Drag Race S9E7 - 9021Ho No She Better Do
Saturday, May 6, 2017 at 1:50PM 
by Chris Feil
[a large cardboard giftbox rolls in and after a few confusing seconds, Chris emerges] I’m back, bitches!
Forgive my Shangela moment, I’m just that excited to be back on the Drag Race beat after Nathaniel kindly took over in my absence for last week’s fantastic Snatch Game. But while that episode felt like a real return to form, this episode was the show at its peak, serving full talent, drama, and emotion the way its best episodes do. The 90210 challenge and big hair runway concept were relatively unfussy, proving that RuPaul’s Drag Race excels by keeping its focus on the queens...
Appropriate for a 90210 challenge, shade was the first meal of the day. In no time at all, you have Trinity lambasting the departed Cucu, Sasha mocking Farrah’s whininess, and Valentina calling out Alexis’s opera-sized ego. It’s been one of this season’s delightful surprises to discover that it’s Valentina taking on the role of resident goofball, if less surprising to see her bitchier side. (Shade, check.)
“Linda Evangelista (9021HO Remix)”
Farrah has rightly earned her reputation as the pouter, but Aja is just as prone to childish ranting like her iconic rant against Valentina in Untucked. Aja makes a scene and goes from having a larger role (providing her some much needed spotlight, no less) to a small uninteresting one - “a bitch playing a bitch in the last scene” as Peppermint puts it. All that messy drama and she didn’t even get a catchphrase out of it this time.
Cut to Shea getting immediate praise from Jennie Garth and Tori Spelling during filming while Aja stumbles. But the bigger problem on set was Nina Bo’nina The Cool People At [Pause] This School Brown’s attitude when given direction. It’s interesting to see the queens in Untucked last week get so similarly frustrated with Nina as it seems much of the show’s audience has become. Nina doesn’t just self-sabotage with her defeatism, she does so with her anger at feedback. WE WANT TO LOVE YOU NINA! (Long-game narrative, check.)
Back in the workroom, the queens gave me what amounted to tear-soaked whiplash. Cancer affected many of these queens lives and in different kinds of ways: Trinity caring for her grandmother while in high-school, Shea’s opportunity to reconcile with her father, Sasha’s bald-headed inspiration coming from her mother. (Tears, check.)
Aja, the Bed-Stuy Medium
At least Aja got one opportunity to show her sweeter side by hyping her skills of speaking to the dead. I wonder if she’s current taking appointments - I want a ghost to tell me I’m perfect, beautiful, and that I look like Linda Evangelista. (I'm a model, check.)
The Bigger the Hair, the Closer to RuPaul
A big hair runway sounds a little basic, but you need this kind of wide open-interpretation runway at this point to help the queens stand out with their own point of view. High concept or new bars of difficulty do not always help Drag Race. Plus, the worst runway was... maybe Nina, who still gave us a gagworthy RuAnimale Jocelyn Wildenstein feline realness paint. Good looks all around!
Trinity becomes a more formidable competitor every week, and she locked up her second win for her manic mom. You can argue that with less to do than Valentina or Shea, she nabbed the win by making the most of her screentime. I’d still give Valentina the win - who’d have also expected that her best work would be in acting challenges?
Can you remember the last time on a competition show where the obvious bottom 2 both gave passable performances? If anything cemented their spot in the lipsync, it was their bad attitudes. Sasha’s position in the bottom three could have just as easily been swapped out for any of the safe girls - I thought she was quite funny, but to be fair she didn’t follow through on her direction to go bigger.
Finally They Do “Finally” in a Lipsync
CeCe Peniston always makes me feel myself. Now I’m just imagining an Adventures of Priscilla sequence where Nina performs as various kinds of wild felines. (Great lipsync, check.)
Close call on the lipsync, but Aja is rightfully sent packing. She went out as much on top as she could, Michelle Visage correctly saying her look was her best yet. Farrah is likely our next to go, unless she can make a major step up - then we’ve got a real race to the finale with a tight, talented lineup.
And speaking of Farrah, she gets a lovely message from home on this week’s Untucked and another excuse to whine but adorably this time:
So yes, this was a damn perfect episode that managed to check off every box that makes this show what it is! Here is my current ranking of the queens:
- Shea Couleé (unbeatable at this point, no?)
