RECAP: RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars 11, Episode 10 (Semifinal Storytelling)
And we are at the semifinals of “RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars 11”! The 7 queens that advanced through the preliminary rounds have returned, and they were joined by a shocking wildcard pick to face a maxi-challenge that was interesting in conception, middling in execution, and resulting in a terrific lipsync for your life.
Read on for my take on “RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars” Season 11, Episode 10. SPOILERS AHEAD!
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First and foremost, let’s look at this group of semifinalists. From the Orange Bracket we have the surprisingly strong Dawn (Season 16) and the beneficiary of a Ru-broken tie, A’keria Chanel Davenport (Season 11, “All Stars” 6); from the Pink Bracket we have enigmatic kookster Crystal Methyd (Season 12) and a resurgent Silky Nutmeg Ganache (Season 11, “All Stars” 6); and from the Purple Bracket we have a whopping FOUR queens, with the bracket point leader and legend Kennedy Davenport (Season 7, “All Stars” 3, and the sometimes-acknowledged “Canada’s Drag Race vs. The World” S2), the non-tie-broken bracketmates Jasmine Kennedie (Season 14) and Sam Star (Season 17), and our wild card winner, the charming and unexpected Joey Jay (Season 13).
Joey Jay being the wildcard is fascinating. She got the nod over Orange Bracket standout Morgan McMichaels (Season 2, “All Stars 3”) and Pink Bracket shit-stirrer Salina EsTitties (Season 15). Looking at points, this is straight-up gaggy. Both Morgan and Salina just missed out on advancing from their brackets — Morgan had the points to do so, Salina fell one short after over-campaigning. Joey didn’t win a single challenge in the prelims, and walked in here with just 2 points. But those 2 points aren’t reflective of Joey’s actual performance. Joey has been consistently great in every challenge this season, and routinely delights Ru in their interactions. She’s actually a threat, and I don’t think anyone sees her coming — which could be a real advantage.
That being said, I think it is fully crazy that ½ of the semifanlists are from one bracket. I don’t see how that’s right or fair, and given the Rate-a-Queen system determining the Bottom 2 each episode, those relationships absolutely could come into play in a very real way.
I’m going to go over each queen’s performance in the Tell Me Something Good storytelling challenge, their take on the Red Carpet runway (what a snooze of a category), and the way they played the Rate-a-Queen rankings that determined the Bottom 2. Also, shout out to guest judge Evan Mulrooney. Aside from his role in the cinematic masterpiece Stop. That. Train! I have no idea who that man is, but I would like to get to know him. Biblically.
A’keria Chanel Davenport
I enjoyed A’keria very much in the Orange Bracket, but here I found myself wrestling with an issue I have frequently had with this stunning, funny queen — she has a tendency to fade into the background. I can’t even describe it. She is the full package, yet for whatever reason I struggle to remember her when she’s not actively on my screen. I thought A’keria’s story — about getting back-room ass filler from her drag mother before competing in a pageant — had potential. That situation is very real, and some people have been seriously fucked up by illegal or improperly deployed pumpings. But it lacked humor and, ultimately, a message, and her outfit that was obviously a reveal was ultimately pointless, as the final outfit had basically nothing to do with the story. There were multiple ways she could have gone there, like a second outfit that referenced botched filler or even one showcasing her flawless ass. This was just…there.
A’keria’s look for the Red Carpet runway was absolutely beautiful, a reference to the Alexander McQueen alien dress. But I cannot imagine literally any celebrity showing up on any red carpet wearing that. To me, it was a costume. A gorgeous costume, but a costume. Also, I’m sorry, I did not care for that wig.
Crystal Methyd
First and foremost, I absolutely loved Crystal’s wackadoo outfit for the storytelling challenge. That alone caught my attention, and I thought her story about not speaking up as a kid and being forgotten on the bus had some light jokes and charming moments. I do think it was well told, succinct, and had a point of view. But do I think the judges laid on the praise a little thick at panel? You betcha. It was perfectly solid. It was not great. I think at least two other queens had stronger challenge performances.
