The Boulet Brothers' Dragula
The Boulet Brothers' Dragula is a reality competition television series produced by Boulet Brothers Productions in association with OutTV, hosted by The Boulet Brothers. The series currently airs on Netflix in the United States, OUTtv in Canada, and Amazon Prime in the United Kingdom and Australia.
The series is created and hosted by the Boulet Brothers, who challenge a different set of eleven drag artists from around the world to compete in an underground style drag competition each season. The artists compete for the chance to win a cash prize and the crown of "Dragula - the World’s Next Drag Supermonster". The show celebrates underground and alternative drag art, and bases each episode's challenges on the four principles of the show - "Drag", "Filth", "Horror" and "Glamour".
Competitors on the show are tasked week to week in a variety of challenges ranging from costume creation, special-effects makeup, live performance and acting abilities. Each episode a winner is chosen, and the two contestants who end up on the bottom must face extreme “extermination challenges” which test them physically and psychologically to prove they have the punk spirit required by the judges to remain in the competition.
History
The Boulet Brothers Dragula is created and produced by the Boulet Brothers, and their production company Boulet Brothers Productions. The reality show is loosely based on their club event and nightlife pageant of the same name. The first season of The Boulet Brothers Dragula premiered on October 31, 2016 and aired as a six episode pilot series on the YouTube channel Hey Qween!.Later that year, the show was picked up by Canadian network OutTV who ordered a full remastered and expanded version of Season 1, as well as a full second season of the show.
Season 2 premiered on October 31, 2017 and aired on Amazon Prime and WOW Presents in the United States. The season aired on Amazon Prime in the United Kingdom, OUTtv in Canada and SBS Viceland in Australia.
The series' third season premiered on Amazon Prime on August 27, 2019. Dragula became the first American reality television competition to feature a drag king after Landon Cider appeared as a contestant in Season 3. Beginning October 31, 2019, seasons 2 and 3 of the series moved to the American streaming service Netflix.
Format
Each episode opens with a scripted scene starring the Boulet Brothers that introduces the episode’s theme and challenge. The rest of the episode is filmed in a reality TV documentary format. The competitors are issued that week’s challenge, and must work among each other, work out their interpersonal issues and create their looks and performances for that week.Floor show
Each episode features a main “Floor Show” where each of the competitors display their looks and performance on the main stage. The performances and looks are judged, and one competitor is chosen the winner while the two or more lowest scoring competitors are put up for “extermination”.Extermination challenges
The show features "Extermination Challenges", fear-based physical and psychological tests created to push the competitors to “face their fears” in order to remain on the show. Past extermination challenges have included being buried alive in a coffin, being pierced with gauged needles, skydiving, eating cow intestines, and surviving an evening in an extreme haunted house. The competitor who fails the extermination challenge is "killed off" by the Boulet Brother's in a scripted scene at the end of each episode.Judges
The Boulet Brothers serve as the primary judges on the show, and are the only regular judges on the panel. Each episode they are joined by a rotating cast of celebrity musicians, directors, writers and horror alumni including Henry Rollins, Milly Shapiro, Amanda Lepore, Bonnie Aarons, Felissa Rose, Danielle Harris, Rachel True, and Cig Nuetron. American horror film director Darren Stein and drag legend Peaches Christ are the only judges to have appeared in all three seasons of the show.Series overview
Season 1 (2016–17)
The first episode aired on Halloween, with new episodes every other Monday on Hey Qween network. The series featured nine contestants competing for the title and a prize of $10,000. Guest judges included director Darren Stein, and drag performers Peaches Christ and Heklina. At the end of the sixth episode, Vander Von Odd was crowned as the winner and the World's First Drag Supermonster.The season was subsequently remastered, incorporating unutilized footage. The remastered version was distributed by OutTv, Amazon Prime, and SBS Viceland.
