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Aired spring–summer 2023 · Ts Madison joins the panel

Season 8

Twelve returning queens compete under a standard elimination format again, alongside a new fan-vote side-competition. Eliminated queens' runway looks replay during Untucked, and viewers vote for a separate cash-prize winner apart from the main game.

Premiered
May 12, 2023
Paramount+ · May 2023
Episodes
12
Format
Fame Games · a fan-vote side-competition
viewers vote on eliminated queens' runway looks
Cast size
12 players
twelve returning queens, standard elimination format
Host
RuPaul Charles
RuPaul, eighth season at the All Stars helm
On this page6 sections
  1. 01The take
  2. 02The shape of the season
  3. 03Where it sits in the canon
  4. 04What to watch for
  5. 05Adjacent in the canon
  6. 06In this canon
01The take

Season 8.

A return to standard elimination, plus a fan-vote side-game running underneath it — two competitions for the price of one season.
02The shape of the season

A rhythm worth tracking.

Season 8 returns to a standard weekly elimination after several cycles of experimental mechanics, running it alongside something new: Fame Games, a parallel fan-vote side-competition. Eliminated queens' runway looks replay during Untucked, and viewers vote for a separate cash-prize winner apart from the main game. Ts Madison joins the judging panel as a permanent member for the first time. RuPaul Charles hosts twelve episodes across a twelve-queen cast.

03Where it sits in the canon

The #10 slot.

Slot #10 of 10 in the RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars Editor's Canon. Season 8 sits at the bottom of the canon because its central structural choice is the least ambitious of the ten — after several cycles of experimental elimination mechanics, the season returns to a straightforward weekly vote. What keeps it from feeling like a retreat is Fame Games, a parallel fan-vote side-competition: eliminated queens' runway looks replay during Untucked, and viewers vote for a separate cash-prize winner apart from the main game. Ts Madison also joins the judging panel as a permanent member for the first time, a real and lasting change. Twelve returning queens carry a season that plays it structurally safer than the rest. The canon ranks it tenth for real additions on a familiar shape.

No spoilers. Every page is reviewed before it goes live.
04What to watch for

4 moments, no spoilers.

  • Premiere · Ts Madison joins the panel

    Ts Madison becomes a permanent judge for the first time this season, alongside the standard panel. Watch for how a new full-time voice changes the season's critique rhythm.

  • Early run · elimination returns to standard

    After several cycles of experimental elimination mechanics, this season runs a straightforward weekly elimination again. Watch how a returning cast handles a format they may remember from years earlier.

  • Mid-season · Fame Games begins

    Eliminated queens' runway looks replay during Untucked, and viewers vote for a separate side-competition winner with a cash prize entirely apart from the main game. Watch how a parallel fan vote changes what eliminated queens have to play for.

  • Finale stretch · two competitions converge

    The main elimination game and the viewer-decided track both resolve in the same finale stretch. Watch how the show handles paying off two entirely separate contests in the same episodes.

06In this canon

Its Editor's Canon entry.

RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars — Season 8 — tiered.tv