As supportive of a drag king season as I’d be - I’m reminded of an aphorism I’ve been spouting for years:

In no one’s defense, I encountered “gooped” in advance of Monique. So it’s coming from somewhere other than Gretchen Wieners.

I’m in agreement that ‘Kitty Girl’ is probably the weakest selection for tonight’s lipsync parade. But I would’ve expected that Farrah could’ve found an adorkable connection to the spastically dorky energy of the song. I’m thinking of her performance in the ep2 main challenge - the Henny supergroup.

I’ve gotten the sense since AS2, that moreso than the hangry audience, a significant demand for the rapid-fire All Stars seasons has come from the queens. To get the opportunity to expand an audience, reignite booking demand, get a humanizing redemption arc, and showcase talents previous appearances may not have shown…

Oh, Derek.

Random ‘pinions for your nerves:

I can definitely grant that there’s still a sense, even from my position that the All Stars format still seems to be searching for a solution to that problem.

The mix of weirdness, camp and everything goes in Monique is so addictive. The preacher today was one thing then the other then another following a very thin theme of the singing “praise the Lord!” voice and I was so into it.

For the last 10+ years, she’s been repeatedly pounding it into the fandom’s collective heads that “the final decision is hers to make,” so the unsteady and often seemingly ‘rigged’ formats of the All~Stars seasons have always been rather ​objectionable.

The duets with Collins (“I’ll Cover You”), I recall being more sung than sprechgesang. And demanding some pretty tight harmonization, too.

I feel like we’ve had similar workshop-style rehearsal segments in previous seasons’ comedy challenges. I’d have to research some, but I’m seeming to remember Kathy Griffin, Deven Green, Bruce Vilanch performing similar mentorship and coaching duties in seasons past?

It’s extra-smart for embedding a small character moment in the visual majesty of that whole mourning-brella lewk.

This is the best produced season in years, possibly ever.

I find this wholly and fundamentally correct.

Quite the contrary - I see Valentina as being 210% self-aware. Just not in a way that actually resembles how other people see her.

My usual weekly dumbass Random ‘pinions:

I certainly won’t begrudge you that position, in the least. I find the legacy-plead, for all its admitted faults, offers us a window into the queens’ professional and personal relationships with each other than the standard workroom kiki is able to provide.

I find the legacy format speaks to a certain egalitarian, democratic dimension to the queens’ relationships in the interregnum between their first appearances, and All Stars. Out in the real world, the working and personal relationships these queens are the more significant arbiter of success and career…

It’s started to make me think that I’d not previously considered the framework of the challenges to have their own momentum to the arc of the season.