Superfan Makeover

"Superfan Makeover"
RuPaul's Drag Race episode
Episode no.	Season 12 Episode 10
Guest appearance
Daisy Ridley
Episode chronology

"Superfan Makeover" is the tenth episode of the twelfth season of RuPaul's Drag Race.^[1] It originally aired on May 1, 2020. The episode's main challenge has contestants give makeovers to "superfans" of the show. Daisy Ridley is a guest judge. Jaida Essence Hall wins the challenge. Heidi N Closet and Jackie Cox in the bottom two and face off in a lip-sync, but neither is eliminated from the competition.

Episode

Daisy Ridley (pictured in 2015) is a guest judge on the episode.

Jaida Essence Hall wins the episode's main challenge.

For the main challenge, the contestants are tasked with giving makeovers to cisgender^[2] (or AFAB)^[3] women "superfans" of Drag Race. The teams are paired by Jaida Essence Hall, who won the previous challenge.^[4] She choose Bethany for herself, and pairs Grace with Crystal Methyd, Janet the Planet with Sherry Pie, Nicole with Heidi N Closet, Shea with Gigi Goode, and Tiffany with Jackie Cox.^[5]

The runway category is "Drag Family Resemblance".^[5] In addition to RuPaul, the judges are Michelle Visage, Ross Matthews, and Daisy Ridley.^[6] Crystal and Grace wear looks inspired by Bert and Ernie.^[7]

Jaida Essence Hall wins the challenge. Crystal, Gigi, and Sherry are deemed safe, placing Heidi N Closet and Jackie Cox in the bottom. Heidi N Closet and Jackie Cox face off in a lip-sync to Alex Newell's “Kill the Lights" (2016), but neither contestant is eliminated from the competition.^[5]

Production

The episode originally aired on May 1, 2020. Dahlia Sin shared her planned look for the challenge on social media.^[8]

Reception

The A.V. Club's Kate Kulzick gave the episode a rating of 'B+'.^[5]

Jared Richards of Junkee wrote, "The more I think about it, the more silly it seems that Crystal didn't win. Her runway look was so clever: it gender-flips two 'not gay' Sesame Street characters, makes them the sickest lesbians out with garish fashion, and is the exact kind of risk that no-one else did this challenge."^[9] Marcus Wratten of PinkNews said Crystal Methyd's look was the best of theh season.^[10]

Jessica Jalali included Jaida Essence Hall's work in Screen Rant's 2021 list of the ten best makeover challenge "transformations" on the show, and wrote, "Jaida transformed their superfan into a glamazon. Even though the pair looked nothing alike, Jaida managed to pull off a drag family resemblance. Jaida's makeover of the superfan impressed the judges immensely and for good reason as both looked flawless and the superfan confessed to feeling strong and beautiful because of Jaida's makeover skills."^[11] The website's Amii Johnson included the episode in a 2021 list of the ten best episodes, according to IMDb. Johnson wrote, "With its fun and exciting main challenge ... it's easy to see why this episode is a fan favorite. A standout among the cast in this episode was Crystal Methyd, who almost won the challenge with her inspired Bert & Ernie makeover look."^[12]

References

1. McCallion, Paul (May 1, 2020). "RuPaul's Drag Race Recap: Drag Brings Joy". Vulture. Archived from the original on May 5, 2020. Retrieved February 5, 2024.
2. Pearce, Tilly (May 2, 2020). "RuPaul's Drag Race season 12 queens ranked after Superfan Makeover". Metro. Archived from the original on June 20, 2020. Retrieved February 24, 2024.
3. Jones, Dylan B. (May 3, 2020). "RuPaul's Drag Race recap: season 12, episode 10: Send in the clowns". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on June 4, 2023. Retrieved February 24, 2024.
4. Guzzo, Bianca (May 2, 2020). "RuPaul's Drag Race Season 12 Episode 10 Recap: Superfan Makeover". IN Magazine. Archived from the original on September 9, 2020. Retrieved February 24, 2024.
5. "RuPaul's Drag Race's top four snaps into focus with their "Superfan Makeover"". The A.V. Club. May 2, 2020. Archived from the original on October 7, 2022. Retrieved February 5, 2024.
6. "RuPaul's Drag Race: Superfan Makeover - WERRRK.com". May 6, 2020. Archived from the original on October 6, 2023. Retrieved February 24, 2024.
7. "'RuPaul's Drag Race' Season 12: Crystal does a Bert and Ernie inspired makeover, fans say its screams gay rights". MEAWW. May 2, 2020. Archived from the original on March 26, 2023. Retrieved February 24, 2024.
8. "See the 'RuPaul's Drag Race' season 12 looks that didn't make it to the runway". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on December 9, 2023. Retrieved February 24, 2024.
9. "'RuPaul's Drag Race' Recap: Lesbian Bert And Ernie Say Anyone Can Be A "Superfan"". Junkee. May 3, 2020. Archived from the original on May 26, 2020. Retrieved February 24, 2024.
10. Wratten, Marcus (December 9, 2023). "All 15 seasons of RuPaul's Drag Race US ranked from worst to best". PinkNews. Archived from the original on December 10, 2023. Retrieved February 24, 2024.
11. Jalali, Jessica (November 1, 2021). "10 Best RuPaul's Drag Race Makeover Challenge Transformations". ScreenRant. Archived from the original on December 21, 2022. Retrieved February 24, 2024.
12. Johnson, Amii (September 23, 2021). "RuPaul's Drag Race: 10 Best Episodes, Ranked According To IMDb". ScreenRant. Archived from the original on December 11, 2022. Retrieved February 24, 2024.