However, the monotony of megamix after megamix makes it all the more thrilling when a queen chooses to break that mold. The whole challenge feels perfunctory: less an opportunity for the queens to demonstrate their actual talents, and more a buy-in to prove that they understand their fiduciary duties as a Drag Race: All Stars contestants. Each track features a generic beat and one to three lyrical catchphrases (that are no doubt already emblazoned across T-shirts for sale on ). By my count, nine of 13 queens perform lip syncs to some sort of overproduced, DMCA-friendly megamix whipped up for the express purpose of this very challenge. While of course there’s no shortage of talented queens we love, precious few of them manage to use the talent show as an opportunity to successfully remind us why we love them.

I must admit that this first episode left me feeling quite … uneasy. But enough shop talk, let’s dive into what we’ve all been waiting for: this supersized episode drop. Let’s hear it for the streaming era, y’all!!! Unfortunately, given the laundry list of tasks given as a prerequisite to enjoying this pair of eps, watching Drag Race this week felt more like a chore than a delightful bit of gay escapism. Hopefully by now you’ve subscribed to Paramount+, streamed both episodes, watched their accompanying Untuckeds, and muted (and then unmuted!) the veritable catalogue of terms the Drag Race social-media manager has so thoughtfully compiled for us. Early Thursday morning, the double premiere of All Stars arrived with little fanfare at 3 a.m.

Rupaul all stars 6