Contestants
All contestants in the first season resided in Los Angeles, California:| Contestant | Hometown | Outcome |
| Vander Von Odd | Los Angeles, California | Winner |
| Frankie Doom | Los Angeles, California | Runner-up |
| Melissa Befierce | Los Angeles, California | Runner-up |
| Meatball | Los Angeles, California | 4th Place |
| Loris | North Hollywood, California | 5th/6th Place |
| Xochi Mochi | Los Angeles, California | 5th/6th Place |
| Foxie Adjuia | Los Angeles, California | 7th Place |
| Ursula Major | Los Angeles, California | 8th Place |
| Pinche Queen | Los Angeles, California | 9th Place |
Contestant progress
Exterminations
Episode summary
| Episode | Title | Original Airdate | Main Challenge | Extermination Challenge |
| 1 | Wickedest Witch | October 31, 2016 | Design a wicked witch outfit and reenact the death of the Wicked Witch of the West | Being buried alive while in a coffin as bugs, water and dirt are thrown in your face |
| 2 | 80's Female Wrestler | November 14, 2016 | Design an 80's inspired wrestler look and perform a wrestling show | Wrestle in a pool of mud aggressively and in character |
| 3 | Zombies in Death Valley | November 28, 2016 | Design a zombie look in Death Valley for their rotten runway and showcase their zombie acting | Eat as much pig brains as possible without using hands |
| 4 | Pretty, Pink, Fishy Drag | December 12, 2016 | Showcase a pretty in pink, fishy drag | Perform a lip sync to Alaska Thunderfuck's song "Nails" while the other queens attempt to distract the performer by throwing food and other objects |
| 5 | Trannyshack Club | January 2, 2017 | Perform for the guest judges Heklina and Peaches Christ at the club Trannyshack in San Francisco | Create a seamonster look, and endure a drag photoshoot in the cold San Francisco Bay |
| 6 | Finale | January 16, 2017 | N/A | Interpret and design three outfits with the principles of DRAGULA: Glamour, Filth and Horror |
| 7 | Secrets of Dragula: Lost Footage | February 20, 2017 | N/A | N/A |
| – | Reunion | March 20, 2017 | N/A | N/A |
Season 2 (2017–18)
The second season of Dragula premiered on October 31, 2017 and aired Tuesdays on OUTtv in Canada, Amazon Prime in the United States and United Kingdom, and SBS Viceland in Australia. This season featured 10 queens competing to be the World's Next Drag Supermonster. The title also came with a $10,000 cash prize. Contestants in the second season included Seattle-based James Majesty and Atlanta-based Biqtch Puddin' and Abhora.In episode 10, Victoria Elizabeth Black, James Majesty and Biqtch Puddin' competed for the title of Dragula, and at the end of the episode The Boulet Brothers crowned Biqtch Puddin' as the World's Next Drag Supermonster.
Contestants
Contestant progress
Exterminations
Episode summary
| Episode | Title | Original Airdate | Main Challenge | Extermination Challenge |
| 1 | Cenobites | October 31, 2017 | Design an outfit inspired by their own drag style and the Cenobites | Competing with one another to see who can be pierced by the most body modification needles, with the contestant who received the fewest piercings receiving extermination |
| 2 | Ghost Town Ghouls | November 7, 2017 | Design an outfit based on the ghosts of the Old West | Close-range paintball duel |
| 3 | Shock Rock and Metal | November 14, 2017 | Present a look inspired by punk rock and heavy metal and perform on the stage as a band | Receive the worst tattoo you can think of |
| 4 | Sci-Fi Babes | November 21, 2017 | Create an alien look and give birth to a baby based on that look | Consume a three course meal based on the most alien food |
| 5 | Scream Queens | November 28, 2017 | Create a "scream queen/pretty" look and act in a horror movie | Answer questions with a polygraph machine hooked on their bodies |
| 6 | Gothic Brides | December 5, 2017 | Create a gothic bride, prepare a lip sync performance of Switchblade Symphony's song "Gutter Glitter" and customize a fan | Submerge their feet in a bucket full of ice for half an hour |
| 7 | Welcome to Wasteland | December 12, 2017 | Take part in a photoshoot in the desert near temperatures | N/A |
| 8 | Welcome to Wasteland | December 19, 2017 | Perform as a group at Wasteland Weekend with a theme for the performance | Fight in the Wasteland Weekend Thunderdome |
| 9 | Last Supper | January 9, 2018 | ||
| 10 | Finale | January 16, 2018 | Interpret and design three outfits with the principals of DRAGULA: Glamour, Filth and Horror. | N/A |
Season 3 (2019)
On December 5, 2017, OutTV and Boulet Brothers Productions announced that the third season had been greenlit.The Boulet Brothers announced via Twitter on February 23, 2018, that casting would be starting soon and used the hashtag "Season of the Witch". Casting began on March 7, 2018 and finished twenty-one days later on March 28, 2018. The story producer is writer Clint Catalyst.
