RuPaul's Drag Race Season 16 Episode 12: Bathroom Hunties

After Mhi'ya's exit last week, less than half of the cast remains. It's the shift in RuPaul's Drag Race where each queen is under an intense microscope. After Morphine erases Mhi'ya's message, she lets the world know when Miami queens fight it out, they "draw blood." With the Morphine-Mhi'ya battle ended, a new rivalry emerged between Q and Sapphira. Unable to comprehend or accept Sapphira's win, Q radiates outrage, putting everyone around her on edge. Plane Jane encourages her to let it out, but Q silently stews about her perceived snub.

The next day, the drama is not over. Q reframes the day before as keeping silent to make sure she did not say anything she regretted but then calls Sapphira's win "underserved." This particularly pointed word choice aggravates Sapphira, but Q is saved by the bell. The two only resolve it, sort of, later in the episode when Sapphira addresses it head-on. As Dawn states, there is still a looming sense that Q can be a sore loser.

After an amusing Tammy Faye-inspired mini-challenge, even though no one took the opportunity to smudge their face lower on the T-shirt, the queens move on to this week's challenge. RuPaul informs them that they must create custom powder rooms as teams of two. A sequel to All Stars 4 and 5 room design challenges, the queens understand it is more about concept, comedy, and hosting. Unfortunately, no one opted to make a bathroom for Club 96. The brainstorming and design construction feel like filler, but the challenge does prompt important conversations about bathroom access for the trans community. In addition, Plane Jane shows her softer side behind her drag delusion and gets a therapy session from Mother Sapphira.

Chain Reactions

The runway comes early this week and is calibrated to start and end with the week's best looks. Morphine stunned in a golden chain look that crossed Kylie Minogue with Studio 54 and a peculiar touch of Rick James. Q's black-and-red ensemble demonstrated that despite her design talents, she tends to overwork some of her looks. Dawn continued her devotion to hip cutouts in a black dress draped with chains. It was not a bad look, but it was also Dawn's least interesting runway of the season. Sidelining yellow, Nymphia wowed in a pale blue look that juxtaposed the softness of fringe tassels with the hardness of metal chains and S&M. Plane Jane kept things polished and severe for a solid, if expected outing. On the other hand, Sapphira came out with something completely unexpected. Giving latex dog fetish without sacrificing glamour revealed Sapphira's more conceptual and provocative side.

Bathroom

The unveiling of the bathrooms exposed how much was not shown while they were working. Each duo took Michelle and Carson through a tour of their bathroom with some sometimes funny and sometimes awkward improv from the queens and the judges. Q and Morphine's concept of a hellscape bathroom countered with ditzy hosts was interesting. The out-of-reach toilet paper was the best aspect of the room. Nymphia and Dawn, the season's most conceptual queens, gravitated toward a modern art theme. They had some interesting aspects, but ironically, the space felt cluttered and uncurated for a museum approach. Finally, Sapphira and Plane Jane's speakeasy felt like the least interesting idea but had the best delivery. They understood the assignment was more about comedy and character than design and concept.

Throw the Book at Them

For judges once so horribly offended by Rock M. Sakura making a fart joke, they have fully embraced potty humor. The whiplash continued with some particularly brutal judging. Nearly no one was spared this week. The comments leaned toward harsh and blunt. The judges zeroed in on Morphine, Dawn, Nymphia, and, to a lesser extent, Q. Both of these teams suffered from an imbalance in the team. Q took the lead of her group, while Morphine, who kept up a consistent character, flubbed a line. Discrepancy continued between Nymphia and Dawn. Nymphia is committed to a character but also bulldozes over Dawn. On the flip side, Dawn does not seem to form a character and is like a blank canvas next to Nymphia. Plane Jane and Sapphira, on the other hand, were celebrated for their tight teamwork and improv skills. Even though Plane Jane received a slight critique for her look, she and Sapphira secured a team win. The joint win brings Plane Jane a third win and Sapphira her fourth. It would have been more interesting had the judges selected a bottom team between Morphine-Q and Dawn-Nymphia, but they elected to split the difference with Morphine and Dawn in the bottom two.

Battle of the Narrators

Throughout the season, Morphine and Dawn have struggled to secure a win, and it's disheartening to know that one of them will leave without one. More importantly, both queens have proven to be funny and essential narrators this season, and their absence will leave a lesser show. Dawn knows Morphine is an epic lip-syncher but calculates that Morphine's three previous lip-synchs against Dawn's none might give her an element of surprise. It's a nice idea, but as soon as "Body" by Meghan Thee Stallion starts, it is clear that Dawn is going home. Aside from being the BBL queen, Morphine's gyrating body and jostling gold chains clinched the win in her first movement. She fully embodies (pun intended) the song. She does not have a win under her wig yet, but Morphine is showing the world that she's an undeniable entertainer.

State of the Race

Sapphira's four wins and Plane Jane's three cement them as clear frontrunners for the crown. However, after three consecutive wins in a row at this late stage of the competition, it seems hard to believe that anyone will eclipse Sapphira this season. Q and Nymphia remain in the mix with two wins. Without a win, it is harder and harder to imagine Morphine in the top four, but it's conceivable that if she can make it to a makeover challenge with her exceptional skills, she could pull out a win at the exact time she needs one.