RuPaul’s Drag Race Canada is down to its final five contestants.
And then there were five.
There’s just two episodes left to go until Canada’s Drag Race appoints its queen. The Great White North’s version of RuPaul’s franchise that’s become a worldwide phenomenon was launched in late June. It has displayed the diversity of Canada as a country and has also thrown some cold water on that long-held theory that all Canadians are nice, polite folks.
Fans of the show have expressed their displeasure over the brutal harshness of the judges, who’ve held nothing back when critiquing the performances of Canada’s elite drag queens.
“Definitely we’re learning that not all Canadians are very nice!” contestant BOA told Straight.com.
At the same time, BOA understood why things could get downright catty in such a hotly-contested competition as Canada’s Drag Race.
“You pack 12 drag queens in a shoebox, you shake ’em around and they’re definitely going to get at each other’s throats,” BOA said. “There were some shady moments but we all love each other.
“There was no one in the world that was on Canada’s Drag Race season 1 except for the 12 of us and we really bonded over that experience.”
BOA is one of the seven drag queens on the show who’ve heard the two words that every contestant dreads – sashay away. It means it’s time to go, that they’ve been voted off the show.
BOA made an exit following Episode Six and finished seventh overall. Others who’ve been cast adrift already include Juice Boxx (Episode 1), Kyne (Episode 2), Anastarzia Anaquway (Episode 3), Tynomi Banks (Episode 4), Kiara (Episode 5) and Ilona Verley (Episode 7).
The early departure of Banks is the biggest shocker thus far in the series. An experienced drag queen with many pageant wins, there was strong support from online sports betting sites that viewed Tynomi as the favorite to be crowned the queen of Canada’s Drag Race.
Let’s take a look at the five drag queens still in the hunt to rule over Canada, along with their up-to-date betting odds to emerge as champion.
Rita Baga (3.00)
Montreal’s Baga has proven to be the front runner in the competition. Baga shows three wins in challenges. There were three other shows where Baga was declared safe and one where the drag queen was given a high score and not in danger of being eliminated.
The self-proclaimed Queen of Montreal is also proving popular among fans of the show in online discussion groups.
“Just looking at the comments, I get so much love from people all around the world.” Baga told Mtlblog.com. “They’re sending so many supportive messages and it’s amazing.
“It’s just lifting me up even higher to do the best in my life, so it’s amazing.”
Priyanka (3.00)
The short odds on Priyanka seem surprising considering how close the Guyanese Queen has come to being eliminated from the competition.
Priyanka twice found herself in a pair of lip sync challenges where the loser would go home. But each time – against Ilona Verley in Episode 7 and Kiara in Episode 5 – she survived to fight again.
Jimbo (4.00)
Jimbo shows just one win in a challenge. However, she’s tabulated a high enough score on three other shows to protect her survival.
Twice, though Jimbo recorded a low score and barely avoided falling into the lip sync challenge.
Scarlett BoBo (4.00)
Toronto’s Crimson Queen, a 10-year veteran of the drag queen circuit, has flown under the radar throughout the competition.
Scarlett BoBo hasn’t won a single competition. At the same time, she’s never scored low enough to be in any danger.
Lemon (6.00)
The mystery competitor at the start of the show, Lemon is Canadian-born but lives in New York. She’s the only contestant who doesn’t reside in Canada.
Lemon survived an Episode 1 lip sync challenge against Juice Boxx and seems to get better with every show. She’s won two challenges, been declared safe twice and only recorded one other score low enough to leave her in the danger zone ever since.