The prize for the third season was $25,000. Season 3 premiered on August 27, 2019 on Amazon Prime in the United States, Canada, Australia and the United Kingdom, and OUTtv in Canada with weekly episodes airing every Tuesday. The season culminated on October 29, with drag king Landon Cider being crowned as winner.
Contestants
The cast for the third season were revealed on July 11, 2019.| Contestant | Hometown | Outcome |
| Landon Cider | Long Beach, California | Winner |
| Dollya Black | Orlando, Florida | Runner-up |
| Priscilla Chambers | Asheville, North Carolina | Runner-up |
| Louisianna Purchase | Austin, Texas | 4th Place |
| Evah Destruction | Dallas, Texas | 5th Place |
| Maddelynn Hatter | Brooklyn, New York City, New York | 6th Place |
| Hollow Eve | San Francisco, California | 7th Place |
| Maxi Glamour | St. Louis, Missouri | 8th Place |
| Yovska | Toronto, Ontario, Canada | 9th Place |
| St. Lucia | Atlanta, Georgia | 10th Place |
| Violencia! | Boston, Massachusetts | 11th Place |
Note:
- Violencia Exclamation Point is credited as Violencia!
Contestant progress
Exterminations
Note:- In Episode 5, all remaining competitors participated in the extermination challenge, though it was specified beforehand that only Evah Destruction and Hollow Eve would be up for elimination
- In Episode 8, all remaining competitors participated in the extermination challenge, though it was specified beforehand that Landon Cider, who won the main challenge, was through to the grand finale, while everyone else was up for elimination
Episode summary
| Episode | Title | Original air date | Main floor show challenge | Extermination challenge |
| 1 | The Lesser of Two Evils | August 27, 2019 | Design an outfit worthy of being called a Super-villain. Guest Judges: Phil Jimenez and Phi Phi O'Hara Challenge Winner: Dollya Black | Complete an 18,000 foot skydive. Exterminated: Violencia! |
| 2 | Don't Suck | September 3, 2019 | Design a vampire-themed outfit, design a fan from Dirt Squirrel, and perform a live solo burlesque number. Guest Judges: Bonnie Aarons and Amanda Lepore Challenge Winner: Landon Cider | Consume a feast consisting of cow organs and cow's blood. Exterminated: St. Lucia |
| 3 | Drag Monsters of Rock | September 6, 2019 | Compete in two rival bands in a live rock performance and present two looks inspired by punk rock and heavy metal. Guest Judges: Henry Rollins and Peaches Christ Challenge Winner: Evah Destruction | Receive a tattoo chosen by another competitor participating in the extermination. Exterminated: Yovska |
| 4 | The Demons Blood | September 17, 2019 | As Dungeon Masters, the Boulet Brothers rolled dice to assign a race and a class for each contestant. Inspired by Dungeons & Dragons, create a full fantasy look based on the assigned stats and then, while on location in a Renaissance village, act out a classic adventure campaign. Guest Judges: Darren Stein and Michael Varrati Challenge Winner: Evah Destruction Challenge Prize: Queen’s Feast Gala at Medieval Times worth over $1,000 | Beg and plead to not be exterminated while the safe competitors hurl rotten food and insults. Exterminated: Maxi Glamour |
| 5 | No Throw Aways, Not Recycled | September 17, 2019 | Create a Trash Queen Couture look composed entirely of trash and be interviewed by special fashion correspondent, Disasterina. Guest Judges: Felissa Rose and Biqtch Puddin' Challenge Winner: Priscilla Chambers Challenge Prize: $1,000 prize package of Trixie Cosmetics by Trixie Mattel | Use your mouth to blow a cockroach through a tube into the mouth of your competitor at the other end. Exterminated: Hollow Eve |
| 6 | The Operating Theatre | October 1, 2019 | Create a look suitable for a hospital of horrors and then, while on location at an abandoned hospital, model the look for photographers from Alternative Press magazine. Guest Judges: Milly Shapiro and Paige Owens Challenge Winner: Landon Cider Challenge Prize: A two page spread in an upcoming issue of Alternative Press | Delicately remove body parts from a cadaver on a unique operating table built so that every slip of the hand or mistake results in 6,000 volts of electricity straight to a shock collar. Exterminated: Maddelynn Hatter |
