire and attitude, but when she inevitably makes the final three, I hope she gets to do a fun R&B/Hip Hop number for the grand finale.

[Cosmic Muffin]

Untucked here!

I almost forgot about Untucked, here's the link!

[heckkitty]

Shea may have blown it on the hair and makeup, but her sister's mug was fierce. When they were showing just the crew queens in untucked, I kept forgetting it was Bae & wondering why Shea was back there. Nina had zero energy in that lip sync. It was hard to watch (although not nearly as hard as last week's disaster)

[CaioF]

2 hours ago, heckkitty said:

Shea may have blown it on the hair and makeup, but her sister's mug was fierce. When they were showing just the crew queens in untucked, I kept forgetting it was Bae & wondering why Shea was back there. Nina had zero energy in that lip sync. It was hard to watch (although not nearly as hard as last week's disaster)

This season will be known as the one with the queens that threw the towel on the lip sync. 3 times. Yes, Nina pretended she was trying (just after the other queens pretty much beg to her to not totally blow it like Charlie and Valentina, but still, you could see she was serving like her 60/70%.

Edited May 27, 2017 by CaioF

[Clearlyhere]

This was the most fun episode of the season so far. I wonder if the show will be better without the energy suck that is Nina. Fun performer, but total energy suck.

Those girls did a great job on the crew. Even the cute ones had very masculine faces, so no one had an easy job. Though Alexis is annoying me a lot at this point, her crew member looked great. Her intergalactic hooker was maybe a little home sown, but she did it. They really looked good together. Sasha, my favorite, keeps turning out interesting looks. Her choreography may not have been as good as Trinity's, but we couldn't tell from the show.

At this point, I think Trinity is going to win. Sasha needs to step it up in the entertainment department because her looks are amazing. She's got to be top 3.

Loved the episode.

[JohnnyGilda]

15 hours ago, HunterHunted said:

It looks like our final 3 are pretty much settled: Shea, Sasha, and Trinity. Fourth place is between Peppermint and Wintergreen. That's how much of non-muthafuckin' factor I find Alexis to be.

Next time they wanna bring back a queen to pop out of a box, it needs to be Wintergreen. She was fiercer in a few minutes than some of this season's queens were over several episodes.

Zaldy and Ru killed it with that gown.

I like "Cool for the Summer"...for a pool party, or doing the dishes. Shea did the best she could with it, especially since her look was a little more "Confident" than "Cool."

[HunterHunted]

2 hours ago, CaioF said:

This season will be known as the one with the queens that threw the towel on the lip sync. 3 times. Yes, Nina pretended she was trying (just after the other queens pretty much beg to her to not totally blow it like Charlie and Valentina, but still, you could see she was serving like her 60/70%.

The thing that is so remarkable about it is that even if you don't win, your bookings tend to increase. Chi Chi was able to quit working at Walmart to be a full time drag queen. Chi Chi walked in there wearing trash bags and discount makeup and left with a full-time  career and international recognition. Nina was not able to see the opportunity that this was. Farrah was on Watch What Happens Live this week doing a crap Lisa Vanderpump from Real Housewives of Beverly Hills drag, but she still got the booking.

I don't know if Nina is on medication or seeing a therapist, but she should be.

[laschifosavita]

I think that "Cool for the Summer" has potential as a lip sync song, but the interest would come from switching up the intensity and style at the right points in the song, which isn't something that either queen went for.

[CaioF]

9 minutes ago, HunterHunted said:

The thing that is so remarkable about it is that even if you don't win, your bookings tend to increase. Chi Chi was able to quit working at Walmart to be a full time drag queen. Chi Chi walked in there wearing trash bags and discount makeup and left with a full-time  career and international recognition. Nina was not able to see the opportunity that this was. Farrah was on Watch What Happens Live this week doing a crap Lisa Vanderpump from Real Housewives of Beverly Hills drag, but she still got the booking.

I don't know if Nina is on medication or seeing a therapist, but she should be.

