‘RuPaul’s Drag Race Down Under’ series premiere recap: ‘G’day, g’day, g’day’

Here’s a little teaser to get you in the proper mindset for the series premiere of RuPaul’s Drag Race Down Under: RuPaul’s makeup gets lost in transit before the episode films. To explain why RuPaul is judging out of drag, he talks to himself in drag (clearly shot at a later time) on the main stage. Again: This is the first episode of a whole new series, and we’ve already got RuPaul talking to RuPaul. It took seven years, but Joslyn Fox has been proven wrong: We have seen in-drag RuPaul and out-of-drag RuPaul in the same room!

This is a pretty good litmus test for how you’ll feel about this series premiere. If you’re put off by Ru not being in drag, then the crunchy vibe of this cast and the show’s production probably won’t thrill you. If you think it’s fine, you’re probably in just the right mindset for this. If the whole thing makes your brain melt a little bit: Don’t worry, queen, mine did too; come sit by me.

After the ultra-polished Season 13 of RuPaul’s Drag Race’s flagship series, I’m ready for something a little looser with Drag Race Down Under. The less-expensive vibe really helps RuPaul’s Drag Race UK, after all—though that iteration relies on high-energy, engaging personalities. Down Under will need to match that vibe in order to snatch the attention of a fanbase worn-out from two seasons this year already.

If the premiere is any indication, I’m a little concerned! It’s decent, but the whole thing feels sluggish in comparison to other recent launches. Production-wise, the episode is also under the franchise standard, with some choppy editing (particularly in the alien movie shoot mini-challenge) and oddly placed confessionals. Considering the New Zealand-based filming happened earlier this year, in January and February, this season is clearly the product of a tight turn-around. With Drag Race España and All Stars 6 also coming soon, one wonders if holding off on Down Under for a bit longer might’ve been a smarter call.

That said, this is just the premiere, so we’ll reserve judgment for the time being. Like any good Drag Race premiere, we get our queens’ entrance lines and looks as they introduce themselves to both their fellow competitors and the audience. Art Simone is up first, and her paint palette-inspired look goes perfectly with her name and vibe. Maxi Shield and Jojo Zaho turn out strong mugs but lackluster looks, while Auckland queen Elektra Shock’s wig draws, well, shock from the other queens. Scarlet Adams gives us a sleek look with a strong point of view, while Coco Jumbo sells the hell out of a look that might appear simple on another queen. 

We get introduced to the two other Auckland queens, Kita Mean and Anita Wigl’it, who are friends as well as business and performing partners. Both are technically Elektra’s bosses—fun dynamic! While Anita is excited to be there with her friend, Kita, on the other hand, expresses joy about being without Anita for once before she realizes Anita will also be competing. (She even makes a joke about Anita riding her coattails.) 

Then it’s back to the Australian queens: Etcetera Etcetera and Karen From Finance perhaps make the biggest impressions with their entrance outfits: Etcetera comes as a cockroach, drawing puzzled reactions, while Karen’s outfit is super polished and on-brand.

Before we go any further, we should acknowledge that both Scarlet Adams and Karen From Finance we’re called out for (and apologized for) past racist behaviour before the season began. Suffice it to say we’ll still be talking about their performances this season—they’re on the show, after all—but it’s nonetheless deflating that a full one-fifth of this cast had to explain racist incidents before the season began. That’s the note we’re starting on. A mess.

But I digress. Elektra wins the mini-movie shoot challenge, quickly shutting up the other queens who doubted her and her thirsty wig. She says in a confessional that she feels like the underestimated one, but her fellow queens now see her as a potential underdog. It’s an interesting spot for one of the three Auckland queens going into the maxi-challenge: A Hometown Ball.

In theory, I like the Hometown Ball challenge. One of my favourite things about the international Drag Race series is getting to see different styles of drag from different parts of the world. But while the Hometown category gives the dolls a chance to show a bit of where they come from, it’s hard to feel like this is unique, considering it’s the same first challenge as both RuPaul’s Drag Race UK’s seasons (not to mention Season 9 of the flagship series). And while the Born Naked category is a change, it’s also a direct copy of the nude illusion runway from the Season 7 premiere. I’d much rather see something like Canada’s Drag Race’s opening Roots design challenge as the series opener here.

After Ru welcomes Ru (again: brain-melting), Michelle Visage and new judge, comedian Rhys Nicholson, on the runway, we dive into the nude illusion looks. To be blunt, this wasn’t my favourite category back in Season 7, and it still isn’t now. It’s just hard to show much of your personality in nude illusion without contradicting the category. For example, Karen From Finance’s look is fun, but feels too covered up to qualify as a true “nude” illusion. The two who really excel here, in my opinion, are Etcetera and Art, though only the latter makes it into the top three this week.

