It’s back back back back back again! The hit reality show, where drag queens vie for the title of America’s Next Drag Superstar, premiered its twelfth season, with rap royalty Nicki Minaj as the guest judge. Queens from across the globe came to compete, and with it being an election year in the USA, what better than an election-themed promo?
Episode 1 begins by introducing us to 7 new queens: Brita, Nicky Doll, Widow Von’Du, Jackie Cox, Heidi N Closet, Gigi Goode, and Crystal Methyd. Yep, 7 – just like in Season 6, Drag Race is doing a split premiere to let the fans see more of the 15 queens competing. Not only does this let us have more Drag Race content, but it means that there’s more time for each queen – even the one that has to sashay away first – to show us who they are.
The show continues its throwbacks to previous seasons by starting off with a spring and fall runway mini-challenge, which already made it difficult for our new batch as it reminded us of how Season 7 queens such as Violet Chachki and Miss Fame ate up the runway in their first episode. Whilst it would have been nice to see something more original, runways really let us get to know a queen through her sense of style. But the pressure to live up to previous seasons clearly shows – whilst reveals would have been a once-in-a-season spectacle, now they’ve become an expected part of a look. The best runways are the ones that stay as they start, because when a queen adds a reveal into an outfit it seems that that becomes the main detail, whereas the ones sans reveals all appear to be more intricate and thought out.
In the main challenge, our 7 queens have to write and perform a rap verse for the main stage. There are highs and lows, and at the end of the day, RuPaul declares a winner and a loser. But what’s most important is that Season 12 starts off strong – there’s no need to worry about whether you’ll find your next Aquaria or Yvie Oddly in this cast. This season is shaping up to be just as exciting as the last, and I can’t wait to see what the other 8 queens have in store.
Image Credit: TV Insider