Yes, and that was the point the other queens tried do show to her. They were not only concerned for her but for themselves cause they all want to be remembered for being on a fierce season, not on a weak one were queens gave up on lip syncs one after the other. And also like Shea pointed it out, Nina giving up would just take the merit and the attention of her winning the lyp sinc. That Lip Sync that Trinity was on, was supose to be memorable for the fact that she was killer on the stage but people will remember more on how patetic Charlie´s performances was. And Nina should knew better herself after her lip sync with Valentina, how she felt abou it.

Edited May 27, 2017 by CaioF

[OnceSane]

I cannot be sad about Nina Bonina Brown Louis-Dreyfus sashaying away.  She did all the work for me with her constant sadsack self.  I get she has issues, but, girl, do better!  She gave up two weeks ago but was only put out of our misery in this episode.

The drag sisters were everything…I'm gonna need to see an audition tape from Wintergreen no later than season 12. ;)

I. Want. Ru's. Dress.  She slayed!  

[Silly Angel]

I had a big smile on my face the whole episode--well, since the crew was introduced, not during the depressed and depressing Nina parts at the beginning. But overall, this was DELIGHTFUL. Nothing on TV makes me feel that way. (Granted, I mostly watch kill-yourself-TV like Black Mirror and The Handmaid's Tale, but still.)

Speaking of Nina, considering all the shit she puts on her face, her skin is gorgeous. Either that or the lighting guy was so jealous that he didn't get chosen to be a drag sister that he went out of his way to demonstrate his mad ninja lighting powers. Also, After the third or fourth time Nina pulled out the exaggerated-cheekbones/skull/animal face makeup thing, I wondered why the judges never called her on it. And then she did it again, only shittily. They did call her on everything below the neck, though, which I thought was weird. I get that her drag aesthetic is unique and I welcome new flavors into the drag world, but a RPDR winner has to be adaptable. That said, when Ru sashayed her away with "Nina Bonina Andre Charles," I teared up a little bit. Way to show compassion and solidarity with your unstable queen, Ru. Bitch is a class act.

"Have you ever seen a dog walking in snow?" Oh, Trinity, never change.

[luckyroll3]

"Natalie Portman?!?! That's not part of the Coulee brand." 

Me: 

[RMH1]

I have been as tired of Nina as anyone else, but she got me on her side this episode when she talked about the fact that people can talk her up, but it won't mean anything until she believes it herself. She seems to recognize that she has an interior, not exterior, problem.

But then she lost me again with Untucked when she basically said she was going to give up and let Shea win - and despite the episode write-up here, I saw that lip-sync as her giving up, though not in as obvious a way as Valentina or Charlie.

I loved seeing the crew members - I would have guessed that they were pleasant people, but I was so surprised by how entertaining they were - funny, clever, and insightful.

I still think Peppermint is going to win Miss Congeniality, no contest - that is unless she makes it to the top (no queen who makes it to the finale episode - usually top 3-4, depending on how they slice it - has ever won). Her talking heads are gold, her facial expressions are endlessly capturable and gif-able, and she has given us no reason to dislike her.

[RealReality]

22 hours ago, apollonia666 said:

It wasn't the sickest ever, but I thought Shea's lip sync was more than solid. I appreciated that she didn't do any tricks or death drops. Granted, that gown might be why but I suspect she consciously chose not to.

I could watch Sarge/Wintergreen all day! When she was just making the whole panel crack up with her facial expressions I was SCREECHING.

Sarge was the best!  But I liked Sasha's partner too.

Nina deserved to go home, that LSFYL was lackluster.  This season has had a lot of lip sync'ing duds

[RealReality]

3 hours ago, Silly Angel said:

I had a big smile on my face the whole episode--well, since the crew was introduced, not during the depressed and depressing Nina parts at the beginning. But overall, this was DELIGHTFUL. Nothing on TV makes me feel that way. (Granted, I mostly watch kill-yourself-TV like Black Mirror and The Handmaid's Tale, but still.)

