Nathaniel R
A quicker look at the second episode, which featured the girls divvied up into two teams selling Ruco Labs pharmaceuticals... a chance to make lots of crude and intermittently funny jokes about gag reflexes, drag mouth (cliche utterances -- a very real problem!), and tucking. The episode was front loaded since the mini-challenge (a silly country dancing hoedown) was the peak. All in all a decent hour but relatively free of future classic moments so we'll have to call it a filler episode...
You're a winner, baby
In a lame judging-not-actually-doing-any-judging moments, The Vixen took the win simply because she was the team leader though the bulk of the work in guiding them was obviously done by the episode's inarguable MVP, guest coach Alyssa Edwards. [Insert mouth pop here.]
But perhaps I'm just not feeling generous. The Vixen is pushing for air time by coaxing fights between other people. And, honestly, there's enough inherent drama among drag queens not to force any more of it! But more importantly hers wasn't remotely the best performance in the challenge or the best look on the runway. I'd argue that Kameron Michaels was the surprise standout on the winning team, performance-wise, with very funny gag reflex miming. Team challenges always lead to odd problems in reality formats though. The two best performances were both on the losing team (!) via Dusty Ray Bottoms and Yuhua Hamasaki. Strangely the judges already seem to dislike both of those talents. When they're nitpicky with people early on it's usually a sure sign that they won't ever fully warm up to them. The panel, year after year, definitely has a problem with instant impressions sticking even if the queens knock subsequent weeks out of the park. They randomly decided they loved Blair St Clair in her first week, for example, so she'll probably have a free pass for quite awhile despite not standing out at all (at least not yet).
Kameron was gagging
The other problem Team Challenges cause is they don't allow any time / space for critiques or praise of the bulk of the performers. We still have no idea, for instance, how the judges feel about Kameron Michaels, who they haven't said a word about in either episode. She did recede into the background of Episode 1 but was a standout this time. I suspect she's going home soon or they'd pay her a little more attention in the editing. Perhaps they worry that because she's "the quiet one" (self-described) she isn't good television? Conversely the loud ones aren't always good television either. Eureka was fabulous in short doses last season but her constant chatter about her own narrative is just numbingly dull in this second round with the show.
Sashay away
"Big girl sisters" Eureka and Kalorie were the (correct) bottom two, neither selling themselves well. Kalorie was 'out of her league' as guest judge Padme bluntly stated and was clearly road kill. Consider the sashay away a mercy killing. From here on out the dismissals might be harder to bear as arguably no one remaining is obvious filler and we'd like to see more than one more week of all of them! Eureka, who I absolutely adored up until the premiere episode, has unfortunately RSVPed for a self-pity party this season, crushing my dreams for this loud formerly fabulous queen. I just want her to be that PHAT girl she was promising... 'Pretty Hot & Tasty, baby!' Fortunately she pulled it out for the lipsynch but she'll have to fight hard to regain any momentum.
Biggest laugh
This week that goes to quick cutaway referencing the previous episode. First, Ru trying to stifle the giggles at that instant meme 'Miss Vanjie Miss Vanjie Miss Vanjie' ...'I didn't quite get the name?' Runner up: Monet sweeping up the floor with her maligned sponge dress. I died. Runner Up Part 2: Everyone having such a good time in the mini-challenge with Asia O'Hara earning that win. That the two biggest laughs were both in reference to the killer first episode suggests that this episode wasn't quite making the case for itself.
In other words the season hasn't quite revved up, yet, despite the pockets of delicious 'entertaintment' this episode provided.
Quotable Bitches
"NO TOO VAGUE. So this is what had happened." - The Vixen
"America, my face is saying Everything You Need To Know Dot Com." - Monique Heart
"The only game I know is winning" - Aquaria
Name dropping
Pop culture references this episode: Glitter, The Golden Girls, Arsenic & Old Lace, Aubrey O'Day, Pootie Tang, Beetlejuice, Pikachu, Michael Jackson, Speed Racer, Flash Gordon, Metropolis, Linda Evangelista, Dorothy Dandridge, Dynasty, Mae West, "Single Ladies," and Fern Gully
Rankings
Some changes from last week...
| Prediction | Preference |
 |
 |
| Extremely subject to change as we get to know them | |
| 1. 🔺 Asia O'Hara | 1. 🔺 Dusty Ray Bottoms |
| 2. Miz Cracker | 2. Monét X Change |
| 3. Monét X Change | 3. Asia O'Hara |
| 4. Mayhem Miller | 4. Miz Cracker |
| 5. 🔺Dusty Ray Bottoms | 5. 🔺Yuhua Hamasaki |
| 6. Monique Heart | 6. Kameron Michaels |
| 7. 🔺 Blair St Clair | 7. 🔺 Monique Heart |
| 8. 🔺 The Vixen | 8. Mayhem Miller |
| 9. Yuhua Hamasaki | 9. Aquaria |
| 10. Aquaria | 10. 🔻Eureka |
| 11. Kameron Michaels | 11. Blair St Clair |
| 12. 🔻Eureka | 12. 🔻The Vixen |
| 13. 🔻Kalorie Karbdashian Williams OUT | 13. Kalorie Karbdashian Williams OUT |
| 14. Vanessa Vanjie Mateo OUT | 14. Vanessa Vanjie Mateo OUT |
Gif as episode grade:
How about you?
Would you take any of these drugs Ru was selling or does the show give you an all natural high?