Drag Race RuCap: “See You Next Wednesday”

Like last year, Nick Taylor and Cláudio Alves are following and recapping RuPaul’s Drag Race season sixteen…

In design challenges, these two are unbeatable. They're dressmaking monsters!

CLÁUDIO: Another design challenge! What’s this, season 3? 

Regardless of repetition, it’s time for this year’s batch of queens to refamiliarize themselves with the sewing machines, for Drag Race has devised a challenge to celebrate Neo-Goth style. But of course, it’s closer to a Tim Burton lovefest, complete with Wednesday references and whatnot. Indeed, as much as I appreciated Kaia Gerber’s presence on the panel, MTV should have found a way to nab Colleen Atwood as the episode’s Extra Special Guest Judge - now there’s someone who knows how to make magic happen with black fabrics and a spooky outline. But maybe I’m getting ahead of myself...

Overall, this felt like a classic Drag Race episode, an entertaining watch with a shocking elimination at the hour’s end. The fandom is aflame with fire and fury, but I’m at peace. Are you?

NICK: I feel pretty good about this episode! My immediate reference was season 8, which also had a crazy high amount of design challenges and had a similar stream of surprise outs and unexpected longevity. If we’re calling out wishlist guest judges, I’d have loved to see Cristina Ricci, though Kaia Garber acquired herself wonderfully. The judging was probably the one element of the episode I was most resistant to. On the other hand, I am amazed at how well this season has characterized the cast of queens, and the character drama - both internal and interpersonal - is pretty gripping! 

After Xunami’s elimination, the queens share a moment of genuine mourning. These bitches really care about each other! Even Plane is too stunned to really bask in her win until she’s prompted, though her celebration is overshadowed by a few other queens reckoning with their own shit. Mhi’ya’s pissed Plane won over Sapphira and is ready to stay out of the bottom, Sapphira’s discouraged from not winning a challenge since the premiere, Nymphia is desperate to be on top again after bombing Snatch Game, Morphine and Dawn are hungry for a maxi challenge win after years of languishing. In short, everyone recognizes there’s no more room for coasting. These bitches wanna WIN. 

CLÁUDIO: Dawn, in particular, is a wee little shit-stirrer, coming for Nymphia and making it sound like everyone thought she should have lipsynced. While the Boston-bound Russian is the season’s self-appointed bitch, the Brooklyn twink is making her claim on being this year’s stealth villain. If only that would help her win a challenge. Maybe if we get a roast.

Next day in the werkroom, the queens barely have time to breathe before Ru’s got them spitting all over the place. In one of this show’s stupidest mini-challenges ever, our contestants must react with an exaggerated spit take to Mama’s bad jokes. Knowing our queens, I’m sure they have more practice swallowing, but spit is the name of the game. Between that and all the particles flying around, it’s a good reminder that, in Drag Race-land, COVID is truly over. The Pit Crew is also in attendance to offer eye candy, and I can only guess that the queens would rather have the boys spit on them instead of enduring their sister’s projectile backwash. That may have to air on a different network, however, unless MTV is into kinky softcore now.

I’m not sure how to judge this mess, so Nymphia’s victory is as good as any. I did laugh at her pantomime terror after RuPaul suggested a Snatch Game re-do. The Banana Buddah had legit war flashbacks, bless her soul. would you have picked another winner?

NICK: Her sheer horror was pretty visceral. I loved Sapphira’s reaction to her “you are the father!” Moment, and the jokes were generally alright. Nice to see Drag Race combat the stigma of “spitters are quitters” - everyone served the silliness the challenge required. no complaints from me. 

From here, Ru announces this week’s maxi challenge is to create a Neo Gothic look using the black, white, and gray fabrics and accessories provided by the show. Her cryptic welcome video makes repeated references to Tim Burton projects, though the queens are too caught up in the trauma of a third design challenge to connect to the “Neo” part or connect to the leeway provided by Ru references. Well, most of them are troubled. Dawn is thrilled, immediately announcing that, whatever else may happen, her ass is not going home on a design challenge. Hell, this seems like her chance to finally cop a win!

