It’s down to the final four this week, and unlike last year, this episode didn’t bring any last-minute salvation for the contestants. Continuing in the vein of previous Drag Race challenges, “Sissy That Walk” had the queens performing in a music video of the same name for Ru, complete with a dance segment and two acting/improv scenes, where they play the role of a young (and later, fallen) ingenue. It’s a little sad because, in the end, one of the queens actually is sent packing home.
Lives for the Applause: Adore Delano
Surprise, surprise. The former American Idol contestant made it to the top three. Because despite her young age and her questionable wigs, she is a true performer — even when dressed like a glittery mermaid. Her “trashy girl aesthetic” might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but she sells it. And that may just be because she’s a good actress. During her acting scenes, she impresses the judges with a realistic performance of a ingenue-fallen-off-the-tracks, sans camp.
Falling Walls: Bianca Del Rio
As per usual, Bianca played to her talents during the acting scenes, using her funny expressions and improv to continue her bitter-with-a-heart-of-gold schtick. There’s nothing too surprising about her performance — her acting is good, she struggles with the choreography a bit at first but then pulls through — but while up on stage, she makes an impassioned speech. While Bianca obviously still uses her humor as a defense mechanism, she explains that this competition has really helped her let down her guard. It’s touching and the sort of the thing the judges would want from Courtney Act, but it’s perfect from Bianca.
Canned Fish: Courtney Act
Two concerns emerge about Courtney Act this week: that’s she’s resting on her pretty, fishy laurels and that all her answers are canned. I can’t say that she does much about the latter critique (that may just be the way she talks), but she does show that she performs her, um, act very well. It’s all part of her persona and her personality to be an overconfident Australian diva, even when it’s not charming. During the improv acting scene, she relies on props to try and show she’s not just a pretty face, but it ends up distracting from her pretty face. Still, she is talented, and has been a strong contender throughout the competition.
Lake Placid: Darienne Lake
I’d like to say this was a surprise, but it wasn’t. Darienne held on so long through so much, repeatedly being kicked into the bottom two and clawing her way out of it. There was nothing standout-bad about any of her performances, but she was never as consistently good as her competitors. Although she flat-lined during the middle of the acting challenge, Darienne admirably picked herself back up again (even though, in true dramatic fashion, she ended up on the floor during the scene). But it wasn’t enough to save her, and so she calmly sashayed away.