RECAP: “RuPaul’s Drag Race UK 6” FINALE
I’m late, I’m late — or in drag-queen terms, I’m right on time — so forgive me. I was traveling to see family for American Thanksgiving and finally able to catch up on the “Drag Race UK 6” finale. At first I wasn’t even going to recap it, because, Hey, it’s old news. But the controversy about the winner continues to play out online, and given that, I wanted to weigh in.
Read on for my takes on “Drag Race UK” Season 6 Finale. SPOILERS AHEAD!
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I won’t bore you with the details of the episode. It was the typical Tic-Tac luncheon, a Final 4 rumix, and best drag look runway leading to a Top 2 lipsynch. To be honest, I didn’t find myself super surprised by any of it — although all of it was good. Nobody stumbled, and I thought Marmalade at least did a solid job of making a case for why she should be in the mix even though La Voix and Kyran Thrax dominated the competition in terms of badges earned/challenges won. (I though Rileasa was a lovely 3rd Alternate, and she looked great in that final runway.)
But of course it came down to La Voix and Kyran Thrax. That was obvious all season. It’s not a surprise that the two of the lipsynched for the win back in Episode 1. It’s not a surprise that the producers and editors focused so much on their connection. (Lest you say, That was just their natural interactions — that discussion in the work room in which Kyran got real about her past with a groomer sure seemed to be just the two of them filming, nobody else seemed to be present; that’s Production’s hand showing.) The Seasoned Pro vs. The Ambitious Ingenue was essentially the storyline this season, and they had the perfect casting to do it. Absolutely no notes on that front.
Which is why I was surprised that so many people were shocked and upset that the crown went to Kyran. If the dynamic is, essentially, The Future vs. The Past, do you really think the show is going to say, “Hey, let’s go all in on the classic”? It makes perfect sense that the show would want to enshrine the queen that they think has the most potential to grow and change the face of UK drag. And of the two of them, that is Kyran Thrax.
Additionally, if you look at the previous “Drag Race UK” winners, that group desperately needed some diversifying. Some racial diversity would be nice, absolutely — and you can tell the casting agents are really trying, I think 50 percent or more of the Series 6 queens were queens of color. But it needed some new flavors in the types of drag represented, as well as the demographics of the winners, too. Most of the UK champions have been performing-arts queens with a lean toward camp. And I love that! I love The Vivienne, Lawrence Chaney (please bring Lawrence on for All Winners 2), Danny Beard, and Ginger Johnson. They’re all tremendous. But Krystle Versace is the only queen in that group that’s a real outlier, and for that reason, I’m so glad we got Kyran with the crown. She’s young, punk, and full of ideas. I think she’s going to do great things.
Kyran also EARNED that win. I don’t know how you can argue against it. I understand that the audience fell in love with La Voix. I’m thrilled they did! La Voix came across brilliantly this season, not only in the challenges but especially in her interactions with the other queens and in her talking heads. But let’s not pretend that Kyran Thrax did not kick this competition in the ass. Kyran’s only bad week was Episode 9’s roast. Besides that, she was consistently good in the challenges and often spectacular on the runways. (La Voix’s runways, on the other hand, were easily her weakest element.) Kyran was not carried. Kyran was not handed anything. She earned that crown, fair and square. Additionally, I do think she won the final lipsynch to “Don’t Stop Me Now” by Queen. That’s always going to be subjective, but I gave her the edge — I don’t think La Voix is super comfortable lipsynching and it shows.
Beyond all that, I do love all the support La Voix has gotten online. She deserves all of it — but not at Kyran’s expense. The fandom has to get better at this. Both queens are amazing, and both will go on to incredible careers. In fact, I suspect La Voix will do more with her runner-up status than many of the other second-place queens in the “Drag Race” franchise. She’s a workhorse. She’s a hustler. She’s already putting out a make-up range, she’s touring, I’m sure she’ll go on to do more TV appearances. RuPaul more or less said, The world belongs to La Voix after this show, whether or not she wins. I’m not sure the same would have been true for Kyran without the crown. So from my perspective, I really do think this all worked out correctly in the end.
Overall I think “UK6” is a sensational season. It’s right up there with “UK2,” and I think it does edge out “UK5” in my personal rankings. Great queens, great challenges, incredible cast chemistry. These gals will be a tough act for any other cast to follow, but I’m excited to see what UK gives us next. This franchise is SO back!
Speaking of, come back next week, when I’ll give my personal rankings for the Top 10 “Drag Race” seasons of 2024 (there have been way more than 10!). “UK6” will definitely make that list. But will it be the top spot? We’ll find out soon.
What did you think of “Drag Race UK” Series 6 overall? Leave your thoughts in the comments!
