The third entry in the battle for a place in the Drag Race Hall of Fame will grace our lives come this winter, and the cast has just been revealed. Who all made it? Who didn’t? How do they stack up? Here’s my take.

Rupaul’s Drag Race is arguably one of the greatest reality competitions in the world, with a talented cast each season required to do astronomical amount of creative things in crazy time-crunches and yet produce works of stellar quality. It’s no coincidence because drag queens are pioneers of pop culture and are some of the most original and creative people who have a penchant for turning the mundane into something magical. Just looking at the greatest of the ladies of pop music, and the influence of drag culture is easily apparent. Rupaul, the Stephen Hawking of the drag world used her legacy and influence to create a little show back in 2009 to showcase the talents, and comedy, of drag queens in America, and that little show which looked like a fever-dream shot in Barbra Streisand’s basement has grown into 9 regular and 2 All Stars seasons winning Emmys and Screen Actors Guild awards, with millions of people tuning into watch some of the most entertaining people in television. Season 9, which finished this summer, was the most successful, having gone mainstream by moving to Vh1. All Stars 2, airing in 2016, was probably the best season, featuring some of the best the show has had to offer in terms of contestants and challenges, and surprises and shocking moments.

All Stars 3 has been announced with a cast of 9, though it is rumored to have at least one more surprise queen in the mix. So, who will earn a place with Chad Michaels and Alaska Thunderfuck 5000 in the Hall of Fame? Well this time around there’s actually chance for many to be front-runners, unlike when Alaska and Chad were the clear front-runners. So here are the queens.

Morgan McMichaels

Morgan is the only season 2 contestant in this lineup, and that helps her in being almost a surprise queen, because most of the present audiences might not be aware of the ladies from the earlier seasons. To be honest, I don’t have really high hopes for Morgan, as she hasn’t shown particularly great talents in anything other than her tight lipsyncs (her lipsync against Sonique is a masterclass in tight, precise lipsyncing), and her makeup skills are still not quite where I would love it to be. Morgan knows how to put on a show, and her body is banging, and she is one of those girls who will bring the drama and speak their minds, which is always entertaining. In season 2, after winning the first challenge, Morgan pretty much blended into the wallpaper and was not really a player, so it will be interesting to see what she’s capable of when she actually tries. But could the mean-girl companion of Raven in the I Hate Tatianna club pull a Tatianna and surprise us all?

Chances of winning: Ummm… Nope.

2. AJA

Aja is the youngest, and least post-drag-race-career girl in the bunch having been in season 9, but Aja is easily one of the stronger stage performers and memorable additions to the cast. She brought drama, mama, and her iconic “aggressive complimenting” of Valentina has becoming one of the classic moments, and memes, from the show. In the show itself, Aja came across mostly insecure and unprepared for her year, being the youngest and immature, but it has been a year since the fact and she has had time and experience to grow. Her looks and makeup skills have improved vastly, cus gurl looked almost busted a few times and social-media filters were not available to take care of that, and lets hope so has her ability to perform in challenges, because otherwise she will be eaten whole by her competitors here because they are no Farrah Moan or Nina Bo’nina I Shoulda Been Blac Chyna Brown. That said, I look forward to Aja, because she’s also a kind queen, who has a tongue on her and will call you out (looking at you Miss ‘Fan-Favorite’ Valentina), and both her lipsyncs were fun.

Chances of winning: She’ll be devoured by the others, most likely.

3. Shangela

Shangela is one of the front-runners going into the competition. She has a very long history with the show, having entered in season 2 with only 5 months of drag experience and then promptly sent home the first episode, but she was then brought back for season 3 and lasted till top 6. She knows exactly what to do to catch the camera’s eye in a reality TV setting, and has stayed one of the most popular names associated with the show. Her makeup skills and costuming were…#choices in season 3, but it has been a minute and being the Werkin Girl that she is, she has been preparing for her chance on All Stars to win the crown she has been battling for so long, similar to Alaska. She has also appeared at the VMAs, in 2 Broke Girls, and Dance Moms, so she knows what she’s doing. Being in the House of Edwards with favourite Alyssa Edwards and the iconic Laganja Estranja, Shangela has had time and the chance to really up her game. Her lipsyncs have all been consistently brilliant, and she’s comedy gold. Acting and singing challenges are also in her wheelhouse, so unless she fudges up royally, there’s very little preventing Shangela from barreling through the competition (except a few other contestants, of course). Her looks have gotten better, though I’m still iffy about her makeup and padding sometimes. But I’m sure her sugar daddy can fix that, am I right Mimi Imfurst??