Speaking of Nina, considering all the shit she puts on her face, her skin is gorgeous. Either that or the lighting guy was so jealous that he didn't get chosen to be a drag sister that he went out of his way to demonstrate his mad ninja lighting powers. Also, After the third or fourth time Nina pulled out the exaggerated-cheekbones/skull/animal face makeup thing, I wondered why the judges never called her on it. And then she did it again, only shittily. They did call her on everything below the neck, though, which I thought was weird. I get that her drag aesthetic is unique and I welcome new flavors into the drag world, but a RPDR winner has to be adaptable. That said, when Ru sashayed her away with "Nina Bonina Andre Charles," I teared up a little bit. Way to show compassion and solidarity with your unstable queen, Ru. Bitch is a class act.

"Have you ever seen a dog walking in snow?" Oh, Trinity, never change.

I wonder why Nina didn't do a make on a paper doll dress?  Maybe like two girls at easter dressed as bunny rabbits.  Paper would have been tough...no doubt about it, and very, very hard to do complicated choreography in, but I think with the right silhouette it could have worked, and it would have been better than simple corset/thigh high boots she did.  And it may have only required a glue gun instead of actual sewing skills (which...again girl, this show has been on the air for 9 seasons now, how you just learn to sew when you get here, doesn't the local Fabric World have a class?)

I didn't much care for the paper headdress at all.

[RealReality]

3 hours ago, laschifosavita said:

I think that "Cool for the Summer" has potential as a lip sync song, but the interest would come from switching up the intensity and style at the right points in the song, which isn't something that either queen went for.

This was actually a song for death drops and gymnastics.  A queen that was really bringing it would have served that song up like a plate of fried chicken.  Next season, Ru really needs to read queens that don't bring it 100% in the LSFYL.  Or bar them from the reunion, or something.  Or maybe have them LSFYL in order to even get on the show.  Sort of like Top Chef or Hells Kitchen where they will bring in more than the 12 show contestants and make them fight for their spot.  I'm tired of these sad sack LSFYLs.

[HunterHunted]

3 hours ago, laschifosavita said:

I think that "Cool for the Summer" has potential as a lip sync song, but the interest would come from switching up the intensity and style at the right points in the song, which isn't something that either queen went for.

I wish I could remember where I saw this, but someone on another website suggested that this song would have worked if it had been used in a different episode. The suggestion was to use it during 9021-Ho and making the sexy selfie beach mini challenge the runway theme. The acting challenge was just generally lighter and the beach wear would have made it possible for tricks and stunts.

[annewithaneee]

2 hours ago, RealReality said:

This was actually a song for death drops and gymnastics.  A queen that was really bringing it would have served that song up like a plate of fried chicken.  Next season, Ru really needs to read queens that don't bring it 100% in the LSFYL.  Or bar them from the reunion, or something.  Or maybe have them LSFYL in order to even get on the show.  Sort of like Top Chef or Hells Kitchen where they will bring in more than the 12 show contestants and make them fight for their spot.  I'm tired of these sad sack LSFYLs.

Or maybe stop casting Instagram queens. All of the lip sync assassins have one thing in common -- they are all vets of performing at clubs night after night for years. Charlie's kind of an outlier as she's worked for forever but apparently not lip syncing for tips. I get the temptation of casting girls that already have a strong social media presence before filming begins, but I think that's been a huge weak spot since Season 7. And the more Insta queens that make it on the show, the more that apply, and it's feeding itself. I personally want to see the next Jujubee, not the newest version of Pearl. I think this trend is hurting other aspects of the show too, but it's really showing especially this season in the LSFYLs. 

[Cosmic Muffin]

I think you're on to something, Annewithaneee. Something is lacklustre this season, and I can't put my finger on it, but I think the boring ldfyl are evidence of a greater problem. I still rewatch old lip syncs, Manila dressed as big bird, Latrice owning the stage by standing still, Dita Ritz literally pissed off but using it, etc.

I think any song could be dubbed over Jaymes vs Kimora and it would make as much sense as what they did to Love Shack. Or, it would fail to make as much sense as what they did to Love Shack. Put some Nine Inch Nails or an annoying commercial jingle over the clip of them "dancing", it couldn't be worse. The Barney theme song might even improve whatever that mess was.

