RuPaul’s Drag Race Recap: RuPaul-ly Wood

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I enjoy watching lip sync performances, and it seems like many viewers do too – it’s a major draw of the show. This episode delivered on that front, but didn’t offer much beyond it. While it was an okay hour of television, it wasn’t especially captivating or high-quality.

As a huge fan of RuPaul’s Drag Race, I’ve always loved the lip-sync reunions because they gave queens a chance to resolve things and really shine. We saw Morphine finally get her win, Megami prove she had fire, and Suzie show off a whole new side after struggling in Vegas – genuinely compelling stuff! But this week’s reunion felt a little…thin. Juicy got to demonstrate she could lip-sync well, which, honestly, I already knew she could. It just didn’t feel like there was much depth or unfinished business to address. It was fine, but it didn’t have the same emotional weight as previous reunions.

Ciara surprisingly becomes the central figure during the reunion, largely because she’s upset about her elimination. The other queens, however, don’t seem to care or offer an apology. Jane then brings up an old issue with Ciara, but it doesn’t have much impact since Ciara actually won the challenge connected to it. Ultimately, Ciara isn’t strong enough to carry the episode, and despite being a key part of the storyline, she’s eliminated relatively early. Jane is the one who should be seeking revenge, but she enters the reunion accepting that she doesn’t have a realistic chance of winning with Juicy and Mia still in the competition. As a result, she doesn’t put up much of a fight, and the episode focuses on the queens who are consistently performing well.

Honestly, this season hasn’t been as entertaining as it could be. I’m not sure what happened with the music budget, but they’re using only RuPaul songs, and while I enjoy some of them (like “A.S.M.R Lover”), they all start to sound alike and aren’t particularly exciting. In the past, the lip sync assignments were fun because they forced queens to tackle songs outside their comfort zone – like Q in a ridiculous outfit performing Janet Jackson, or Crystal Envy singing Sylvester. That created a real challenge! This season, none of the queens usually perform these songs, so the stakes feel lower. Anyway, enough complaining – let’s get to the lip syncs!

Ciara Myst and Athena Dion faced off in a lip sync battle, pitting two of the season’s most prominent personalities against each other. Ciara strategically chose Athena, anticipating she’d select the song “Born Naked” – which she did. Ciara’s performance look was inspired by the movie The Substance, a film popular among many gay men (though I personally preferred Mikey Madison’s Oscar-winning performance). Athena looked good, but neither contestant delivered a truly standout performance. While I would have chosen Athena as the winner, RuPaul selected Ciara, a decision that seemed to come down to personal preference given the evenly matched performances.

Okay, so I just watched Mia Starr go up against Mandy Mango, and honestly, I was a little surprised it wasn’t against DD or Vita! Mandy picked a really long, complicated phrase – “Just What They Want” – but they both knew it well. Mandy had some amazing energy and did some fantastic footwork, but Mia is just a naturally better dancer. She had smoother moves and totally deserved to advance!

DD Fuego and Vita VonTesse Starr faced off after both winning their initial matches. They performed to “Main Event,” and while DD put on a more energetic show, Vita connected with the song’s emotion better. Neither performer is known for exceptional lip-sync skills. DD included some costume reveals, but her initial outfit was so voluminous it didn’t make a big impact. Vita looked fantastic and maintained a strong stage presence, ultimately winning the lip sync battle.

In the second round, Vita, who barely made it through the first, chose to compete against Mia, possibly hoping to lose and be eliminated. Mia continued to perform lengthy, complex songs, choosing “Call Me Mother.” Vita knew about 80% of the lyrics, while Mia knew them all, and rightfully won the competition.

Kenya chose Ciara as her opponent. Ciara picked the song “Pretty Gang,” likely thinking Kenya struggles with lyrics. However, RuPaul often lets Kenya win lip sync battles even when she doesn’t know all the words. True to form, Kenya messed up a lot of the lyrics, but she was much more engaging than Ciara, so the judges let her win. It wasn’t necessarily a fair decision, but most viewers, including me, were happy to see Ciara eliminated.

Jane and Discord faced off in the last lip sync of the second round. Knowing Discord has a unique walk, Jane cleverly chose the song “Sissy That Walk” for a fun performance. While Discord’s limited movement was a challenge, she gave it her all. It was a gamble giving Discord that song, as she could easily follow RuPaul’s direction to “walk” and get a laugh. Jane smartly recognized this and instead of trying to out-walk Discord, she joined in, mimicking Discord’s walk and lessening its impact. Plus, Jane is simply a stronger performer. This was the best lip sync battle of the competition so far, and Jane rightfully won.

In the final four, Jane found herself in a difficult position. When her name was called, she knew she’d be up against either Kenya or Mia in a dance-off to “Peanut Butter,” or Miami’s performer Juicy to “Cha Cha Bitch.” While beating Kenya seemed like her best chance to reach the finale, it wasn’t a sure thing, and Jane didn’t want to participate in a highly energetic dance. She chose to battle Juicy, even though she expected to lose – and she did! Jane tried to make light of the situation, playfully throwing money and doing exaggerated gestures, but it wasn’t enough. Juicy was a completely different performer than the week before. She came out with incredible energy and a stunning reveal, flipping upside down to dramatically remove her dress – it was an unforgettable performance and a clear win.

Kenya and Mia battled it out lip-syncing to “Peanut Butter,” and I thought Kenya performed better. While Mia was good, her usual dance style didn’t quite fit the song. Kenya really embraced the song and had fun with it, especially with a ponytail theme! However, RuPaul disagreed and awarded the win to Mia, which is fair enough. I’m excited because this sets up another competition between Juicy and Mia, and that’s a matchup everyone will enjoy.

The lip sync battle came down to Juicy and Mia performing to “Cover Girl,” and both did a great job! They even had a cute, synchronized moment walking down the runway. Considering it was Mia’s fourth performance of the night, she did particularly well! However, Juicy truly shined. She’s one of the best lip-sync performers the show has ever seen – full of energy, impressive moves like splits and dips, and completely immersed in the music. Honestly, it wasn’t much of a competition; Juicy clearly won, and deservedly so. It’s not a shock, though – casting Juicy Love Dion almost guarantees she’ll dominate the lip syncs, and that’s exactly what happened!

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2026-04-11 04:55