Thank you for writing this. Especially in an environment known for witty repartee, it does feel extra shocking to witness otherwise clever people rely on the laziest jokes in the book. Maybe there's a mental experiment people could try before delivering one of these lines—something like, "would a straight white male stand-up comic from 1995 make this kind of joke about a woman he didn't like?" If so, maybe I need to work a little harder on my material!
It's also a reminder that while many prejudices have been steadily declining (at a population level) over the past few decades, anti-fat bias has only increased. We have a lot of work to do.
This season is so dull and uninspired for me. I think this one-dimensional roast is one of many consequences of casting solely inexperienced children, some of whom seem to have the sole talent of being skinny.
One of the things I love about Traitors, I realized, is that all the players are (ostensibly) adults, and I would love to see a drag race season soon with similar age demographics.
I've been thinking about this a lot, because as I'm watching this season I am also re-watching older seasons. The culture of drag has changed so much since the show has been on, in large part *because* of the show. But that also means that a lot of the younger queens don't have the same cultural and historical context that the cast used to. They're on socials saying that "regular gay boys" can't critique drag, as if "regular gay boys" aren't their whole entire audience.
But by casting such young queens the other thing that happens is they're underbaked—I've seen a reviewer on TikTok describe them as going through "drag puberty." They don't have a full grasp on who their persona is, they're not funny developed characters. They are used to being the prettiest face in whatever city they're from. But this isn't Project Runway and it's not America's Next Top Model: a pretty dress and a pretty face isn't going to win you the competition and if you don't have a good understanding of who you are as a drag performer, you're going to hit a wall. And you're also going to give us these boring, one-dimensional results.
I might shift to just watching all stars, where at least all the contestants should be more fully incubated. Fielding all these rookies with glaring weaknesses and lacks of depth is just frustrating (especially when so many of them have made it so far on the season!)
Ooh that’s a good thought. Hilariously, this came up on my TikTok FYP after I responded to your comment and I thought it was apt and very related to our convo here: https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZP82uexBu/
Oh my god calm the fuck down. If you cannot see the link between body politics and queerness you need to pull your head out of your arse and listen to queer people that don't look like you.
Nah sorry I don't give a fuck about RuPaul's drag race. Or the size or shape of anyone's body. Actual nazis at the fuckin gate are more important. And what the fuck you mean don't look like me? Queer, Trans, a Minority in America? Which bullshit are you choosing to cherry pick from to support your argument?
If you don’t care about Drag Race then this post isn’t for you. I’m also a journalist who has been covering the growing fascism and attacks on the queer and trans community for years. My media criticism doesn’t negate that other work. But if you can’t see the way pop culture impacts the ways our communities are treated in the larger world, I don’t really know what to tell you. Sashay away, maybe.
Right, because changing outcomes for our people through pop culture is what we are actually facing right now...
The fight will not be televised and it will not be from behind a keyboard. What is about to hit our people IN THIS FUCKING COUNTRY is going to be catastrophic. (Fuck the rest of the world we need to fix our own house right now)
And RuPaul, a gay man, will have nothing to do with it.
You are about to see what happened to the queers in Germany prior to world war II here in America. And a ton of our people are screaming who is going to save us. No one. We will be saving ourselves. The end. If you do not understand this, you know what never mind, you're right. Good fucking luck.
If you can't see the similarities in fascist policies on trans/fat/disabled bodies you need to look further. I get you think this is a silly drag race article, but it is using pop culture to have a larger CULTURAL discussion. You're not being the cool activist you think you are by shutting down conversations on fatness.
Or here's a different way to look at it, stop caring about things that don't fucking matter in your life. And start giving a shit about your rights and freedoms as an American citizen. And stand the fuck up for those rights.
But no make your little jokes.
I'm sure you'll be protecting your Theys, Brothers, and Sisters when the violence begins right. You've prepared for that right. You have a plan right. Or are you wasting this time and opportunity delusionally lying to yourself that everything is okay through media consumption and escapism?
I’m going to suggest that you’re projecting a bunch of your own shit onto a group of strangers, and that you should show these interactions to a therapist.
Because here’s the thing. You don’t get to distract to me what I should care about, how I should cope with the world, or what should matter most to me.
I’m not an American citizen. I’m profoundly aware of everything that’s going on. It is terrifying to me and my loved ones. Yes, we all have plans. No one here isn’t worried and scared and working hard just to survive.
All of that can be true, and we can also be tired of bad fat jokes on drag race. Just because I’m not performing my sadness and terror in ways that you understand and approve of doesn’t mean I don’t feel that sadness and terror.
And to go off your logic, why are you wasting your time and energy coming for members of your own community in this comment section? Surely you have bigger things to worry about.
What a schmuck. Fat jokes and TV shows are more important than the rise of tyranny and the prevention of it. But you're not an American citizen so what do you care. What the fuck do you care about your people who are about to get slaughtered…
I don't give a fuck about any completely incorrect premise you're trying to make in regards to how these two things are even remotely the same.
Because they're not. And you're a twat if you think they are Sir.
Because here in America we need people who are ready to stand. Not discuss half-ass ideas with people that literally want to send My People to concentration camps to be disposed of.
(You know, the ones you don't give a fuck enough to be angry about getting disappeared due to your moral and intellectual superiority.. Get fucked, go self medicate on some completely made up TV that you've allowed to become your identity, your argument is invalid)
Thank you for writing this. Especially in an environment known for witty repartee, it does feel extra shocking to witness otherwise clever people rely on the laziest jokes in the book. Maybe there's a mental experiment people could try before delivering one of these lines—something like, "would a straight white male stand-up comic from 1995 make this kind of joke about a woman he didn't like?" If so, maybe I need to work a little harder on my material!
