The hand of the producers is rarely subtle on Drag Race. Coaxed and massaged and
outright manufactured storylines are a fact of reality TV, and they don’t have
to be a negative. Producer manipulation can result in incredibly dramatic
moments and reveals, such as the surprise early elimination of Latrice in All Stars 4. That moment was initially
shocking, but on reflection, it was masterfully built to and supported by the
pacing, editing, and talking heads. It felt earned, but not ominously and
repeatedly foreshadowed. This season has been much more obvious, with the
producers and editors over-egging their setups, tipping the eventual episode
payoffs from satisfying to predictable. That’s the case with “L.A.D.P.!,” an
episode that should be a lot of fun, but ends up rather forgettable.
The episode begins in the aftermath of Brooke and Yvie’s
epic “Snatch Game At Sea” lip-sync. Surprisingly, the queens don’t seem
particularly gagged. Maybe there was too much down time during filming, maybe
the other queens are disappointed neither frontrunner was eliminated, but aside
from a few comments from Plastique and Shuga, the mood in the workroom is much
more somber than one would expect after the performance Brooke and Yvie just
gave. The conversation quickly pivots to expectations and pressure, with Yvie
feeling the heat even more post-double shantay. Shuga gives the viewers at home
a quick Drag Race statistics
refresher: Only two queens have ever won after not placing in Snatch Game.
Brooke and Yvie may still be the queens to beat, but based on the show’s
history, the other competitors still have a good shot at the crown. If she’s
going to contend, Shuga knows she needs to step up her game and differentiate
herself from the pack. Silky isn’t worried and doesn’t think she needs to
change a thing. One segment in, and both Shuga and Silky have their narratives
for the episode.
Everyone is more energized heading into the workroom the
next day—Nina even flosses her way in—and before long, Ru comes in to announce
the latest mini challenge. The library is open! It’s time for the fan-favorite Reading
Is Fundamental challenge. The queens must display their comedy writing and
delivery chops by reading their fellow queens, roasting them with pointed,
succinct, and hopefully original observations. As the season’s resident comedy
queen, one would expect Nina to nail this challenge, but between her overeager
pacing and friendly demeanor, she bombs the delivery of her first read and doesn’t
recover. It’s never a good sign when you start explaining your punchlines. Nina
may not do particularly well, but she’s utterly charming and the warm, somewhat
confused reaction of the other queens sets the tone for the entire mini
challenge.
Nina’s early bobble diffuses the usual tension that
accompanies this challenge and instead of trying to live up to the impossibly
high standards the fans and the queens themselves have for these reads,
everyone just relaxes and has fun with it. Who knew that what this challenge
needed was a few well-placed, good-natured heckles. Vanjie doesn’t do all that
well either, but she’s fun throughout and has decent reads. Shuga and Plastique
both get a few good lines in, and Silky’s performance is just plain confounding.
A’keria does well and certainly exceeds expectations, having stayed mostly in
her pageant lane this season, but Yvie and Brooke are once again the best of
the bunch. Ru awards the win to Brooke. This iteration may not have been as
viciously memorable as others, but it’s the most entertaining the library has
been in seasons, breathing new life into an increasingly stressful, over-hyped
challenge. Hopefully the producers will be able to recapture this easy-going,
playful tone in future seasons.
It’s time for the maxi challenge, this season’s second
centered on improv comedy. The queens must work with a partner to improvise a
comedic scene for a COPS-inspired
guilty pleasure reality show, L.A.D.P.!,
or Los Angeles Drag Patrol. They’ll work with guest judges Fortune Feimster and
Cheyenne Jackson to build entertaining and memorable scenes, playing the perps
to Feimster and Jackson’s patrol officers. As the winner, Brooke gets to choose
the teams and she wisely pairs herself with Nina. The two were dynamite
together in the first improv challenge, and Brooke is looking to recapture that
magic. Brooke then pairs Vanjie with Plastique, A’keria with Yvie, and Silky
with Shuga. The pairings are pretty solid, with one #TeamBritney queen in each
duo. Yvie may call shade, but on paper, each of these pairings has potential.
The queens get right to work, pairing up and looking over
their scripts. After some back and forth between Nina and Brooke over who will
get the showier role in their scene—Nina defers to Brooke, as she’s far less
comfortable with comedy than Nina is—Ru comes through to talk to everyone, or
more specifically, to establish their storylines. Ru meets with Silky and Shuga
first. Their narrative is that Shuga needs to avoid being overshadowed by
Silky. With Plastique and Vanjie, Ru quickly establishes that Plastique should steer
clear of her Vietnamese accent, and that Vanjie needs to slow-build her performance.
A’keria and Yvie’s talk is all about lowered expectations. Ru just wants them
to, “Yes, and” and be funny, and for Nina and Brooke, Ru stresses drawing from
Brooke’s dance background and really going for it.
