Two hundred episodes?! Drag Race has made its mark in herstory.
It’s an iconic week on RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 15 Episode 9, and the queens are here to celebrate. They took the drama, the joy, and the style to The Crystal Ball.
Twenty-seven looks strutted the runway, but only one queen landed at the top. Anything can happen at a Ball!
“The Crystal Ball: Episode 200” was a heartwarming and exciting round that gave us a lot of nostalgia and fashion.
For anyone who has watched Drag Race over the years, there were plenty of callouts to iconic moments from the franchise. Even the scenes and one-liners that blew up in pop culture got a shoutout. It’s a great nod because Drag Race loves its nostalgia and herstory.
And that fun started with a long overdue Mini Challenge.
Was anyone else excited to have the Mini Challenge return? It has felt like ages since the queens got to have fun and compete in a silly Mini Challenge.
The Mini Challenges haven’t appeared since RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 15 Episode 2!
RuPaul: Come on, Season 15. Let’s get EsTitties!
[Salina bends over in a pose]
Salina EsTitties: You wanted a twist, eh?!
If we had the original 90-minute runtime, we probably would’ve had more of them by now. Based on this game of photobombing iconic Drag Race moments, the queens proved why we had missed these challenges.
No one acted seriously during the photo shoot; everyone was having a good time and laughing. Some photos, like Anetra’s winning cannonball, were hilarious and gave us plenty of GIF-worthy clips. Come on, we need these challenges back!
Regarding the Maxi Challenge, The Crystal Ball felt evenly paced and fashionably strong.
Sometimes there are too many looks to take in when more queens are left in the competition. Like when RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 14 Episode 3 had back-to-back Balls and showcased 42(!) looks on the runway. That is way too many looks at once.
In this case, we only had 27 ensembles to critique.
A much better pace to see each look and not get lost in the shuffle. More episode time would’ve helped in some cases as certain looks were rushed through, but the overall Crystal Ball had a good flow.
For the first runway of “Start Your Engines,” Spice, Luxx Noir London, Marcia Marcia Marcia, Loosey LaDuca, Sasha Colby, and Anetra had my favorite looks.
Spice and Luxx updated the iconic jumpsuit in a sexy and fashionable way. Both accentuated their style and gave something different to the jumpsuit, like how Luxx went for high fashion with the two-piece fitting. Spice’s use of the race track as design accents and her flag incorporating her song lyrics were nice callbacks to the show and her performance.
Marcia’s jumpsuit felt very modern and high-fashion. The color-blocking pattern was an exciting design that caught the eye and elevated the look beyond being a jumpsuit recreation.
Loosey’s Princess Peach-inspired jumpsuit was a nice geeky touch that warmed my heart. Give me all the sparkles! All the video game references!
Anetra and Sasha were easily the top two on this runway.
Anetra’s neon jumpsuit was sexy, fitted, and chic. She pulled off the color amazingly, regardless of Michelle Visage hating any references or use of green.
If she saves it post-show, she could easily perform a lip-sync in that jumpsuit.
On the other hand, Sasha’s pink gown was an interesting interpretation of the racetrack jumpsuit. Kudos to her for being one of the only queens to turn the jumpsuit into a gown! She set herself apart and stood out for being creative.
The second runway (“My Favorite Ball”) was a favorite because many queens got creative and thought outside the box. Mistress Isabelle Brooks, Marcia, Malaysia Babydoll Foxx, Luxx, and Sasha had the Top 5 best looks on this runway.
Marcia tried something different with her bag fabric and created a milkmaid ensemble. Structurally, the outfit looked great, and she looked great in it. However, it did look a tad costumey, like it was better for a Broadway performance than the runway.
Talk about bald ambition.
RuPaul
Malaysia’s and Luxx’s hair ensembles felt like couture outfits ready for the magazine.
Luxx continues to wow me with her construction skills and design aesthetic. The hair looked perfectly flowed and connected, and it never came across as a crafty look, which is very important when using unconventional materials.
The height of high fashion.
Sasha’s weed bag-inspired ensemble was the perfect mix of camp and couture.
