Seasons past haunt the Drag Race All Stars, but it’s the lip-sync that’ll truly leave them spooked
The queens call on earned wisdom or welcome in their inner saboteurs en route to a lip-sync for the ages
Success on RuPaul’s Drag Race has always been as much, if not more, about being good at Drag Race than it is about being great at drag. In “Side Hustles,” Michelle gives Ginger some feedback on her beat, a piece of advice she gives about once a season, or whenever a queen is struggling to adjust her typical paint job to this unique environment. But Drag Race asks more of the queens than that they learn to paint for the cameras, rather than the stage (or, you know, Insta).
“Side Hustles” reminds the the All Stars (and us) that drag is just a part of the larger game. For some of the queens, that’s to their benefit; for others, quite the opposite. And because this is a psychological episode first and foremost, it winds up commenting, intentionally or otherwise*, on what Drag Race is, how it works, and what it costs (not financially, though there’s that aspect, too.) If you’re great at drag, well, that’s great. But if you’re not great at Drag Race and the many things that entails, it’s not going to be enough.
Beyond talent, intelligence, skill, money, charisma, more money, and even the ability to using a sewing machine, the things most likely to determine your Drag Race fate are emotional fortitude and self-awareness. Oh, and being great TV. But some of the people who make for the best TV are incredibly poorly equipped to deal with the fallout, and for precisely the same reasons. So it’s fitting that this episode, which sees nearly all of the queens either reflect on or act on lessons learned from Drag Race seasons of yore, ends with the triumphant return of Laganja Estranga, who’s pained and panicked “I feel very attacked!” greeted Untucked viewers in the opening titles for years.
I’ll be honest, Untucked isn’t always for me. I watched it religiously for years, but for every sweet video and funny conversation there are four or five scenes where people are in real pain with nowhere to hide (and a girl has anxiety, so no thanks). Sometimes the result is great drama with little-to-no permanent damage (“you’re perfect, you’re beautiful, you look like Linda Evangelista”), but not always. This week, it’s essential. Here’s Laganja in her brief entrance video:
I’ll be honest, I’m nervous, because this is my first time back since being on season six. But luckily for me, today we’re just doing what I do, which is dance […] Today what I really want to do is have fun. I want to walk away from today being like, ‘Okay, that’s what it’s supposed to feel like. It was so good to be back.’”
Emphasis mine.
The queens who are asked (and choose) to come back for All Stars know what they’re getting into, and know the risks. If you were a fan favorite the first time around, maybe you win, but maybe you chip away at the goodwill that got you the invitation in the first place, and the benefits (in bookings and publicity) might not be worth the mental cost. (We’ll get back to Pandora in a minute.) If you weren’t, it’s a different equation, but it’s still a risk—and one that’s almost certainly more daunting. Who’s going to be more anxious about going back on Drag Race: the Gottmiks and Jujubees of the franchise, or someone like Silky or Roxxxy? I can only imagine what it’s like to be in either position, but I know which I’d rather be. That anxiety comes through loud and clear here.
It’s not all bad. You wouldn’t know it from the editing**, but Pandora Boxx is doing really, really well this season, and the reason is straightforward: she’s putting into action what she’s learned from her time on the show. She got an always-the-bridesmaid edit her first time around, but one that seemed to be coming from her corner (after that season I, for one, didn’t need any additional reasons to think Santino is hot garbahgggge, though heaven knows we certainly got some). Not the case with that first All Stars! That was not a great time to be Pandora Boxx!
But here she is now, keeping it buttoned when things don’t go her way and striking like a motherfucking cobra when there’s a moment custom-made for her to demonstrate strength or growth. The library: “Say something funny.” The Blue Ball: looks that were funny and glamorous, over and over again. This episode: having learned a lot from group performance challenges of days gone by, she immediately takes charge without ever proclaiming herself to be the leader, simply reinforcing over and over again that it needs to be clear, fast, and yes, funny.