We were down to the big finale. Kind of.Sort of.If you accept the fact that
we won’t find out the winner for two freaking weeks. I understand why
the show changed its format after the Season 3 winner leak. I get why not
crowning a queen until the reunion is critical in an age of social media (and
the general gossipy nature of drag queens). But the show needs to tweak the way
it presents its final challenge going forward, because watching the final three
queens shoot a video that nobody will watch for a RuPaul
song that’s literally two years old just isn’t all that exciting. We still had
plenty of drama this episode thanks mostly to one finalist’s continued meltdown. But
knowing that no winner would be chosen, or that any of the finalists would be
eliminated, gave this episode a bit of a feeling of treading water.
As mentioned, the Final 3 — Alaska, Jinkx
Monsoon, and Roxxxy Andrews — had to shoot a video
for RuPaul’s song “The Beginning,” film a comedic (at
least for two-thirds of them) courtroom intro, have a heart-to-Tic Tac with Ru, and then present
their closing arguments for the win to the judges. They got coaching on how to
best plead their cases from “mega lawyer” Gloria Allred and ultimately had to
perform a three-way lipsynch.
The real story of the episode was the implosion of Roxxxy Andrews. Roxxxy has been
getting the villain edit since Coco Montrese was eliminated a few weeks back. That’s
standard operating procedure for a reality show — the audience must always have
someone to hate. I never found Roxxxy to be nearly as
offensive as last season’s designated bitch, Phi Phi
O’Hara, but the anti-Roxxxy vitriol has been ramping
up online for the past few weeks. It’s disconcerting, especially since most
people seem to be slamming Roxxxy for her perceived
bullying of Jinkx. And of course most of those
critics are, well, bullying Roxxxy.
I’m not trying to give Ms. Andrews a pass here. She herself
has posted on social media multiple times taking responsibility for her
increasingly negative comments, explaining that some of it had to do with
out-of-context editing, some of it was caused by being completely exhausted by the end of
the competition, and some of it was her lashing out because she knew that Jinkx was extremely stiff competition. So Roxxxy even acknowledges that her behavior was offputting in these last few episodes.
That continued in this sort-of finale, as Roxxxy insulted Jinkx on several
occasions, threw side-eye at the “comedy queens” for their inability to do
choreography (and hairography and, hilariously, “chiffonography”) for their music video, and then totally
lost her shit when she was overshadowed in the courtroom acting
sequence. After getting criticized by video director Mathu Anderson — who looks like he is auditioning for a spot on “Duck Dynasty” — Roxxxy launched into a workroom
tirade about how Jinkx and Alaska turned the
courtroom scenes into a joke, and how not everything has to be funny. Roxxxy is a professional! She takes drag very seriously!
And she doesn’t appreciate those two hacks making fun of her artform!
This is the part where a rational person would point out
that Roxxxy is a man who gets paid to put on clothes
and make-up and pretend to be a woman. In the words of modern-day philosopher
Alyssa Edwards: “It’s not personal. It’s drag.”
Ultimately Roxxxy performed best in the music video (what we saw of
it, at least) and looked the most glamorous on the runway. Jinkx
was a standout in the acting portion and quite endearing in the sit-down with Ru. (Jinkx apparently had an
epiphany about the fact that her drag persona is a middle-aged lady is likely
linked to the troubled relationship Jerrick had with
his mother growing up).
But it was Alaska who I think quietly stole the show. She
was an awkward mess in the dancing parts of the video, but she was really funny
in the acting scenes. Beyond that, she amped up her usual trashed-celebutant look for the runway, delivered an impassioned
final speech (I could have done without her trashing her competitors in it, but
as Ru herself pointed out, that was part of the
assignment — and only Alaska did it), and I think she won the lip synch as
well. Roxxxy weirdly gravitated toward the back of
the stage, and Jinkx was solid. But Alaska really
threw herself into it. I was impressed.
As predicted Ru
did not make her final decision. That will wait until the reunion, and
she asked viewers to vote for their pick on the “Drag Race” Facebook
page, Twitter, and all manner of social media. Clever girl,
that Ru.
I still see this as a two-horse race. Roxxxy
has her supporters, and is a very polished queen. But I just don’t see her
having any real shot after the exceedingly negative portrait painted of her the
past few weeks. She’s tried to handle it as graciously as possible, but at this
point I don’t see how she can recover enough before the reunion. Beyond that, I
don’t think her performance over the course of the season could justify a win.
