RuPaul’s Drag Race Recap: When Athena Takes the Stand

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It’s great to have girl groups back, though I’m not sure about this current wave. They seem to be relying on old trends that the members don’t always connect with. Let me rephrase that…

Last season of RuPaul’s Drag Race didn’t include any group challenges, and it really didn’t work. It felt strange – even Suzie Toot agreed when I spoke with her – and fans felt the same way. People love seeing drag queens in groups! These challenges show what it’s really like for the queens to collaborate, and those who excel at teamwork can really shine both on stage and online. It’s the most realistic test of what it takes to be a successful drag queen today. The U.K. version has embraced this, likely inspired by their love for iconic girl groups like the Spice Girls, Little Mix, and Girls Aloud.

It’s strange that RuPaul’s Drag Race often avoids letting queens showcase current pop-girl-group drag. In past seasons, like season 14, they were asked to perform older doo-wop songs, even though the queens weren’t familiar with the style. Season 15 had a particularly odd challenge where the contestants had to portray elderly women. Season 16 really stood out because the producers let the queens perform freely and truly shine – Nymphia’s performance was a perfect example! Perhaps this reluctance stems from a complicated relationship with girl groups in America, especially during the 2010s when Fifth Harmony was the only prominent American group, and they faced their own issues.

Girl groups are popular again, especially K-pop acts like Le Sserafim, Blackpink, and the international group Katseye, which even features American members. I was hopeful when I heard RuPaul’s Drag Race was planning groups inspired by K-pop, or “Q-pop.” However, I was disappointed to learn the songs were all imitations of 1960s and 80s music. I think drag queens should be knowledgeable about pop culture from all eras, but the show seems stuck in the past. It’s frustrating because someone like Leland should have been able to create a current parody song the contestants could perform well. Instead, we’re getting critiques about how well someone imitated an old performer like Sylvester. These groups need to reflect what’s popular today.

Overall, it’s a good episode with plenty of drama and emotional moments. Some queens shine through their performances, while others make an impact through their personalities. Athena Dion particularly stands out as a character – she’s less about polished performance and more about classic, unfiltered reactions. Like Shannel from the first season of the show, she gets visibly upset when things don’t go her way, which makes her great entertainment for reality TV.

The episode begins with RuPaul announcing the week’s challenge: the queens must create and perform as a “Q-pop” group, choosing between doo-wop pop (inspired by Wham!), disco (like Sylvester), or punk (à la the Runaways). Ru then allows the top two queens from the previous week, Nini Coco and Vita VonTesse Starr, to select their teams. The remaining four queens will form a final group, jokingly referred to as the “leftovers.” Here’s how the teams ended up being formed:

Team Nini: Nini, Mia Starr, Ciara Myst, Myki Meeks, and Kenya Pleaser

Team Vita: Vita, Briar Blush, Juicy Love Dion, Discord Addams, and Jane Don’t

Team Leftovers: Athena Dion, Darlene Mitchell, Mandy Mango, and DD Fuego

Athena was clearly upset she wasn’t selected, and she remained in a bad mood throughout the entire event. This instantly validated Nini and Vita’s decision not to pick her.

When teams choose their song, everyone always picks disco and avoids punk, which is a bad strategy. Punk doesn’t require much dancing, making it perfect for teams with less confident dancers – and every team has some! It’s also easy to make fun of and creates interesting visuals. It’s strange that the queens choose disco, though, because RuPaul loves it and will be very critical of their versions. If you don’t know a lot about disco, it’s best to steer clear. Pop songs are okay, but it’s hard to stand out with something cheerful and simple. Athena and Vita argue, but Discord, who’s in a rock band, finally convinces her team to go with punk – and she’s right. Despite that, Athena, who keeps calling disco “her era,” ultimately gets her way.

Nini’s pop team is doing well because everyone is at least a decent dancer, plus they have the professional Mia Starr. The punk team is struggling a bit with Discord, who can’t move – that was clear on last week’s runway – but Juicy is doing a good job leading the others. The disco team is having the most trouble; they lack a clear leader and Darlene is a particularly weak dancer, and Athena seems frustrated about it all.

Things were going really well with Michelle during vocal recording, but poor Nini lost her voice! It’s heartbreaking to watch her go through this, but honestly, even with all her moments of panic, I truly believed the judges wouldn’t penalize her for something she couldn’t control. That would just be too harsh, even for RuPaul.

When the performances start, Team Disco kicks things off, but their number doesn’t go well. Athena begins with a typical, and somewhat cliché, rap verse – the kind that often gets parodied. Her timing is simple, and her lyrics, like “Pay no mind to what they say / This is your journey, lead the way,” feel uninspired and are difficult to watch. The dance routine, which she led, is also very basic, and while Athena is a traditional queen, her lack of originality is a clear weakness. Darlene struggles with dancing, but she fully embodies a ditzy persona and hits a high note reminiscent of Sylvester, which RuPaul loves – she understands how to work the competition. Mandy is overly enthusiastic, but her performance relies on standard drag choreography and lacks charisma in her singing. DD isn’t necessarily bad, just unmemorable.

The doo-wop team is stronger than the disco team, though their performance wasn’t amazing, mainly because the song itself wasn’t very good. Mia Starr stood out, successfully reimagining the song in a style similar to Meghan Trainor. She’s a strong singer with natural talent, though I didn’t like her costume. Kenya also did a good job with a cute verse, but her performance was momentarily awkward when she kicked her leg. Remember, on shows like this, performers need to be consistently engaging. Ciara Myst focused heavily on an inspirational theme in her lyrics, which I found a little annoying. Her verse wasn’t bad, but it felt a bit like something from Ms. Rachel geared towards a queer audience, and her costume was overly complicated. Nini unfortunately couldn’t perform to her own vocal recording, creating a disconnect between her energetic stage presence and her quiet voice on the track, but it wasn’t her fault. She deserved to be safe. Myki sounded good and resembled guest judge Dove Cameron. I was surprised and impressed that this comedic performer could sing and dance so well, and I’m looking forward to seeing what she does next week on RDR Live! when she’s in her preferred style.