Plasma, on the other hand, is shaking like a leaf. She’s not been good at the sewing challenges, and she and everyone else know it. Her ideas about a midcentury theme read as empty reliance on a bit - something Plane tries to articulate, but only in a way that’s not constructive. Dawn at least encourages Plasma to use this challenge as an opportunity to try branching out into unexpected territory. It’s good advice! It would be even better if Plasma (or anyone) knew how to guide that advice into a real look.

CLÁUDIO: Despite their cattiness, I believe Plane and Dawn were trying to help their Broadway Baby sister, but there’s only so much guidance one can provide before they start designing the outfit for you. Which isn’t a problem if you’re Sapphira. The Philly queen cum drag mother comforts Plasma in a moment of crisis, but her attention is focused on Mhi’ya who, once again, depends on her sister to complete a sewing challenge. And yet, I can’t blame Miss Le’Paige for accepting the help. Others in the fandom are mad at our flip master, but this whole affair is a failure on Sapphira’s part. She’s the one who should have her priorities straight and realize this is a competition. Doesn’t she remember the judges’ admonishments to Asia O’Hara when she spent her time helping half the cast during season 10’s ball challenge?

What’s worse, Mhi’ya’s idea of a classic dress that’s all vinyl sleekness in the front and sheer lace in the back is actually better than Sapphira’s reliance on the same pattern pieces she used for previous design challenges. Similarly, Dawn is counting on a technique she’s tried before but is wise enough to pick something the judges haven’t seen. The chandelier construction of her outfit is ingenious, and it’s been nice to see on social media how so much of Dawn’s runway package is a reworking of early concepts in her career. It makes Drag Race feel like a culmination of one’s development as a queen. Nymphia, on the other hand, frets about with no concrete idea, losing time on a wreath-like headpiece and crying about it for everyone to hear. Not that anyone believes the shtick. At this point, I wonder if it’s strategy or her actual personality - either way, she’s got this in the bag.

NICK: As someone who can barely complete projects before a looming due date, I relate to Nymphia’s struggle. More than that, her feeling that she needs to redeem herself is palpable, and I believe that weighs more than her flopping like a fish and bothering the other queens during the Ball. Dawn’s idea is exciting as fuck. Hands down, that chandelier is the look I’m most excited to see once they strut the runway. Maybe the biggest surprise is how little we see of Q construction or explaining her garment, either to the other queens or the cameras. Those thin lips are staying tight this episode.

I’m with you on the Mhi’ya-Sapphira drama of it all, and it’s a little shocking how seemingly all the queen’s confessionals are tsk-tsking Mhi’ya for letting someone else work on her dress rather than Sapphira’s decision to help her. Especially when mother hen is so willing to offer comfort or advice at the drop of a hat. She’s just like this! Sapphira’s choice to focus on helping someone else instead of working on her own shit is also, I am sad to report, very relatable.

Plane allegedly has some qualms about figuring out what she’ll do with her leather belts-on-belts-on-belts dominatrix concept, but she doesn’t even get enough screen time for that idea to cement itself. She mostly flits around Plasma’s ear, encouraging her to try something new but getting weirdly tetchy when she suspects the Broadway baby might potentially possibly be using a similar visual concept as her. Morphine doesn’t really drum up more interest from the editors either, despite a renewed energy and a fairly straightforward design. But there’s something in the werkroom that really got under your skin, and I’ll let you tell the readers about it hun.

CLÁUDIO: When Sapphira is trying to explain her big-skirted concept, she tries to reference a certain O’Hara woman. At first, the Philly queen says Catherine O’Hara, but knows she’s wrong, while her sisters have no idea what the bitch is talking about. How can none of these bitches remember Scarlet O’Hara??? It’s not an obscure reference by any means, having inspired countless drag queen names and even some Drag Race looks. I was fuming and wanted nothing more than to thunder about like Maleficent. Idiots! Imbeciles!

As elimination day dawns on our queens, Mhi’ya is feeling her oats, and a lot of the other queens are annoyed as fuck. Can’t blame them, though Nymphia sets a good example by basically shrugging and going on with her usual clowniness. Plasma, on the other hand, is practically shaking with terror even as Dawn calls her outfit cute and chic - why lie? Q is overflowing with confidence and wants no one’s advice, while the Banana Buddah quietly questions if what her competition constructed is Goth enough.

