RuPaul’s Drag Race Review: Here's What Happened on the Season 17 Premiere

RuPaul's Drag Race dove in headfirst for its 17th season, with the first of a two-part talent show featuring 14 brand-new contestants, seven unique performances, a masked runway, and a lip sync for the win.

It was a jam-packed start to a promising season. "Squirrel Games," a Drag Race spoof of the fictional reality competition Squid Games, had contestants dodging flying cherry pies to make it into the werkroom. It was the first of many references to other reality competition programs (Drag Queens Got Talent was another example). Seventeen seasons in, it seems Drag Race is still contemplating its place within the reality television landscape.

The premiere was a by-the-numbers affair that stuck to the show's tried-and-true format with just enough twists and turns to keep things interesting. The queens' opening lines and entrance looks were the most interesting parts of the episode, signaling an extremely competitive and young crop of queens. Many of them treated Lexi Love — the eldest contestant at the ripe old age of 33 — as if she was geriatric.

Casting looked beyond drag meccas like New York City and Los Angeles, instead opting for a diverse group of competitors with a palpable contingent of Southern queens, including two from South Florida. Lucky Starzzz of Miami and Suzie Toot of Fort Lauderdale made a formidable impression during the two-part premiere. Unlike the friendly rivalry between Mhi'ya Iman Le'Paige and Morphine, both high-octane performers, Lucky and Suzie occupy opposite ends of the drag spectrum. Lucky, a cartoonish club kid, and Suzie, a walking time capsule of the flapper age, appear to be respectful and supportive of each other's work.

As the queens sized each other up, other storylines emerged. Lydia B. Kollins' assertion about championing "creativity over perfection" stuck out. The editors and producers might be laying the groundwork for a battle between more off-the-wall, DIY talents like Lydia, Lucky, and Suzie against more polished pageant performers like Sam Star, Jewels Sparkles, and Crystal Envy. It could be a return to the earlier era of Drag Race, before professionally produced packages took over the runways.

Lydia also brought up the idea of "nepo queens" like Kori King, Lana Ja'Rae, Sam, and Jewels, who boasted about their family relationships with past Drag Race queens. Time will tell if these connections serve as advantage or baggage.

One welcome trend was the prominent return of punny drag names like Lana Ja'Rae, Acacia Forgot, Hormona Lisa, and Onya Nurve. It was the aforementioned Hormona who stirred up the most drama after bragging that she was hand-selected by RuPaul to join the season. It seemed to put a target on her back, inspiring suspicion and hostility from the other contestants.

In a tradition that's become a staple of Drag Race premieres since Season 14, RuPaul held a talent show to introduce each queen. As with past seasons, the competition resulted in a litany of professionally produced music tracks and dance numbers that were sometimes forgettable.

Jewels, one of the first seven contestants, started with a perfectly calibrated Drag Race performance. High energy, campy, and full of stunts, it was the perfect blend of fun and ferocity that the program tends to reward. Arietty and Lydia, on the other hand, struggled with the same issue: a promising start that faltered without a fitting end. Lucky revived the competition with a fever-dream rap performance as she spewed lemonade all over the main stage. Joella's performance felt like a stale attempt at Jewels' tactics without the same impact while Acacia, the penultimate performer, was the only one to venture outside a pre-recorded track. Still, her live country song failed to impress both her fellow contestants and the judges. Suzie also utilized a pre-recorded track, but she differentiated herself with historical humor and the lost art of tap. RuPaul even honored her by borrowing one of her jokes as the queens returned backstage.

The week's runway category continued the reality television theme with "Mask for Masked Singer," featuring a mask and face reveal. It all felt slightly inconsequential next to the talent show, but it reinforced the contrast between creativity versus perfection and gave each queen ample room to display their unique points of view. Queens including Jewels, Sam, and Kori presented pageant perfectionism while others, like Onya, Lydia, and Acacia, showcased creative interpretations that were slightly rougher around the edges. Crystal's cracked doll and Hormona's glamorous skunk managed perfectionism with personality. Lucky and Suzie presented looks that matched their personas, with the former appearing as a walking slice of pizza and the other as a Depression-era showgirl. Lexi was the most synergistic — her MTV-inspired Moonwoman look was a nod to the show's network.

The return of Rate-a-Queen, introduced last season, found a savvier and more strategic group of contestants. It was the first indication that alliances and friendships may play an outsized role this season. In addition to the "nepo drag" element — with Jewels and Sam coming from the same drag family — Lana and Arrietty were candid about their alliance. While some queens swam to the top (Jewels, Suzie), others sank to the bottom (Acacia). It appeared as if Lucky would be part of the top three, with Arrietty, Lydia, and Joella somewhere in between. It was hard to tell if the runways factored into the queens' rankings, but it's possible Acacia's snowwoman look dragged her down.

The first lip sync of the season was for the win rather than elimination. Jewels and Suzie faced off to Katy Perry's panned single, "Woman's World." Suzie, who references Eleanor Powell and Marlene Dietrich, seemed ill-prepared to contend with a challenge that hinged on knowledge of contemporary pop culture. But she took control midway through with a measured performance that beguiled RuPaul. It all coalesced when she began doing the Charleston.

Both Lucky and Suzie made an impression in the first episode. Beyond her captivating cartoonish looks, Lucky's stories about her family's recent struggles in Miami made her relatable to the viewer. Likewise, Suzie proved to tap to her own beat and enamored the judges with her unique persona. The South Florida queens ended the premiere on top, but anything can happen on RuPaul's Drag Race. It appears both are safe next week, but one of the series' favorite twists is tracking a queen's descent from the very top straight to the bottom.