I can't even rewatch any from this season for the train wreck factor, i.e. Charlie and Valentina. I bet given a chance, Eureka would have turned it out in a lip sync. I hope we get to see her next season (I'm not hoping she gets sent home).

I liked Nina, and I hope she gets a professional boost as well as whatever would help her that she'd be willing to accept or participate in. I don't know if she'd go for therapy or antidepressants, and those things take time even for those willing to try them. I like the remaining queens, although Alexis not that much. Peppermint is best in her TH or in Untucked. But I also hope she gets a big boost from being on the show.

I hope they fix whatever went wrong here in Season 10.

[ChelseaNH]

When they cut to the crew in wigs and heels in solidarity, I confess my first thought was, "So, no women on the crew?"

[Kaboom 2.0]

15 hours ago, luckyroll3 said:

"Natalie Portman?!?! That's not part of the Coulee brand." 

Me: 

OMG ME TOO (and also Ru's entire runway look especially that gorgeous gown by Zaldi!). The more I see of Shea the more I luv her. I will be tickled pink if she or Sasha are crowned. For a while I thought Nina would also be top 3 but these last few episodes...sigh. I just hope she finds the help she needs post-show, she does seem to be aware that she has some problems so that's a start. She is so talented and I want her to succeed in her drag career. 

Zaldi gave us a one two punch: designing that gorgeous gown for Ru and for being such a thoughtful, fun judge who seamlessly blended in with the judging panel. And Kesha! She was so cute and you can tell she loved being there. I hope she and Sarge forge a friendship after this. LOL 

Is there a petition we can sign for Sarge to be in season 10? We need to see more of that beautiful beautiful man. I so love how open Ru's crew members are.

I must admit, I appreciate Trinity's balls to the wall, we-WILL-get-this-done and here's how attitude with her drag sister, I guess that comes from being in the pageant world?

Have not watched Untucked yet, I'm almost dreading watching Nina allow that dark cloud to envelop her again. :-(

[RMH1]

19 hours ago, RealReality said:

this show has been on the air for 9 seasons now, how you just learn to sew when you get here, doesn't the local Fabric World have a class?

Farrah Moan said on Untucked when she was leaving to take a sewing class before you audition, because you won't have time once you know you're going to be on the show. I'm not sure if she meant you will be too busy, you have to be on the show too soon, or if she was just complaining. 

[okerry]

16 hours ago, annewithaneee said:

Or maybe stop casting Instagram queens. All of the lip sync assassins have one thing in common -- they are all vets of performing at clubs night after night for years.

I certainly agree. Where are the performers? Where are the entertainers? Above all, I want a drag queen to entertain me, make me laugh, and make me fall in love with her beauty and outrageous personality. The only one coming close this season is Sasha, and that was only after I saw her Marlene Dietrich on Snatch Game (yes, I'm still mentioning that, lol, but that sort of thing is exactly what I love to see.)

[HunterHunted]

19 hours ago, annewithaneee said:

Or maybe stop casting Instagram queens. All of the lip sync assassins have one thing in common -- they are all vets of performing at clubs night after night for years. Charlie's kind of an outlier as she's worked for forever but apparently not lip syncing for tips. I get the temptation of casting girls that already have a strong social media presence before filming begins, but I think that's been a huge weak spot since Season 7. And the more Insta queens that make it on the show, the more that apply, and it's feeding itself. I personally want to see the next Jujubee, not the newest version of Pearl. I think this trend is hurting other aspects of the show too, but it's really showing especially this season in the LSFYLs. 

2 hours ago, okerry said:

I certainly agree. Where are the performers? Where are the entertainers? Above all, I want a drag queen to entertain me, make me laugh, and make me fall in love with her beauty and outrageous personality. The only one coming close this season is Sasha, and that was only after I saw her Marlene Dietrich on Snatch Game (yes, I'm still mentioning that, lol, but that sort of thing is exactly what I love to see.)