They all come together when it’s time to deal with this week’s tragedy mirror moment, a discussion of their dating troubles going as far back as high school days. In that talk, the Broadway Baby shows vulnerability, and Morphine reveals she is non-binary and how that affects her dating prospects in a binary-bound scene where extreme masculinity or femininity is more desired than what lies between. I found it a refreshingly candid heart-to-heart. 

NICK: Again, season 8 vibes, akin to Kim Chi’s anxieties about dating and sex. It’s a really lovely discussion! The tenor of their conversation is bringing up unpleasant body-image issues in the queer community while re-enacting my very favorite Onion headline: “Female Friends Spent Wild Night Validating the Living Shit Out of Each Other.”

From this heartwarming moment to all the anxiety that comes from a design challenge, we cut to the main stage, where RuPaul walks down the runway in a gorgeous outfit I couldn’t help grumbling at. I get that she doesn’t really dress herself to match the runway themes, but I would have LOVED to see this bitch going goth. Could have been a moment.

Category is… "See You Next Wednesday!"

Plane Jane is first, strutting in a two-piece with thigh-high boots and gloves covered head-to-toe with ribbons. It’s a fundamentally basic look, better than her deconstructed suit from the Ball but worse than her Doll, but she was clearly feeling her oats. You could almost mistake the chains on all that black satin for a Michelle Pfeiffer moment, but that’s importing more Gothic influence into her design than is actually present - her fantasy doesn’t really fit the prompt, does it? Also, I want way more from the hair.

CLÁUDIO: I thought it moved well, and you know how much I prize movement on this catwalk. Still, you’re right to call it basic. Like all her design looks, it’s something you’d see at drag brunch. The styling’s excellent, though - love the hair, the eyes, the black tear.

Modeling Sapphira’s latest creation, Mhi’ya Iman Le’Paige looks perfectly safe. Indeed, it’s a testament to the other contestant’s caliber and how much the producers don’t see her as anything other than lipsync machine, that Miss Le’Paige found herself at the bottom again. Her fabric combination is savvy, as are the spider details she used to trim the side seam. My only qualm is that the styling is a miss. The long wig hides the drama of her exposed back, the skull and birds feel random. 

NICK: The wig hides her “party in the back” stylings a bit, and I agree on the accessories not serving the full runway. A bigger issue might be that she didn’t know how to sell it - Plane knew how to work those ribbons, but Mhi’ya had less idea about what to do with her skull ring. But overall, it’s a strong look.

More than any other queen, I really want a version of Dawn’s runway that’s not made exclusively from black fabric. The architecture of her chandelier is incredible, but especially on the runway presentation, I had a hard time seeing the details and textures of it. Why did it look so much better during the judging than the runway presentation? I kinda love this, and kinda feel like it gets lost in itself a little. Why not lace grays for the cloak to evoke spider webs, or make the chandelier stand out more by doing it with a different color? Am I asking for too much, relative to what an achievement her main conceit is? Love how she played with her mug, particularly those cartoon vamp lips. Of all the challenges not to slather herself in paint, this was an unexpected call.

CLÁUDIO: They had limited resources for this challenge, meaning they couldn’t use any material that was not in that black-dominated display. Honestly, I blame the lighting more than the queens for the difficulty in seeing details. As you said, it’s a stunning achievement, almost like an illustration come to life, mayhap a lost Erté. I have just one critique - the lace wrap is too stubby and short, an unnecessary addition that muddies the look’s impact.

Morphine Love Dion was smart, picking materials that respond to light differently so that she got an all-black design with some contrast built-in. Honestly, I don’t get why she was close to the bottom. The gown is good work, and the styling is god-tier. Punctuating the grayscale mug with a cherry lip was especially genius. Maybe the spikes are a bit wrinkled and overworked where they attach to the body, but that’s such a minor thing in the big picture.

