First Impressions

The RuPaul's Drag Race Season 8 Queens!

13:40

A new season of Drag Race. A group of new queens battling it out for the title of America's Next Drag Super Star. It's safe to say I'm excited. Although I am very hesitant when it comes to new drag queens. This is because when I first started to watch Drag Race there had already been 6 seasons and I liked all the queens in those seasons, but then when it came to the season 7 queens...I was not the biggest fan.
So I was a little hesitant to meet the queens of season 8. What if they were similar to the ones from season 7? It's not that I didn't like those queens it was just that I didn't find a real connection to them like I had with queens from past seasons. So I was worried it would be the same with the season 8 queens.
But after watching the season 8 premiere I can say that I am willing to give these queens a chance. I think this is going to be a really great season of Drag Race and I can't wait to see what lies ahead. The queens this season definitely seem a lot livelier than the ones from last season. At least no one will be telling any of these queens that they need to wake up. *cough* Pearl *cough*
Before I get into my thoughts on the individual queens I want to talk about the premiere episode as a whole. I. Loved. It.
Not only was this the first episode of the season, it was also the 100th episode of RuPaul's Drag Race and so you know it was going to be special. I had already seen the promo photo for this episode with RuPaul and all the past winners of Drag Race and so I was dying to know what that was about.
I love all of the winners of Drag Race. They are all so glamorous and wonderful and perfect. And so to see them all in the one photo it's almost too much to handle. And I enjoyed seeing them all in this episode. Apart from Bianca del Rio which I was sad about although they did have a pretty convincing stand-in.
But not only were the past winners back, they also brought back some other drag queens from past seasons too. As well as some of my favourite design challenges. Which I was living for. I love all the design challenges on Drag Race, some of them look like so much fun. So it was cool to see the new queens take on these old challenges.
The only thing I would say though is that because everyone was working on different things we didn't see as much in the work room as we normally do which I was upset about. But the final products everyone produced were amazing.
Also no Santino again this season? I'm sad about that. I missed Santino last season.
We also have a new runway song this season which again I don't love. I thought Sissy That Walk was a great runway song. I suppose it just caught me off guard more than anything. I'll see if I warm up to it as the season goes on.
But overall it was a fabulous episode and I loved that it was the 100th episode too. It makes me super excited to see what the rest of the season will be like.
Now moving on to our season 8 queens...

Acid Betty
I love her. I got good vibes from her right away. I love her style and her attitude and she seems really fun. I'm excited to see how far she makes it in the competition. I also loved her money ball dress. That was one of my favourite challenges on Drag Race. So I was excited to see it again.





Bob the Drag Queen
Again a really fun queen. I know Bianca del Rio has a soft spot for her so I have been keeping an open mind about her. She's pretty great. Very clearly a comedy queen but there's nothing wrong with a good comedy queen. Also girl knows how to make a pair of curtains look stylish. Even if they come with a horrible accessory.



