If you follow me on Facebook or Twitter, you might have heard about my quick little trip out to LA last week–and yes, it was to attend the taping of the finale! What a crazy few weeks! First, my work was featured on last week’s recap episode, then I got to see the actual filming of the show! I’m really appreciative of So Much Drama! Studios for arranging the whole adventure, and I’m SO excited that our game RuPaul’s Drag Race: DRAGOPOLIS is finally out! I did nearly all the art and animation in the game, so if you like my Drag Race work, you should definitely check it out!

In any case, I was fascinated to see how the televised version of the finale matched up to my memories of the taping. Obviously, I can’t divulge any juicy secrets, but let’s dive into it, shall we?

If you’re invested enough in the Drag Race to follow the blog of some random fan art fanatic like me, you’ve probably heard how the finale was structured–three alternate endings were shot, with each queen winning the crown, and the real winner was revealed at a live event in NYC, where each queen performed in person. I’m a little jealous of everyone at the party in New York, because I’m sure the performances were a hell of a lot more rousing than the opening number of the reunion–my boyfriend (who never watches the show) said it best: “They all look bored.”

But given my own experience the day of the shoot, I can understand why–those queens had been waiting around for hours and hours before the show began. They weren’t bored, they were
tired. One huge lesson learned from the taping was that good TV takes time! All the lighting, the cameras, the sound equipment–not to mention the make-up, choreography, and rehearsals–it made me realize what a miracle each episode of the show is, how many talented professionals behind the scenes work long, long hours to make it all happen.

So I can’t blame the girls for such a subdued opening act. Even from out in the audience, it was clear that some of the queens just didn’t want to be there. I’m sure some are still bitter about being booted off the show too soon, or being turned into a punchline. But one of the welcome surprises was from Penny Tration, who maintained a buoyant sense of good-natured goofiness throughout the shoot. (Maybe it helps that she was dressed like a deranged clown!)

Given how much time we’ve spent with the final three queens in the last few weeks, I was most excited to revisit some of the queens we hadn’t seen in a while. Monica looked gorgeous in her flowing pink gown, and Lineysha was serving up a striking avian headpiece, even if, as usual, her personality wasn’t as compelling as her fashion choices.

Ivy Winters looked more sleek and glamorous than she had all season, and she projected a sense of fun, quirky charm that I hadn’t seen during the competition. Although she struggled to stand out amid the over-sized personalities of the other contestants, she’s obviously gorgeous and talented, and it was great to see her win the title of Miss Congeniality. The best part (which sadly didn’t make it to TV) was seeing Latrice try to fit the sash over Ivy’s colossal feather headpiece. (It took a while.)

After the season’s endless drama between Coco and Alyssa, it was a relief to finally see them acting nicely with each other, despite some playful sparring. As many others have pointed out, Alyssa is clearly a breakout star of the season, and it’s no wonder!–her infectious zeal for performance, her over-sized expressions, the way she cracks herself up with her own jokes? You can’t take your eyes off her!

And yet, she always leaves you scratching your head–from the audience, it looked like her white dress was speckled with blood, which was an odd choice. I debated it with others in the audience, and we just couldn’t figure out why Alyssa would be wearing that. Maybe Alaska, maybe Sharon, but Alussa? We struggled to come up with a reason, like, maybe she’s referencing all the tussles she got into throughout the season? As I was looking at red carpet photos of the dress, I realized it was actually patterned with red roses, but that’s only apparent upon close examination. Is it supposed to work on multiple levels? Like so much of what Alyssa does, it’s hard to tell if she’s in on the joke or not.

But hey, at least we finally learned what “Alyssa’s secret” is!

Detox pretty much stole the show with both her attitude and her show-stopping film noir look. This finale reaffirmed her fierceness, and it’s easy to understand her bitterness at not making it into the final three. Not that she needs the crown, or not yet. (Future winner of ALL STARS, Season 2?)

The crazy dance break that interrupted Detox’s interview was just as abrupt and bizarre in person as it was on the screen. But it was a little dirtier, since they edited out some of the, uh, floppier bits. Shawn and Jason, the Pit Crew, were onstage with all those Andrew Christian models, but a lot of what they were doing wasn’t quite appropriate for television. (Let’s just say that Andrew Christian underwear leaves a lot of, uh, wiggle room.)

Whew! Finally! We’ve made it to the top three! Geez, this reunion episode was long, wasn’t it? It was heartening to hear Roxxxy’s apologies, and I was swayed by her sincerity. I think she’s gone a long way toward rehabilitating her image, and you couldn’t help but feel her pain as she talked about losing her drag mother, Erica Andrews.

But you can always count on Alaska to break up the sentimental moments with a bracing jolt of wit. Although I didn’t love her final look–so much pink!–I love that queen so much.