NICK: Painting herself grayscale is such a genius choice, and really accentuates the outfit. For a queen who walked into the werkroom with no real sewing experience, Morphine’s shown real versatility with these design challenges. I admittedly don’t love the asymmetry of the spikes, but that’s more a taste thing than a critique of their construction. Another good outing from a queen whose bottom placement I, for once, don’t understand.

If there was one outright disaster from this challenge, it’s Plasma. I really do want to give her credit for trying something different from her usual style, but this is just a mess. We’re almost at hot topic mall goth with the ribbed skinny jeans and the houndstooth shirt with the gay porno neckline. I like the broach against her throat and the feathered sleeves, but these elements don’t cohere at all. The Cher wig wasn’t a distraction for me the way it was for the judges, but doing her exact same midcentury mug makes this even more haphazard. 

CLÁUDIO: The shrug is striking, and I admire the construction of both leotard top and trousers. However, the whole thing is incongruent with the runway’s theme and even within itself. This was one of those episodes where, if not for the Drag Race LSFYL format, we’d have a clear loser out of the bunch.

That said, I really hated Sapphira Cristál’s design. The main fabric hurts my eyes, and the skirt is a misbegotten disaster, with the fitted derrière making the underlying hoops jut out of the front for one unbalanced silhouette. And then, if that wasn’t enough, she attached a tulle explosion coming out of her groin. It looks dispiritting in still shot but it was even worse in motion. At least, her presentation was a comedic delight. The bitch knows how to create a whole character out of thin air, I’ll give her that. 

NICK: As with her Doll challenge, Sapphira’s presentation on the runway is enough to imbue a basic look with real personality. The mug helps a ton, and I like the main fabric more than you do. But the overall impression is undone the more you look at it. Comparing this to Spirit Halloween feels like a way for the judges to classify it as cheap-looking without outright insulting it, right?

Again, I wish the lighting of the main runway did better by this all-black magnificence Nymphia is giving us. Where the judges criticized her last week for being too cerebral, here her design goes for ethereal sensuality. She looks like the Grand High Witch descending onto the parapets. The hat alone is stunning, and the different textures of her garments and accessories really elevate this look beyond bog-standard witchery. Great makeup too. Now for Nymphia to serve lewks on the main stage in the remaining major spokes on the color wheel.

CLÁUDIO: When she walked onto the stage, I was instantly in love. There’s an exaggerated, almost cartoonish quality to the silhouette, so oversized on top tapering into a hobble skirt that almost seems to melt into the floor. It’s Morticia Addams dressed in Dior by Galliano, a spider’s nest transformed into haute couture, widow’s weeds made high drag. Perfection, thy name is Nymphia.

Last but not least, Q stomps down the catwalk in a maximalist coat-dress so full of details your eye barely knows where to focus. By mixing so many patterns, she’s made the ugly fabrics into an eccentric style statement, while her use of ruffles, bows, and roses, brings out the printed motifs and gives them multidimensionality. It’s such a showstopper that I can’t help but wish the styling was up to par. The boots go nicely with it, but the fishnets are a rookie mistake, cheapening the ensemble and taking away from the coat’s symmetry. The cracks on her face also feel superfluous even if the broken doll idea has merit. Am I being too harsh on Q?

NICK: Q wins so many points for, again, purposefully making a garment that contrasts with the other queen’s designs while standing fully as its own creation. The use of so many colors and patterns is jaw dropping - I just about lost my mind when I saw the floral interior lining of that jacket. You’re right about what’s incongruous in this piece, but there’s enough happening here that’s utterly correct I can’t mind too much.

After the presentations are complete, all of the queens are judged by the panel. Dawn, Nymphia, Sapphira, and Q are rated highly by the judges, while Plane’s look is considered solid but underwhelming by her own high standards. Morphine gets hit with another “good, but not good enough”, and Plasma is inevitably criticized for how incoherent her look is. The judges lean very hard on Mhi’ya having help in making her dress, and like the queens before them, this apparently comes with no criticism of Sapphira’s decision to help her. They really want to see this bitch do some more flips, huh?

