‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ Season 14 Was the Season of Stunts — But Did They Werk?

This was the twist of all twists. At the start of the season, every queen selected a RuPaul chocolate bar to be opened upon their elimination. If they happened to draw the gold bar, they’d be safe to slay another day. But if they unwrapped a chocolate bar, they’d sashay away. June Jambalaya, the first queen to unwrap her bar, became an instant meme queen when audiences heard her say the franchise’s newest and most bizarre catch phrase: “It’s chocolate.” Ultimately the golden bar would go to Bosco in Episode 12, helping her make it to the finale.

Did the twist work? When it comes to memes, a resounding “yes.” But in terms of game play and television, let’s go with “no.” Taking away all the other stunts and shenanigans of Season 14, the chocolate bar twist just made the tensest part of every episode a little bit clunkier and lot funnier than it should be. Did the producers really have to make the queen say “It’s chocolate” in a deflated voice while the Price is Right sad horn blared over the loudspeaker? And when you take all the other ways this season delayed eliminations, the chocolate bar really lost its purpose early in the game. Plus, we all know that the producers saved the gold bar for whichever one of their faves couldn’t avoid getting the chop.

Should this twist return? No, not unless some major adjustments are made. The unwrapping could happen at the end of Untucked, right before the queen starts packing up. That way you don’t mess with the flow of the elimination, you make Untucked a more essential part of the show, and it puts suspense at the start of the next episode as the queens wait to see if their sis struck gold and walks back into the Werk Room. At the very least, if the Chocolate Bar Twist is in effect, then there should be no double shantays that season. Instead, we got two this season!

As is ritual, nearly early every episode or every Drag Race season names three top queens, three bottom queens, and deems however many queens are left to be safe. That’s the way it usually goes down — but not in Season 14. Episode 7’s acting challenge — “The Daytona Wind” — went so well that all nine queens were declared safe; Lady Camden and Daya Betty then lip synced for the win. And then a few weeks later, a disastrous Snatch Game left seven queens in the bottom and only one — winner DeJa Skye — in the top.

Did these twists work? In terms of moving the season along, they absolutely did not. Neither of these episodes resulted in an elimination, not even the one with seven bottom queens. But in terms of clear storytelling, I actually think the twists did work. As the episodes were produced, edited, and aired, it was pretty clear that everyone did a good job in “Daytona Wind” and that DeJa was the only one with a good character in Snatch Game. The show could have split hairs for “Daytona” and maybe put a few queens in the bottom based on their chaps runways, like… maybe DeJa Skye’s neon superhero and Kerri Colby’s sexy Wookiee look? Maybe? And maybe some queens could have been safe during Snatch Game, like Lady Camden’s Shakespeare? Or maybe Angeria for her gorgeous church lady look? But then again, the Holy Couture runway was overall lackluster. You see what I mean! Those all-or-nothing rankings felt earned both times.

Should these twists return? Yes. I think that when used sparingly and justifiably, these are good gags. After all, knowing that there’s precedent for everyone being safe or everyone being screwed adds another layer of tension for the girls during Untucked. But, y’know, maybe don’t do both of these twists in one season again?

With seven queens in the bottom following a disastrous Snatch Game, Ru was left with no choice but to throw Drag Race proper’s first ever LaLaPaRuZa. The format was first tried out back in RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars 4 in order to bring an eliminated queen back into the competition. Now it would eliminate a queen after a three rounds of lip sync battles. The final showdown was between Bosco and Jasmine Kennedie, with Jasmine ultimately told to sashay away.

Did the twist work? It was entertaining, and that’s because Season 14 was blessed with a lot of performers. None of the lip syncs were duds and a couple (Lady Camden’s “Don’t Let Go” and Bosco’s “Swept Away”) might just be iconic. The LaLaPaRuZa format ensures that no queens make it to the finale without having performed at least one lip sync, and that feels right considering how important lip syncs are to this show.

Should this twist return? I think it’s about time Drag Race added another regular challenge to the pantheon, and the LaLaPaRuZa could be that challenge. But it should be just that: a regular challenge, one that sends a queen home and not one that brings a queen back or eliminates a queen from the previous week’s bottoms. But this one’s risky, because a LaLaPaRuZa could go real wrong real fast if a season isn’t stacked with queens who know how to turn it out and punch the ghost.

