Her choreo isn’t as technically demanding as Shea’s, but Cracker executes it well and delivers an entertaining show. Her lyrics are super fun, “make haters eat it like time for dinner / Mad ’cuz your man wants an All Stars winner” being a definite highlight. Cracker seems confident, and that’s reflected in her demeanor both in rehearsal and the final performance. Nonetheless, Cracker has accumulated three wins and tens of thousands of dollars this season (a lovely little quarantine nest egg), a track record that speaks for itself. In the olden days of Drag Race, winning the most challenges made you a shoe-in for the crown, but lately that hasn’t necessarily been the case, especially on All Stars. Cracker comes into this episode the most statistically likely to take the crown. In the words of Alexis Mateo: we love you, Juju! No lies there! Juju has only had one challenge win in her three seasons of Drag Race but still manages to make every list of the most beloved queens of all time. “You are the kind of person an audience roots for,” Ru says. The judges praise her like crazy, and we get a lovely little retrospective of 10 years of Jujubee. In a song called “Clap Back!” On the lyric “clap back.” But it’s hard to really care because, as usual, Juju is just so damn likeable! In spite of (or perhaps because of) her failure, she still manages to pop off hilarious confessionals: “Flexible? Well if you call me at 6 o’clock and you need me to be there at 7 I’ll be there at 7, but are my muscles flexible? No.” How can you not love her? On the runway though, it’s easily the best Jujubee has ever looked. In one particularly tough moment, Juju claps offbeat. Juju’s choreo is (say it with me) siiimple and yet she still seems to struggle with it. Juju is definitely the most ill-prepared for the challenge this week. Cracker, Shea, and Jujubee are tasked with writing personalized verses and dancing to Ru’s new single “Clap Back!” The song is just about as groundbreaking as it sounds, with lyrics like “Speak your mind! Say it twice!” I imagine Ru finding a nice little quiet corner of her ranch, clacking away at her typewriter, and deciding to rhyme “say that shit to me” with “def-i-nite-ly.” The Joni Mitchell of fracking oligarchs! It’s the top three who of course have the real challenge this week. They flesh out the dance number, and they each get a chance to show off one more expensive, custom garment that otherwise may never have had a life outside of their neatly curated Instagram grids. India, this season truly gave us a variety of India-based conflict.īut if anyone is having traumatic flashbacks to previous All Stars seasons, fear not: the eliminated queens are back for ornamental purposes only. But ultimately, we never get a full rehashing of any of the numerous plots that colored this season. Let’s get into it.įirst things first, the eliminated queens are back! The tête-à-tête on the Werkroom couches feels like a little taste of what a full reunion could have been like, and it is indeed satisfying to watch India come apart after her weeks-long deception begins to unravel. A talented and feisty cast of queens was buoyed by strong challenges, a fun format twist, and a winner who feels like just the sort of queen this franchise was made for. That said, I think this season of All Stars was ultimately quite successful, and probably the best since All Stars 2. So any season of All Stars always has an uphill battle. (Katya was robbed, mom!) It was only in the months after that fans finally began treating All Stars 2 for the television excellence it was all along. In fact, there’s only been one season of All Stars (season 2) that fans agree truly delivered on the inherent promise of “the best of the best.” Even in that season, though, many were quick to write it off for not crowning the fan fave. When the show strays from our assumptions (by sending queens home too early or too late) or queens exhibit behavior that contradicts this clandestine, infallible ranking system, the fandom reacts poorly. We, the audience, have preconceived notions of each queen’s skills and strengths, and we therefore create an unofficial “pecking order” that we assume must and will be followed. Part of the reason is that the cast, seasoned Drag Race alumni, come in with reputations. Not just this season, which had big shoes to fill after the compelling, well-received, and satisfying season 12, but every All Stars installation. All Stars has and always will be a tricky beast.
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