Untucked with Brian: Looking Back at the Roller Coaster Ride of RPDR Season 4

April 21, 2012• byBrian Peterson

Starting from the beginning, we all can remember the mystery and the excitement of the cast reveal of season four. Photo coutesy of LOGO.

I remember the day that RuPaul and the producers of RuPaul’s Drag Race/World of Wonder released the boy and female headshots of this season’s cast of Divas. Everyone around me was skeptical of this season’s cast and I tried giving these queens the benefit of the doubt as I marched through the trenches attempting to grab interviews with the queens. This year marked a year that LOGO’s press department was extremely tight on security and I was, alas, only granted four interviews. It appears their hearts and love for Seattle Gay Scene has changed since season three. Epic fail!

FIRST IMPRESSIONS OF THE NEXT DRAG DIMENSION…

Blood seeping out of her mouth, Sharon Needles makes the best first impression and wins the first main stage challenge. Photo courtesy of LOGO.

In the first episode, “Rupocalypse“, the challenge and runway presentation set the babies queens apart from the hungry drag queens…the contenders. Sharon Needles was on a mission to not only impress the judges, but the rest of world. When Needles came out on the runway in her zombie couture costume with blood seeping out of her mouth, it was authentic and nothing that drag race fans have seen in previous seasons. I can only imagine how the rest of the country reacted to Sharon Needles first impression because here in Seattle at The Lobby Bar, the entire establishment went “Needles Bananas” and I knew then that she was going to go far in this competition if not all the way to the end. My other favorite queen in the first episode was Chad Michaels because her outfit and eyes and makeup stroke my interest and piqued my inner diva to come alive and crawl out from underneath the bed.

We get deeper into the competition and things begin to heat up with the next two episodes. Latrice Royale stole the show in “World’s Trashiest Fighters“, with her fierce over-charging persona in the ring. Such a classic moment when she pounced a fellow queen down to the floor and she obviously was living in the moment every second of this challenge. Meanwhile, Michelle Visage is a drag queen stuck in a female’s body and this is what I love the most about her: her big New Jersey/East Coast mouth! On the runway Visage’s response and critic to Madame LaQueer’s green dress gave me laughter and pleasure for days…

“That green reminds me a fungus”

Michelle Visage

SHOWGIRL VERSUS PARTY CITY DIVA…

The greatest sisterhood fight was between Phi Phi O'Hara and Sharon Needles.

The biggest workroom fight in drag race history happened when Phi Phi O’Hara starts a quarrel with Sharon Needles. With every season there is one big quarrel between two queens and there is no exception for this season. With no introduction, let’s revisit my favorite two lines from these two…

Sharon Needles, “Broke Down Showgirl!”

Phi Phi O’Hara, “At least I am a showgirl…why don’t you go back to Party City where you belong!”

Girls! Girls! From the looks of the preview for Monday night’s finale, it appears these two sisters finally kiss and make up. This should be delightfully charming.

MY FIGHT WITH LEGENDARY MAKEUP ARTIST, BILLY BRASFIELD…

My working online relationship with Billy Brasfield might have started off the wrong foot, but we're golden men now.

Speaking of dramamtic outbursts in the workroom, our next visit to the past is the beef between myself and drag race judge, Billy Brasfield. In the same episode I write about Billy Brasfield not knowing his shit, when I was the one who “did not do any research”. He called me out on Twitter saying that he eats boys like me for breakfast and I retracted back with a special article about the whole ordeal…read it again here. On to the next victim in my plot to take over the world! In the end, all differences were set aside by both parties. This writer deems worthy to not be sent off the runway by Billy B himself…

Dear Brian, Thank you very much! I appreciate that. As I said, I have no problem being “Judged” on a professional level regarding my work as a makeup artist or a Judge on Rupaul’s Drag Race, in fact I expect and welcome it. Brian Michael Peterson…. Sashay you Stay. But, remember, “Don’t fuck it up”. My best to you and all the Queens in Seattle. Even Leif.

xoxo

Billy B

THE HOLLYWOOD DIVA SYNDROME…

Hormones? Cell Phones? Pregnancy? Transgender? The conspiracy theories are far out there for Willam's unexpected elimination.

By mid-season, it become public knowledge that Willam Belli broke rules of the competition and breaching her contract with the show. RuPaul immediately disqualified Willam on the runway, but first Willam displayed a dramatic moment by throwing up on the side of the stage. We won’t know the real reason for her disqualification until the reunion show, but something tells me it’s going to be a “really? really is that all?” sort of a response. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly she had a few things to say…

Here’s the thing: I had an abortion. The anesthesia just made me sick. I will say this: I wasn’t caught doing anything. Everything that I did, I admitted and I brought to everyone’s attention.

Willam

DEPRESSING ELIMINATION OF LATRICE ROYALE…

Latrice Royale, large and in charge, was a queen that gave a first, middle and last impression on all of us. Including her contagious laugh and spirit.

The biggest let down in this season for me was the irrational decision by RuPaul to send home Latrice Royale. Latrice should have been in the top three, by far, and the rest of the country agrees. Her exiting speech to the judges was emotional, necessarily and inspirational above everything else. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly she says…

I had such an amazing experience, and I had grown and gotten so much more out of the competition than I expected, so it was really a rush of emotions overtaking me. I had come to the realization that I had really, really made a mark and a difference on the show. It was so emotional for me. I didn’t want to leave the girls. RuPaul has really changed my life. I really feel that. I’ll never be the same.

Latrice Royale

THE FINAL THREE…

The Final Three...Chad Michaels, Sharon Needles and Phi Phi O'Hara. What is going to go down in history on Monday night? Tune in to LOGO to find out. Don't forget that the reunion show is just around the corner, too. Trust!