When they get to the actual scenes, each of these narratives
play out almost beat for beat, robbing the episode of a sense of discovery,
with one big exception. Silky and Shuga are up first, Silky playing an illegal
butt pad dealer and Shuga a disgruntled customer. Silky is strong right from
the go, full of energy and selling hard to Feimster and Jackson. Shuga has a
hard time keeping up, or even getting a word in. She’s solid, but far from
memorable. Next are Brooke and Nina, as neighbors at a trailer park. Nina has
called the police on Brooke, who is sunbathing nude in front of Nina’s trailer.
Brooke takes Ru’s advice and uses her flexibility and physicality in her favor,
but she gets so caught up in what she’s doing she completely abandons Nina, who
finally stops waiting for her cue and jumps in. Unlike in “Diva Worship,” Nina
isn’t able to anchor the scene and while she does a good job, she’s completely
overshadowed by Brooke.
Vanjie and Plastique go third, playing two cats fighting
outside a liquor store. They’re a complete mess, Vanjie coming out too big and
neither Vanjie nor Plastique managing to communicate the plot of their sketch.
Vanjie benefited from the clear structure and defined roles of the previous
improv challenge, where she slayed. Here there are many more elements in flux
and the scene quickly deteriorates into a free-for-all. Last up are A’keria and
Yvie, playing twerking girls fighting over a particular stretch of road. Yvie
does alright, but A’keria is terrific. She benefits from the lowered
expectations set by Ru, but even without that, this is a breakthrough moment
for A’keria. Like Silky and Brooke, she’s given a set-up that plays to her
strengths; she can twerk all day long, and she puts that to good use throughout
the scene. Silky doesn’t need any help with confidence, but Brooke and A’keria
do, at least in comedy challenges, and being able to draw on known strengths
helps them open up and really commit to the ridiculousness of their scenes.
The next day, the heavy hand of
the producers is felt once again as the queens prepare for the runway. Silky,
already flagged for her overconfidence at the beginning of the episode, blows
off painting her face, killing time while the rest of the queens get ready.
There’s less prep this episode, however, as category is: Face-kini. Inspired by
Ru’s memorable judging look from “The Last Ball On Earth,” the queens need to
put together a look that covers their entire face, only exposing their lips and
eyes. Silky is up first, dressed as a fly (sans wings). Her look is fun, but
under the lights, the slivers of exposed skin around her eyes pop against the
black of her mask. It’s another example of a not-quite-finished runway from
Silky. Shuga is next, sporting a fabulous My
Fair Lady-inspired dress. Brooke looks amazing as a glittery zebra, while
Nina goes A Clockwork Orange meets
polka dots. Vanjie is in full-body red latex with a black braid, a welcome and
dramatic change from her standard look, while Plastique’s look feels very Catwoman and doesn’t meet the brief,
exposing most of her (gorgeously painted) face. A’keria’s plastic
surgery-inspired look is fun and pointed, and Yvie goes full slime creature,
returning to her preferred aesthetic.
Natasha Lyonne joins Ru, Michelle,
and Feimster and Jackson on the judging panel and Ru quickly declares Nina and
Yvie safe. It’s quite a blow for Nina, who at least gets a shout-out from the
judges, albeit after she’s gone. Silky gets read, hard, by Michelle for not painting
her face, but is complemented on her improv performance. She’s safe. The judges
love Shuga’s look, but she faded too quickly in her improv scene. She’s also
safe. That leaves Brooke and A’keria in the top, praised for their entertaining
improvs and fabulous looks, with the win eventually going to A’keria. Vanjie
and Plastique are in the bottom, both critiqued for their clearly last-place
improv and their looks, though Michelle does make sure to thank Vanjie for
changing up her silhouette.
After the previous lip-sync, just
about anything would be a disappointment, and Vanjie and Plastique’s battle to
Fantasia Barrino’s “Hood Boy” is merely alright. Both queens have given better
performances elsewhere in the season. Vanjie starts out strong, hitting her dance
moves, but she gets repetitive by the end, returning to her braid again and
again. Plastique does fine, but she doesn’t particularly stand out. In the end,
Ru declares Vanjie the winner and sends Plastique packing. While she’s had a
few incredibly strong moments this season and consistently delivered beautiful
looks, the field is narrowing and having failed to build on her momentum from
“Farm To Runway,” it was time for Plastique to go. The start of this episode
may have done its best to convince viewers that season 11 is still wide open,
but more and more, the final four is solidifying. Vanjie and Shuga need to make
strides and fast if they want to contend.
Stray observations
- The line of the episode, without a
doubt: A’keria is “Clit Eastwood- she made my day.” - I’m really pulling for Nina, but
each episode it seems clearer that Ru isn’t interested in rewarding what she
excels at. She’s definitely in my top four, but I doubt she’ll make Ru’s. - This is an exciting episode for
A’keria! It feels like her Trinity the Tuck transformation moment, a pageant
queen finding her feet in comedy. This is the right time in the season to hit a
new gear. Hopefully A’keria will push further and stretch her comedy muscles
more as we head into the final stretch. - Feimster and Jackson are fun in
the improv scenes, but the highlight of the whole thing is Ru as the
dispatcher. - Despite really enjoying the
reading challenge, none of the zingers particularly stuck with me. Sound off
with your favorites in the comments.