 

Instagram isn't the only problem. I would add that unless they have a ton of YouTube videos of them actually performing live, then hilarious videos are not any indication of how well as queen might perform. Jaymes Mansfield and Charlie Hides were both known for their very funny videos, but YouTube leads to a false sense of a queen's skills. The protracted time to plan, write, and edit a video does not mean that a queen will be able to entertain live. It might mean they can write good copy for their acting challenges, but Charlie was completely off during their morning show challenge because they only had one take. But then again, Alexis Michelle has been hit or miss and she allegedly does a bunch of hosting. 

It's so hard to know what does and doesn't work. For all of our carping about season 7 except for Max and Miss Fame, everyone else was half decent or actually funny. Pearl was actually hilarious as Big Ang. While, Alexis Michelle our hosting and theatre queen is kinda crap at the thing that is her passion. This isn't meant as a defense of Pearl because she was fairly terrible. It just feels like the talent pool has been lacking for the past couple of seasons. I'd actually be interested in knowing what each queen wants their career to be after the show. From Valentina's post show interviews, I'm getting the sense that she wants a Latin drag version of Hoda and Kathy Lee or Ellen. 

[Couver]

This was both a funny/sweet & sad episode. I have to agree with everyone that the crew being so game and willing to take anything on was fantastic. I loved the heart to heart the crew had with each of their sisters. It really showed that all the differences culture creatures regarding gender and sexuality are just constructs. Trinity & Glitta's conversation really captured that.

Sarge as MVP of everything! He also has a great face for drag. It was so expressive. I would love to see Wintergreen on season 10.

I'm a big Nina fan so I was sad to see her go. But like Jaymes I felt it was her time. The competition had really gotten to her head and I don't think it was in her best interests to be there any longer.  She seemed to get it there at the end in Untucked so hopefully that is the first step to getting control of her depression and self doubt.

22 hours ago, annewithaneee said:

Or maybe stop casting Instagram queens. All of the lip sync assassins have one thing in common -- they are all vets of performing at clubs night after night for years. Charlie's kind of an outlier as she's worked for forever but apparently not lip syncing for tips. I get the temptation of casting girls that already have a strong social media presence before filming begins, but I think that's been a huge weak spot since Season 7. And the more Insta queens that make it on the show, the more that apply, and it's feeding itself. I personally want to see the next Jujubee, not the newest version of Pearl. I think this trend is hurting other aspects of the show too, but it's really showing especially this season in the LSFYLs. 

I've also found that the insta queens bring with them a lot of young.....passionate fans. I'm generalizing of course and this isn't a knock on the insta queens since this isn't their fault. But I find the queens with a major instagram or social media fanbase tend to have followings that will bully other queens and the show when things don't go there way. It was most pronounced with Pearl when her fans attacked Jasmine Masters and then Raven for even mild criticism. But I saw it happen this season too with Aja. Nina's IG messages were lit up after she sent Aja home. It's brought a cyber bullying aspect to the show that I don't think was there before.

[Glade]

Personally, I want to see the next Kimchi, an amazingly talented, well-rounded instagram queen who brings an artistry to her looks that goes beyond what must queens are capable of.  I'd rather see that then the same old complaining by pageant/bar queens about how "I can lipsync and put on big old school hair and makeup, that's all that should matter, I shouldn't need to have any other talent for acting/singing/sewing/general creativity; how dare these young queens upstage me, how dare the world change!"

[Aerobicidal]

I was hoping someone would refer to Nina as Nina Bo'Nina Brown Cameron Bure, but maybe on All Stars 3.

This season is a chore for me to watch, but I don't think I'm the target audience anymore. That being said, Sasha is probably my second favorite contestant ever behind Tammie Brown (like I said, not the target audience).

[film noire]

On 5/27/2017 at 1:24 AM, Nerdlove said:

I wish Sarge could... I don't know. Just be everywhere, somehow, as like, the perfect antidote to toxic masculinity.

Sarge is a way of life. I will now be yelling "SARGE!" at random moments throughout my day.