- Sasha Velour
- 🔺Trinity Taylor
- 🔺Valentina
- 🔻Nina Bo'nina Brown (the mighty have fallen)
- Alexis Michelle
- Eureka O'Hara OUT
- Peppermint (though I am hopeful)
- Farrah Moan
- Aja
- Cynthia Lee Fontaine OUT
- Charlie Hides OUT
- Jaymes Mansfield OUT
- Kimora Blac OUT
Gif as Episode Grade:
Reader Comments (22)
Trinity and Alexis have not been lovable throughout the competition, but they're easily top 4—just through sheer preparedness. I actually can't stand Alexis so that's hard to admit. Valentina has yet to set a foot wrong with anything she does...and her comedic chops are surprisingly sharp. Sasha Velour is the most sophisticated artist in the competition, conceptually and visually.
Having said all that, nobody has successfully explained Shea Coulee to me. You seriously consider her "unbeatable?" Absurd.
I don't think Alexis will make top 4, I'm thinking top 5. Sadly I think Nina will get a redemption and then cut at say...top 6 a la Trinity K.Bonet.
As much as I want Valentina to win, I still feel like she's being set up as the shock elimination just like Katya, BenDeLaCreme and Thorgy Thor. She will have Miss Congeniality in the bag if I'm right but god do I hope I'm wrong.
I think top 4 will be Shea, Sasha, Peppermint and Trinity.
Good episode for all you said. My only qualm if anything was perhaps that I wanted more time with the queens while the skit ran for too long.
The season has slowly come together pretty solidly. I like that now with Aja out and hopefully Farrah next week, we're left with 7 pretty good, talented queens. All of which I could see somehow making it to the top 3 (if maybe not as easily can see any of the 7 winning) since they're that good. Signs of a solid, strong season.
I assume that Shea is making the top 3 for sure. And I agree with a surprise elimination coming up but somehow feel Shea and Valentina can make it through since so far they've been mostly on the top end of things. Katya and DeLa had slip ups and even lipsyncs before being kicked out. Since Shea and Valentina both seem to have the acting and design chops (not that the other surprise eliminations don't) to at least churn good work even in their worst weeks I think they can do it.
If I had to guess, I think a surprise leaves next week and Farrah sticks around one week more than she should. Also think Peppermint could make it to the top 3 by the sheer basis of her strength in lip-synching (that's what she does best!). A la Trinity or Coco, that could be enough to survive 2-3 more lip synchs even when faced off against stronger queens.
And my guess is still Alexis is kicked out just before the finale.
I was quite pleased that Jenny and Tori were entertaining as the directors/judges.
disagree on the elimination though. While I think that Nina and Aja were both terrible in the challenge, Aja's runway look was her best yet and I thought she slayed the lipsync. NOt a fan of her (i didn't know why she'd survived until now) but think given that particular challenge/lipsynch it should've been Nina sashaying away.
Hayden - the show wants us to like her and she's unarguably slayed every week in some aspect. She'd have to be that shock elimination (there's always one) others are talking about to be sent home at this point and it's just unlikely.
Nathaniel - I do think that lipsync was very close, but I think having a lipsync already at this point is a big setback for Aja before it begins. She'd have had to unequivocally slaughtered Nina and I'm not sure the judging is all that fair on a single episode basis.
Regardless of how future eliminations shake out, this lineup is so strong that I'd wager the real drama is going to be HOW people go, not WHEN
That lip-sync would have been close to call.
I'm thinking Shea is the probable winner, but I'm thinking a likely competitor for the top 3 will be eliminated early - either Valentina or Trinity (love them both). I think an unlikely competitor (Farrah Moan or Alexis Michelle) will make it to the end.
I liked Nina so much coming in, but it feels like her weird, very out-of-the-box drag has become very rote - not only what Michelle said about body suit + boots + corset, but also her makeup that once felt so weird and amazing has become a bit of a snooze. I saw her lion look and just thought, "Oh that's Nina" instead of being amazed (which I was the first few times).
I agree with Nathaniel that Aja won the lip sync. You can drag her for just about anything she's done all season except for that lip sync and this week's runway. My guess was that despite beating Nina in those categories, the hole was too deep to dig herself out of. If it was *really* a sudden death "lip sync for your life" then Aja would be alive and Nina would be dead.
