‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ recap: Which witch wins the ‘Wicked’ Rusical?
Last week in Episode 7 of RuPaul’s Drag Race, RuPaul Charles and the judges sent early frontrunner Crystal Envy home after a disappointing turn as Nicole Richie in the make-you-or-break-you “Snatch Game.” Onya Nurve won that challenge, her second this season, for playing a version of Eddie Murphy that also showed glimpses of her own individual sense of humor as well.
This week, the 10 remaining competitors were back in front of the judges to prove they were center stage-worthy queens in a Rusical mashup of Wicked, The Wizard of Oz, and The Wiz. Michelle Visage, choreographer Jamal Sims, and performer Adam Lambert served as the judges alongside Ru.
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The contestants still in the running to be named “America’s Next Drag Superstar” at the start of the episode were: Acacia Forgot, Arrietty, Jewels Sparkles, Kori King, Lana Ja’Rae, Lexi Love, Lydia B Kollins, Onya Nurve, Sam Star, and Suzie Toot.
Here is our recap of RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 17, Episode 8, titled “The Wicked Wiz of Oz: The Rusical!,” which aired Friday, Feb. 21 on MTV.
SEE ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ winners list: Every season, plus ‘All Stars’
MTV
“I can buy a body, you can’t buy comedy” — Jewels Sparkles to Kori King
With lines, choreo, blocking, and recording all to prepare for, there was no time for a mini challenge this week. Instead, Ru left the girls to fend for themselves over who would star in which roles, including the Green Witch, Good Witch, Wicked Witch, Scarecrow, Tin Woman, Lioness, Harlem Dorothy, Kansas Dorothy, and two Flying Monkeys. After the first read-through, Acacia, Suzie and Sam all had Kansas Dorothy as their top choice, but after some advice from Lexi, Sam was convinced to pivot to the Wicked Witch so that she could let loose (Loosey Deluca reference) like the judges asked her to. To settle between Acacia and Suzie, the point was made that Suzie got her top pick in the “RDR Live” challenge and so it’s only fair that Acacia get hers this time. The two of them disagreeably settled on Acacia being the Kansas Dorothy and Suzie playing the part of the Green Witch.
Some of the other roles were handed out with much less contention: Lexi got the Lioness, Lydia settled into one of the Flying Monkey spots, Onya scooped up Harlem Dorothy, Lana was happy with Tin Woman, and Arrietty claimed Scarecrow. That left Kori and Jewels to argue for their right to serve in the role of Good Witch. Kori insisted that because the role is “about having big breasts and a big ass,” she’s already built for it and Jewels could potentially be “very embarrassing if you get there shaking a flat ass and no boobs.” Jewels argued that because she did well in the previous challenges and Kori hasn’t, that she has earned the right to take on a big role, but Kori countered that if that’s the case then Jewels should let Kori flop so she can be sent home. Ultimately it was decided by a quick vote that Jewels would be the Good Witch and Kori would join her showmance Lydia as the second Flying Monkey.
MTV
“Girl, they might as well get a double-headed dildo coz they are bottoms together tonight” — Lexi Love
Michelle and music producer Gabe Lopez guided the queens as they recorded their singing tracks for the show. After weeks of coasting or slipping to the bottom, Michelle was impressed that Lana and Lydia both showed promise. Kori, however, had pitch issues and struggled to push her personality forward into the vocal. Following strong recording sessions of their own, Suzie and Onya realized that a “rivalry is brewing” between the two of them because they each have two wins and are multi-talented across the many genres of the competition. Michelle was also highly complimentary of Sam’s Cher-inspired take on the Wicked Witch, but had to work hard with Acacia to get the sound right for her lead character performance.
The choreo session with Jamal showed the kinks in the armor for some of the frontrunners, like Jewels and Onya who couldn’t find the fluidity in their movement, but also highlighted an opportunity for some of the other girls to claim their first maxi challenge win. Lexi, Lana and Arrietty worked really well together in their group number while Kori and Lydia struggled to catch a rhythm with one another in a performance meant to be fully synchronous.
Amy Sussman/Getty Images
“You’re a little slut up there, I thought it was cuuute” — Adam Lambert
During the live performance, the judges’ strongest positive reactions were in response to Jewels as a bubbly, hyper-sexualized Good Witch, Sam cosplaying as Cher as the Wicked Witch, and Onya’s soulful Harlem Dorothy. They were less visibly enthused by the Lana, Lexi, Arrietty trio and just as lifeless about Acacia as her performance was despite being the central figure.
Based on their Rusical performances and what they showed in the “Parasols: Shady Ladies” runway category, Lana, Lexi, Lydia and Arrietty all earned safety in the middle of the pack. As expected, the top performers were Suzie, Jewels, Sam and Onya. Unexpectedly, there were only two bottoms, Kori and Acacia. The judges thought that Kori was outshined by her partner Lydia and faded into the background. They were equally disappointed that Acacia was too “internalized” and didn’t seize the opportunity that her role afforded her. Thrilled that she finally loosened up her tight stitches, the judges declared Sam the overall winner of the week.
As the bottom two, Kori and Acacia faced off in the Lip Sync for Your Life to Adam’s song “Wet Dream.” As Suzie put it, Acacia was “doing her best” by diluting the uptempo song to a slower, more sensual interpretation, but it was no match for Kori’s more accurate placement of her personal best voguing moves. Even with the popping off of her unglued wig during a split, Kori prevailed as the winner, sending Acacia home.
Next time on Drag Race…
Designer Betsey Johnson inspires the girls to get back behind the sewing machines.
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