Bon retour, mes chers lecteurs! It’s the return of Drag Race Belgique! Drag Race Belgique Season 2 Episode 1 was titled “De Retour,” and it was a standard first episode of an international Drag Race: a talent show and a “Drache Nationale” runway that showed off a national theme.
(“Drache National” is the Belgian phrase in French for a heavy rainstorm on Belgian National Day, 21 July.)
J’aimerais pouvoir vous parler de cette émission dans un beau français, mais cela prendrait dix fois plus de temps! Alors, vous obtenez mon anglais. Mais, je vous invite à commenter en français et je comprendrai (la plus grande partie).
That goes for those of you who comment in English as well! If you want to see me continue to cover Drag Race Belgique (and other franchises), your views, shares, and comments really matter. The reason I started covering more international franchises in 2023 is because my coverage of Drag Race France Season 1 in 2022 was massively popular – as much as some of my biggest comic guides!
This premiere episode kicks off an intense week of international Drag Race, with three franchises debuting in just 8 days – Belgique, Drag Race España All Stars, & RuPaul’s Drag Race UK vs. The World. When I first saw that schedule I thought, “perhaps I’ll just do a brief post on each.” Yet, as I watched this episode – and especially as the queens of Drag Race Belgique Season 1 returned to walk the runway – I remembered just how much I adored this franchise when I wrote about it last year.
Bien sûr, j’aime toujours une saison qui est en français! Mais il y a autre chose que j’aime dans Drag Race Belgique. L’année dernière, j’ai vu que… there is some tension inherent in Belgian drag. On one side, there are very traditional, established cabaret artists. On the other, there are punks who are playing by their own rules – including all of last year’s top three – Susan, Athena Sorgelikis and winner Drag Couenne.
Yet, no matter what “side” they were on, the queens were incredibly smart. Belgique Season 1 gave us some of the most clever art references we’ve had on any Drag Race runway with their bandes dessinées and “Ce n’est pas une pipe” runways.
Not only that, but the judges have a very keen eye for fashion. They don’t only want over-the-top looks, but looks that speak to certain styles and references from distinct regions of the country or specific aspects of its history.
Pour moi, la Belgique est peut-être la meilleure de toutes les franchises pour raconter l’histoire du drag d’un pays (alongside Drag Race Phillipines!). Despite the widespread skepticism about Rita being a Canadian hosting a Belgian show, I feel like she respects the culture of Belgian drag and is not trying to make it into something exclusively Canadian or entirely international. Just the fact that a weirdo alikeDrag Couenne won the first season of the show speaks volumes – usually first season winners tend to represent something quintessential about the country’s drag.
Because of all of that, I couldn’t bring myself to not write about this season – at least, for the premiere! I think we once again have a cast full of incredibly smart queens who fall to either side of that old-school cabaret / new-school punk divide. And, they seem particularly strong – without the drag neophytes we saw as early outs last year.
(Want to watch Drag Race Belgique outside of Belgium? For most of the world, it’s available with a Wow Presents Plus subscription as soon as the episode is done airing.)
Lecteurs, start your engines. Et, que la meilleure Drag Queen gagne!
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