Rupaul's Drag Race: Season 4, Episode 10

(Chad's note: due to some technical difficulties, the images in this post won't appear correctly. Sorry!)

Okay, so, despite how fun it was seeing the "final four" stage their mock protest, I was delighted to see Ms. Kenya Michaels again. As soon as she shimmied into the workroom, things got a liiiiittle bit more exciting, right?

As Kenya put it, "I'm back in the bell-ding!"

Yeah, I know--you love it.

I was curious how Kenya's return would shake things up in the workroom, but there was surprisingly little time spent on that--but, like, what about the queens' responses to Kenya's letter in Untucked? And, and, what devious schemes will Phi Phi and Kenya concoct to stir up some shit?

Cool it, girls, we've gotta dress some teddy bears.

This week's mini-challenge was mostly unremarkable, except for the sight of gorgeous Pit Crew member Shawn Morales carrying in a boatload of teddy bears. That I will remark upon. Or rather, draw:

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I know. Okay. So many distractions. Geez. (Pull it together, Chad!)

The episode's D.I.L.F. challenge was pretty great, despite/because of the innumerable and outrageous awkward interactions between Queens and Dads.

It was immediately obvious that Kenya picked the wrong stud--clearly the cutest one, and also the one who most clearly just wanted to go hide in a corner. Chad's D.I.L.F was sweet and involved, which was especially poignant, because the guy looked like someone I'd avoid in a gas station while driving home to rural Wisconsin.

[singlepic id=148 w=350 h=500 float=left] I guess Chad just brings out the best in people--his heartfelt defense of the right to marry his boyfriend nearly got me choked up, and it was encouraging to see such honest dialogue between the contestants.

And it was also pretty great to see Chad stand up for himself so fiercely when Sharon's partner Mike got in her face. Mike is a bizarre breed of man: impenetrable and inscrutable, seemingly stoic and stern. But then constantly cracking jokes, and weirding out even Sharon Needles, the Queen of Freaks! All this is to say that, coming from a family of stone-faced Midwestern men, I can understand where Mike was coming from throughout the episode, though I'm glad he apologized and tried to explain his attitude.

Straight guys be crazy, right?

[singlepic id=150 w=375 h=550 float=right]Anyway, it was fun seeing the queens come up with their matching outfits--I especially loved Sharon and "Robin's" eyepatches and monochrome palette. And yes, Phi Phi totally deserved the win--she and her partner brought a great, fun energy, a playful sense of style, and her genuinely moving moment onstage sealed the deal.

But man, I felt bad for Latrice, stuck doing a second consecutive lip sync! But come on, as soon as the song started, it was clear that this was the best thing that could have happened for her--Aretha Franklin? Really? Bring it.

Latrice served up another intense, heartfelt performance, and it was glorious.

As always, be sure to check out my print shop where I'm selling all my portraits of Sharon, Chad, and Latrice! And see the rest of my Drag Race work right here!

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