What… happened?? So, clearly the show planned for a few episodes without an elimination. It wasn’t a surprise that Daya Betty and Orion Story immediately came back after being “eliminated.” And clearly the chocolate bar twist was designed to give us one episode without an elimination. The show also knew a LaLaPaRuZa would happen; you don’t just license a whole bunch of songs last minute because you have a bottom sven. But that didn’t take into account curveballs like Kornbread’s early departure due to an ankle injury (Orion Story was still eliminated that episode), or Ru being so transfixed by Jorgeous that a double shantay involving her was inevitable, or Daya Betty completely obliterating any thought that she would get the chop by serving it in the final challenge.

Did the twist work? No. Only two queens were sent packing between episodes 7 and 12. This led to a very surreal stretch in the middle of the season where the top eight essentially became the cast of the gayest sitcom ever. Tune in every week to see your faves and hear their catch phrases! Instead of there being any kind of mounting pressure as the finale approached, everyone maintained a level of midseason cool (mixed with a bit of delirium) right up until we were suddenly at the final five.

Should this twist return? No. The other reason why this season felt a little like treading water is because Drag Race seasons are now 16 episodes, up from 14. However, the number of queens has remained more or less the same over the years (between 12 to 14). Instead of more elimination-free episodes, why not have more queens? Shows like Top Chef cram around 16 contestants into their seasons. This could work for Drag Race, maybe as  a way to bring back queens who went home first, second, or third in their original seasons. Have a cast of 14 new queens plus two returning early-outs who’d likely not be asked to compete on All Stars.

Ahead of their final performance to the cast rumix of RuPaul’s “Catwalk,” the final five turned in sketches for their music video looks for a seamstress to craft offscreen. This is a first for the franchise and, honestly, something that I’ve wanted to see happen for a while (and some queens even agree with me!).

Did the twist work? In theory? Yes. In execution? Uh… let’s call this a practice run. Something got lost in translation for most of these queens, resulting in some of the more… uneventful looks of the season. Bosco somehow went from satan’s dominatrix to a blue version of Marvel’s Moonstone and Angeria relied on that bodysuit. Daya Betty’s look was the only one that turned it out, and that helped make her a surprise lock for the finale.

Should this twist return? Absolutely. In fact, COVID willing, it would be great to see the top five queens actually work with a designer on camera so that their ideas aren’t solely represented by color pencils on a piece of paper. Collaboration with a designer is actually a skill that drag queens need to have, especially now that they have the platform that Drag Race affords. Plus, give some up-and-coming drag designers some screentime!

For the first time in Drag Race herstory, we have a final five: Angeria Paris VanMichaels, Bosco, Daya Betty, Lady Camden, and Willow Pill. This is the first time the number of finalists has increased since Season 9 said screw it and went with a final four.

Did the twist work? It depends on which queen you’re rooting for. I don’t think it’s shady to say that, based on the edit going into the final challenge, it was clearly Daya Betty’s time to go. Nearly half of the wins this season have gone to Bosco and Lady Camden alone. But after having the best executed look, a magnetic turn in the music video, and a smoking hot runway, there was no way the show could deny Daya a place in the final. Note to future queens: be so good that not even the editors can send you home. So that left us faced with having a finale without either the two most decorated queens of the season (Bosco and Camden) or the heart and soul of the season (Willow and Angeria). While it might have been fair to see Bosco, Willow, or possibly Angeria get the chop, the show spared us that heartbreak. So, as Ru said, we have a top five, dammit!

Should this twist return? No. Five just feels like too many — it’s over a third of the total cast! Unless the changes made to the finale format to accommodate five queens is completely sickening, the show needs to stick with having a final three or four queens.

Didn’t you hear? The winner gets $150,000 and the runner-up gets $50,000! This increase is long, long overdue as the cost of competing on Drag Race has risen considerably while the prize money stayed stuck at $100,000 since Season 4 in 2012.

Did the twist work? The finale hasn’t even aired yet and it feels safe to say that yes, this twist worked. Anything that puts more money into the banks of these queens — truly the hardest working people in reality television — is a win.

Should this twist return? Absolutely — and the show’s prize money better keep up with inflation, too.