draggz 
It should have worked.
When Drag Race Italia was announced, everybody was excited for the new European franchise to kick off. Well… sort of, because many fans were already tired of new international versions. Some people were not amused when the cast was announced, but I remained neutral. The promo was sickening! The cast seemed promising and the host Priscilla was a staple in Italy’s drag scene. The other judges are also very well known in Italy, so it seemed the season was off to a great start…
What went wrong?
After the first few episodes I stopped watching the show and let me tell you why. There was no compelling storyline and granted, I don’t watch drag competitions because of storylines, but Drag Race Italia failed to show any interesting plot for me to remain invested. It’s all been done before and done better on the US and UK versions of RuPaul’s Drag Race (also Spain). Also, it seemed like the episodes dragged on forever.
The positives?
But I won’t be too critical. There were some exceptional drag looks, for example the makeover episode with Farida Kant – her look was really gorgeous and the internet went nuts for it. I did like some of the looks by Elecktra Bionic, but someone we’ve already seen on the US version does it better and that’s not an insult, just an observation. I also mostly liked the judges, although I didn’t quite get the overt, over the top, almost screeching personality of Chiara Francini, but that’s really subjective (not really).
Down under was slightly worse, but I’m still not amused. Also I didn’t care for Enorma’s disqualification – she was really (edited?) to be unlikable. If there ever will be a second season in Italy, I hope they somehow make it work.
What does Jan have to do with Italy’s Drag Race?
By the way, congrats to the new winner Elecktra Bionic. Fans are already calling her “Jan Winner”, because she was always safe and didn’t win a single main challenge on the show. Well, a crown is still a crown and she will also be a MAC Cosmetics ambassador so everything worked out fine for her. Too bad for Farida Kant, but her makeover look will certainly be remembered for the sheer perfection and execution.
Let me know in the comments how you feel about the first season of Italy’s Drag Race. Did you watch it? Or are you one of those people who are sick of new international versions of the show?