What was great was her runway, a throwback fashion clown ensemble that, somehow, was still impossibly chic. I think it’s a stretch for a red carpet, but I could see a particularly bold celebrity wearing it to an offbeat award show.
So to recap: challenge solid, runway great. Let’s remember that.
Dawn
Dawn’s confidence from the Orange Bracket deflated quickly in the semis, and that doesn’t necessarily surprise me. When Dawn is excelling I think she can ride the momentum, but I’m not sure she has resilience when it comes to the lower moments — we saw this on S16 as well. She dominated one of the weakest brackets of either tournament-style season, but I think she’s going to have a much harder job pushing through this group of semifinalists. (That said, I LOVED the outfit she wore on the semifinalist reveal runway.)
Dawn flopped the storytelling challenge. Her story, about getting super high with her friends a beach house and reacting while they all panicked, was rife for comedy, and she just didn’t mine it. Tons of missed opportunities, possibly more than any other storyteller. Also, here’s a bit of tea or you: per social media, the queens spilled that the challenge order was completely different than what actually transpired. The editors chose to put Dawn first. Was the intention to nerf the cool reception to her flatline bit by having it first out? Unclear, but I don’t think it worked. Our viewing party didn’t laugh once.
Her Red Carpet runway was gorgeous and intricate, and a nod to her own red-carpet moment as it adapted the gown she wore attending the Emmys for Season 16. That said, I think Dawn was very lucky to escape the Bottom 2, and if they give us the Rate-a-Queen results I’ll bet she was third from last.
Jasmine Kennedie
Jasmine had one of the stronger storytelling challenges, recalling a moment as a young gay teen where she was busted wearing make-up, and then coming out to her mother when she clocked it. The phone bit was excellent. As I think one of the judges said, Jasmine weaponized her natural melodrama for this challenge. She was definitely in the top half of the pack for me.
I also adored her Red Carpet runway, which felt very Old Hollywood but modern at the same time. I was getting Hepburn vibes, Audrey up top and Katharine on the bottom. Great night for Jasmine, although I think she has correctly identified her weakness: with Rate-a-Queen she has curry favor with the queens, and that’s not something she is predisposed to do with her mouth seemingly on autopilot.
Joey Jay
Oops, she did it again: Joey Jay snuck up and stole the challenge for the fourth time this season. Her story about finding her drag mother — after she blew her — was the funniest bit of the night, heartwarming, and brilliantly delivered. Her point that she wanted to use the cards as a prop, mixed with the seemingly delayed use of her soundboard, made for an uproarious presentation.
Many people I’ve spoken to feel like Joey was robbed of a win again — Joey even agreed in “Untucked,” referring to herself as the Susan Lucci of “All Stars.” Here’s what I’ll say: Joey had the best storytelling challenge, but IMO one of the weakest runways. I know that her Season 13 sister Utica designed it, but to me it felt unresolved and costumey. I genuinely can’t see any celebrity wearing that. I also wonder if Joey was docked points for being one of the only queens to use cards in her storytelling. I know she explained that was part of the bit, and it did work. But I also wonder if that was a kind of feint. I don’t know.
What I do know is that Joey is emerging as a fan favorite this season, and that’s far more valuable with this fandom than any challenge win.
Kennedy Davenport
Woof. Let’s be clear, Kennedy is one of the funniest queens we’ve ever had on “Drag Race.” We’ve seen it over and over again. She’s great at character work, great at improv. She has a natural feel for comic timing and has made so many smart choices time after time over her four seasons.
She did not make smart choices here. Kennedy did not adequately prepare for this challenge, relying on her natural charm and humor to carry her through (see also: Masters, Jasmine in the “All Stars 4” talent show). It did not. Even if she had lightened her story with more jokes, it was still going to be a very hard sell as Kennedy did what many fellow Gen X/elder Millennials do by trying to turn their childhood trauma into laughs. In this case, her abusive mother (and principal) beating her for being a class clown.
