RuPaul's Drag Race Season 10 Episode 10 Review: Makeover Time!

25 May 2018, 17:49

It's make or break time for our queens.

It's week 10 of RuPaul's Drag Race, and it's my favourite challenge of the season - makeovers! Older than Snatch Game, the Makeover challenge has been a mainstay on Drag Race since the very beginning. The magic of the makeover challenge is that it's either spectacular or a hot mess, and both options are equally good TV. Being able to project your drag brand - the "family resemblance" that RuPaul so highly prizes - onto another person is also a good test to see how well a queen understands herself; a vital attribute of America's Next Drag Superstar. So who rose to the top, who phoned it in, and who's not coming back next episode? Let's find out as we recap RuPaul's Drag Race season 10 episode 10.

Back in the werkroom

Last week's lipsync for your life resulted in both Kameron and Eureka staying in the competition, so naturally there's a little stank in the room from queens who would rather be one step closer to the crown and one sister down. But while Monét saves her frustration for her talking head, Aquaria's saltiness comes pouring out. It's an illuminating rant - if you're truly secure about your place in the competition, there's no huge need to be upset about how long you have to compete for. After all, if no one goes home one episode, that gives you an extra episode to show the world how wonderful you are. Asia, having absolutely none of it, accuses Aquaria of narcissism. Kameron, the subject of this entire debate, says nothing.

The mini-challenge

It's a new day, Aquaria has apologised for behaving like a toddler post-elimination, and the queens are ready to slay this week's challenge. First up is the mini-challenge: dressing up in the butchest boy drag possible to advertise "Trade" - a body spray for men.

It's a hilarious mini-challenge that shows how masculinity is just as constructed as femininity. The most surprising transformation is Asia O'Hara, who manages to go from Angela Bassett to Tyrese with nothing more than a sprinkle of facial hair and a lick of the lips. Eureka goes on to win the challenge, and earns the privilege of deciding teams for the maxi challenge.

Meet the social media kings

The werkroom doors fly open and in walk six social media giants. Anthony Padilla, Tyler Oakley, Kingsleyyy, Chester See and Raymond Braun from YouTube, and Frankie Grande from, well, from the same womb as Ariana Grande!

As Eureka won the mini-challenge, she's allowed to pair the queens with their social media kings, and makes the extremely suspect decision to pair Kingsleyyy, the only black social media king, with Aquaria, hoping that the difference in skin colour will trip her up. I don't care how thirsty you are for the crown, putting the one black guest with a white queen in the hopes that the colour difference results in said black guest looking horrible on the main stage is high-key problematic. Eureka better hope she wins, because that's NOT how you win Miss Congeniality, lady. The fandom weren't too impressed with Eureka's actions either.

The queens' chemistry with their respective social media kings varies, with Asia and Raymond seeming immediately connected, while Kameron and Anthony are 100% sexy and 0% entertaining. Eureka and Frankie are equally annoying ajnd therefore get on like a house on fire, while Miz Cracker and Chester have a cerebral edge in common that could either work amazingly or engulf the both. Monét and Tyler have the most obviously complementary energy, but their comfort kiki'ing with each other stands to get in the way of doing the task at hand. The queens paired with queer social media stars appear to have an advantage, as they're all drag race fanatics. That being said, knowing the show as a fan and not a contender could be a double-edged sword, as fans come with set ideas of what they would do, rather than feeling out the situation as it happens.

This week's highlight comes in the form of Chester See, a.k.a Miz Cookie, when she sees herself for the first time in drag and instantly sissies up her whole soul. This, right here is the power of drag - even the most introverted straight men can unleash their inner diva with a wig and some overdrawn lips.

Bring it to the runway!

The ghost of Miss Vanjie continues to haunt the season, with mother Ru herself giving her finest impression before introducing the girls, starting with Asia O'Hara. Our Texan queen and her drag daughter America O'Hara channel their inner cow girl with shredded coats that resemble what Asia wore during the denim challenge. They're both fierce coats, but it's completely obvious that one is hand made, and I can't help but think it's a little bit uncharitable to give your guest the DIY version.

Next up are Eureka and Eufreka O'Hara. Admittedly they look lovely, but after that little stunt Eureka pulled with Kingsleyyy and Aquaria earlier, she can choke. And Frankie manages to some how be irritatingly effervescent without even uttering a word, which I guess is a talent.

Aquaria and Capricia are up next, and while Eureka's slightly racist sabotage plan didn't work, the runway is still, sadly, a dud. For what it's worth, Capricia has the most beautiful makeup on the runway this week, but between the inexplicably tall wig and confused costume concept, there's 0 family resemblance.

Folliwing Aquaria and Capricia are Miz Cracker and Miz Cookie, and the latter's transformation is jaw-dropping. It's not just the look, which is pure femininity from head to toe; the personality Cookie shows on stage is equally electric, and their runway presentation is hilarious.

Our penultimate pairing is Monét X Change and Short Change (LOL), and while Monét looks stunning, Short Change manages to make a sequinned bathing suit somehow look frumpy.

Finally we have Kameron Michaels and Kelly Michaels, and it's... kind of sad. Kelly's proportions are all wrong, her lips are somehow underdrawn, and there's no family resemblance whatsoever.

Our last two pairings appear to be in trouble, but can their vlog-style lipsync to RuPaul's song Charisma, Uniquenes, Nerve and Talent save them? No, because they were all rubbish and it was a waste of my time. Next!

Miz Cracker gets her win!

Miz Cracker finally gets her win, and it's the payoff we've been waiting for all season. Miz Cracker has shown great potential throughout, but seems to have a something of a mental block that has stopped her fully connecting with the comeptition. However, being able to project all of her greatness onto someone else means we can see exactly what Cracker is about, even if she's not the one showing us directly. It's probably too late in the game for Miz Cracker to convert this victory into a genuine chance at the crowd (unless Ru pulls a season 9 on us in the finale), but I hope this gives Cracker the boost to put everything out there for the remainder of the competition.

The bottom two

Monét and Kameron end up in the bottom two, but it absolutely should have been Aquaria and Kameron. I've actually no idea what Ru was thinking saving Aquaria - clearly she wants to make sure she's in the top three. Kameron has one win under her belt, and Monét has been in the bottom more times, so it's not looking good for New York's finest.

Lipsync for your life

Dare I say it... I think we're seeing a lip-sync assassin emerge in Kameron. Sure, her aesthetics aren't high-art a la aquaria, but boy does that lady know how to twirl! Not only can Kameron spin and split and sashay up and down that runway with the best of them, but she knows how to tell a story with her face - something you wouldn't expect given the quality of her acting performances in previous main challenges. Monét's lipsync was... not great.

Did the right queen go home?

Given her lack of wins and multitude of bottom two appearances, it most certainly was Monét's time. I think Monét came in with a clear idea of what she wanted to do this season, and was perhaps tripped up by twists and turns she didn't expect. But all that being said, Monét is a legendary queen with a thriving career who will only continue to shine after this experience. And, if nothing else, we'll always have those sponges.