She looked fashionable, and she radiated in the green color. Plus, it was another unconventional look that set her apart from the others, another great choice by Sasha.
Oh, you gonna show your disco stick?
RuPaul
Though, the most surprising look came from Mistress. Her S&M club kid inflatable beach ball outfit left my jaw on the floor!
Seriously, that outfit had to cost a lot of money to make. The beach ball look was perfectly fitted to her, the bright colors popped on the runway, and the inflated breasts were hilarious, yet they didn’t distract or take away from the ensemble’s impact.
Mistress is an understated fashion queen. We need to keep our eyes on her because she delivers consistently and when no one expects it.
The final runway, “Crystalized Eleganza,” was a nice touch of gowns and sparkly designs. Most of the queens had similar silhouettes, so there wasn’t much variation when someone tried something outside of a dress.
Salina EsTitties, Luxx, Sasha, and Anetra had the four pieces that did something different and shined in their ways.
Sure, Salina ended up at the bottom for her bulky looks (we’ll get to this soon), but her crystallized red carpet gown was the most stunning out of her three ensembles. I loved the intricate pattern of her diagonal fabric design, and the pink crystals offered a beautiful touch that stood out against the white gowns on the runway.
It’s the grunting for me.
Spice
The same goes for Luxx’s Swarovski snowflake.
Her intricate design pattern and the texture of the crystals made her look like a high-fashion ballerina. Even though the look didn’t have as much fabric as the other queens, it’s impressive that she constructed the crystalized design of the snowflake/trinket in such an elegant way.
Sasha’s golden coral gown was another stunning look that shined. Sasha knows what works well on her body; whether it’s the fit or the fabric color, she makes the right choices for her style.
The pairing of the golden fabric with the crystal backpiece made it beautiful. It’s no wonder she won another style challenge.
However, Anetra’s crystal mermaid/backbone dress took my breath away. How did she stone that gown that fast?!
The entire fabric and the crystal spine accents were perfectly placed together for a luminous effect. Glitter and sparkles can be hard to work with because there are so many pieces; she did a fantastic job stoning them together in a chic pattern.
Now, let’s talk about the bottom two.
I agreed with the judges that Salina should’ve been at the bottom.
Her outfits weren’t appropriately fitted; they felt too bulky in places and didn’t have the extra wow power to steal the show. Don’t get me wrong, her outfits weren’t bad; if she had made light adjustments, she would’ve been safe.
However, the overall performance was right for the bottom.
In Spice’s case, she seemed more “low” and “safe” than the bottom two.
I didn’t hate her last look as much as Michelle and RuPaul did. The hemline wasn’t perfectly trimmed, but the dress looked trendy and fun, and the disco corset/top looked stunning.
Loosey probably should’ve been at the bottom two instead.
Her losing pageant queen and doggy bag dress were lackluster compared to many other outfits. Even the Princess Peach jumpsuit, while fun and geeky, wasn’t a strong enough piece to make up for everything else.
It was a close race, but it seemed like it should’ve leaned to her.
The lip-sync of “That’s What I Want” by Lil Nas X was a done deal. Spice wasn’t going to win in a lip-sync against Salina EsTitties; there was no chance of it happening based on her lip-syncing skills alone.
Spice isn’t the strongest lip-syncer. She tried her best, but she needs more time to train and grow her performance skills.
Salina focusing on the emotion behind the song and the lyrics were a good decision.
A mid-tempo heartfelt song like this is the perfect opportunity to give a solid lip-sync without stunts or tricks. It’s all about serving the lyrics and providing good expressions. Salina had emotion all over her face.
Last Thoughts From The Werk Room:
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After Spice’s elimination, the queens coming out to trot on the main stage was incredibly cute and a sweet goodbye!
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Anetra’s conversation with Salina was heartbreaking and raw. You could feel the emotion in every second that passed.
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RuPaul performing on the main stage is the gift that keeps on giving.
Now, over to you, Drag Race fans.
What did you think of “The Crystal Ball: Episode 200”?
Are you sad to see Spice go? Which look was your favorite on the runway? Which look was your least favorite on the runway?
Share your thoughts in the comments below!
Justin Carreiro is a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter.