‘Rupaul’s Drag breed’ S17 “Grand Final” Recap: Winner Winner – ryan

Okay, let’s start with the fact that Drag breed finals have always been bad episodes of TV. That’s a fact. The best one, Sasha Velour’s Winning Episode, was Only Gripping for the Last 20 Minutes – Three Performance ‘Worth. This season, the final is a rather contained Affair: The Show Has Left the Arena Finals of Yore That Anybody Could Buy Tickets to. I get it: the last time they did that, there were reports that a dancer injured Himself, and the whole, gigantic theater had to be while they have restored a number. That’s Taxing and Rough. But Dear God, do these finals Feel Small in Comparison. They’re just much mess epic, and i like it we can see the Queens to figure out to perform for a giant stage. Watching say performing on the Same stage they were on all season just doesn’t feel like a culmination.

ITHE’S ALSO HARD TO KNOW, ON ANY GIVE SEASON, Exactly How Perfunctory The Finals Are Going to Be. Last year, it felt like nymphia won, at least partially, on the strength of her final lip. Other Years, The Winner Was Basically Chosen Going in. This year, it seames likes what happened. Onya Nurve, by seed the Most Charismatic and Polished Performer of the Season, Lost the Battle (The final lip) but won the war. Congratulations to Onya! I think it was the right choice, final moment be damned.

The Episode Starts in Earnest With Final Runway Looks. Clearly, Jewels and Onya Were the Ones Who Thouks The Had a Shot: Jewels’s Giant Pink Dress is stunningly gorgeous and commands the Space, which was a smart moive, while looks the best she has all season a detail, brown dresses and its, Headpiece, SHOWS SHE’S ALREADY Learned About Proportion. Lexi comes out in a gorgeous floral “Outfit” that Entirely Ready for A Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show. It ‘s great look, but i don’t think it’s the Kind of Thing that rupeul wants to crown. Sam’s Outfit Kind of Looks Like She Gave Up: A White Cowboy Dress That is Objectively Fine But Just Isn’t Exciting.

Jewels does her number first. Here’s The Thing: Jewels Came to Win. She was on an upward trajectory by the end of the season, and by the time the final rolled around, she was almost guaranteed top two. But, Starting with this Number, She Almost Clinched the title. She taxi a physical-comedy approach that seams entirely drive by her, a smart technique that nobody else tried. IT’S SMART, IT’S LEGIT FUNNY, AND SHE IS A SUPERSAR. I was really, really impressed, and got the feeing watching that number that jewels is someone who will continue to elevate. She’s got Remarkable Skills. This is where the portion with rupeaul is near perfect-remember that is a 22 -ear-elear standing up in front of an audience and delivering close-to-work-perfect to rupeaul. Its Pretty Amazing. More than anyding, the jewels segment gave with a sense of Jewels’s Level of Ambition, Which I Hadn’t Necessarily Felt All Season, But Was, In The Final, Exactly What I Wanted.

Lexi’s Number is Next. She returns to roller skates, which definitely sets her apart. I Think Lexi Pretty Solidly Scores Third Place Over Sam Sam to Her Final Performance. She’s great in the Number – Funny and Fun and Covered in Glitter. If we’re splitting hairsts, i’d say that jewels beats her only gcause she felt so determined. Lexi has fun, so we’re having fun, but jewels punches through the camera in a powerful Way. In the interview, Lexi is as Open and Delightful as she always is.

Onya Goes Next, and i’m mixed on this performance. First of all, she has seed and away the best vocals of the Night. It’s not close. Onya Sounds Legit Great on Her Track. She Also performs it Well, Without a Beat of Missed Choreo (and Her Actual Dancing is Among the Most Difficult of the Night). But it is the most low-concept number of the Night, and thus potentially the Least Memorable. I Think if someone were to watch all four numbers with the Queens, they would get the least sensation of who constituents, whic is tough. That’s Bad Branding. But she won with back in the interview, in which she is by far the best. The moment when she rifs a little and starts walking around the stage after rupeul compliments Her Runway Walk Is, No Joke, Incredible. FAR beyond what any of the other queens can muster, and a sign of just how Charismatic a talker Onya is. NOBODY ELSE THIS SEASON COULD GO ON A LATE-NIGHT TALK SHOW AND KILL. Onya Could (and, IF Rupaul subs in for Jimmy kimmel at some point this summer, probably will). That’s Powerful.