The Hometown category results are better basically across the board: Scarlet’s Black Swan look is cute, and earns kudos from the judges. Etcetera’s look is so different from their others that it impresses—they demonstrate the most versatility among the queens this week. And I’m personally obsessed with Anita’s ram look, though it passes by without comment.

Alongside Art and Scarlet in the top is Karen, who gets major credit for leading with personality this week. (Not “Perth-onality,” she’s from Melbourne.) I’d probably go with Art, as she shines in both categories. But Karen winning is a pretty clear sign that personality is going to win the day this season. So far, Karen has a big leg up in that regard: This is a lower-key group, especially among the Australian dolls, and Karen has both the banter and the reputation. (Michelle, in giving her positive feedback, makes a joke about her name, saying, “I do not need to speak to the manager.”)

In the bottom three are Coco, Elektra and Jojo, with the latter two made to lip sync for their lives. Coco’s nude illusion gets poor feedback, but the judges really like her Hometown look. Elektra gets dinged for her Hometown look requiring too much explanation, and while the panel appreciates the message of Jojo’s runway—an Aboriginal pride look that has “ALWAYS WAS ALWAYS WILL BE” written in a cape reveal—they knock her for missing some key details.

Elektra and Jojo face off in a pretty fiery lip sync to the Bee Gees’ “Tragedy.” Jojo goes for an emotional interpretation of the song, though she and Elektra get some laughs by repeatedly standing in front of the other to get the judges’ attention. But Elektra has more stunts and splits, which clearly draw Ru’s eye. She shantays to safety, while Jojo sashays away.

To be honest, that’s a tough elimination right out of the gate. While there’s no doubt Jojo faltered when it came to details, and the judges did take the time to respect her message, the fact remains that the queen boldly representing Indigenous communities—she proudly speaks of “faboriginality”—went home immediately. Meanwhile, the two queens embroiled in racist scandals before the season even began are in the top three, with one winning. It just feels uncomfortable, independent of whether the judging of the queens’ drag are correct.

I’m interested to see where Down Under goes from here. An Episode 2 Snatch Game is a good start, as it’ll immediately put this group through their paces and give them a chance to be funny. And there’s enough bits of interest so far to keep me invested, particularly after that pretty strong lip sync to wrap the episode. But I’d be lying if I said, with Drag Race fatigue fully set in, Down Under is going to need to step it up to compete for attention.

Untucking our final thoughts

✨Up and Down (Under): As with RuPaul’s Drag Race UK Season 2, we’re sticking to just recaps for Down Under, but I’ll include some notes about who’s riding high and who is in need of she-mergency care in my final thoughts each week. Karen From Finance is obviously strong out of the gate with the first maxi-challenge win, but it’s important to note that the praise of Art Simone is nearly as effusive. Elektra Shock goes from a mini-challenge win to lip-syncing for her life in this episode—we’ll see if she can pull out of her dip. I’m also concerned about Coco Jumbo, who is a ton of fun in the workroom, but scores low this week and seems to be getting critiqued by Ru in the preview for next week’s episode. I’d like to see her bounce back, and fast.

✨The grand prize, in addition to a year’s supply of makeup (Revolution Beauty instead of Anastasia Beverly Hills!), is $30,000. Interestingly enough, the cash tip for winning this week’s challenge is $3,000—just a tenth of the overall grand prize! That’s more than on the U.S. flagship series, where $5,000 cash tips match five percent of the grand prize.

✨Karen From Finance fully missing her mark during her entrance and walking too far is one of the more memorable entrances we’ve had in a minute. Very Cherry Valentine hitting the top of the doorway on UK Season 2.

✨It’s cute to have director Taika Waititi participate this week, but his segments are very obviously pre-taped, and I don’t get the point of pretending they’re not just to have him do a cute intro. The way the footage is used is very strange, with Ru even pretending to talk with Taika.

✨Already very into Rhys Nicholson as the third judge on this series. He’s quick-witted and funny, and settling into the groove of judging nicely. A lot is riding on him being a great addition to the regular judge pantheon—especially considering it might just be he, Michelle Visage and RuPaul this season.

✨RHYS: “I’m confused: Should I call you father or mother?”
RUPAUL: “Call me the one who signs your cheques.”
RHYS: “Oh, so I call you daddy!”

✨“Condragulations” is the runway song this week, which I believe makes this the first time a former RuMix song became a runway song after it was RuMixed. Obviously different shows, since “Condragulations” was a Season 13 RuMix in the United States, but still. Interesting lil tidbit. 

✨Mini-Untucked is here! Honestly, the U.S. series really needs to look at the fact that the flagship show is the only one without MIni-Untucked at this point. Even All Stars, which has a separate Untucked, includes deliberations as a Mini-Untucked! It really just is the superior format.

The next episode of RuPaul’s Drag Race Down Under streams Saturday, May 8, on WOW Presents Plus in the United States and on Crave in Canada, dropping at 3 a.m. EDT/12 a.m. PT. In other territories, check WOW Presents Plus for your local listings.