I get it. I also use dark humor to normalize those kinds of experiences from my own past. But that was not the vibe of this challenge at all, and the whole thing left us wincing over and over again. When Kennedy came out dressed as her mother it felt legitimately menacing — whatever lightness had been present in that skit up til that point evaporated as soon as she started swinging that belt.
Kennedy’s Red Carpet look was pretty standard fair for Kennedy. I could see it at the Oscars in the late 80s or early 90s, when sequins and big hair were still very much the look. Kennedy can wear the hell out of gown, let’s say that.
Sam Star
I thought Sam did fine in this challenge, but again, there were a lot of missed opportunities. The content was relatable to many queer people, as she tried to fit in by embracing sports, walking us through her trial and error. It just needed more refinement. Sam also has certain verbal crutches that she relies on a LOT, and she would sounds much less rehearsed if she started to wean herself off of them.
Sam’s Red Carpet look was a cool idea, gold sequins with high heels embedded into the dress in numerous areas (tits, hips, etc.). I was right there with the judges when I exclaimed before we even got to the critiques, “the length of this dress is killing me.” It wasn’t long enough to be red carpet, it wasn’t short enough to hit her in a flattering way. That mid-shin length was a one-way ticket to Stumpytown.
Silky Nutmeg Ganache
I thought Silky was hilarious this episode, between her reactions to Kennedy’s trauma dump to her own very well-told story. Even Ru said that this would have been an easy challenge for Silk to fuck up, as she loves to run off at the mouth. I thought she showed a lot of restraint in recalling the first time she was picked to lead the church in worship. There were multiple jokes and peaks and valleys, and Silky told it all in an engaging manner. The one shot she missed was the big punchline, which she delivered while screaming. Our room thought she said, “Szechuan chocolate!” It was “sexual chocolate,” which is a hell of a lot funnier when uttered by a preteen gay kid, at church, while feeling the spirit.
I thought Silk looked beautiful on the runway, in a gown she made herself, but once again I am begging the queens: please do not do black embellishments on a black gown. The viewers at home cannot make out any of the details. I am confident that Silky put a lot of work into that dress, and it did look glamorous and red-carpet ready. But I suspect we could only appreciate the half of it.
Ultimately Crystal was given the win — controversially, I think, as Joey, Silky, and possibly even Jasmine did a better job in the storytelling than she did — and the queens put Kennedy (deserved) and A’keria (somewhat surprising) in the Bottom 2. I think it probably should have been Kennedy vs. Dawn, but I do have to wonder how much Rate-a-Queen played a role here. The Silky vs. A’keria pre-show drama could have been a factor, and I look forward to exploring that more next episode.
The Davenport v. Davenport lipsync to “Nobody’s Supposed to Be Here” by Deborah Cox was one of the ages. Take a look:
These are both great lipsync artists, and A’keria in particular came in knowing she was the underdog. Both of them did well in undoubtedly the best lipsync so far this season. They were both living that song, but I don’t think you can deny that A’keria gave everything she had to give on that stage.
And so, surprisingly, Kennedy Davenport was eliminated. Kennedy has competed on “Drag Race” four times, and this is only her second time ever being eliminated (the first, in Season 7, was her controversial outing at Final 4). Going out in 8th is her worst placement, and you can tell she was super bummed about it. We throw the word “icon” around a lot (I know I do), but Kennedy is legitimately a “Drag Race” icon. She’s an incredible performer, outstanding television, and a legend in this business. This run and her premature exit does not detract from her legacy in any way.
I also think having her out opens this competition wide up. I don’t know for sure that we have a lipsync for the crown looming, but Kennedy would have been hard to beat there. (That said, she was beaten by Trixie in “All Stars” 3, so…)
What do YOU think of the semifinalists of “All Stars” 11? Which queens are you rooting for? Drop your comments below!
