In the latest episode of "RuPaul’s Drag Race," the top three queens were chosen and it will be another week before the reunion episode where the winner will be crowned. It was a tough episode because the four queens are all so amazing; it broke my heart to see Chi Chi Devayne go because she is such a creative, hardworking queen. However, at the same time, I was a little bit relieved because her departure meant that my main favorites, who were also my prediction for the top three, got to stay. Kim Chi, Bob the Drag Queen, and Naomi Smalls are all amazing queens who have unique skills to offer. Any one of them is suitable for the title of America’s Next Drag Superstar.

As I watched the season, my opinions of all the queens did change from my initial impressions. Some of them I absolutely fell in love with, while there were other queens who I grew to dislike immensely. Therefore, I wanted to discuss my new feelings about the queens, as well as examine the top three queens in terms of why they might or might not be crowned.

Naysha Lopez

She was the first to go, she reappeared, and then departed once more. I was happy with this turn of events, because it did feel like she had left too soon. I knew she had a lot more to offer and I was glad that we all got to see another fun and gorgeous look from her. Unfortunately, as soon as that wig flew off I knew she was done for. It did make me smile though when she left some gifts for Chi Chi, showing that the core purpose of this competition is not to constantly throw shade, but to strengthen the drag community and learn from each other.

Laila McQueen

This is a queen who I think got a bad edit. She was constantly portrayed as a background character and never given the opportunity to shine. She tried so hard to break out of that role, but could not. I’m still bitter that she was in the bottom in the first episode, because that jacket was amazing and the construction was flawless. I admit though that the second lipsync did suck, the gown with the wig were horrible, and she deserved to be sent home. I feel like after the first episode she just gave up and I feel bad for her because her Instagram is great; she can do so much better than that.

Dax ExclamationPoint

Dax disappointed me quite a bit, to be honest. Because she is a cosplay queen and Violet Chachki’s drag mother, I was expecting big things from her. I was hoping to see some amazing pieces and displays of the creativity I saw in her photos online. You know what I saw instead? Terrible padding, an ugly gown, and a lifeless lipsync. That double elimination was a decision I will forever standby. Dax has done some very cool looks, so I was disappointed that she didn’t show her full potential on the show.

Cynthia Lee Fontaine

I loved her in the beginning, and I loved her when she was eliminated. There is literally nothing bad about this queen (except the outfit that got her sent home). She reminds me still of a fluttery, colorful bird. Cynthia is sweet, hilarious, and an absolute darling. She is definitely one of the queens that I hope wins Miss Congeniality. If she ever has a show in Southern California, I will definitely be in the front row to see this amazing queen perform.

Acid Betty

Yikes. I take back everything I wrote previously about her creativity making up for her attitude. This queen was just so bitter and nasty all the time, and I’ve heard the same thing from people who have met her and seen her shows. I was getting more and more irritated with her bad attitude, and then she had to talk smack about Trixie Mattel during Kim Chi’s video message. The video messages are always so meaningful to the queens, so to be rude and start insulting the sender is disrespectful to the recipient. Kim Chi was still very sweet even though Betty continued to talk trash about one of her closest friends. That crossed the line for me. Betty may be a creative powerhouse, but that does not excuse bitchiness and blatant disrespect.

Robbie Turner

I don’t despise Robbie like I did during the first episode, but I don’t like her either. I tried really hard to appreciate her look and warm up to her, but I just couldn’t. She still ended up looking like a washed up Jinkx Monsoon most of the time, and something about her abrasive personality gave me bad vibes. She’s not a bad queen, and definitely not mean like Acid Betty, but she is nowhere near my favorite. I don’t know if I would see one of her shows. Maybe she just got a bad edit, so I’ll be on the lookout for any YouTube content that changes my mind.

Thorgy Thor

I was not expecting her to be gone before Derrick, to be honest. Thorgy is such a fun and creative queen with a lot of talent. I did think her need to turn Bob into major competition was a bit extra, and she did start to get a little too shady for my liking towards the end, but it was still sad to see her go. I really did want to see more looks from her, and I bet her creations for the Book Ball would have been amazing. I can relate a lot also to her issue of having too many ideas and not knowing how to execute them all properly by narrowing things down. Still, she is a fun and talented queen, and I really hope she comes to Southern California so that I can see one of her shows.

