‘Drag Race France’ Got an All-Stars Glow-up for Sickening Season 2

The most sprawling pop culture franchise has nary a superhero or spaceship in it — that is, unless they’re the subject of a challenge or runway. I’m talking about the Drag Race Cinematic Universe, a constellation of glittering queens from all corners of creation. The Marvel Cinematic Universe has nothing on what RuPaul has built, and it has the benefit of being manageable by comparison. No joke — as of literally right now, the Drag Race franchise has dropped 79 episodes of TV in 2023 across 9 different series. It’s a shame that Drag Race’s success means that the international seasons have to share the spotlight, especially since so many of the international spinoffs have been on the level of the mother series — and, in the case of Drag Race France Season 2, better.

Yep — Drag Race France Season 2 is the best Drag Race season of 2023 so far. This is not faint praise, either, as there have been several fantastic seasons so far, including RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 15, Drag Race España Season 3, and the debut of Drag Race México. But Drag Race France Season 2 has shantayed ahead of all of them and emerged as the shiniest jewel in the Drag Race crown.

This is because all of the France 2 queens are winners, baby. To run through a few — there’s Sara Forever, a Sasha Velourian fashion clown with avant-garde leanings. There’s Punani, a hard-working queen who can do it all. There’s Mami Watta, who gives Shangela Season 3 vibes, the lovable underdog with ferocious talent. There’s Cookie Kunty, whose knack for shade is matched by her knack for makeup. There’s Keiona, one of the few (only?) Drag Race queens to bring legit ballroom perfection to the runway; Keiona competed as part of the House of Revlon on the third season of HBO Max’s gone-too-soon Legendary. And there’s Moon, a trans, Swiss Romani queen with quite possibly the biggest heart (and best hair) of them all.

And that’s what these girls — along with all the icons I didn’t provide mini bios for (Piche, Ginger Bitch, Kitty Space, Rose, and Vespi) — have delivered all season long: heart.

I know that a lot of gays live for the duh-rama, and France Season 2 is light on that (although Cookie and Ginger served some tension). But I believe that if a Drag Race season is light on fights, then it has to be heavy on heart. Drag Race France Season 2 has big RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 9 vibes, both because of the talent and the feelings.

From the start, there has been a soulful connection between all of these queens that has gone down like medicine for this absolutely hellish year. We’ve watched these queens bond over their love of drag, explore and share their gender journeys, and have hard conversations. One sobering Werk Room chat began with one queen talking about being assaulted on the street, and one by one, all the queens shared their own similar stories. They all had them. That’s not a fun watch, but it’s a necessary watch and it’s the kind of story that you can literally only get from watching Drag Race. Only on Drag Race can a room of queer people bond over trauma, and then shut the world down with their sickening talents mere minutes later. Drag Race, in one way, is about queer perseverance, and France 2 serves it with a side of excellence.

But I don’t think Drag Race France would be as successful as it’s been this year without the right host, and Nicky Doll has quickly become the host of the year. To be blunt, here’s what I love about Nicky Doll: she placed 11th on Season 12. Nicky is fierce, fashion, feminine, and funny — and she didn’t crack the top 10 in her season. This is exactly why she’s a fantastic host. Of all the Drag Race hosts, she is the only one who really understands how hard the competition is. Rita Baga, Valentina, Lolita Banana, Brooke Lynn Hytes — they all came close to the crown or lasted long enough in their seasons to establish catch phrases and permanently elevate their profile. Nicky, however, knows what it’s like to stumble in challenges, to lip sync, to go home despite being objectively sickening. So many times during Drag Race France, you can see Nicky giving advice to the queens that is so clearly pulled from what was once a broken heart. And now she stands before them, the rightful host of Drag Race France, proving that your Drag Race trajectory has no bearing on your talent (although the crown and prize money is rad).

And of course my love extends to judges Kiddy Smile and Daphné Bürki, who both sanded off the sharper edges of their critiquing style from Season 1 and came back with bigger and better energy (and even bolder fashion). The level of guest judges is, at times, staggering — Christian Louboutin?! — and shows just how proud France is of its Drag Race.

All of this, combined with iconique challenges — Piche’s talent show performance vit dans ma tête sans payer de loyer — and a franchise-best Rusical that will actually bring tears to your eyes, has made Drag Race France Season 2 the best season of the year… and maybe one of the best seasons of all time. I know there’s a lot of Drag Race to watch, but if you watch one season this year, book a trip to France.