Chi Chi Davayne
Not very memorable to me. She came in wearing a trash bag which has been done before. Don't really have much else to say since I don't remember her. Although I will say I was disappointed in her glitter ball look. Not very glittery. And she's a drag queen.
Cynthia Lee Fontaine
As soon as she walked into the workroom I knew I was going to dislike her. She is a loud queen. And I think she is trying way too hard to come up with a catchphrase. I feel like she's trying to be Yara Sofia but is failing miserably. So please stop girl. Because I get a headache every time you come on screen. Her sugar ball dress was nothing special. All I can think of in that challenge was Detox's neon candy dress haha that was fierce.
Dax ExclamationPoint
Girl is tall. I don't really remember a lot about her either haha. She had the Hello Kitty runway look and I don't think I was a fan of it. But I like her drag name so I am hoping she has more to offer us.
Derrick Barry
I love her. I mean girl knows how to do Brittany. As soon as she walked into the workroom I was LIVING. Although my fear is she doesn't know how to do anything but Britney but I think we all have that fear. Her Christmas outfit kind of reminded me of Carmen Carrera's as it showed a lot of body.
Kim Chi
Another queen that I instantly fell in love with. She's so cute in or out of drag. And I loved her runway look, her makeup and outfit were on point. Although her runway walk is going to be her downfall. Everything else about her is really fierce. Another fear I have is that she's going to be a quiet queen and I don't want that. She needs her fierceness to shine through.
Laila McQueen
She reminds me of someone in real life and I don't mean that in a bad way. I like her. She doesn't seem to have as much energy as the other queens which bothers me. She seems to be one that lacks a big personality which is the downfall of many queens on the show. I hope she can come out of her shell. I was also living for her RuPocalypse look.
Naomi Smalls
All I could think when she walked into the room was Glamazon. She is gorgeous. I don't remember much else about her though. I do think her boat and runway look were lacking though. I mean she went very minimal with it and I wish she had done something like Willam had. Especially because she decided to step out of the boat. Her outfit could have been better for it even if she didn't have time to properly decorate the boat.
Nayasha Lopez
She kind or reminded me of Vivienne Pinay. As in she was very quiet and didn't stand out to me. I don't remember her at all. I just know she sashayed away. And from previous experience, the first queen to sashay away isn't really worth knowing at all...So sorry girl. We'll see you at the reunion though.
Robbie Turner
Did someone ask for Jinkx Monsoon 2.0? I think so. It was so awkward when she turned up at the photoshoot with the same hair as Jinkx. I mean right off the bat you can see what kind of vibe she was going for. I hope she has more to offer rather than just being another Jinkx. Especially because she's not going to win if she's a copy of one of the previous winners.
Thorgy Thor
Again, she reminds me of someone I know. Not in a bad way. She's very full of energy, quirky and fun. I like her. I'm excited to see where she goes in the competition. I don't really remember her runway look though so I can't make a comment on that. Still, she's fun although I wonder if she has a mean streak...most queens do.


And so that brings me to the end of my critique on the season 8 Queens! I have to say we have a good mix of queens this season.
Whereas with season 7 I kind of felt like a lot of the queens were similar. So I am excited to see what comes of this competition.
I don't have a particular favourite for winner yet. Although I do like a fair few of the queens. I imagine I'll be making predictions for the season after a few more episodes. I'll keep you posted.
In the mean time I think I'm going to go back and rewatch previous seasons of Drag Race and celebrate the past queens because seeing them all in the season 8 premiere made me miss them. I would love for there to be a show with all the past winners on it. I mean having them all in one place at one time is just fabulousness overload. So RuPaul, can you make it happen?


Let me know what you guys think of this season of queens and who is your favourite. And follow me on Twitter for when I live tweet Drag Race on Tuesdays.
~ Courtney x

First Impressions

My Amazing Race Season 28 First Impressions

14:36

The Amazing Race season 28. The social media themed season, where all teams are made up of Internet stars. It's safe to say I was really excited.
I actually started to watch the Amazing Race because YouTubers Joey Graceffa and Meghan Camerena competed in season 22 and then later in season 24. It was the first time I had ever watched the show and I really liked it. Which I was surprised about because I don't usually watch this type of show but I find that if you find one team per season that you really like you can really get into it.
And as soon as I found out that Tyler Oakley was going to be on this season of the Amazing Race I had already decided which team was going to be my favourite. Tyler Oakley is one of my favourite YouTubers. And so of course I am rooting for him 100%.
There is another YouTuber that I watch competing on this season too, Blair Fowler. She's a beauty guru that I like to watch and I also watch her sister Elle's videos too. I am rooting for her to go far in the race too however I am supporting Tyler a tiny bit more.
Aside from those two YouTubers and their partners, I don't recognise anyone else on this season of the Amazing Race. Oh - apart from Joslyn from Clevver TV. I used to watch Clevver TV's videos. But everyone else was completely new to me. I know it is a social media themed season so all these people are known on social media platforms but definitely not ones that I use. Like Vine stars are completely lost on me.
Anyway, I want to talk about each team individually to let you guys know how I feel about this season of the Amazing Race so far. As of now we are 3 episodes into the season and so I have gotten to learn a little bit more about each team.

Erin White Robinson and Joslyn Davis
Like I said before, I recognise Joslyn from Clevver TV on YouTube. Her voice is very memorable.
Anyway I like Erin and Joslyn. So far I don't have a lot to say about them. All I really remember is that Erin got really claustrophobic in the last episode which can be a problem. Especially if there are any more challenges that require them to be in small spaces.
I also think it was great how they work together with Blair and Scott. Although I can see them throwing them under the bus if they need to which could cause drama.