She was strong in the beginning, faltered in the middle, and came back strong
toward the end. Her strengths are her beauty and polish, and she’s a fairly
decent performer, even in areas where she wouldn’t normally excel. Her attitude
is a real problem, and I have a hard time believing that Ru
— who is obviously well aware of the backstage stuff at this point –would reward
that kind of negativity. (I am also incredulous that Roxxxy and the show are pushing the “big girl” angle at
this late date. Roxxxy could barely qualify as
plus-sized when the show started, and I think she LOST weight during
filming.)
That leaves just Jinkx and Alaska.
Jinkx has gotten the underdog edit ever since she
first stood out in the Snatch Game. Some of the other queens have taken issue with
that edit, saying that Jinkx was not nearly the
victim she was portrayed as on the show, and I would argue that the pity-poor-Jinkx edit has actually lost her some potential fans. But
there’s no question that she is a very strong performer, a seasoned actor,
singer, and comedian. She’s smart and has a real point of view. And she has
grown tremendously over the course of the competition, especially in her visual
presentation. But is her drag too limited? Does she rely too much on schtick to really break through into the mainstream?
Alaska came in with everything seemingly stacked against
her. Like Detox, she was a known entity with huge
expectations to meet (unlike Detox, Alaska actually
met them). And she was repeatedly, and unfairly, compared to her partner, S4 winner Sharon Needles.
But she got an interesting edit, the Little Drag Engine that Could. After an
uninspiring start (remember her giving up in the first-episode photo
challenge?) she started gaining traction, wisely detached herself from Rolaskatox, and repeatedly impressed with her razor-sharp
wit and ability to adapt to whatever the challenge required. It’s no fluke that she never appeared in the Bottom 2. She also managed to stay out of the drama almost completely, which was no
easy feat with this bunch of bitches. Alaska’s weakness is that she still seems plagued by self doubt, and she also seems the type to wait for the
spotlight to fall on her rather than snatch it outright. That’s not going to
serve her well in her post-show career, win or lose.
What do you think? Who will be named America’s Next Drag
Superstar in two weeks? Did you vote?
Next week: the season recap, with more flapping drag-queen wang, this week’s unaired “Untucked,”
and the debut of that video that, seriously, nobody is going to watch. Sorry, Ru! You need to put out new music, dear.
This article appears in Apr 17-23, 2013.
ALASKA IS THE BEST DRAG SUPERSTAR AND SHE SHOULD BE THE NEXT QUEEN. MISS RUPAUL YOUR SHOW IS BEST AND I WILL BE WATCHING NEXT SEASON SWEETHEART. NANCY SAUNDERS
Alaska
Alaska should be the next drag superstar.
JINX!!!!!!!!
ALASKA ALASKA ALASKAAA!!! i love you girl you have everything that it takes to be America next top superstar! Thru all the bs and all the criticism of being the partner of the last winner, you became your own person & role model. I love you girl & YOU ARE AMERICAS NEXT TOP DRAG SUPER STAR!!!! Your beautiful funny & the most importantly you showed how a real champion should be. Win it girl for the real people, you kept it 100%. LOVE YOU GIRL HOPE YOU MAKE IT TO NUMBER ONE BECAUSE YOU DESERVE ITTTT!!!!
JINXX! Were pulling for you!
Alaska BETTER win this! Jinx is a bit too sloppy / cliche, and Roxy is the epitome of tacky, in overall look & attitude. Alaska embodies spontaneity, personality, consistency & growth.
Are you guys serious? Jinx is the embodiment of all things drag and glamour!
You have my vote Jinxy!
I think either Jinkx or Alaska should win
Eric, thank you for writing such a balanced piece. And I so agree. Alaska has shown growth and maturity. And then, so has Jinx. Roxy … well, lets face it … she thinks her shit doesn’t stink! And I’m guessing that it does! She is nasty and can be overly personal. She talks about being pageant, but let’s face it, she is a plus size pageant at best.
I was definitely TEAM JINX, but now I certainly wouldn’t be upset if Alaska won! If Roxy won, well … Here’s my view … Roxy is a total ankle! And we all know an ankle is 3 feet lower than a C*&%%%! ANd I mean that in a non female anatomical way!