8 hours ago, Couver said:

This was both a funny/sweet & sad episode. I have to agree with everyone that the crew being so game and willing to take anything on was fantastic. I loved the heart to heart the crew had with each of their sisters.

It reminded me of the athletic makeover challenge (season 3?) with all the (seeming) dudebros actually being deeply invested in getting it right, and watching the elimination in the Untucked lounge with bated breath -- so fucking magical.  What is it about a man cheerfully taking to a pair of heels and lipstick that makes the heart happy? Whatever it is, I'd like it to be part of the presidential race, the decision about who heads the UN, and the next G7 group photo (as well as something mr. film noire should be doing on major and minor holidays to delight me).

SARGE!

Edited May 29, 2017 by film noire

[OneWouldHope]

14 hours ago, Glade said:

Personally, I want to see the next Kimchi, an amazingly talented, well-rounded instagram queen who brings an artistry to her looks that goes beyond what must queens are capable of.  I'd rather see that then the same old complaining by pageant/bar queens about how "I can lipsync and put on big old school hair and makeup, that's all that should matter, I shouldn't need to have any other talent for acting/singing/sewing/general creativity; how dare these young queens upstage me, how dare the world change!"

Kimchi well-rounded? She couldn't even walk in heels and wasn't that good in skits, etc. all she had was face! (And costumes to some degree.) 

Anyway, agree with most of what's been said re this episode and what fun the crew was. Nice to see them up close and personal, as it were, after so long! Especially when you see little snippets on Untucked.

[Ruby Gillis]

9 hours ago, OneWouldHope said:

Kimchi well-rounded? She couldn't even walk in heels and wasn't that good in skits, etc. all she had was face! (And costumes to some degree.) 

I don't think Kimchi was well-rounded either, but she had that competitive fire that queens like Nina, Valentina, Pearl didn't have.  She was willing to try things out of her comfort zone and not give up, even when she was terrible at something.  That's one of the most important qualities to have on Drag Race, whether you are a live performer or an instagram queen.

I do feel bad that the contestants have to deal with social media so much these days.  That's probably hurting the show too.  People are too afraid to be themselves because they are under such scrutiny.  

Edited May 30, 2017 by Ruby Gillis

[ElectricBoogaloo]

My criteria for the makeover episodes is to look at the hair, makeup, and wardrobe because that's the responsibility of the RPDR contestant. Anything else like the way the makeover recipient walks, dances, or otherwise performs is just luck of the draw so I don't think that the competing queen should get credit for that. Based on that, I thought that Sasha did the best job at making her crew member look like her sister, which I thought was even more impressive because she didn't give them totally identical looks. Using the dress on her and the coat on the crew member gave them a cohesive look without being too matchy matchy.

I loved all the crew members who got makeovers. They were so laidback yet enthusiastic without being stressed out, which was a great combination. And I loved the shot of all the other crew members wearing wigs and heels while they shot the runway show! This episode warmed my cold black heart.

It was also nice to see Kesha laughing and having such a good time. Knowing the shit she has been through makes me glad that she got to enjoy herself and forget about all that other stuff for a few hours.

Zaldy was a great guest judge. He had thoughtful and specific critiques, which I always appreciate.

I couldn't believe that Nina, who can't sew, decided that this was a good time to try to sew not one but TWO outfits. Girl, no. I'm all for being ambitious, but you need to be realistic too. I did love her chalk outline approach to creating a pattern for her crew member though.

I can't argue with Nina and Shea being in the bottom this week because their looks were lackluster. Between the two of them, Shea was clearly fighting to stay in the LSFYL and Nina...was not. Although she did do more than stand and point, she barely did more. She had already given up so she deserved to be eliminated for her lackluster performance. I am glad that her makeover partner Aaron told her what everyone else has been saying - that she is her own worst enemy. I hope that because it came from someone else (as opposed to the other queens who have been telling her this for weeks), that she takes it to heart and eases up on the negativity. As Peppermint said, I'm supposed to cheer you up for doing well?

Edited May 30, 2017 by ElectricBoogaloo