Welcome to RuPaul’s Drag Race Power Rankings! Every Saturday, we’ll debrief the week’s new episode of RuPaul’s Drag Race to determine which queens are riding high, and which need she-mergency care. A surprise twist in the vote left Elliott With Two Ts as part of the winning group. But how did she fare against the top of the crop from the first episode?
7. Elliott With Two Ts (last week: 13)
Even in a strong week for Elliott, I’m just still not convinced she has what it takes for a deep run in this competition. She had a couple of big moments, including and especially her nighttime runway for the mini-challenge and her dancing in the maxi-challenge. Her verse, on the other hand, was a bit stilted, and her lamé runway look was one of the weakest of the lot. She seems delightful, but at a time when other queens are getting raves about their star power and questions about their personal stories, there just doesn’t seem to be much investment in Elliott.
6. Gottmik (last week: 6)
Credit: Courtesy of VH1
So much about Gottmik excites me—her makeup is master-class, her sense of style is terrific—that I desperately want to overlook her weaknesses. I felt for her as she opened up about dealing with sudden gender dysphoria this week, and cheered as she broke through the frustration. But on both choreography and verse-writing levels, she faltered hard. (The subject matter was compelling, as she wrote about her gender identity, but she sang so slowly that she wound up with a very brief segment of the song.) Her looks went a long way toward keeping her afloat. Still, after the weak lip sync last week and now this, I’m concerned about how Gottmik will fare in performance challenges going forward.
5. Kandy Muse (last week: 1)
Kandy remains the top confessionalist of the season, and watching her produce in the workroom is a delight. She loves to get the tea, and even started some low-stakes drama with Elliott. But while I very much appreciate her entertainment value, I also want her to keep her eye on the prize. She did a bit too much in her verse, overstuffing it to the point of making its delivery nearly impossible. She also underwhelmed across all categories in the runways; her performance look was actually my favourite of hers this week. I cannot imagine Kandy going home any time soon—she’s too valuable as a TV personality—so that keeps her out of the absolute bottom of the list. I just want her to thrive along the way.
4. Tina Burner (last week: 2)
Another queen who packed a lot into her verse, Tina put that boy band experience to good use this week. Her flow in her rap was good, and the verse was well-written. I also liked all of her looks this week, though I’m with Michelle Visage: Had she not pulled out the all-silver Tin Man look for the lamé runway, it would’ve been too much red-and-yellow for me. Totally get it, her motif is fire (Tina “Burner”)—it just needs some other flavours to break up the monotony. Tina’s biggest weakness was in her execution of the choreography, but even that didn’t seem to matter too much. A solid week for Tina.
3. LaLa Ri (last week: 5)
Credit: Courtesy of VH1
If I had to pick a favourite performer in the maxi-challenge, I’d probably go with LaLa. I liked the top two a lot, but LaLa felt the most cohesive in terms of matching her choreography to the tone of her verse. She did just the right amount in her verse, making for a fast-paced performance that didn’t feel overwhelming. The runways were hit-or-miss this week, though, with her gorgeous gold lamé look being the best of the lot. Tripping on her fabric in the daytime look was a misstep, for sure, but so much of what LaLa did in the rest of the episode more than made up for it. I remain a stan.
2. Olivia Lux (last week: 4)
Olivia is absolutely transfixing to watch. She shines in everything she does: On the runway, in a performance, in confessionals. She projects warmth and sunniness, but never comes across as fake or false. It’s no wonder she was in the top two this week, after killing her choreography and turning out a lovely sung verse for “Condragulations.” Major props for turning out so many different looks this week, too. For someone who’s not been doing drag for long, she has a natural gift for showing different sides of herself every time we see her. I called her an underdog last week, but this episode proved Olivia is a true frontrunner.
1. Symone (last week: 3)
Credit: Courtesy of VH1
“You’ve got star quality,” Ru told Symone, and boy was he right. Symone is charisma incarnate, as watchable as Olivia but in a whole different way. If Olivia represents pure sweetness, Symone represents confidence and elegance. She demonstrated her grace all episode, but I was most struck by it during the “Break Your Heart” lip sync. She doesn’t do tricks, dips or splits—she just commands your attention with her face. Combine with a great variety of runway looks, a strong verse and performance and an endearingly emotional response to Ru’s praise, it’s clear she’s a queen who has the whole package. There’s a lot of competition left, but for now, Symone reigns supreme.
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