Screeching to a halt…
Tonight is the season finale of RuPaul’s Drag Race on Logo, and I am through the roof excited. I have been a fan of drag queens since freshman year of college, when Not Susan and I used fake IDs to sneak into the lounge at Stingy Lulu’s. And my top pics have all made it to the final round, to boot.
The prizes up for grabs include a contract with a major PR agency, twenty-five thousand dollars and the title of “Next Drag Superstar.” Here’s a rundown of the final three contestants:
RAVEN: A self assured queen with a cold as ice demeanor, Raven is the contestant the arguably “deserves” it the most. At 30, she is a fixture on the Southern California drag circuit. However, the biggest problem with Raven (besides her nose) is that while she is a great performer, she would be a horrible Ambassador of Drag, which is really what winning this competition is all about. Due to the enormous popularity of the show, the victor will have to take drag out of the clubs and onto “Live with Regis and Kelly” (just like RuPaul herself did, back in the early 90’s.) Rupaul was able to do this by exuding an undeniable joie de vivre and charm. Unfortunately, Raven is about as warm as nuclear fucking winter, and I don’t see that playing well in Peoria at all.
TYRA SANCHEZ: The contestant I’m least excited about is this 21 year old from Orlando. Disco singer Martha Wash likened Tyra’s face to that of a porcelain doll, and her “beauty” is undeniable. However, her whole schtick is one extended Beyonce impression and her lack of range has become apparent in the last couple of weeks.
JUJUBEE: My top choice, Jujubee, favors the aesthetic of the models on the walls of a Korean nail salon and that is why I love her. She’s pure pan-Asian camp and that is why I love her. The 25 year old Laotian native has been a constant source of emotional support for the other contestants, all while being wonderfully humble and performing well in most of the challenges. A vote for Juju is a vote for a new perspective on drag, which can tend to be a very cliched artform.
Fingers crossed!
