RuPaul's Drag Race: UK vs. The World contestant Lemon reprimanded fans on Twitter for sending criticism towards her competitor Pangina Heals. While Lemon's rap skills may have wowed fans in her verse on the Drag Race Canada sister's song "Comin On Through," it wasn't good enough to save her from elimination during the talent show challenge in episode 1. As Pangina was the top queen of the week, she chose to eliminate Lemon from the competition, making her the first queen to go home on Drag Race UK vs. The World.
Nine of the best performing queens from each international series of the Drag Race franchise walked into the "werkroom" to win the title of Queen of the Universe. One of the biggest surprises for the queens in the first episode was the entrance of Pangina, host of the first international spin-off Drag Race Thailand. Accompanying her in the cast are Baga Chips, Blu Hydrangea and Cherryl Hole from Drag Race UK and Drag Race Holland's Janey Jacké. Drag Race Canda contestants included Jimbo and Lemon, while the original series was represented by Monique Heart and Jujubee. Like every All-Star season, the maxi challenge for the first episode was a talent show. Ultimately, it was Jimbo and Pangina who won the title of the top 2 queens of the week, with Pangina winning the Lipsync For Your Legacy.
After seeing Pangina being flooded with critical tweets from fans upset with her elimination, Lemon decided to defend her fellow Drag Race sister. Recently, Pangina tweeted about receiving death threats and racist remarks after the episode aired and Lemon was sent home. "Please be kind to other humans. You may not agree with my decision and I can respect that BUT violence or threats are not okay," Pangina said. Lemon retweeted the post and said, "You're not my fan if you're doing this ****!"
Drag Race's Pangina replied to Lemon's tweet, thanking her. Fans carried the for Pangina along the thread. One said, "Y’all are literal friends and that was a competition. Why are people taking it so seriously?" Comments uplifting Pangina for her performance on the show continued throughout the thread. They also condemned the critical comments that were sent her way.
During RuPaul's Drag Race season 12, World of Wonder put out an anti-bullying statement after Brita Filter expressed intense feelings of depression in the midst of getting critical viewer messages. Drag Race competitors from all seasons know all too well how debilitating it can be to feel the wrath of the franchise's overly opinionated fandom. Whether it be sending home a fan-favorite or being the victim of an unfavorable edit, there are tons of instances that get Drag Race alumni an onslaught of unwarranted backlash from viewers of the hit competition show. Racism is another toxic element that's been growing in Drag Race fandom for years. Kennedy Davenport was one of the first queens to speak out against some fans' prejudices towards competitors of color back in RuPaul's Drag Race season 7. The All-Stars 3 runner-up opened up about the verbal abuse they received after sending Katya Zamolodchikova home before the finale.
RuPaul's Drag Race UK vs. The World airs Tuesdays at 4 p.m. ET/PT on the WOW Presents Plus streaming service.
Sources: Pangina Heals/Twitter, Lemon/Twitter