Fans have been asking for an all-winners season of RuPaul’s Drag Race since at least season five, which would have made for a very short season. Since then, however, there have been enough seasons of the regular show, All Stars, and its international editions to fuel speculation for multiple all-winner casts, which has itself become a time-honored pastime of the Drag Race fandom. But anyone who had been salivating over the idea of matchups like Bianca Del Rio versus Aquaria or Violet Chachki versus Bob the Drag Queen may have felt a sting of disappointment when it was revealed that what we’re in fact getting is … the Vivienne versus Raja. No shade to these winners, who are all excellent in their own right, but the official lineup is conspicuously lacking in many of the big-name winners fans had been clamoring for.
In light of that, let us set aside the All Stars we dreamed of and open our minds and hearts to the All Stars we got with a reminder of everything these winners have to offer (and what they lack because, come on, this is still a competition!). One of the below queens will be the first two-time winner of the show, so here is the first step in putting some respect on their names.
The Pageant Winner: Jaida Essence Hall
Season she won: 12 (2020)
Strengths: The most recent winner to compete this season, Mx. Hall is fresh on everyone’s minds and brings pageant polish and an outrageous sense of humor to every challenge.
Weaknesses: Sadly, the global pandemmy kept her from touring after her win, so she’s had less time on the big stage than some of the other girls.
Iconic moment: “Look over there!â€
What she’s been up to since winning: In addition to walking in a Savage X Fenty fashion show and performing live with Katy Perry, Jaida is currently part of the cast of the RuPaul’s Drag Race Live! show in Las Vegas.
Odds to win: Look over there!
The Sleeper Winner: Jinkx Monsoon
Season she won: 5 (2013)
Strengths: A true triple threat, Jinkx can sing, she can act, and she can … well, she can’t really dance, but she sure is funny. And having survived the hatred of RoLaskaTox on her season, she can deflect any shade that comes her way.
Weaknesses: Like we said, she does not know her way around choreography. Also staying awake.
Iconic moment: Her Grey Gardens Snatch Game.
What she’s been up to since winning: She’s released two of her own albums, been on four Christmas Queens albums, toured extensively with her own cabaret show, and brought the annual Jinkx and DeLa holiday show with fellow Drag Race alum BenDeLaCreme to Hulu, the queer holiday movie Happiest Season, and a stage near you (unless you live somewhere really stupid).
Odds to win: Don’t Jinkx it.
The Co-winner: Monét X Change
Season she won: All Stars 4 (2018)
Season she didn’t win: 10 (also 2018)
Strengths: You better not get slayed by this lip-sync assassin, whose fake death drop is still one of the all-time gags. She’s funny as hell and not afraid to show it.
Weaknesses: Design challenges, pussycat wigs, being compared to Bob the Drag Queen, winning on her own.
Iconic moment: For better or worse, her sponge dress. Long live the sponge!
What she’s been up to since winning: The very definition of booked and busy. You have definitely seen Monét if you’ve ever been to a Werk the World tour or watched this season of the Pit Stop aftershow, which she hosted. She also performed in a video with Madonna and hosts two podcasts, one with drag sister Bob the Drag Queen and one with drag legend Lady Bunny.
Odds to win: As good as Trinity’s.
The Other Co-winner: Trinity the Tuck (née Taylor)
Season she won: All Stars season 4 (2018)
Season she didn’t win: 9 (2017)
Strengths: A pageant queen with a southern twang and the ability to make fun of herself, Trinity is a well-rounded threat who will surely go far. Oh, and they don’t call her “the Tuck†for nothing.
Weaknesses: Roasts, leading a group, saying no to cosmetic surgery, avant-garde fashion, winning on her own.
Iconic moment: Her comedic tucking tutorial.
What she’s been up to since winning: Trinity started Love for the Arts, a traveling drag pageant she turned into a competition that streams on Twitch. She played Lady Gaga in a Taylor Swift music video and onstage at the VMAs, appeared in AJ and the Queen, and won the U.K.’s Celebrity Karaoke Club (against the Vivienne). Oh, and don’t forget she got her lip injections fixed on Botched.
Odds to win: As good as Monét’s.
The Legacy Winner: Raja
Season she won: 3 (approx. 15,000 BCE)
Strengths: A former makeup artist on America’s Next Top Model, Raja can beat a face like no other. She is also a true fashion queen, loves a performance art lewk, and has a quirky sensibility no one can match.
Weaknesses: She hasn’t competed on Drag Race since the Jefferson administration, and the show is very different today. Just check out her winning lip sync against Manila Luzon. No flips, no splits, no death drops, no reveals. She’s toast.
What she’s been up to since winning: She’s toured, played herself on The Simpsons, and been in music videos (including for Blondie’s song “Funâ€), but these days, she’s best known for hosting the long-running YouTube series RuPaul’s Drag Race Fashion Photo RuView.
Odds to win: A long shot.
The International Winner: The Vivienne
Season she won: Drag Race U.K. season 1 (2019)
Strengths: Polished and professional, she brings it to every ball, so I don’t know why you’re gagging. She also has the element of surprise because, I mean, who watched Drag Race U.K.?
Weaknesses: She enters this competition with the least amount of recognition among the fan base and the least amount of prize money (that would be none). How’s she going to afford the lewks to compete with the U.S. queens?
Iconic moment: Her Donald Trump Snatch Game performance.
What she’s been up to since winning: She’s all over U.K. telly, doing every “celebrity†show she can get booked on, including losing to Trinity the Tuck on Celebrity Karaoke Club. She also starred as Trump in Morning T&T and did his voice on the BBC documentary Trump in Tweets. And let us not forget her “prize†for winning Drag Race U.K., The Vivienne Takes on Hollywood, where she goes to L.A. to film a music video.
Odds to win: See the American Revolution.
The Weird Winner: Yvie Oddly
Season she won: 11 (2019)
Strengths: She’s creepy and she’s kooky, mysterious and spooky, she’s all together ooky, the Yvie Oddly family (feat. Willow Pill). She and Jinkx are tied for the most times in the top for their season. Also bendy as hell.
Weaknesses: She bombed at Snatch Game, isn’t necessarily the funniest queen, and her looks, while always interesting, have been dinged for lack of polish.
Iconic moment: Her lip sync against Brooke Lynn Heights.
What she’s been up to since winning: It’s been mostly pandemmy times, but she has done some touring, released a rap album, and joined the cast of RuPaul’s Drag Race Live! She also has the Wow Presents Plus show Yvie’s Odd School.
Oddlys to win: Yvie. Er, even.
The Deserving Winner: Shea Couleé
Season she won: All Stars season 5 (2019)
Season she didn’t win: 9 (2017)
Strengths: No one’s a winner (baby) like Shea. She won more challenges than the winner of her season, she won every lip sync for her legacy during her first All-Stars stint, and that bitch knows how to sew! She’s also the undisputed queen of confessional shade.
Weaknesses: Rose petals.
Iconic moment: Her nude runway look.
What she’s been up to since winning: She was a guest on The Bachelorette, starred in Dragging the Classics: The Brady Bunch, and was in the Savage X Fenty fashion show. She’s also released an EP and toured everywhere.
Odds to win: Great, as long as Sasha Velour isn’t around.