I’m a bit surprised to realize I’d want Sapphira to place low for this challenge, more by process of elimination than anything else. Plane and Mhi’ya had solid looks, and Morphine outdid herself totally. Plasma was always going to bottom, just as Dawn, Nymphia and Q were always going to fight for the win. Someone has to take that second slot in the lip sync, just like someone has to win. Q snatches her second maxi challenge win, and though I think it’s a fair call, I wish Nymphia or Dawn had taken the prize instead. Meanwhile, Mhi’ya faces her third round in the bottom against two-challenge winner Plasma, the kind of stacked odds that have spelled doom for many a drag racer. 

CLÁUDIO: If they’re going to start criticizing the queens for getting help, let’s be consistent about it. No more sermons like the one they gave Asia or the undiluted praise they heaped upon Bebe in All Stars 3. I, too, would have put Sapphira in the bottom, and given Nymphia the win. That said, I can’t begrudge Q her success since, styling aside, her creation was a masterpiece. I do feel some type of way about Michelle’s preposterous criticism that Nymphia’s hat and veils were a mistake. Kaia Gerber was right to defend it as high fashion.

Anyway, since Plane Jane doesn’t use her potion, there’s nothing to stop the judges from having Mhi’ya lipsync against Plasma. They perform to Lady Gaga’s “Bloody Mary,” though not the album version. Instead, our queens must give us a show while chipmunk Gaga screeches the Tik Tok sped-up edit that went viral last year. Surprisingly, the insane song pick doesn’t seem to affect the contestants beyond some francticness on Plasma’s part. I’d go so far as to say this was the season’s best lipsync duel, with Mhi’ya murdering her competition on the dancefloor. Barry Keoghan, who? Sure, she flips, but there’s more to it than just that trick. In an hilarious surprise, she repeats Sasha Velour’s rose petals reveal. Later, the bitch even pulls some classic ballroom moves, duckwalking like a professional, spinning into a dip and so forth. It’s mesmerizing.

Admittedly, one can see why the fandom may be tired of Miss Le’Paige and would want to keep Plasma around. She’s a two-time maxi challenge winner, after all. Still, Mhi’ya’s victory was decisive.

NICK: I still think a Tik Tok edit is not what I would ask for from this show, but it didn’t detract from the queen’s performances. Imagine if they made Sugar and Spice battle it out to a meme song. Anyways: Mhi’ya owned this fucking lip sync. She’s cemented herself as this season’s assassin in a way we haven’t seen in a few years, after divas like Heidi N Closet and Jasmine Kennedie got blocked from sending home a third bitch by double shantays. Salina EsTitties sent three girls home last season, sure, but only her win against Amethyst is as decisive as all three of Mhi’ya’s victories.

For this reason alone I suddenly want her to make it to the finale. 

Still, RIP Plasma, who cemented herself as a real threat for the final four after RDR Live. Her farewell messages on the main stage, backstage, and her lip stick message were so genuine and lovely. Everyone’s crying when they get sent home this season! She will clearly be missed, by the other queens and by the fandom.

Next week’s challenge is some kind of . . . . musical number? Is that what exactly it is we’re looking at here? Have we really not had a basic-ass scripted, not-recorded-live comedy challenge all season? What times we live in.

Previous RuCaps: 

• Episode 1: “Rate-a-Queen”
• Episode 2: "Queen Choice Awards"
• Episode 3: "The Mother of All Balls"
• Episode 4: "RDR Live!"
• Episode 5: "Girl Groups"
• Episode 6: "Welcome to the DollHouse"
• Episode 7: "The Sound of Rusic"
• Episode 8: "Snatch Game"

Comments

[Amy Camus]

It's always disappointing when one of my favorite queens fails so spectacularly. I was really rooting for Plasma, but that outfit! Instead of Goth, we got Cher on laundry day circa 1967. It was so bad they should have skipped the lipsync. Oh well, at least there's still Nymphia, Dawn, and, so help me, Plane still in the running.

[Philip H.]

I can't claim Plasma won the lip sync (although based on how messy Mhi'ya was, with no wig etc, I do think it's fair to say it was actually a closer call than it may seem on the surface), and she was easily the worst this episode, but I am so ready for Mhi'ya to go. I fear no one can send her home. Maybe Morphine could?

It's time for the queen of flips to flip right out of the competition.