| 7 | Le Freak | October 7, 2019 | Turn oddity into art by creating an unforgettable freak show fashion look complete with a showstopping circus sideshow act. As a second part to the challenge, style and incorporate a premium lace front wig using wigs provided by Dragula’s official wig sponsor, Arda Wigs. Guest Judges: Vander Von Odd and Cig Neutron Challenge Winner: Dollya Black Challenge Prize: $500 in wigs courtesy of Arda Wigs | Staple as many dollar bills to their body as possible within sixty seconds. Exterminated: Evah Destruction |
| 8 | Halloween Haunt | October 14, 2019 | Reinvent a classic Halloween costume archetype and elevate the concept with the elements of glamour, filth and/or horror. In addition, carve a jack-o-lantern that accessorizes and accentuates the Halloween costume. Afterward, perform in a four way lip sync battle royale to “Dread” by Ritual Aesthetic. Guest Judges: Rachel True and Danielle Harris Challenge Winner: Landon Cider Challenge Prize: $1,000 in custom corsetry from Misty Couture and a headlining spot at the Boulet Brothers' Los Angeles Halloween Ball 2019 | Search through an abandoned haunt attraction for a hidden invite to the Top 3 while avoiding traps and gag actors. Exterminated: Louisianna Purchase |
| 9 | Last Supper | October 22, 2019 | The exterminated uglies are re-animated for the season 3 reunion to discuss controversies, rivalries, and everything in-between before the final 3 face off in the Grand Finale of Dragula. | N/A |
| 10 | The Grand Finale | October 29, 2019 | Interpret and design three outfits and floor show performances based on the three principles of Dragula: Glamour, Filth and Horror. Winner of Season 3: Landon Cider Runners-Up: Dollya Black & Priscilla Chambers Challenge Prize: Crown & scepter from Fierce Drag Jewels, $25,000 and the title of The World's Next Drag Supermonster | N/A |
Reception
Since its original online airing, Dragula has received positive reviews, and was dubbed “Required Horror Viewing” by Fangoria. Vice writer Jeff Leavell reviewed the series as being "loud, weird" and that it "pisses on heteronormativity". He also said that Dragula should not be thought of as "just a show about drag queens who love grotesque, hardcore queer performance art", and that "in its own way, it's encouraging us to stand united, whether you're a supermonster or not".Adam Zee of Wussy Magazine praised the series for its philosophy towards drag, exemplified by the Boulet Brothers' statement that "We are not here to judge your drag. Drag is art and art is subjective." Zee commented that:
"While it seems simple, this simple idea is what truly distinguishes The Boulet Brother's’ Dragula from RuPaul’s Drag Race and most other reality competitions. The Boulets place significant value in the artistic merit and anti-establishment traditions of drag. They have directed their focus on drag artistry that is unpredictable, outlandish and disturbing rather than getting queens to conform to show business standards. The only molds contestants must fit into are challenge-based or the loose overarching tenets of Filth, Glamour and Horror. Even then, 2 out of 3 is usually good enough to get by."The show has also received favorable coverage for its inclusion of all genders and types of drag performers in the competition, and the series was the first televised U.S. show to feature a drag king and an AFAB drag artist. Landon Cider's appearance on Season 3 of Dragula, was only the second time a drag king had appeared on any reality competition television show, after drag king Hugo Grrrl was a contestant on the New Zealand television series House of Drag in 2018.