Alaska is the Next Drag Superstar! By far she has grown and shown what true grace is all about~
Jinkx should be the Next Drag Superstar she is everything a Queen should be. And fashion has NOTHING to do with it! It needs to be about the Voice and kindness, love for all and to traet those like they mean something and Jinkx does that. Go Jinkx!!!
Alaska
It’s hard to choose between Alaska and Jinkx but I think Jinkx Monsoon is the better choice. Maybe first because her entire drag name can be published without using “$&@/”. LOL But I just love the personality Alaska has shown, even as part of “Rolodex” (as Michele called the group) she managed to avoid the bitchiness. And thank the goddess that Rolaskatox never stooped as low as “The Heathers” did in previous episodes.
I think we would do well with either Alaska or Jinkx, but Jinkx just appears to be more complete. After all, with $100,000 she can always buy new clothes! Roxxxy can’t buy empathy with all the money in the world!
Either Alaska or Jinx.
Love Alaska, but she hasn’t been consistent…. Roxxxy just shouldn’t be in top 3 period…. That leaves Jinkx Monsoon!!!! JInkx is most deserving of the title!!!! Team JINKX!!!
I love you all but my heart goes to Alaska.
BTW how to get the tickets to the reunion ?
Thanks
Drew
adzedu@gmail.com
Jinkx Monsoon should be the next drag Superstar. She has literally blossomed on the show and honey..RuPaul may have loved her runway look but i thought it a hot mess..her bubblebutt looked fake and she was no beautiful at all. Jinkx Monsoon all the way..that’s where MY people at.
and BTW..Jinkx doesn’t even have to lipsynch..her voice is to die for. I think Jinkx embodies the new drag
Its really hard to decide between JINKX/ALASKA. Both have proved to be worthy of the title. ROXY just take a back seat and observe how a superstar acts and how they treat people.
Wonderfully written. My vote has to go to Jinxx for not only talent but the growth she has shown during the show and for being able to hold her head high for ALL genders, cultures, and people of any sexual preference to be entertained by. A true talent and star for All!
Alaska for the win!
American Idol///
@ Eric. You’re killing me!
Cathy: Alas, no “Idol” blog today. I returned home last night to discover that my machine did not record a single second of it. I’m going to trouble shoot what went wrong tonight but I’m committing to not being out of the house during “Idol” broadcasts for the next three weeks until the finale. But I WILL have a blog up tonight as soon as the episode airs. Sorry for the inconvenience!
@Eric: (damn)
The judges kept saying last night that it wasn’t about their voices anymore. has to be the ‘right’ song, bring out their emotion blahblahblah. They have a point tho….as their voices are all excellent. So much can go wrong tho:
Amber: ‘Power of Love” & “McArthur Park”…both totally didn;t fit her. Voice pristine. She looked great. Nikki said she looked like a big glass of sexy milk when singing the Celine Dion song.
Candice: “Emotion” & something forgettable by Drake. Voice fabulous…a weird arrangement of one of the songs and she ended up missing the melody. lack lustre performance compared to other weeks. Also, she has a cold/
Angie: The judges praised her but I totally didn’t hear it. She sang her beloved Jessie J and I just don;t like that overly emotional stuff that just isn’t enjoyable music to me. Then, “Cry me a River” which was better but so overdone and I don;t think she brought anything new to the table.
Kree: sort of blew it with both. Jimmie said that one bluesy number has been sung 100 x and he is right….then sang “A Whiter Shade of Pale”…great tune, lovely voice but I’ve already forgotten the performance.
Duets: Amber/Kree…voices good, song of Adelle’s (& did you say this? I never want to hear another Adelle song at these shows)..kind of a quiet job….
Candance/Angie: Stay (Rhianna). I took a Gravol before this performance but the girls rose to the occasion and both belted out their sides and did a bit of a Diva thang.
The judges generally were all over Angie. I didn’t get it at all….then, I don;t get her…or her crying grandmother who was brought on stage. I think dear Kree may be in the bottom in terms of worst performance of the 4.
oops….and one more thing: If there is any truth to the winner of American Idol totally being manipulated from behind the scenes: then Angie is their girl. She has the look , she’s vanilla & she’s a bit of a Girl Scout.
Jinxx all the way. Roxxxy does not have the personality people should be relating to the gay world. WHAT A B*TCH! Her own style, grace, the ability to bring a smile to a person’s face. That’s the next superstar. That is Jinxx.
Jinkx! Jinkx! Jinkx! Jinkx!