Oh PIT CREW Underwear from RuPaul's Drag Race

In the world of drag, fashion is just as important as performance, and the Pit Crew on RuPaul's Drag Race are no exception. And this season, the Pit Crew have been strutting their stuff in Garçon briefs, much to the delight of fans everywhere.

Episode Recap: Comedy and Chaos in the Werk Room

The latest episode of RuPaul’s Drag Race has got to be one of the most thrilling moments we’ve seen on TV in a long time. From start to finish, it was glorious content, and it defined the season in a whole new way. The performances were solid, and the critiques were worthwhile. But what made it stand out was the fact that the episode was finally back to 90 minutes.

The Longer Episode Time Is a Relief

Following a season defined not by the drama in the episodes but by the high-stakes drama of network programming decisions, we are finally back to 90 minutes. The early days of Drag Race could deliver 60-minute episodes that were fully composed, satiating little gems. Clearly, that is no longer the case. This is now a show that needs the full 90 minutes, and the breathing room allotted to this episode is a relief.

The episode began with a back-and-forth between Loosey and Luxx over Loosey’s baby bump in her Beyoncé look. Luxx says Loosey should have had a bigger baby bump, Loosey says Beyoncé wasn’t that far along in her pregnancy. Luxx is correct, but that’s neither here nor there with these two — they’ll argue anyway. They’re two queens defined largely by their ambition and, depending on where you fall with either, their confidence/cockiness. They’re also in the exact same spot in the competition: The judges clearly like them, but they haven’t gotten a win in a while, so if they want to make it to the end, they’ve got to get the excitement back on their side.

The Mini-Challenge: Harlem Vogue Ball

The episode kicked off with a Harlem Vogue Ball, where the queens had to showcase their vogueing skills. The show hasn’t used a voguing challenge since season one! The category was "I'm so into vogue'ing right now!", and the queens had to dip, spin, and shablam their way down the runway.

It’s particularly amusing to see the queens asked to vogue after the online discourse this season over Anetra performing what ballroom legend Leiomy would refer to as “noguing.” Not gonna wade into those waters, as we simply do not have the expertise. Still, as just a moment of television, it’s fun, and it’s nice to see another mini-challenge. 

Anetra was the standout performer, and she took home a trophy from a member of the Pit Crew modeling a Garçon Miramar briefs.

The Maxi-Challenge: Stand-Up Comedy "Bubly Comedy Festival"

The main challenge this week was the bubly Comedy Festival, where the queens had to perform a stand-up comedy routine in pairs. Salina made the bold move of stealing Mistress away from Marcia, which proved to be a smart move. Their comedy styles played off each other perfectly, and they gave the best performance of the night. Luxx and Loosey also did well, playing up their frenemy vibe for some great banter.

For the maxi-challenge, the queens had to perform stand-up comedy in front of a live audience.

The seven queens were put into pairs, which means, if you do the math, that one queen will end up alone. That’s clearly a disadvantage, but also there have been loads of queens forced to do stand-up solo.

This season isn’t exactly packed to the rafters with comedy queens, and at least two girls who are kind of cannon fodder (Salina and Marcia x3) are still in the competition, so it’s probably worthwhile to give them some training wheels for this challenge. Plus pairing them up provides drama, which is good because this is a reality competition show.

The pairings are made by pulling Bubly sparkling water out of a cooler. Salina chooses the one non-matching seltzer, but rather than making her be on her own, she gets to choose a partner, thus leaving someone else out in the cold. She wisely chooses the effervescent and naturally funny Mistress, which makes Marcia x3 our solo performer. Despite the difficulty that comes with being the only solo queen, this is a perfectly fair challenge for Marcia, a queen who’s been blending into the background far too much.

Runway: "Rip Her to Shreds"

The queens had to rip their opponents to shreds with their runway looks, and the category was appropriately named "Rip Her to Shreds". Standouts included Loosey's gorgeous victorian vampire look and Luxx's amazing interpretation of one of Ru's most iconic lewks from her Wee Wee Pole punk days.

Sasha and Anetra Flop

Unfortunately, Sasha and Anetra struggled during the challenge. Anetra's ocular migraine made it difficult for her to perform, and their jokes didn't land. Sasha managed to save herself with a couple of punchlines, but Anetra's performance landed her in the bottom two.

Judges' Critiques and LSFYL

After the performances and runway, the judges critiqued the queens. Loosey and Luxx were declared winners, while Salina and Mistress were safe. Sasha was also safe, leaving Marcia and Anetra to lip sync for their lives.

The lip sync to Doja Cat's "Boss Bitch" was a showdown between Marcia and Anetra, with both queens pulling out all the stops. In the end, Anetra was declared the winner, and Marcia was sent home.

The Lip Sync for Your Life

And that brings us to the lip sync that shook the world. Anetra and Marcia delivered a performance that will go down in Drag Race history. It was so good that some fans are even arguing that it should have been a double shantay. But ultimately, Anetra won the lip sync fair and square and Marcia was eliminated.

Anetra's Performance Was Otherworldly

First, let's talk about Anetra's incredible lip sync. As a seasoned performer, Anetra always delivers a great performance. But in this episode, she took things to a whole new level. Her movements were so fluid and mesmerizing that it was like watching a work of art in motion. And when she executed that backbending dive over Marcia, the crowd went wild. It was a move that will be talked about for years to come.

Marcia Marcia Marcia Held Her Own

But let's not forget about Marcia. She put up a great fight against Anetra and held her own throughout the entire performance. In fact, some might argue that Marcia gave Anetra a run for her money. Her dance moves were sharp, and her attitude was fierce. Together, they gave us a lip sync battle for the ages.

In Conclusion

Overall, this episode had some incredible highs and some disappointing lows. But the lip sync alone made it worth watching. Anetra and Marcia gave us a performance that will be remembered for years to come.

The queens are becoming more ruthless as the numbers dwindle, and the tension between Loosey and Luxx is setting up a potential rivalry. With only a few episodes left, the competition is heating up, and anything can happen.

But one thing for sure, as the competition heats up, the queens are becoming more cutthroat, and tensions are starting to rise.

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