Darius and Cameron Benson
Vine stars. Never heard of them but they seem like cool guys. They seem to lack the competitiveness and drive that the other teams do though which has been shown on a few occasions. Which I guess ultimately lead to their elimination.
I mean I don't doubt that they are smart guys but if you aren't in it to win it as much as the other teams you will get lost in the dust.





Zach and Rachel King
More vine stars haha. Honestly, I don't really think they stand out in the competition for me yet. I don't know enough about them to really make a judgement. I think they came first in the first episode but I honestly don't remember.






Dana Borriello and Matt Steffanina
Dancers. Recently engaged.
I always worry for couples on this TV show because sometimes I think it could make or break them. And with these two...it seems like it could break them.
They are both very strong-headed when it comes to competition and they have been fighting a lot.
I wasn't expecting that because if they have a business together you'd think they'd work a lot better together but I guess we see as the race goes on.
I know sometimes couples fight on the race and it only makes them stronger. So let's hope it's the case with these two.




Marty Cobb and Hagan Parkman
I thought they were cute. Although one mistake caused them to be eliminated early on in the race.
One thing I will say about that is, after watching this show for a long time I know never to leave your taxi anywhere/make sure the taxi is going to stay there while you do the challenge. Because taxis are usually your downfall on the race.
Also they got really annoying towards the end when they just sort of gave up. So...yeah I don't have much else to say about them.

Kurt Gibson and Brodie Smith
Pro frisbee players? Well Okay.
These guys always seem to come middle of the pack and so to me they aren't very memorable. I don't know, that or they just don't have as big a personality as other people on the show.
It's so easy to fade into the background on this show because there are so many teams and they get eliminated easily. Hopefully these guys make a good impression by the end of the race.

Tyler Oakley and Korey Kuhl
I could write a novel on why I love these two so much. But I won't. All you need to know is that I'm biased towards them because of watching them on YouTube and listening to their Podcast.
Anyway, what really surprised me about them is that they are really good at these challenges. I mean I know they are really good friends and have worked together since graduating but I had no idea how good a team they were until now.
They are just so efficient and take no crap haha. I'm sure they will have their bumps on the road as they continue on the race but so far they seem to be plain sailing. And yes, they are the team I want to win. Just saying.

Jessica Versteeg and Brittany Oldehoff
Instagram models. Because that's a thing now.
I like them. They only really stand out because they are pretty. Like that's all I can say about them so far. They are pretty.
Again they are in the middle of the pack right now in the race so who knows how well they will actually do. Although being in the middle of the race is not neccessarily a bad thing, it could be the reason you end up in the final four.

Burnie Jones and Ashley Jenkins
YouTube gamers. And a super cute couple.
These two work well together too. I remember how they were in the last episode and they seem to have a really good relationship.
I can see them going far in the race.

Scott and Blair Fowler
Like I said before I watch Blair's videos and so I am biased towards her in this race as well. So I do hope she makes it far in the race.
Although part of me wishes that Blair was doing the race with her sister Elle because they both make videos, however I'm pretty sure Elle couldn't do the race because of when she injured her back.
Still I like this father daughter team. I think it's sweet that they help people when they can and I just hope that doesn't come back to bite them if someone decides to take advantage of that.
Also I'm pretty sure that if you were to remember anything about this season it's Blair's voice. She definitely has one of those voices that's very memorable.


Sheri and Cole LaBrant
Another vine star.
I think this mother and son team is also very cute. I also like that other teams are nice and help them out when they can although I know it won't last. As the competition gets smaller and smaller people will be less likely to help out teams like Sheri and Cole and so I wonder how they will do without any help later in the race.




And so those are my first impressions of all the Amazing Race teams on season 28! So far it's been a very entertaining season with all of my favourite one liners coming from Tyler and Korey.
If you guys are watching the Amazing Race this season then let me know your predictions, who do you think will win? As I've been saying the whole way through this blog post I hope Tyler and Korey win. And if not them then someone else who deserves to win. I mean it doesn't really matter. I always end up feeling like the people who win the race were the ones that deserved to win, even if I wasn't really rooting for them to begin with.
I will be sure to let you guys know my thoughts as the season progresses. I don't know if I will make another blog post like this but I always tweet about the episodes when I watch them. So if you are interested in knowing my thoughts on the race or any other TV show I am currently watching then feel free to follow me on Twitter. Or don't. I tend to tweet a lot haha.
~ Courtney x

Life

Life Update: A Crazy Month!

