Reddit is full of Drag Race fans who aren't afraid to share their opinions about Michelle Visage, even if no one agrees with them.
RuPaul's Drag Race has been on the air for fourteen seasons, plus six seasons of the all-star versions of the show. For the last twelve seasons of the show, RuPaul's best gal-pal Michelle Visage has served as co-host and second-in-command judge throughout the competition. Michelle Visage was a staple in the '90s ballroom and club scenes in New York City. She eventually met RuPaul, and the rest is her-story.
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As the show's popularity has grown, fans have taken to Reddit to share their opinions of Michelle and her role in the Drag Race franchise. Redditors aren't afraid to share even the most unpopular of opinions.
With Jeffrey Bower-Chapman leaving Drag Race Canada, there has been a lot of discussion over who will fill the empty seat on the judging panel. In an interview with Popbuzz, Michelle Visage stated she would take on the role if given a chance. However, fans of the show don't feel the same enthusiasm. ookyspoopy shared their stance, saying that "RuPaul and Michelle should be replaced and 100% should not host any of the international seasons." Both Michelle Visage and RuPaul are judges on the UK and Australian versions of the show.
If Michelle and RuPaul were removed there is the question of who would replace them. Currently, Drag Race Canada is hosted by US Drag Race alum Brooklyn Hytes. But fans enjoy the reliability of tuning in and seeing Ru and Michelle. Their on-screen chemistry has made the show successful thus far and a big change could turn fans off.
On the runway, the queens can find inspiration in anything. Often they will draw inspiration from their cultures that are special to them. Pristine-Apple noticed that "Ru and Michelle don’t get some of the references that the queens make. Anything they don’t understand is an automatic bottom placement. Especially if it’s Asian."
It's unfair to expect the queens to know and only use references that the judges are familiar with, especially when there are cultural differences involved. Fans noticed that the funniest queens on RuPaul's Drag Race UK often experience the judges not being familiar with their references in particular. In addition, if Michelle or RuPaul makes reference to something, the queens are expected to know exactly what the judges are talking about - or face ridicule.
Long-time Drag Race fans will remember that Michelle Visage didn't become a judge until after the show's second season. One Reddit user, thepotatoinyourheart, isn't a fan of Michelle Visage on the show, "I liked Merle as a judge more than Michelle. I don't hate Michelle, but I do think she thinks she's more important than she actually is...her critiques can come off as tone-deaf, rude, and self-serving."
However, RuPaul and Michelle have been friends since the beginning of their careers in the ballroom scene and Merle was never the original choice for RPDR - it was always supposed to be Michelle. However, due to contractual obligations, she couldn't be on Drag Race's early seasons.
Drag is an evolving art form, and Michelle Visage has expressed her desire to host her version of Drag Race. The show would feature drag kings, bio queens, and trans women.QWERTY_0P asked for opinions regarding the show. filmkillz said "or maybe just get an actual drag king to host a show about drag kings."
While she has been involved in the drag world since the late '80s, fans of Drag Race feel Michelle isn't the authority on this potential version of the show. Some fans noted that reality drag shows other than RuPaul's Drag Race already exist to highlight these queens and kings.
Before she judged Drag Race, Michelle Visage was a singer. She's best known for her time in the girl group Seduction. She was also a popular radio host in Los Angeles and New York. The phenomenon of Drag Race has overshadowed much of Michelle's other work. Erlana expressed their frustration with fans not recognizing Michelle as more than a judge on the show, saying "People are associating Michelle Visage with just Drag Race and it's getting frustrating."
Others attested she should be grateful to have reached the success she has from being a judge. Since being on Drag Race Michelle has appeared on Strictly Come Dancing and has performed on the West End in London.
Throughout her time on Drag Race, Michelle Visage has told many queens she needs to see the real them. She feels they rely on a character too much rather than bringing their true selves to the runway. SLMLQFBSNC shared that they think Michelle isn't wrong in telling the queens to be more authentic, "It makes sense when someone is going to be the next drag superstar...drop the kooky schtick and let your hair down here and there to show there is more depth to you as a queen."
The queens aren't only performing but trying to connect with viewers at home. Michelle often tells queens she needs to see the person they are out of drag once in a while to understand their drag better overall. However, other fans disagree with this opinion, believing that drag is all about being a character.
Some fans of Drag Race say Michelle Visage is overly critical and mean to the queens because that is who she is as a person. Users on a Reddit thread entitled "Why do people dislike Michelle Visage?" proved this to be an unpopular opinion.
Commenters were adamant that Michelle can't be that bad given her relationships with contestants outside the show. "She has a part to play on the show," says weholditdown. In interviews, Michelle has said that she isn't as mean as she seems on the show. She plays the villain role to make the show exciting and give the panel a good cop bad cop vibe.
Michelle Visage has been known to tell contestants that doing drag doesn't require a lot of money. natethough feels Michelle is totally wrong in her opinion, "To do drag, yes you do. Any queen will tell you that. You don't look a person who has gone absolutely bankrupt in the eye and tell them, 'You don't need money to do what you want.' Because, yes, you do. Especially for drag."
They also pointed out the show gives all the queens the same resources once they enter the competition. A long-standing challenge on Drag Race is the "Drag on A Dime"runway, where all the contestants must create a look from limited materials. However, this unpopular opinion leads to a deep discussion on how money can affect drag race contestants and Michelle's critique.
Michelle Visage has always been vocal about her work within the LGBTQ+ community. She is known as a strong ally within the community. But not everyone feels Michelle is deserving of the authority the community gives her. jokeseph commented in a thread, "I don't like how she styles herself as the den mother of all drag queens." Further explaining that Michelle takes her allyship too seriously, and while she is helpful to the community, she doesn't truly understand the struggles.
A great deal of the fan base disagrees. They find Michelle important to the show. Her connection with non-LGBTQ+ people allows her to speak on behalf of others and open their minds. Despite talking about being attracted to both men and women, Michelle identifies as a straight cis-gendered woman and is very upfront about this (per Out Magazine).
sweetnessalive shared that Michelle often picks favorites but, "sometimes she picks on girls." Another commenter agreed, noting that Michelle only likes the most polished pageant queens on RuPaul's Drag Race over stylized queens.
Fans of the show defended Michelle, saying she is more critical of some contestants than others but never without reason. Her criticism is always constructive and wants the queens to improve. When they don't apply her advice, she becomes harsher. Others noted this as another example of Michelle Visage playing the bad cop to RuPaul's more motherly good cop personality on the panel.
