RuPaul’s Drag Race is back and as sparkly as ever, which should be expected with Season 18’s “Let There Be Light” theme. This time around, each of the 14 queens feels polished and seasoned. Perhaps that correlates to the majority of queens being over 30, or maybe it’s due to better casting. Either way, Season 18 is shaping up to be one of the show’s most exciting seasons in recent years.
After the controversy stemming from Season 10 of RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars, most fans are ready to get back to basics and discover some new names to fall in love with. With Drag Race going back to its classic formula, you’ll find few complaints from us. And since RuPaul loves a good acronym, we’ll be conducting our reviews using the word DRAG (Drama, Runway, About That Challenge, and Gooped, Gagged, and Goated). Read on for our thoughts, musings, and reactions to RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 18, Episode 7.
Drama: Drama? Where is she? Is the most dramatic thing that happened in this episode the fact that Juicy didn’t know who Brooke Shields was?
Jeanette: Usually, when it comes to Snatch Game, Ru is the drama. She loves coming into the Werkroom and getting in the queens’ heads. However, this time around, the only person she really encouraged to change their choice was Athena. And honestly, I kind of wish we got to see Athena’s Charlie Chaplin, but hey, I guess I don’t make the rules.
So, yeah, Juicy not knowing who Brooke Shields was caused quite the stir in the Werkroom. I’m not going to dunk on her too badly, though. While not knowing who Brooke Shields is feels like a cardinal sin, there are plenty of guest judges I have to look up, too. Not to mention that Juicy is only 21.
Perhaps the real drama, though, is Brooke Shields talking about her first kiss with then-28-year-old Keith Carradine when she was only 11. Yuck! Poor, Brooke. The Hollywood injustices and trauma faced by this woman continue to horrify me.
Lyra: The only real drama of this episode was the fact that Snatch Game was changed AGAIN! Over on UK vs The World they weren’t even together for Snatch Game. And now the main franchise does this? I don’t know if they’re vying to get on Peacock next season since they don’t have a main streaming platform right now, but it wasn’t giving as much as they think it was. If anything it was missing the number one component I love about Snatch Game: the Queens interacting with each other.
MORE: Catch up with our RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 18, Episode 7 Breakdown
Runway: Any looks you want to scream about?
Jeanette: I adore Mia’s Prince look. Yes, I know many queens have done Prince before, and yes, I also know that Mia absolutely bombed in Snatch Game, but at least she got to serve as Mother Prince. Also, I loved Darlene’s Dolly look and Juicy as Celia Cruz, like, wow, that blue dress was gorgeous!
And Kenya, girl, can you please stop hurting me because I love you? First Snatch Game, then de-draggafying Chaka Khan. How dare you?
Lyra: Juicy’s look was so beautiful. It was regal, elevated, and looked perfect with the hair. Also I think that blue looks beautiful on her. I also really liked Darlene’s Dolly look. She’s slowly but surely becoming my favorite on this season. Then there’s Discord’s Reba look. Don’t totally love it but I like what she did with her makeup. It’s witchcraft that she looks like her.
I also want to scream about Kenya’s runway look. Because I thought we were past buying off the rack looks. This was giving off the rack and low effort. And this comes after her cute look from last week. It was a huge let down that absolutely contributed to her being in the bottom. But in combination with her Snatch Game, it should’ve been the thing to send her home.
About That Challenge: What do we think of Snatch Game getting a Love Island twist?
Jeanette: Honestly, I didn’t love it. Call me old-fashioned, but I just want my Snatch Game the traditional way, with the queens sitting on a panel. I don’t even like the Snatch Game of Love that much because it doesn’t allow for as much banter between the queens, even if I will always revisit it just to watch Jimbo delight and terrify me as Shirley Temple.
The one benefit of this Love Island version of Snatch Game is that the queens had more free rein to show off their physical comedy. Myki got to curl up on the couch in that awkward yet attentive way that Drew does on her show, just like how Kenya got to… um, well… simulate a blow job on her hands and knees in front of RuPaul [insert face palm emoji here].
MORE: Need more? Read our RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 18, Episode 6 Breakdown!
Lyra: Trying new things is fun and keeps things fresh. But Snatch Game is the iconic bit of Drag Race. And it makes no sense to switch things up around so much that the queens really weren’t interacting with each other. That’s my favorite part of Snatch Game. But the Queens were so focused on the guys that they didn’t feel cohesive.
Then there’s Mia and Kenya. They both bombed so hard. Mia I couldn’t even watch and was getting secondhand embarrassment at how ill-prepared she was. But the thing is that she knew she was doing bad. Kenya didn’t. Kenya kept going and going with Ru looking on in embarrassment, somehow making the experience more painful.
The only saving graces for Snatch Game were Myki and, surprisingly enough, Discord. Myki knew her character inside and out and did way better than the last comedy challenge they did. And Discord, I should’ve known you had funny in you after the political ad, but this surprised me.
Gooped, Gagged, and GOATED: Do you agree with RuPaul’s choices for bottoms and tops in RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 18, Episode 7?
Jeanette: I’m all for the top 3 queens. Personally, I would’ve given Myki the win. Maybe because I’m a total sucker for Myki these days, but also, I think her Drew Barrymore was spot on. That said, yay to Nini! Impersonating a man on Snatch is always a risk, especially when doing someone known to be as intellectual and serious as David Attenborough. Drag Race UK fans probably remember Sum Ting Wong’s valiant yet completely flat attempt at Attenborough, so when Nini first said she was going to do him, I was like, “Oh no!” In this case, I’m happy to be wrong.
Now, as for bottoms, I also agree, even if it guts me. Mia bombed with a capital B, and Kenya went for shock and sex instead of actual jokes. Juicy’s JoJo Siwa was definitely one note and flat, but it had some character. So, yeah, unfortunately, I think everything played out how it was supposed to this time around.
What didn’t play out how I thought was Mia going home over Kenya. I really like Kenya, but we’ve seen her bomb multiple lip syncs at this point. I couldn’t quite tell if she knew the words here or not, but her win was a shock, regardless. Even if the lip sync is evenly matched, Ru tends to keep the girl who has a better track record, which here, is most definitely Mia, even if her Bloody Mary was terrible.
Lyra: Though I feel like Nini did great, Myki did better. She did better on Snatch Game and I think her runway look was better than Nini’s. Sorry not sorry. I even think that Discord should’ve been in the top because her Pope was different and really funny.
Then there’s the bottoms. Mia, Kenya, and Juicy make sense. They didn’t do well in the Snatch Game. But what doesn’t make sense to me is that Mia went home and Kenya was safe. You mean to tell me that the professional dancer didn’t win? Also, the camera kept focusing on Mia instead of Kenya. Why? Because Kenya, once again, didn’t know her words. Years and years of watching Drag Race dictates that the one getting the more camera attention stays and the one that doesn’t know her lyrics as well goes. Just make it make sense.
