Relationship struggles take center stage as RuPaul’s Drag Race: Vegas Revue finds its footing

RuPaul’s Drag Race:
Vegas Revue has been struggling all season to deliver compelling interpersonal
drama, relying on pot-stirring from Derrick, Naomi, and Mack. That changes with
“Love Is In The Air.” Rather than retreading old beefs or asking hurtful,
leading questions, this episode centers on the difficulties of long-distance
relationships and managing friendships and working relationships between people
with very different personalities. These are very relatable topics and they’re
treated respectfully by the show, if not all of the queens, delivering the kind
of affecting conflict the series has been seeking.

The episode picks up the day after the queens’ pajama party,
with the “Previously on…” montage editing Naomi’s “weakest link” question to
throw Asia under the bus. Still stinging from the revelation that Naomi has
been complaining about her to the other queens, Asia arrives at the Flamingo
early to move out of the dressing room. She’s hurt and not ready to interact
with the other queens, so she sets herself up in the quick-change area
backstage. Asia gets emotional as she talks with her producer. This is not an
isolated incident for her. Her reaction is clearly shaped by previous painful experiences,
ones she’s not yet ready to share.

Naomi comes in as Asia is taking out the last of her things.
She wants to clear the air and is surprised by Asia’s decision to move out. To her,
leaving the dressing room is an overreaction, but it’s not all that different
from what Naomi had been doing in recent days, getting ready at home. Asia is
clearly upset, but along with that, she doesn’t want anyone to be uncomfortable
at their job because of her. She tries to explain her need to remove herself
from the situation, but Naomi doesn’t understand and Asia leaves with tensions
still simmering.

The episode cuts over to its second main storyline, Kameron’s
excitement over her not-boyfriend Andre’s visit. Kameron is practically glowing
talking about him, a welcome tonal shift. The glow fades when Kameron heads in
to work. She’s disappointed Asia has left the dressing room, but she decides to
give her some space and wait for her to reach out. Vanjie has a different
approach. She wants Derrick to go talk to Asia and try to smooth things over. Derrick
sighs and heads down with the air of one mollifying a temperamental toddler. Of
course it doesn’t go well. Asia ignores Derrick entirely—not the most mature of
reactions, but not any worse than Derrick blindsiding Asia at the party—and Derrick
returns to the dressing room even more frustrated.

Back in the episode’s center of calm, Kameron picks up Andre
from the airport. They’re adorable together when they’re relaxed, but as soon
as Kameron starts asking about the future, tension creeps into Andre’s body
language and demeanor. It seems the promos have been straightforward this time.
Andre’s here to break up with Kameron. Kameron hasn’t seen the promos, however,
so she takes Andre over to the Eiffel Tower replica at Paris Las Vegas—or plastic
Paris, as Andre calls it. Up on the observation deck, Andre pulls off the Band-Aid.
They’ve been doing long-distance for a while but it isn’t working for him and
he won’t commit to a long-distance relationship. To his credit, Andre handles
this about as maturely as one could, aside from the obvious setup of breaking
the news at the Eiffel Tower. And Kameron takes the news about as well as could
be expected, though it still clearly hurts.

Later that day, Naomi cooks up some eggs for Derrick and
Vanjie at her place. Kameron stops by and as they relax in the living room,
Naomi brings up the tensions with Asia. Vanjie notes that Asia would likely
have taken Naomi’s comments better in a different setting, and if they’d come
from Naomi instead of Derrick. Naomi agrees, but thanks Derrick for bringing it
up nonetheless. Kameron pushes back on this. There’s a way to talk to a
coworker and friend about how their energy is impacting everyone, and it’s not
at a cast party in front of the entire ensemble. This is a trend with Derrick,
Kameron points out. She’s talented and fun, but she’s messy. Derrick pushes
back, finding Kameron’s more reserved approach just as off-putting.

The conflict escalates and it’s incredibly satisfying not
only to see someone call out Derrick’s role in their interpersonal tensions,
but to see Kameron raise her voice at all. Vanjie calms the situation down,
physically intervening and moving herself between the two to help de-escalate,
and with a moment to catch their breath, both queens apologize. Kameron tells
the others about Andre and they commiserate. Once again, Vanjie saves the
conversation, getting Kameron laughing and lightening the mood. She’s shown
herself to be incredibly socially adept all season, knowing just what to say to
alleviate tension, helping the others acknowledge and process their difficult
moments and then lifting their spirits with a joke. Managing these
personalities must get exhausting, and Vanjie seems to be the main queen doing
the work.

Back at the Flamingo, Kameron gets her head in the game and
the episode treats viewers to a montage of her work in the show. She’s in her
element and determined not to let the breakup keep her from making the most of
her residency. It’s unclear just how much time has passed—maybe a week?—but
with Asia still gone, Naomi decides to move her things and take Asia’s former space
in the dressing room. This may not seem like a big deal to some watching, but
it’s the backstage equivalent of, “And don’t come back.” Asia responds just as
expected when she finds out, clued in by queens’ management assistant Jon. Overwhelmed,
she ultimately breaks down in the stairwell. In the talking heads, she opens up
about some of the experiences shaping her reaction to Naomi. As an 11-year-old,
Asia was sent away from her parents out of the blue, completely destabilizing
her. She had thought everything was fine only to discover that a lot had been
kept from her. This situation with Naomi takes her right back to that place of betrayal
and abandonment.

The backstage dynamics are not improving, so RuPaul’s Drag Race Live! executive producer
Randy stops by the show to check in. Randy coming in is a statement on its own:
The producers are watching. Asia’s new dressing room space is apparently a
safety concern, so she can’t stay there. Randy calls the queens to the stage, and
they’re immediately chastened by his presence. He lets them know that Asia will
need to move, but that they’ve found her another space to use, temporarily.
Some of the queens are upset that she’ll have her own private dressing room,
while the others read between the lines. They need to fix this, as a show
family, and they need to fix it soon. Randy makes sure to compliment their work,
but his message is clear. He understands, but there’s a limit to his patience.

In her new dressing room, Asia gets a call from fiancé Brett.
He asks after the cast and how the show is going, and Asia is evasive at best.
She hints at some tensions, but doesn’t want to worry him. She’s holding in a
lot of pain, even from her fiancé, and it blares as a warning sign. All is not
well, particularly when contrasted with Kameron of all people finding catharsis
by opening up about Andre. Brett will be coming to the show the next week,
however, so Asia won’t be able to maintain the façade much longer.

The episode ends on an ominous note, with Yvie completely over
Asia’s behavior. Even Vanjie can do little to lighten the mood. They all know
the situation is serious, but with so few of the queens ready to listen, and
Asia not ready to talk, it’s hard to see what will happen to turn the tide.
Things may not look great for the cast, but if nothing else, this drama has
buoyed Vegas Revue. Between teases of
Kameron and Vanjie’s upcoming hookup, some sort of resolution to the Naomi,
Derrick, and Asia conflict, and the real-world events of March 2020, the final
two episodes hold significantly more promise and at last, the show has found
its footing.

Stray observations

• “If someone tells me that they don’t like something about my
  behavior, then my first reaction is to work on it.” Naomi, your first reaction
  to Asia saying you were the least team-centered castmate was to get defensive
  and complain to Derrick.
• Yvie’s rap project gets some more time this episode, as she
  films the music video for her new single. These scenes don’t fit as smoothly with
  the rest of the episode’s narrative, but I’m glad they were included. Yvie feels
  like she’s in a completely different, but just as interesting show about building
  a career as a queer black artist.
• For the first time this season, I can’t wait to watch the
  next episode! The previous episodes’ interpersonal conflicts screamed of
  producer shenanigans. These conflicts feel genuine, and that makes a world of
  difference.