Picking between her and Jinkx must have been tough. Although Jinkx was the clear frontrunner, she peaked a little too early in the season–she delivered some highlights with her Day of the Dead look, her outrageous lip sync, and her veteran’s makeover, but nothing could quite match her transcendental channeling of Little Edie during the Snatch Game. And Alaska started gaining momentum too late in the game–because of Rolaskatox, and the Sharon comparisons–and it took a while for viewers to really get her.

And so Jinkx took home the crown, which will hopefully serve as a springboard for innumerable other fabulous accomplishments. Besides the usual club tours, I’m so excited to see that Jinkx has already booked a number of performances in NYC for her show, The Vaudevillians, a fabulous duo act with Major Scales. I’m jealous of all you New Yorkers who get to see the show, though I’m optimistic that she’s a star that will keep shining for a long, long time. Here’s to MONSOON SEASON!

Thanks for following all this season’s work! It means a lot to get such great encouragement, and all your support has really taken me tremendously far this past year. The attention I’ve gotten from my Drag Race work is largely what has allowed me to make a living doing what I love to do, and that’s pretty much all a guy can ask for. How cool is it that my “day job” is drawing drag queens for posters, comics, and video games?

Speaking of all that, I’ve updated The Sellout Store to feature this week’s latest Drag Race art, and I’ve made 50 QUEENS, the book collection of my favorite Season 5 art, available for pre-order! I’m still working on the final cover design and layout, but I’m planning to have the book printed and mailed out by the end of the month!

If that’s still not enough Drag Race art for you, I’ve also got another FAB.COM sale scheduled to start May 21st! They’ll be featuring exclusive 18″ x 24″ prints of my Season 5 queens!

If you’ve enjoyed my work this season, check out my crazy comics  and see a whole other side of how my brain works!

50 QUEENS is $10 + $2 shipping, and it will be shipped separately from any other orders.

But a lot did happen this week. Or, at least a lot of ridiculous and lovely antics.

All season, Alaska has continually been set up as sort of a brilliant, deranged clown. There have been several weeks where the editing makes her seem like she’s failing miserably (and in the case of the chiffonography, hilariously) but when we see the final results, she kills it. Is it all manipulation by the editors? Does Alaska intentionally clown around during rehearsals? Any way you slice it, it’s worked for her this season.

It helps that this episode had so many ridiculous aspects to the challenge, keeping things fast paced and full of schtick. I loved how buoyant and playful Jinkx was during the car shoot. The “chipmunkery” was insane, as was Alaska’s flailing chiffonography. Both Jinkx and Alaska let loose in the courtroom shoot, and I died hearing Jinkx’s elaborate back stories for each character.

Mathu Andersen provided a perfect, dry “straight man” to the queens’ antics, delivering delicious one-liners that cut straight to the bone. Mathu does really provocative drag, himself, and posts thoughtful commentary on his Facebook page, which is worth a look!

The queens’ lunch conversations with Ru sort of fell flat for me this season. It seemed like they were mostly treading on old ground, so even though the scenes were emotional, they weren’t particularly revealing. However, I think it was brilliant to juxtapose those warm, affirmational segments with Gloria Allred’s incisive, no-nonsense prep sessions with the girls. I LOVED that she called out Roxxxy’s “pageant babble”.

No matter what you feel about Roxxxy–whether you think she’s just playing mind-games, or that she regrets lashing out, or that she’s just a bully–I think the key to understanding her issues with Alaska and Jinkx was in hearing that she sees their campy humor as “making fun” of drag itself. Which is strange, because Roxxxy herself can be really funny, but her ultimate goal is always glamour, and it kills her that other queens don’t take that as seriously as she does. But that approach is fundamentally flawed. To me, it’s like trying out for a school play because you like to wear fun outfits. Sure, the costumes and stage make-up are part of the process, but they’re secondary to your performance on stage, your ability to embody a character and entertain the audience.

There’s room in this world for many different approaches to drag, and I’m glad that the Drag Race celebrates a fairly large variety of them. But as I’ve mentioned in previous posts, it’s clear that the focus of this show has shifted more toward the performance-oriented queens, the ones with character and the ability to leave a crowd roaring with delight. And it kills Roxxxy that she’s been left behind.

Ultimately, it’s down to Alaska and Jinkx. I’d be truly delighted if either won. I hold both in such high esteem, and they’ve endlessly surpassed my expectations all season.

Jinkx is a consistent delight–her broad array of talents and staunch professionalism deliver every time. Her fashion choices have been a mixed bag, but as she said, she’s been listening to criticism and improving her looks. Even though her final dress was fairly simple, has she ever looked more gorgeous? It seems like she’s still got the majority of fan support, and she’ll probably win.