Derrick Barry

I don’t dislike her, but she became very annoying at several points in the show. During Untucked, she was just too much for me with her incessant arguing and ridiculous pride over her “creations;” sewing a piece of fabric to your waist and gluing paper to a corset is not that big of a deal, especially when it all looks like garbage. I could not take her seriously and was just wishing for her to do Britney again, because that’s what she was good at. She seemed to just get worse with every challenge. I appreciate her talent for impersonations and the effort she put into the competition, but I was relieved to see her finally go.

Chi Chi Devayne

I love this queen so damn much. She’s down to earth, funny, adorable, and super talented. She grew so much throughout the competition and I am so proud of her improvement. I did not expect to adore her this much. Chi Chi actually listened to what the judges had to say, learned to stop being ashamed of her background, and blossomed into perfection. I am sad though that she did not make it into the top three because with all the work she has done, she deserves to win something. I hope she is awarded Miss Congeniality because despite her struggles, she has always been kind and uplifting.

Naomi Smalls

Though she had a shaky start, this queen has gone above and beyond with her looks ever since the makeover challenge. With each episode Raven’s influence on her becomes more evident in the best way. Naomi is very polished with her drag and her aesthetic. She would especially appeal to a younger, more fashion-forward crowd and her background of being adopted increases her relatability. However, I don’t think she has reached her full potential yet and with time she could definitely become a phenomenal icon and increase her versatility. I love Naomi dearly, but I’m on the fence as to whether she should be the recipient of the crown.

Bob the Drag Queen

From the minute she walked in I knew she would make it to the top three. Over and over again she has proven her talent and capability in a variety of challenges. While this season did not have as many fun catchphrases, the genius of her “purse first” creation makes up for it. I really enjoy her humor and her down to earth attitude. She’s true to herself, and her jokes are especially enjoyable because she often uses humor to subtly call out problematic aspects of society. She’s also very outspoken about different issues so I think she would use the influence from the crown in a positive, impactful way. The only problem I can see is that she is too similar to Bianca Del Rio in that she is primarily a comedy queen. RuPaul usually crowns winners who are unique and can bring something new to the drag world, which I’m not sure Bob can necessarily do.

Kim Chi

I admit, she is my main favorite and the queen who I want to win most of all. Throughout the entire competition she has been unbelievably sweet, supportive, and an overall doll. Every week she has cranked out impressive, fantastical looks and creations that wow the judges, plus she has never had to lipsync for her life. She has so far used the show as a platform to illustrate cultural differences and the difficulties that accompany them, especially in her remarks about rampant racism within the gay male community. Even though she hasn’t been doing drag for long, just in that span of time she has created a completely new aesthetic within the drag community. As a winner, she could potentially innovate drag as an art form in so many ways, and her sweet, awkward demeanor will never stop capturing the hearts of fans. In terms of bringing something new to drag, she would be the best option, especially since she can potentially expand drag culture to countries like South Korea. Her only hindrance is that her dancing and acting abilities are limited in comparison to other queens. I have high hopes for her though.

Some people have complained about this season not being very exciting due to its shortness and lack of major drama among the queens. However, I believe that this was one of the strongest seasons yet because of the talented cast. It was refreshing to see the competition not be as aggressive and cutthroat as it has been portrayed in the past. The majority of the queens had a lot of respect for each other and used the show as an opportunity to learn, expand their artistic perceptions of drag, and to meet a variety of other drag performers. The competition was strong, but it was not as catty and hostile. It truly was “RuPaul’s Best Friend Race,” but I found that to be a positive quality, especially since last season the show tried so hard to be shady and create drama with the queens. The overall cast has been talented and so creative. It’s disappointing that the season is shorter than usual because I always want more when it comes to drag queens, but I’m still very excited for the finale. I may be rooting for Kim Chi, but Naomi and Bob are also superb queens who I would enthusiastically support as winners. I’m sad that it is almost over, but that just means we are that much closer to season nine or the second All Stars.