RuPaul's Drag Race Season 16 Review: Episode 4
Episode 4 starts with drama already, as Q thinks she should have won instead of Nymphia.
Compared to the previous season, this one is packed with drama. While the US version of Drag Race holds the title for being the most 'shady,' this season proves it deserves the reputation.
It's entertaining to see the girls engage in so much conflict; it spices things up. However, this season, it's almost excessive.
It would be nice to see more focus on the main theme of RuPaul’s Drag Race – the drag itself. However, as it is a reality TV show, the priority remains on entertaining the viewers.
In this episode’s challenge, the queens star in a sketch comedy show called RDR Live, inspired by SNL, with them only getting one take to get it right! Already, the drag sisters Plane Jane and Morphine are fighting over a role. It seems Plane Jane is always involved in the drama. Plasma also isn’t happy with the role of ‘funny girl’ that she ended up in, which is understandable, as her role was almost decided for her.
Plasma ends up doing a really good job as Barbara Streisand, even though she didn’t want the role at first, she embodies the icon diva perfectly. Most queens are doing well on this challenge and are genuinely funny, which makes a weak performance stand out even more.
The episode continues with the diva topic, as the runway theme is ‘Night of 1000 Chers,’ where the queens show their Cher looks.
This week, for the first time this season, the queens aren’t using the ‘Rate a Queen’ system anymore, and Ru and the judges make the decisions again. It would have been interesting to see how the system would work for the entirety of the season, but something special like that would perhaps be a better fit for an All Stars or VS the World season as these seasons tend to have voting systems. Maybe it will make a comeback for one of these.
Plasma wins the challenge with her outstanding ‘funny girl’ performance, and Mirage and Geneva end up in the bottom. In the lip sync, Mirage is mesmerizing to watch, the way she twirls and slowly drops to the floor in her stunning outfit. However, she doesn’t know the words, which seal her downfall. By lip sync rules, she is out, but her performance is so fierce that she could have stayed. It is heartbreaking to see her go so soon. Even now, a few days after the episode aired, fans are devastated and call out RuPaul for making the wrong decision.
At least, there can be comfort found in Ru saying to her: "I know it feels like the end, but it is just the beginning." Hopefully, that is true for her because she is a queen with so much potential, who should have stayed in the competition until the end.
RuPaul’s Drag Race S16 is streaming exclusively on WOW Presents Plus in the UK every Saturday. Subscribe to WOW Presents Plus via https://uk.wowpresentsplus.com/