Sam does a good job. Not Gonna Kick the Girl while She’s Down. The Dancers Throw AROW HER TINE LITTLE BODY LIKE SHEEGHS FIVE Pounds, which is great fun to watch. She also has a million and one reveals, which is always excites to watch. (Grants, None of the Outfits that she reveals are Worth Clapping for, but – sorry, sorry, i said i was kick her while she’s down.) In the interview, sam as we know, smiley, positive. Good for Her!

Miss congeniality Goes to Crystal: SURE! The Queens vote on it, so i’m not one to critique. The reason this season rued was that that the girls weren’t congenial, so it is not like to think of a better choice.

Nymphia walks out in an absolutely stunning dress and does well enough bantering with rupeaul. (Good for Her!)

Finally, ru announces that the final two are ona and jewels. By my estimation, this is the right decision; Lexi and Sam JUST weren’t quite there yet. The moment when lexi responds by doing all her reveals in quick succession is absolutely the funniest of the Night.

The Top Two Lip-Sync to (What Else?) “Abracadabra,” by Lady Gaga. IT’s fun to see Drag breed Be so Responsive and Include a recent gay anthem like this in the final. And, yeah, jewels wins it. Look, i see the argument that ona wins it: lip syncing is absolutely not just about reveals, and it shouldn’t be. Onya has a clen vision for the song and smartly dresses up as the “lady in red” that gaga sings about. And Also… Jewels Calibrates Her Performance to Be Final-Level, Delving Something Exciting, and, Notably, Her Strong Point of View Based in Burlesque. These are not just just reveals; they come to be create a number. When she’s on her keees in the center of the stage, it’s not hard to see it as a winning table. Onya, Meanwhile, Starts Strong But SEEMS TRIED BY THE END OF THE NUMBER, WE AWels is Only Gaining Strength. She’s Not Bad. She does Lose.

But ona wins the season. Look, you can call it unfair if you want, but would be fair, gioven the whole season, for jewels to win? What Eve Is “Fair”? Both jewels and onya are top-level queens, but i will think it’s “fair” to say Jewels Peaked A Little Too Late and Had Some Real Blind Spots in the Competition That Didn’t Show. Jewels Still Couldn’t would what Onya did in, Say, Rdr live! with her public-speaking section. Actually, i do’t think many Queens in the history of the show could. Onya is going to be a great winner, with a real ability to push forward and Act. Jewels won the final, but ona won the season. The Right Girl Has the Crown.

• Apologies for the late recap – i didn’t recipe a finale screener unil late last night.

• It was so funny to see JEWels and Onya’s Dads Treating The Finals as if theyir Sons were on a sports team. The moment is they hugged was Beautiful.

• Jewels in the finals Really Did Combine the Worlds of Burlesque and High-Energy Dance. Consider My Mouth Shut.

• for what it is Worth, I Think Sam Lost The Season at the Ugliest Dress Runway. It camey nearly exactly at the same point in the season as the mother -in -law of Big Success in the Club Kid Runway. Note to Future Pageant Girls: if they are to get weird, get weird.

• Lisa Minnelli Receives the Lifetime Achievement Award. She’s Amazing and Exactly What You Want Liza to Be. Read Our Broadway Package that includes here.

• My Winner Interviews Should Be Out This Week. Check back in on the site!

• Gay Thoughts From Gay People: The final word on this season of Drag breed Goes to My Restaurant-Critical Colleague Matthew Schneier: “Its an an unfortunate fact of Drag breed that the better it gets, the work it is. The Queens of the breed are now professional – all immediately Ready to be the world or whita – that the striving feeds besides the point. Who roots for an overdog? (Just as New Brooklynite Suzie toot.) So while the top four are an unusablely strong tears, Eve Among Recent Rpdr Standards, My Biggest Laughs This Season Came from the Peanut Gallery Outside the Show Rather than the Show ITSELF: (1) La roche-posay and (2) Unspookable hormones at Kohl’s. ” To that list Id Add Chorus Toot.