The finale of RuPaul’s Drag Race season 12 will be filmed in the contestants’ homes this year. The massive event that usually takes place in front of a live studio audience of thousands will now be done on Zoom. The queens will perform lip sync numbers from their own bedrooms.
In last night’s episode of the show, Jackie Cox was eliminated, creating a top four that includes Gigi Goode, Jaida Essence Hall, Crystal Methyd and Sherry Pie. Seeing Sherry make the top four was certainly a bummer as we already know she has been disqualified from the competition and will not appear on the finale. That leaves us with a top 3 for the first time since season 8.
According to Vulture, Yvie Oddly and Nina West will also appear on the finale to pass off their crown and Miss Congeniality title from last season. Fans of the series are speculating as to how exactly these lip syncs will be filmed from home. With only three people in the top three, it seems as though they will all have to lip sync just once to a song that is assigned. The only other option seems to be to have another girl pop back into the top four who has already been eliminated. Reddit is abuzz with rumors. Some fans think Crystal Methyd has been absent on social media because she is taking a lot of time to create her lip sync show from home.
The finale might not be as exciting as it has been in the past, but the queens are still campaigning hard to win. Sometimes the winner of the crown is the girl who won the most challenges. Sometimes it goes to the girl who slays the final lip sync. Often times it is given to the queen with the most votes on social media. These producers know what they are doing. They want to continue to engage the younger audience and keep the fans happy. On All-Stars 3, Trixie Mattel had by far the most likes and retweets and that is who they crowned. On season 9, Sasha Velour had the most votes even though she had won fewer challenges than Trinity the Tuck and Shea Coulee. On seasons 10 and 11 Aquaria and Yvie Oddly had the most votes and they came out on top. This year, the queen who dominated the competition is not the fan favorite online. So far, Gigi Goode has the least likes and retweets for #gigiGoode for the crown on Twitter. She is inched out by Jaida Essence Hall and surprisingly, the queen with only one win, Crystal Methyd, is by far the favorite on Instagram and Twitter. Will the show try to give Crystal the crown?
Crystal Methyd is an incredibly talented queen, but did she win this season? No. Jaida and Gigi both won way more challenges and the first 10 episodes of the season should absolutely matter. We will find out in two weeks, as long as the internet connection stays strong in the homes of these drag queens.
