RuPaul’s Drag Race gets political as the queens debate America’s choices for 2020

Over its 12 seasons, RuPaul’s
Drag Race has honed and solidified its stable of challenges. This lends consistency to
the series and is one of its great strengths, but it also makes things a touch predictable,
for the contestants as well as the audience. Luckily the producers shake things
up for “Choices 2020,” pulling out a political challenge, à la season four’s “Frock The Vote!” and season eight’s “Shady Politics.” Rather than putting on
yet another roast, why not marry the skills RuPaul and the producers are
looking to test—improv and stand-up—with a topic close to RuPaul’s heart,
political engagement? Given the red, white, and blue styling for the season and
the omnipresent voter registration plugs, it feels like a natural fit, and one
the show will hopefully return to in the future.

The episode begins with an appropriate pairing of material
and costuming, as the remaining queens eulogize the dearly departed Jan in
their black wedding finery. They also take a moment to celebrate Heidi, who is on
cloud nine after her win, and for Gigi to reflect on her poor showing. She’s shaken
by the judges’ critiques and far less confident of her position. High off of
their strong showings, Heidi and Crystal come skipping into the workroom the
next day, ready to take on the top seven. There’s just enough time for some
shade from Sherry before Ru comes in to announce the mini challenge. The queens
will be getting into quick cat drag to hawk PrettyLitter, a brand of
color-changing health monitoring kitty litter. As has been the case all season,
the queens impress with their quick drag. They’re surprisingly polished, for 15
minutes, each with a distinct look and personality. This mini challenge is delightful,
funnier and more creative than the entirety of the “World’s Worst” improv
challenge, and it shows how much more comfortable everyone has gotten as they’ve
settled into the season. The queens are game and they all do well, but Jackie
takes the cake with her Eartha Kitt impression and deservedly gets the win.

After a few more puns, Ru adopts a serious demeanor to
announce the maxi challenge. In honor of the upcoming 2020 elections, it’s time
for a political challenge. The queens will be participating in a debate as they
run to be the first drag queen president of the United States. They’re warned
not to take themselves too seriously, though, with the debate pitched as comic
relief for the hardworking candidates and organizers watching at home. The
queens will need to come up with a character, a campaign slogan, and be ready
to improv and debate off of prompts from the moderators as well as their fellow
queens. This is a chance at redemption for the queens who struggled during
Snatch Game, and it will be interesting to see who approaches it this way,
versus as a straightforward political or comedic challenge.

Some of the queens seem a bit lost, uncertain how to tackle the
challenge. This is the first curveball of the season, the first unexpected challenge
where the queens are being asked to come up with their own characters and
talking points. Fortunately, Ru returns to the workroom for a quick
walk-through, bringing along with Drag Race All Star and fan favorite Raven. They start with Heidi, who has some
quality material prepared and throws out more prime slogan material without
even realizing it. Ru draws her attention to it, laughing yet exasperated, and
to her credit, Heidi quickly scribbles it down. She may not always realize quite
what she has, but at least Ru doesn’t have to tell her twice. Next is Gigi, who
acknowledges she doesn’t keep up with politics, as it makes her anxious. She’s
ready with quips, but could easily struggle to keep her material relevant to the
context of the challenge. Gigi’s also in her head about her low placement in
the previous episode, and if she doesn’t shake that off, it will impact her
performance.

The same is true of Widow, who seems off her game. Raven
drags her for her shoes and her mentality, but their good-natured sparring
doesn’t stir much out of Widow, who has some ideas, but doesn’t know how to
make them funny. Jaida is more confidence-inspiring. She may not have debate
experience, but she cites her pageant background and translates this challenge
into something she’s more than comfortable with, arguing. She should do just
fine. As for Jackie, Ru clocks correctly that she is a close follower of the
political scene. She feels at home in this challenge and after her mini
challenge win, expectations will be high. Last is Crystal, who talks about her
experience living in a very conservative area. Where she lives, just being
herself is a political act, and both Ru and Raven encourage her to embrace that
rather than trying to come up with belabored puns. There’s a theme to Ru and
Raven’s advice: Keep it stupid and silly, play to your strengths, and don’t
take yourself or the challenge too seriously. Some of the queens are listening,
but several aren’t in the headspace to hear that advice, and will need to
loosen up if they’re going to succeed in the debate.

As the queens prepare at the mirrors, they talk about their
relationships with politics. Jackie has been personally impacted by Trump’s Muslim
ban, and talks about it movingly. Crystal’s parents are active Trump
supporters, which comes as a surprise, given how supportive they are of her and
her drag. Widow makes a point not to frequent establishments with primarily
straight patrons and avoids entire areas of her city because she doesn’t feel
safe. Jaida talks about reaching out to her family, being ready with
information for them, should they ask. The queens are empathetic toward Gigi, understanding
her desire to back away from the anxiety and stress of the current political
climate, but the message of the segment is clear. Disengaging is a luxury that
the country cannot afford.

On the runway, Ru walks out in a flowing pastel dress and
announces that Michelle is away on assignment and won’t be joining the judging
panel this episode. There’s a quick cutaway to Michelle (and Dahlia) covering
the debate in downtown Tuckahoe, then Ru introduces guest judges Rachel Bloom
and Jeff Goldblum, and it’s time for the debate. Bloom and Goldblum moderate
the debate, riffing off of the queens and effectively grounding the sketch. Bloom
is particularly strong. Her improv background comes through in her
performance, whereas Goldblum mostly reacts, bemused, to what the queens throw
out. The energy through the debate is playful and snappy, helped by tight
editing, and the whole segment is a pleasure to watch.