16:24

What. A. Month.
February has been insane and so I thought I would give you guys a little life update to let you know what's been happening. First of all, I have started my second semester of university. And it has been taking up all of my time as usual.
Going into this semester I was a lot calmer than last semester. Last semester I had no idea what I was doing but I'm glad that I have now established some sort of routine with myself.
However my timetable is different from last semester's so I have been having to adjust to that. It's not that different but it still shifts when I have to go to uni and how long I stay there each day. I'm still in til 6 on Mondays and Tuesdays though.
I have also decided to take up Mandarin this semester on Thursdays from 5-7. Looking back I wish I had picked a different timeslot to do it in because it means my Thursdays are now incredibly long. Still I am enjoying the class so far. It's something new. And I have always regretted not learning Chinese when I was younger. So now I am taking the opportunity to learn a little bit. I'm not saying I'm the best at it but I wouldn't say I'm awful either. I haven't decided whether I should continue Mandarin to level 2 yet but I guess I will let you know by the end of the semester.
On top of that we have also started a new module this semester. It's a group project one and I was super nervous when I found out about it. I have never been great at working in teams, mainly because it was always a case of no one wanting to do the work, leaving it all to you to do. So I was worried it was going to be the same with this module.
We were put into our groups randomly and so I had no idea who I was going to be working with. Considering there are over 400 people in our class the chances of me being grouped with someone I knew were very unlikely. I ended up being in a group of complete strangers.
Luckily though my group is really nice. We all get along well and I hope that we can all work together smoothly. I know we won't always get along and there will be disagreements but I hope we make it through the semester without wanting to kill each other at least haha. It's still the early stages of the group project though so you never know what could happen during the rest of the semester. I'm still trying to remain hopeful about the whole thing.
Aside from class, I have been spending more time with my university friends outside of class which is nice. I feel very lucky to have made friends so quickly since starting university. Although being one of the few girls in a computing course makes it a lot easier to make friends. All the girls kind of just stick together haha. So I have made a couple of good friends at university so far.
I have even decided to live with one of them next year which I think will be fun. Which is another thing I have been thinking about this month.
After realising just how much I had to go into university for class last semester I realised it would be a lot easier for me if I moved closer to the university next year. So I decided to move with a friend from secondary school but we needed at least one other person to live with so I asked one of my new friends.
And so for the past couple of weeks we have been house hunting. I have to say it feels very adult to be searching for a house. And I know it's only going to be my house for a few years but I'm excited and also scared. I know we all have to leave home at some point but I can't believe how fast this is all happening. But I will be sure to share the ups and downs of living with friends whenever the time comes.
Also this past month I have been busy with a boy... I don't want to go into too much detail about it but let's just say I'm really happy with them.We aren't official yet but we are dating. And that's good enough for me. I'm in no rush to be in a serious relationship. I'm just excited to see where it goes.
Moving away from student life I will also mention some TV shows I have been sucked into this month. As they have also been taking up a lot of time.
First off, Pretty Little Liars is always taking over my life. This season is leaving me with a lot of questions as usual.
I also started watching New Girl. I like it. I think it's very quirky and fun. I am almost caught up I just need to watch the latest episodes of season 5.
Finally the Amazing Race season 28 has officially started and I am loving it so far. I think I will make a separate blog post talking about the Amazing Race because I love it so much. I got addicted to the Amazing Race when I watched the season Joey Graceffa was on. This season features Tyler Oakley and Blair Fowler, two other YouTubers that I love and so of course I am obsessed with this season. I'm excited to see how far these two teams make it in the race. I am also hoping that one day I get my dream of an all YouTuber version of the Amazing Race because I would love it so much.
And so that is everything I have going on in my life right now. When I write it down here it doesn't seem like a lot but for the past month it just feels like time is flying by. It just feels like I have been going all the time and never have time to really stop and just breathe. Hopefully things begin to slow down this month. Although I kind of like that so much is going on right now. It keeps me busy. Compared to January when I was off university for a month and barely did anything. Still, I would appreciate if I had some more time to sleep.
I hope you guys are also having a good start to the year. I hope you are working hard to achieve your goals and haven't given up on all your New Year's Resolutions yet. Let me know in the comments how things are going. And I will be sure to keep you updated on my life as the year progresses. I hope to make blog posts more often than this but I can't make any promises.
~ Courtney x