However, Alaska is, and always has been, a wildcard. She doesn’t have as diverse a skill set as Jinkx, and her performances have been up and down. But when she gets a foothold and comes up with a clever concept or retort, there just ain’t nothing like Alaska. She’s edgy, provocative, and has provided the most jaw-dropping, gut-bustingly funny moments of the season.

So it’s any girl’s game! We’re all just left waiting for Judge Rudy’s verdict!

As always, this week’s portraits of Jinkx and Alaska are both available to purchase on The Sellout Store, so go check that out! I’ve also been thinking about making smaller 5″ x 7″ prints of my Drag Race work available online–is anyone into that? It would be a way of celebrating your favorite queens, but for those without much wallspace and/or framing skills. And yes, I’m working on a book collection of my best work from Season 5, and it will be available for pre-order soon!

And finally, I’ll be exhibiting at C2E2 in Chicago this weekend, Friday-Sunday! It’s a giant comics and pop cultural show, and it will be crazy. I’ll be at Table R16 in Artists Alley with my Drag Race work and my new comic MANTA-DAD! So you should absolutely come, and maybe even buy discounted advance tickets!

Despite her uproariously funny puppet performance, Alaska seemed destined to go. She stumbled through the most basic of choreography for the girls’ routine, and her candy couture dress was literally falling apart as she prepped for the runway. From the season’s start, I’ve had the nagging worry that Alaska wouldn’t make it to the end, given all the early comparisons of her with Sharon Needles, and then increasingly Jinkx! Surely Ru wouldn’t have two “funny queens” in her final three!?

But this season has had a lot of unexpected turns from the beginning–starting with the cast of queens. From its onset, I’ve been struck by this season’s focus on performers and comedy queens. Yeah, obviously you’ve got Jinkx as a triple threat, Alaska’s subversive humor, and Detox’s unique brand of lip sync. But remember Ivy’s wild assortment of circus skills and Alyssa’s impressive dancing background? She didn’t stick around long enough to show it, but Honey Mahogany is a fantastic singer, too. This ensemble was loaded with talent above and beyond the expected for a drag show.

Roxxxy claimed that Jinkx made it this far entirely on luck, that the challenges seemed custom built for a queen with her talents. But girl, there’s no luck in reality TV. This season has been all about performance–singing, dancing, comedy, comedy, comedy. It wasn’t luck, it was a clear shift on the part of Ru and the production team. All that being said, I don’t know what it all means–does Ru want a queen who can do it all, or have all these performance challenges been strung together just because they make for the best TV?

It’s the answer to that question that will determine the winner of this Race.

Roxxxy would have rocked this show in its earlier seasons. She’s gorgeous, stylish, and brings a boatload of energy and enthusiasm to every challenge. Facing off against previous winners like Bebe or Tyra Sanchez, Roxxxy probably could have snatched the crown from either one of them. But in Season 5? I’m not sure. Given the shift in this show’s priorities, I don’t know if she’s a viable contender. But on the other hand, I could see how RuPaul wouldn’t want to set the precedent of consistently rewarding the campy/comedy/edgy queens, and so she might pick a queen like Roxxxy who embodies the highest ideals of glamour and polish in drag.

In any other season, Detox would have stood out from the pack–and she did in the early episodes! I thought she was the clear frontrunner, given her fierce combination of style, skills, and stunningly distinctive looks. She’s a magnificent queen, and well-rounded, but she had a hard time standing out in later challenges. When it came to acting and singing, Jinkx had an edge. In comedy challenges, it was hard to top Alaska’s razor sharp wit. I love Detox’s edgy outfits and expressive physical comedy, and I’m glad she made it so far into this competition.

I don’t know if it was luck, or a thread of fate woven by Ru and her production team, but Jinkx was certainly fortunate to face off against Detox performing one of the most eccentric (and delightful) song selections in Drag Race herstory. Like she said, the song was perfectly suited to Jinkx’s love of schtick, and she channeled its quirky charms through every inch of her being. Jinkx had clearly thought out the whole number, bringing distinctive choreography and character to it, and she justified her place in the final three.

Do you think it’ll come down to Jinkx and Alaska? What a lip sync that would be! Throughout the season’s second half, Jinkx has emerged as the fan-favorite to win, but Alaska has really picked up steam in just the last few weeks. And she’s the one queen who can reliably crack up Ru in the workroom. So, it’s anybody’s game! And it should be a hell of a show.

I don’t know if we get the clip show next, or what, but during the “recap week,” I’m hoping to draw some of the best queens and outfits I missed earlier in the season, so share your suggestions below. And yes, finally: ALYSSA.

And remember: buy prints and books of my Drag Race work right here and on Etsy!