And as for Shea...I'm not necessarily predicting she won't make top 3. Not getting "sent home" is not the same as being "unbeatable."
Loved this week's challenge - the 90210 references ran pretty deep. I could see people being bored with it if they don't know the show, but that's how I felt about the Kardashian thing a few weeks back.
Sorry, but the lip sync winner was clear. Aja was Team Too Much while Nina embodied the cool energy of the song. Brava
I think Trinity is the shock boot. The show is giving us mixed messages as to whether we should like her, she gets worked up and outclassed at times, and she has lip synced before.
My Ranking:
1. Shea
2. Valentina
3. Trinity
4. Sasha
5. Nina (getting really tired of amazing makeup and so-so attire)
6. Alexis Michelle
7. Peppermint
8. Farrah Moan
Blah-ja literally never once impressed me until her runway look this week. Either way, Nina slayed the lip sync. Aja was a frantic mess, trying desperately to stay, and to me that's where the true stars separate from the reality tv wannabes. When they're true performers with real talent/confidence, they feel the song and sell it by embodying the essence of the song and dont overdo it, or just try to "stay". The ones that overdo it, and their eyes are pained with "PLEASE LET ME STAY," rather than actually serving the song and they deserve to go--and that's what Aja looked like.
I agree with Evan. I don't see Valentina being a shock elimination, but I can see Trinity. And I see Alexis being anywhere from sixth to third place. lol. Truly can't decipher her.
I think Valentina should have won this week. She was the funniest in the show and trinity was overacting and not fully committing at the same time.
I think Sasha is the dark horse to win. She has had some minor struggles the past few weeks, which might light a fire under her. And she always seems to get a lot of camera time (either speaking or reaction shots) when the "big" conversations occur (bullying, pulse, cancer, etc.) She also seems the most unique/iconic regularly. I liked her lunchlady more than Shae's Grandrea.
Shae is consistently solid but not ever really a standout for me.
Trinity seems mean but at least in a fun way. Not crazy at all about Alexis apart from her strong acting.
Will miss Farrah moan because she's entertaining when not acting.
And peppermint is great in lip syncs but yikes in acting. Nina has become a mystery--so strong/so much potential but that "self doubt" has turned into toxic hate that's hard to watch.
Hayden - LOL if you see Shea as merely not getting sent home, I'm not sure we're watching the same television progrum
Dave S. - I've seen this 90210 complaining by a lot of the young gays. I'm at the right age range to have been forbidden to watch it without much curiosity, so while my knowledge is limited I think it was still a fun challenge. If we can only go back to most recent memories for our drag references, what a sad state indeed!
Catbaskets - I'd also wager that acting challenges are not much of Nina's thing, though I was tickled by her Jasmine Masters
"Merely not getting sent home"
We've had two all-stars seasons of queens who "merely didn't get sent home" and many who did get sent home. Shea Coulee couldn't go toe to toe with most of them.
This was a weird week in that I dont think Valentina (who is by far my favorite contestant) was very good and yet everyone else seemed to like her most in this. Funny how the same thing can bring such different reactions. It's the joy of communal viewing ;)
the only two i feel absolute certain will make it to the finals are
SHEA and TRINITY TAYLOR
as for the others... i'd say it's between VALENTINA (my fav) and either SASHA or NINA (whose edit is either headed to a glorious redemption arc like Pearl or a hanging herself arc like...?)
I'd like ALEXIS to stick around til the end so i can win the betting pool i'm in (LOL) but I think she and FARRAH will be the next two to go.
Hayden - well I was just confused by what you were saying about her not getting sent home then. However, I get not personally going for her but the show definitely wants us to like her more than it does the other girls - and in a way that has foretold the eventual winner in the past
Nathaniel - my Farrah pick in that pool has me whining more than Farrah herself
It sounds to me like Tori Spelling and Jennie Garth had some kind of falling out with Tiffani Amber Thiessen. I need a backstory on that!
I loved the episode this week and to me Valentina should have won the challenge as she was funny, beautiful and endearing. Trinity is growing on me and i am really starting to see her as a top 4 possibility. I still love and adore Farrah but she may be the next to go home :( I still like alexis but I feel that she has not stood out as much as i thought she would have. I cant get into nina though aja was the right choice to be sent home. on a side note I am really crushing on Valentina and Farrah in boy form and in drag they are beautiful.
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