While the debate is a lot of fun, the queens’ performances
run the gamut. Crystal is lighthearted and whimsical, focusing more on drag
references than political ones. She does well, a charming presence on the stage
if not the most memorable. Heidi goes full Southern belle, playing up her gap
and a handful of prepared lines. She also makes a meal of her reactions to the
other queens. It’s a wonderfully silly—and effective—approach to the challenge.
Widow goes the opposite way, committing fully to the political aspect of her
character but losing sight of the comedy. Heidi feints over Widow’s sharp
remark to Goldblum and Gigi shows off her strut, but Widow passes up a golden
opportunity to rip off her skirt and shablam the house down, too stuck in what
her no-nonsense character would do.

One of the season’s most politically informed and
improv-adept queens, Jackie should excel in this challenge, but she goes off
track early. Playing into her Canadian citizenship, Jackie’s character is a Canadian
who keeps slipping up and referencing Canada in her answers instead of the
United States. It’s a solid starting point, but it doesn’t build to anything interesting.
Instead she hits the same beat over and over, to diminishing returns. Gigi is
similarly underwhelming, hampered by her lack of political knowledge. She
whiffs an easy prompt about mechanization and jobs and never builds on her
early tease that she may be a robot. Jaida may not have the most defined character
on the stage, but she is the best at adapting to the needs of the debate. She’s
quick on her feet, seizing on the confused laughs she gets with her flailing, “Look
over there!” response to a prompt and turning it into a bit, before tying it in
to a previous answer. Both Jackie and Gigi would likely have done better with
more prep time, but putting the queens on the spot is part of the point of this
challenge, and it’s an aspect only a few of the queens successfully contend
with.

On the runway, category is: Stars and Stripes Forever.
Crystal looks chic in a mismatched blue ensemble with a red, star-spangled hat
and jacket. Heidi sparkles in a sequined, Betty Page-inspired look, with
thigh-high red boots, a red wig, and a blue, white, and silver mini dress.
Widow takes the challenge another way, celebrating black culture with her black
and white dress, three oversize silver stars, sparkling hoops, and a sparkly Afro. Sherry is going for a protest-inspired look, but as Ru clocks, it comes
off more British punk than American. Jackie makes a statement with a simple,
but powerful look, wearing a red striped caftan and blue hijab, decorated with
50 silver stars. It’s a risk to go so minimal on Drag Race, but it pays off here. In her description, Gigi says she’s
going for the Quaker Oates mascot, but her gorgeous red velvet
military-inspired look reads as a British redcoat. This look is similar to her
fabulous entry look, but as that never walked the runway, there’s no harm in
going back to the well. Last is Jaida, who comes out as a sexy drag superhero in
a sheer blue body suit with strategically placed red, white, and blue accents.
It’s impeccable, yet another fantastic look from Jaida, who it should be
reiterated makes all of her own garments.

On the whole, the judges are positive towards the queens,
commending their debate performances and runway looks. Sherry, Widow, Jackie,
and Gigi get some pointers from the judges, with Widow and Jackie getting the
harshest critiques. Jackie takes hers in stride; Widow, not so much. She’s at
the end of her rope, exhausted and frustrated, and unsure how to dig her way
out of her negative mindset. All she can hear is that she’s not enough. After
deliberations, Ru declares Sherry, Heidi, and Crystal safe and names Jaida the
winner. There’s a brief tease, but Gigi also gets saved, putting Jackie and Widow
in the bottom.

Their song is Katy Perry’s “Firework,” and Jackie wisely
draws focus from Widow right away by going comedic at the beginning. Widow
showed in the previous lip-sync that she is a force to be reckoned with. Had
Jackie tried for a straight sing-off, Widow could have blown her out of the
water. Instead, while Widow is selling earnestness, Jackie is kooky, getting
the judges laughing and interested in her performance. Then she flips a switch
at the refrain, pivoting to sincerity and joy. Both Widow and Jackie do well,
but Jackie ekes out the win with her motion, energy, and more dynamic
performance. It’s not the powerhouse battle that ended “Droop,” but this is a
heartening, celebratory lip-sync, one that moves a surprised Goldblum to tears.
Both queens are good, but given their trajectories this season, it’s Widow’s
time. Ru saves Jackie and sends Widow packing, and she becomes the latest
eliminated season 12 queen certain to return and slay in a future All Stars season. She may not have had
the season she wanted, but she showed herself well in several of the challenges
and owned the talking heads. She’ll be missed. Only five eligible queens
remain, and with Sherry and Gigi’s recent missteps, the top four looks more
open than ever.

Stray observations

• Tatianna’s “Choices” is one of my favorite Drag Race sound bites, so I was very
  happy to see it return for the debate.
• With Widow gone, Heidi will likely have the talking heads to
  herself. Hopefully some of the other queens step up their interstitial game.
• Ru and Raven hand out slogans left and right during the
  walk-through. “What is the Crystal method?” “Fuck the GOP, get into the g-a-p.”
  I was surprised not to hear more of these and other slogans during the debate,
  but it seems likely there was quite a bit of material left on the editing room
  floor. This wasn’t the queens’ best outing, but it was a lot of fun, and I would
  love to see an extended version of the debate.
• Rachel Bloom co-created and starred in the brilliant Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. If you enjoyed her here and haven’t checked out Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, do yourself a favor and seek it out. She’s another season 12 guest judge I’d be happy to see return.