YMMV / RuPaul's Drag Race UK vs the World

• Broken Base: Fans had been anticipating an international version of RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars for years, but the first season was heavily divisive. The abbreviated 6-episode series was filled with Shocking Eliminations and the cast were willing to use All Stars rules tactically to "take out the competition" rather than removing weaker contestants "in the interest of fairness". The result was a chaotic season where fan favorites like Canada's Lemon and Jimbo, UK's Cheryl Hole, and even the much-hyped Thailand host Pangina Heals, were all gone by midway. Meanwhile, an uncharacteristically subdued Jujubee and Baga Chipz were both still going strong, and the season ended with a win (of the "who saw that one coming?" variety) for Blu Hydrangea. On one hand, some fans felt that the loss of the popular favorites and heavy-hitters deflated the season, and merits a rethink of the All Stars rules. Other fans loved the chaos, feeling that it was exciting and unpredictable. At least it's generally agreed upon that Blu definitely came into her own this season, but whether she deserved the win after everything that happened is also very divisive.
• Funny Moments: In season one, Baga Chipz once again hit a home run in Snatch Game with her creepy yet hilarious portrayal of Kathy Bates as Annie Wilkes, playing a Loony Fan of Ru (or "Paul" as she calls him) so well it's simultaneously impressive and unsettling. Blu Hydrangea also nailed it with her very funny and accurate portrayal of Mike Myers as Austin Powers, complete with a character change mid-game to Powers' nemesis, Dr. Evil. In the end, both Brit Girls won the challenge.
• Moment of Awesome:
  • The season one lip sync battle between Janey Jacké and Pangina Heals to Vengaboys smash "We Like to Party! (The Vengabus)" is one of the most fun lip-syncs in recent memory. Janey puts up a fight, but Pangina's spectacle of headstand splits, waacking dance moves, and even a ribbon shooting reveal are too good to not give her the win.
  • Jimbo's talent show performance in the first episode of season one was an instant classic. What makes this special is that it completely goes against the prevailing fan opinion that Ru tends to favour dance extravaganzas and big flashy moves. That holds true for the episode's other first-rate performance, by Pangina Heals, but Jimbo's no dancer. Instead, dressed in some kind of latex alien suit, Jimbo presents an absurd performance art piece that culminates in birthing a stack of baloney and throwing it at the other queens, including Ru, who's enraptured by this whole thing. Repeat: Jimbo actually made RuPaul excited to catch a piece of expired meat, and it pushed Jimbo to the top two that week. Pangina won the episode, but Jimbo stole the show.
• Tear Jerker: The elimination of frontrunner Pangina Heals was depressing to the point it veered on uncomfortable. After a Shocking Elimination at the hands of fellow competitor Blu Hydrangea, all she could do was sob uncontrollably, apologise to her Thai fans for not going all the way, and shuffle off the stage in pure shock and embarrassment while not even looking at the judges or remaining queens. You could even still hear her absolutely wailing backstage even while Ru was giving her end of episode speech. The saddest part were the reactions as she left. Blu was literally shaking as she realised the gravity of what she’d just done, Janey, Jujubee, Baga, and Mo didn’t know what to do or how to react, Ru was left in genuine shock, and Michelle and guest judge Clara Amfo started tearing up. Making for gag-worthy TV but also an incredibly Downer Ending.
• Unexpected Character: As the series format is based on the American RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars, all season one competitors were expected to be returning contestants from other parts of the Drag Race franchise. However, instead of a competitor, Drag Race Thailand is represented by Pangina Heals, who actually judges and co-hosts the show. In the first episode, some of the contestants also seem shocked to see her.
  Cheryl Hole: Are you joking?!

---