Now let’s talk about the punk group. A big plus for them is that their song doesn’t require any overly sentimental or inspirational lyrics – they get to embrace a bolder, more rebellious persona, which translates well to the stage. Discord is fortunate to be on this team; I don’t think she’d fare well on either of the others. She tends to stand still and deliver her lines with a lot of nervousness, and I don’t see her lasting much longer. Vita isn’t the strongest singer, but she makes up for it with a really energetic performance. Briar is a pleasant surprise! She’s really standing out in her group, and her look is both sexy and playful. Jane is fantastic. She’s playing a woman possessed, switching convincingly between a demonic voice and her normal, softer one. It’s hilarious, well-done, and a really creative concept – a clear frontrunner. Juicy performs well throughout the song, but punk isn’t really her style. The judges ultimately chose just two top performers. If there had been a third spot, Juicy would have been a strong contender, but her balletic turns didn’t quite fit the rebellious energy of the song.

The runway category was playfully named “favorite body part,” which allowed the queens a lot of creative freedom. Athena kicked things off, simply highlighting her back with a backless dress – a reliably stunning look. Darlene followed with a wonderfully outrageous take on “skin,” portraying a terribly sunburned appearance complete with hamburger-shaped breasts and even roaches in her hair! She’s definitely a strong contender. Mandy cleverly showcased her face by dressing as her grandmother’s side table, featuring a photo on top. Unfortunately, the table base wasn’t very clear. DD immediately got a laugh by appearing as a cloud with legs, but the reveal of an ill-fitting pink leotard underneath wasn’t as successful.

Mia Starr’s outfit was a revealing, full-body dress that strategically exposed her neck, back, and lower body. While creatively designed, it wasn’t necessarily visually appealing, and the back zipper detracted from the look. Kenya opted for a very revealing bodysuit. I understand the choice, but I wish she’d focus on the challenge itself. Ciara delivered her best look yet, emphasizing her eyes and bust, and she looked adorable – almost like Carol Burnett! Nini truly shined on the runway with a 3D-printed brain hat and a beautiful pink outfit. This was her strongest look so far, and she’s proving to be a real contender for runway queen. It was fantastic! Myki wore a leotard with a playful ‘advertisement’ over it, highlighting her legs, which felt like a safe choice for a guaranteed safe week.

Discord’s outfit is a mismatched and unflattering black and gold dress, and she moves awkwardly. Thankfully, the competition wasn’t strong this week. Vita, on the other hand, looked fantastic in a black leather leotard that really showed off her figure, though a bit more personality in her performance would have been nice. Briar went with a fully covered black outfit, hilariously revealing only a single finger – it’s a clever look reminiscent of the movie Testament of Ann Lee. Jane made a bold statement with an outfit featuring a giant red mouth, creating a visually stunning and impactful performance. Lastly, Juicy wore a playful dress that only showed one leg, which was cute but didn’t quite steal the show.

The disco group landed in the bottom, while RuPaul named Jane and Mia the top performers – a decision I agree with. It allowed the judges to praise Darlene and Athena’s overall drag skills while still pointing out their weaker performances in the challenge. Jane ultimately won the challenge, and Mandy and DD ended up in the bottom two. That seems fair considering their potential, although I felt Athena had the worst performance this week. The lip-sync song was Dove Cameron’s “Too Much,” a typical, widely-played pop song you’d hear at any drag bar – meaning it was a neutral choice and a fair competition. Mandy gave an energetic performance with lots of movement, but it lacked musicality, and DD didn’t really perform. As a result, DD Fuego was eliminated. I’m sad to see a New York queen go so early, but I can’t disagree with the outcome.

And also on Untucked …

Honestly, things were pretty smooth this week. There wasn’t any major drama, and the girls all seemed really pleased with what they got. I’m a little concerned about Athena, though – Juicy is definitely worried about her. Overall, it was a good 22 minutes, nothing too crazy happened.

One edit that really stood out this week was before the lip sync battle. Myki and Jane, two of the funniest queens on the show, teamed up to hilariously describe the competitors. It was a great moment!

I heard a funny joke this week: Someone asked what Athena offered DD to pretend to be a good team member, and DD replied, “A vacation to Mykonos!”

I recently made a mistake and incorrectly stated that Malaysia was the first queen from Florida. She was actually the first queen from Miami, and I apologize for the confusion. Regardless, the show has been notably successful with contestants from Florida lately.

During the makeup session, DD shared stories about her childhood in Monterrey, Mexico, without getting emotional. Discord discussed her time in a punk band and advocating for LGBTQ+ rights. Later, on the runway, Darlene became tearful about missing the performance aspect of being a queer artist while navigating sobriety and a more private life. Both Jane and Darlene have cried on the runway recently, which felt genuine. However, it seems strategic for queens to save their emotional moments for when they’re judged by RuPaul, as she appreciates vulnerability.

Okay, so this week was pretty cool – Michelle Visage actually sent me her new perfume, Wednesday! As a fragrance fan, I was really curious. It’s a surprisingly lovely scent – kind of minty, but with this really interesting leather undertone. Honestly, I’m really enjoying it. Thanks so much, Michelle!

• Predicted top four: Jane, Vita, Nini, and a wild card. Darlene?

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2026-01-10 06:57