The queens return to the werkroom following last week’s Fame Games lip sync. LaLa Ri and Jaymes Mansfield won, with LaLa receiving a 3x booster in fan votes and Jaymes 2x. Who will snatch the Queen of the Fame Games crown? And who will be crowned the winner of the season and become $200k richer? Keep reading! My library is still open!
Jaymes and Jimbo are engaged in a playful Battle of the Breasts and Naysha Lopez and Kahanna Montrese in a Battle of the Ass. Woof! LaLa is getting lessons in Nasty Spanish from Naysha (I’m fluent) and Kahanna notes that while beauty, dance and comedy reflect the diversity of drag styles, her beauty landed her in the bottom four times!
Jimbo and Kandy’s final maxi challenge will be to perform specially written solo numbers. First, they’ll have their ritual (orange) Tic Tac chats with Ru and Michelle Visage and a final trip down the runway with all of the season’s queens.
In Jimbo’s chat, Ru calls out the natural sparkle in Jimbo’s eyes that gives her a subversive and twisted vibe. We learn that Jimbo’s parents were both alcoholics and home life was tumultuous. As adult children of alcoholics know, pleasing and performing become lifelong habits. She’s here to inspire those who are weird and different. Yay for weird and different!
Next up, the queens answer party questions contained in the Pink Furry Box. Mostly there are cash tips being awarded, but Jaymes gets to describe the perfect drag queen: the face of Monica Beverly Hills and the body of Kahanna Montrese. Yas queen!
Kandy’s Tic Tac chat is highlighted by Ru saying that she may be Kandy’s biggest fan, which is music to her ears. (I somehow picked up a subtle, shady read related to her fan popularity!) Kandy has been a bit hamstrung by the other queens—“These ho’s be trying me!”—but she plans to win!
We then have some choreo rehearsal with Jimbo actually picking up her steps. Then we’re off to the werkroom where the queens are beating their mugs and Kahanna is applying her pheromone spray. I could smell it through my tv!
On the main stage, Ru is joined by family: Michelle, Carson Kressley and Ross Mathews. All agree that the highlight of the season was the backup dancers’ booty shorts. Agreed! Ru performs her own number with said dancers entitled “ASMR Lover.” Um kay. She is followed by Jimbo’s performance of “I Remember Being Born” and Kandy’s “Pay Me with Money.” All of the queens sing a rousing gospel choir rendition of “I’m a Winner Baby.” Amen!
On the runway, the category is Finale Fabulosity. The queens all stun in glamorous gowns. Props to LaLa for her elevated look, Alexis Michelle for the sheer beauty of her red gown, and Kahanna for her tribute to her ancestors. Jimbo and Kandy also walked. Kudos to Kandy for turning out a super glam yellow ostrich-feathered gown, although comparisons to Big Bird and Tweety were inevitable!
Ru makes one of my favorite comments about drag when critiquing Jimbo: “She’s the type of queen I grew up with. It’s not about looking real. It’s a middle finger to society, irreverent like punk rock and new wave.” This says so much about Ru and his drag influences.
The winner of the Fame Games is announced and it’s LaLa Ri. Good job, fans!! And finally, Jimbo and Kandy enter the stage to lip sync for the crown to “Do You Wanna Funk” by Sylvester and Patrick Cowley. Not quite as epic as I might have hoped but on brand for both queens. And… drum roll… the winner is…
JIMBO! She becomes the first international queen (Canada) in the All Stars Hall of Fame. As many of you might know, Ru films two endings with each queen winning to avoid leaks. For Jimbo’s real reaction, check out the live reaction on YouTube. She was hyperventilating before her name was announced and was quite overcome. Congrats to Jimbo and to Kandy, who really did battle it out to the very end!
And so ends the season, which had its ups and downs but definitely gave some queens the spotlight they deserved. In particular, I call out Jessica Wild, the earliest season queen (season 2) of the cast. Killer comeback for sure!
Just to close, I had a great time at the Werq the World tour show last week in Rancho Mirage. It was quite the extravaganza! Oh, and I got to see Kahanna in person! And last night I played Drag Bingo at AMP Sports Lounge with the lovely Angelique VaGorgeous keeping us drunk with O-69 shots! Shoutout to Paul, Antonio and Tulio for all the fun. Join in on Thursdays at 7 and support local charities.
Hope you enjoyed my recaps. See you next season!
Read Dante’s previous recaps [here] and follow him on Instagram: @dantenoto