Season 14 of Drag Race had the best premiere in years, but will UK viewers even watch it?

I think it’s fair to say that after a year of nearly nonstop RuPaul’s Drag Race, the excitement for 2022’s season 14 was hardly palpable. Disinterest was raised further with the news that for the first time ever, season 14 of Drag Race would not be added to Netflix for UK viewers – instead premiering exclusively on WOW Presents’ own streaming service, Wow Presents Plus. It’s an alienating move, and one that I criticised when it was announced as many younger queer viewers have access to a Netflix account via parents etcetera who might not be able to get another streaming service and rely on Drag Race for comfort and LGBTQ representation. Such a shame, then, that season 14 is about to be one of the best seasons of Drag Race ever if the absolutely excellent premiere is anything to go by.

RuPaul’s Drag Race has never been better

Every thing about season 14’s premiere works perfectly. It’s a split premiere, which elicited a groan from me when I first discovered so. Season 13’s lip sync smackdown premiere was exhausting, hilariously compared to The Stanford Prison Experiment by The AV Club. We don’t want twists, we want talent – and the queens to get the exposure they deserve rather than formulated reality TV production. And with season 14, it feels like fans are being listened to. It’s a split premiere in the realm of season 6 and 12 – where the queens are in smaller groups and we can appreciate who they are more thoroughly.

So much of this premiere works perfectly. The laughs, the queens’ dynamics, the runway looks, RuPaul premiering a new single that actually slaps AND doing chores? Immaculate. The decision to make the first challenge a talent show a la All Stars is an inspired one – with the queens really getting to knock it out the park and show audiences their charisma, uniqueness, nerve and talent and define what makes them special.

The casting is AMAZING

The first batch of queens we’ve been introduced to are diverse, talented and all likeable. There isn’t a duff queen in the batch, and there’s a diverse mix of racial representation and two trans queens. Everyone’s style feels unique, everyone’s talents feel valued and special and the queens get on naturally and the Werk Room bursts with good chemistry. Alyssa Hunter brings old school pageantry without a fear of taking risks, Bosco brings fashion-forward looks with teas of burlesque, June Jambalaya is gorgeous and full of warmth, Kornbread is an instant icon full of personality and distinction, Kerri Colby is pure beauty, Orion Story is bringing the quirk and Willow Pill is like nothing we’ve ever seen on Drag Race before.

Kornbread, Willow, Bosco and Kerri SLAYED

Kerri Colby smashed the talent show by skipping her way into oblivion with a highly energised routine to the tune of Anaconda by Nicki Minaj – and on that note, how great is it to hear licensed songs in the talent shows? Season 14 said budget! Bosco’s burlesque routine was equally impressive, but the night belonged to Kornbread who absolutely bodied the talent show with her incredible original song and a hilarious “missing Merle Ginsberg” prop gag that had me screaming at my telly.

And our lord and saviour Willow Pill. Willow Pill singlehandedly stole my entire heart this episode, and I’ve not seen a queen become a fan fave so rapidly in a long time. She was humble, unexpected, funny and heartwarming – and her drag is so exciting. It’s so great to see a drag queen like Willow be on Drag Race and excel. Her talent show was old school clowning with a modern drag twist, a deranged lip sync performance art piece to Enya that made the mundane the magical. Drag Race at its absolute best.

But will UK audiences watch?

The move from Netflix UK to WOW Presents Plus has alienated many viewers, with a lot of people taking to Twitter and Facebook comment sections to say that they’re giving season 14 of Drag Race a miss entirely due to it not being as easily accessible as past seasons. But, and I must stress BUT, if you have the money to spare for WOW Presents Plus, this season is shaping up to be a classic and it’s not to be missed. It’s just a shame so many UK based fans may never get to watch

Season 14 of RuPaul’s Drag Race is available to stream now on the streamer of all things drag, WOW Presents Plus. For all the latest Drag Race memes and Netflix news, drops and memes like The Holy Church of Netflix on Facebook.

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