It's also a reminder that while many prejudices have been steadily declining (at a population level) over the past few decades, anti-fat bias has only increased. We have a lot of work to do.
This season is so dull and uninspired for me. I think this one-dimensional roast is one of many consequences of casting solely inexperienced children, some of whom seem to have the sole talent of being skinny.
One of the things I love about Traitors, I realized, is that all the players are (ostensibly) adults, and I would love to see a drag race season soon with similar age demographics.
I've been thinking about this a lot, because as I'm watching this season I am also re-watching older seasons. The culture of drag has changed so much since the show has been on, in large part *because* of the show. But that also means that a lot of the younger queens don't have the same cultural and historical context that the cast used to. They're on socials saying that "regular gay boys" can't critique drag, as if "regular gay boys" aren't their whole entire audience.
But by casting such young queens the other thing that happens is they're underbaked—I've seen a reviewer on TikTok describe them as going through "drag puberty." They don't have a full grasp on who their persona is, they're not funny developed characters. They are used to being the prettiest face in whatever city they're from. But this isn't Project Runway and it's not America's Next Top Model: a pretty dress and a pretty face isn't going to win you the competition and if you don't have a good understanding of who you are as a drag performer, you're going to hit a wall. And you're also going to give us these boring, one-dimensional results.
I might shift to just watching all stars, where at least all the contestants should be more fully incubated. Fielding all these rookies with glaring weaknesses and lacks of depth is just frustrating (especially when so many of them have made it so far on the season!)
Ooh that’s a good thought. Hilariously, this came up on my TikTok FYP after I responded to your comment and I thought it was apt and very related to our convo here: https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZP82uexBu/
Yeah this is the most important thing Queers got going in America right now…
The Fuck outta here
Oh my god calm the fuck down. If you cannot see the link between body politics and queerness you need to pull your head out of your arse and listen to queer people that don't look like you.
Nah sorry I don't give a fuck about RuPaul's drag race. Or the size or shape of anyone's body. Actual nazis at the fuckin gate are more important. And what the fuck you mean don't look like me? Queer, Trans, a Minority in America? Which bullshit are you choosing to cherry pick from to support your argument?
If you don’t care about Drag Race then this post isn’t for you. I’m also a journalist who has been covering the growing fascism and attacks on the queer and trans community for years. My media criticism doesn’t negate that other work. But if you can’t see the way pop culture impacts the ways our communities are treated in the larger world, I don’t really know what to tell you. Sashay away, maybe.
Right, because changing outcomes for our people through pop culture is what we are actually facing right now...
The fight will not be televised and it will not be from behind a keyboard. What is about to hit our people IN THIS FUCKING COUNTRY is going to be catastrophic. (Fuck the rest of the world we need to fix our own house right now)
And RuPaul, a gay man, will have nothing to do with it.
You are about to see what happened to the queers in Germany prior to world war II here in America. And a ton of our people are screaming who is going to save us. No one. We will be saving ourselves. The end. If you do not understand this, you know what never mind, you're right. Good fucking luck.
If you can't see the similarities in fascist policies on trans/fat/disabled bodies you need to look further. I get you think this is a silly drag race article, but it is using pop culture to have a larger CULTURAL discussion. You're not being the cool activist you think you are by shutting down conversations on fatness.
Shutting down conversations on fatness? What the fuck are you talking about? You're an idiot. Good luck with what's coming.
Yeah I'm the one who doesn't know what they're talking about. Just a reminder you don't need to engage with media you don't enjoy. Bye 😘😘😘💋💋💋
Like I said, you're an idiot.
…weird way to admit your brain can’t process two thoughts at once but go off
Or here's a different way to look at it, stop caring about things that don't fucking matter in your life. And start giving a shit about your rights and freedoms as an American citizen. And stand the fuck up for those rights.
But no make your little jokes.
I'm sure you'll be protecting your Theys, Brothers, and Sisters when the violence begins right. You've prepared for that right. You have a plan right. Or are you wasting this time and opportunity delusionally lying to yourself that everything is okay through media consumption and escapism?
I’m going to suggest that you’re projecting a bunch of your own shit onto a group of strangers, and that you should show these interactions to a therapist.
Because here’s the thing. You don’t get to distract to me what I should care about, how I should cope with the world, or what should matter most to me.
I’m not an American citizen. I’m profoundly aware of everything that’s going on. It is terrifying to me and my loved ones. Yes, we all have plans. No one here isn’t worried and scared and working hard just to survive.
All of that can be true, and we can also be tired of bad fat jokes on drag race. Just because I’m not performing my sadness and terror in ways that you understand and approve of doesn’t mean I don’t feel that sadness and terror.
And to go off your logic, why are you wasting your time and energy coming for members of your own community in this comment section? Surely you have bigger things to worry about.
What a schmuck. Fat jokes and TV shows are more important than the rise of tyranny and the prevention of it. But you're not an American citizen so what do you care. What the fuck do you care about your people who are about to get slaughtered…
I don't give a fuck about any completely incorrect premise you're trying to make in regards to how these two things are even remotely the same.
Because they're not. And you're a twat if you think they are Sir.
Because here in America we need people who are ready to stand. Not discuss half-ass ideas with people that literally want to send My People to concentration camps to be disposed of.
(You know, the ones you don't give a fuck enough to be angry about getting disappeared due to your moral and intellectual superiority.. Get fucked, go self medicate on some completely made up TV that you've allowed to become your identity, your argument is invalid)
Imagine calling me a shmuck in the era of actual nazis. Pathetic.
You're the worst kind of person, you won't ever stand. You are complicit. That's all we need to know about you. I'm sorry that hurts your feelings.