I will willingly admit it: I am obsessed with Rupaul’s Drag Race.

Keep your Amazing Race, your Bachelor and your America’s Next Top Model. I want to see some drag queens slaying on the catwalk. And my favorite part of the show is, hands down, the Lip Sync For Your Life battle that decides which two of the bottom queens of the week get to stay (Shante) and which one goes home (Sashay Away).

And if you are wondering, “Is that like Lip Sync battle, the show?,” please see yourself to the door. Rupaul did it first, and they do it better. We will not be discussing this further.

After last year’s season 7 slump, the show came back in full force with some of the most dynamic, talented and personable queens to date, so much so that I would not care who got the crown of America’s Next Drag Superstar, because they are all so perfect it is scary.

And in honor of the season finale next week, I want to pick the best LSFYL performances from this season, excluding the final 4 performance. I will be talking about every performance, listing them from best to worst.

Honorable mention: Bitch Perfect challenge performance

Since this was a main challenge, I feel like I can’t include it in this list. But it was one of the greatest challenges of all time and deserves that recognition.

 

No. 8 – “I Will Survive” by Gloria Gaynor, Dax ExclamationPoint vs. Laila McQueen

To anyone who watched this season, it is not a surprise that this performance was not only one of the worst of the season, but one of the worst in Drag Race Herstory. If the obvious editing build up with the judges discussing how icon this song is wasn’t enough to give you a hint that this lip sync should have been better than what it was, the double elimination that came as the result of an incredibly boring performance should tell you everything you need to know.

As a straight woman who is not a part of the gay community, even I can tell you that this song is a drag performance staple. And when there are judges on the pannel getting down more than you during a performance, you are in some serious trouble.

Such a shame, considering I liked both Laila and Dax just fine and expected at least one of them to pull out the stops to stay. Unfortunately, I was wrong.

And Laila, girl, don’t take off your dress. Bad move.

 

No. 7 – “Applause” by Lady Gaga, Laila McQueen vs. Naysha Lopez

Laila is a queen that I wish could have stuck around a little bit longer in this competition. I have seen videos of her other performances and she is very talented for her age. Here, it was quite clear early on who was going to win in this lip sync, with Laila throwing in some edge to her performance while Naysha had all the moves of a Hasbro Hungry Hungry Hippos Game (seriously, what is she doing with her arms?).

Despite how good Laila is at times here, it doesn’t feel like the performance really ramps up until the end and the song feels a bit wasted. So there are good moments, but overall not the best of the season.

 

No. 6 – “Causing A Commotion” by Madonna, Acid Betty vs. Naomi Smalls

Following the infamous kamono incedent of 2016, Acid Betty and Naomi Smalls went head-to-head in a fun Madonna lip sync to accompany the Madonna runway theme for the evening.

Although it wasn’t the greatest lip sync of them all, I feel like Acid deserves more credit for having to perform with those birds coming out of her pregnant belly (my favorite look for the evening). And Naomi was giving me all kinds of Victoria Secret supermodel vibes, so I was digging her as well.

Overall, a fairly even lip sync, but with just enough fierceness from Naomi to send Acid packing. The only reason it is so low on this list is because I felt that it was a little to (for lack of a better word) basic to be placed any higher. But still, good over all.

No. 5 – “Call Me” by Blondie, Chi Chi  DeVayne vs. Naysha Lopez

Chi Chi surprised all of us this season, but one surprise was how great of a performer she really is. All of her lip syncs were incredibly captivating to watch.

However, despite how much fun I had watching Chi Chi here, it felt less like a lip sync and more like a gymnastic’s meet. There were kicks, flips and stunts being pulled all over the place (including a lost wig from Naysha who, despite getting a second chance, could not catch a break in another lip sync) that it felt like both queens were seeing who could perform more tricks than perform the song. And with the song in question, it felt really out of place.

However, it still was fun to watch and when the queens weren’t twirling and flipping across the floor, they both were selling the song. And I get it, its a competition, and when one girl starts cartwheeling you have got to keep up. It was just a classic case of sometimes, less can be more, and I wish they were doing a little less here.

 

 

No. 4 – “I Love It” by Icona Pop ft. Charlie XCX, Derrick Barry vs. Robbie Turner

Love her or hate her, Derrick Barry is a performer to the max. The queen can rock a lip sync, which always made me a bit nervous for whoever she was going up against. What she lacked in her outfit for the challenge (girl, those shoulders) she made up for in a fantastic show. She was giving us Britney, and we love when she does Britney.

I honestly thought Robbie was keeping up with her…until she threw off her wig. Never take of your wig girl. It was over at that point.

Apart from that, both had fantastic energy making this performance a joy to watch at home.

No. 3 – “You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)” by Silverster, Bob the Drag Queen vs. Derrick Barry

Bob’s lip sync reminds me a lot of Detox or Jinx Monsoon: he can sell the song with his facial expressions alone. There was not crazy kicking, death dropping, or splits here. Just good ‘ol lip syncing and channeling the songs meaning through your performance. Plus, he had some great comedic moments that showed his personality that we have grown to love.

However, there was some great energy and movement on stage, and with the tension being built up all season between Bob and Derrick, I was on the edge of my seat to see who would edge out in the end.

No. 2 – “Mesmerized” by Faith Evans, Robbie Turner vs. Cynthia Lee Fontaine

I looked all over the internet for a good clip of this, and I couldn’t find a good quality video of the performance alone. So, I will describe it to you: lip sync on roller skates. Enough said.

The whole time I was watching this episode, all I could see was some girl hurling herself off stage on accident. I, however, got one better and got to see Robbie throw himself off of the stage in some of the craziest stuntman ship I have seen on the show (aside from Mimi Imfurst picking up India Ferrah, which never gets old to watch). And, since I can’t find the other performance, here is a clip of that.

Not only was the lip sync of the song good, but the performance was something that had never been done, which makes it iconic in and of itself.

No. 1 – “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going” from Dreamgirls, Chi Chi DeVayne vs.  Thorgy Thor

This one was one for the books. Not only was it the best lip sync of the season, it was one of the best from all of the seasons. Bob said it best during Untucked: this song was perfect for LSFYL.

The emotion of the song was brought out not just through Chi Chi (who clearly won) but also through Thorgy, who did a bang-up job as well (apart from those cartwheels at the end, which just seemed like a last-stitch effort to stay). And when Chi Chi’s necklace shattered, it was almost too perfect. The girl proved the she was more than just a thrift store queen, she was a queen with just as much Charisma, Uniqueness, Nerve and Talent as the rest with her performance.

While I am sad that Chi Chi didn’t move on to the top 3, she gave up the best LSFYL performance of Season 8. Watch the magic for yourself.