Canada's Drag Race

Bad judging, production and writing and overal a boring watch

CDR's smaller production budget would have been a great chance to adapt and deviate from the current US RPDR format. Instead, we got this...

All of the judges look and sound uncomfortable. Some episodes, best in challenge + OK/bad runway = no win. Other episodes, worst in challenge + great runway = win. Jeffrey Bowyer-Chapman is particularly rude to queens. Brooke Lynn conveys little emotion. Stacey McKenzie is the only judge who consistently gives constructive criticism. The guest judges have been great, however.

Terrible production - bad lighting that does nothing for the queens, strange editing with over-use of sound effects and haphazard cuts and corny/unfunny writing.

I'm giving this 3 stars solely for the queens. They are all talented in their own ways and deserve better. They also certainly don't deserve to be body shamed in front of an international audience the way they were.

(Edited after 4 more episodes)

I love drag race. But this is just plain dull, dull, Dull

There is no Je ne sais quoi, sparkle or even realness to this. There is something missing and we can figure it out.

Sure, the judges are not stellar , but the talent from the queens make up for it. With a tighter 1 hour show there is less fluff and things get down to business. The amount of salty reviews dismissing the show because Ru isn't in it or they don't like the judges is doing a great disservice to these amazing Canadian drag queens. They'll entertain you non-stop. The show is a refreshing departure from the main series.

I've seen almost every episode produced by Ru Paul's Drag Race. Given that this is the first season, these Queen's are far more talented to that of the U.S. and Britain. I know the U.S. version started a long time ago and drag culture has progressed, but this definitely tops the British version. The judges aren't great but they can become great. Brooklyn was a fantastic option as well. She was in the finale of season 11 for the U.S. version. The girls clearly have talent. They can embrace their drag better because they grew up in a country that was one of the first in the world to legalize gay marriage. The Canadian Queen's have much more experience being in communities that are more accepting of drag. I'm sure they won't hold ANYTHING back!

The production value is predictably poor and the judging pannel isn't exactly star-studded. Hey, it's Canadian Reality TV. And yet somehow it all works in its favour. Many fans are nostalgic for the early seasons of drag race, a show that was less polished and more camp... and maybe this satisfies that craving. While it's too early to tell, I'm more intrigued than I thought I'd be. The cast is giving charisma, uniqueness, nerve and talent, and the judges aren't repeating the mistake of being too nice, unlike other Canadian iterations of state side shows.

Look, it's not changing the game. The franchise itself has grown mildly stale, so any deviation is refreshing at this point. But I laughed, which is more than I can say for All Stars 5. So, I'll be watching and I recommend you give it a go.