Sashay, shantay, panther on the runway! Right away we can see this reunion special is…special, and I’m immediately willing to forgive and forget that we were left hanging last week. They’re on a bigger set than usual, there’s an audience and we’re treated to a fun opening routine. The queens are introduced one by one. The audience cheers, but they don’t actually get on their feet until Latrice Royale is introduced. Jesus is a biscuit.
Ru says this is the new main stage. Just for this reunion special or are they actually getting a new set that doesn’t look like it was put together by theater tech dropouts in six hours? Did Logo finally up its cash cow’s budget? Was the reunion taped in a nightclub or was it really, truly a new set? I need answers! I’m so confused!
First things first, we take a look back at some of the queens who were gone too soon. Mostly, we don’t care and are pretty sure these bitches were gone just in time, some not soon enough. These clips were boring when we watched them the first three times. There’s some shade throwing–Alisa Summers says she’s surprised Jiggly sent her home during the lip-synch and claims she could have done better if she was wearing sneakers too. Sure, gworl, whatever you say.
The Princess especially seems to be serving sour grapes realness. She almost has Phi Phi levels of self-unawareness. Damn, the audience totally boos her–I kind of love having the audience there. Ru gives the early sashayers a chance to do the reading mini challenge. Madame LaQueer says Jiggly’s teeth are hanging out with her good taste. Except then we go to commercial break and don’t get to see anymore reading. What a tease.
Touchingly, we get an update on DiDa reconnecting with her family when we come back from commercial break. Her mother is in the audience. I get the feeling that both DiDa and her mother are overstating the father’s acceptance of everything, but still it’s so nice to see that Ms. Ritz was able to reconnect with her family, and I’m sure the relationship is a work in progress.
Holy shet. Charo is there to be Kenya’s translator. Hilarious. What else can you say about that really?
Finally, we get to find out what Willam did. Oh goodness, she’s carried in by the pit crew, kicking and struggling, causing Shawn Morales’ lovely basket to jiggle and bounce. Someone find me a GIF of that immediately. It turns out that Willam was booted because she received regular visits from her partner during taping, and that’s a big no-no.
Next up is Latrice Motherfucking Royale. Ru talks about what an impact she had on the audience, and Latrice says she never expected the outpouring of support she has recevied. She says she’s “inspired to keep on keeping on” and also reads a very sweet letter from a fan. Ru asks if Latrice regrets being open about her prison background. Latrice says she does not regret it, she wants people to know it’s okay to make mistakes.
The final three take the stage. Ru tries to clear the air. Sharon explains she attempts to get along with everyone and seeks a redeeming quality in people who are difficult, adding that she couldn’t really find anything redeeming about Phi Phi. Chad says she realized watching the show at home that while she had been defending Phi Phi, Phi Phi was actually doing some truly terrible, backstabby stuff.
Ru gives the other queens a chance to say something. Jiggly tearfully confronts Phi Phi for the nasty things she did behind her back, things Jiggly didn’t find out about until she saw the show on television, after having had Phi Phi as a guest in her home. Willam says that Phi Phi is “sociopathic” and should be studied. She adds that she isn’t going to RuPaulogize for anything she said. Willam just coined a new RuPaul word mutation! Anyway, it was somewhat satisfying to see Phi Phi taken to task for awful shet she has done, but I still hate Pheecees O’Hara.
Latrice Royale is crowned Miss Congeniality. Everyone knows she deserved it. Congrats, Latrice!
Sharon is crowned America’s Next Drag Superstar, and all is right in the universe. Srsly, I got a bit of a high from seeing her win. Here’s the thing: this is really the first season that we’ve seen a queen really develop a vocal, devoted following and actually win the crown. In other seasons, the fan favorites haven’t made it this far. Congratulations to Sharon Needles. She was a favorite here at Crasstalk from the very beginning, and we’re thrilled that she won.
The new (and improved, apparently) season of RuPaul’s Drag U will begin airing in June, but not long after, Logo will deliver a one-two punch of RuPaul’s Drag Race: All Stars and RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 5. Stay tuned, kittens.