Chances of winning: Extremely high.

4. MILK

You guys, I love MILK. She’s easily one of my favourite queens to ever appear on the show, from the moment she walked in to that work room. She’s probably one of the most unique queens to compete, rocking facial hair, doing male-Ru impressions and pregnant bellies on the runway, which were all quite controversial in her run during the show. Performance-wise, MILK didn’t quite live up to the hype around her, but season 6 had one of the strongest casts in the show’s history, and she has grown immensely since then, having grown a personality! MILK also paved the way for other artistic, weird queens in the show like MAX, Acid Betty and Sasha Velour (All of whom emerged my favorites each season). MILK’s makeup skills were questioned during her run, but she has clearly improved by leaps and bounds (she had the popular Milk’s Legendairy Looks show on WOWpresents channel to show off her makeup skills after all), and her stage performances are some of the quirkiest you’ll get from a Ru-girl. This time around, I’m hoping MILK gets to show off more of her amazing looks and personality (not to mention her drool-worthy look as a boy, cus Dan is KYOOT). Snatch Game might be his downfall, though.

Chances of winning: Unlikely.

5. Kennedy Davenport

OK. So. Kennedy. Alright.

Old school, cocky and outspoken. Dull as paint most of the time, when not stirring up drama. One of the mean-girls from season 7 along with Ginger Minj, poking on every one of the younger fashion girls (MAX, Pearl, Violet and Trixie). She’s renowned as a terrific lipsyncer, and it’s true, when the song matches the steps, but I have noticed that she uses the same steps and tricks regardless of song or context, unlike say Laganja or Shangela, and I find that boring after a while. Looks are mostly pedestrian, and I’m still cackling at the audacity of Kenedy’s to criticise anyone while wearing her digested-chicken-thrown up-in-a-furball outfit that is easily the worst look from all the seasons of drag race. Her Snatch Game was surprisingly good, and has the occasional moments of comedic value, but I’m not sold on her at all. In season 7, a lack of performance-heavy queens clearly helped Kennedy a lot in securing her top 4 spot, but I agree with her on one thing; she was better top 3 material than Pearl.

Chances of winning: Meh

6. Chi Chi Devayne

Chi Chi is like a younger, funnier version of Kennedy, and that could be to Kennedy’s detriment. And Kennedy has one other quality that gives her the upper hand; likeability. During her season, Chi Chi was torn about her financial troubles, being in bankruptcy, which meant that her drag was on a cheaper level than most of the others, but she’s shown herself to be a crafty queen, improving vastly throughout the competition. She’s naturally funny, and engaging on screen in or out of drag, which can be a great advantage because you can’t buy star quality. Chi Chi clearly is hungry for this, and it shows in her work during and post the show, She’s willing to grow, and she did, and becoming a fan-favourite of season 8, her easy charm and, Chi Chi can go far if she plays the game right. Also, now she’s gt some doullahs, as Ru would say, so her drag has elevated and can give the others a run for their money, and I look forward to her. She’s also someone who deserves another chance to really show her stuff and is a prime example of why All Stars exist. On a side-note, I’m sure every one of you hoes are looking forward to and hoping that Chi Chi and Kennedy lispync against each other, because you know that will be legendary.

Chances of winning: Depends on how Shangela and Trixie fail.

7. BenDelaCreme

Dela was a real contender in season six, one of the only queens to really put up a challenge for Bianca Del Rio‘s unstoppable coasting to the crown. She’s been a fan favourite since, winning Miss Congeniality, but she’s also a very strong competitor who knows exactly how to compete to make herself a threat. Season 5 winner Jinkx Monsoon considers herself the Kelly Rowland to Dela’s Beyonce, (Robbie is clearly the Michelle Williams) so that in itself speaks volumes about Dela’s potential. She comes in as a serious hurdle to Shangela and Trixie in their race to this particular crown. Dela can sing, act, (not) dance and do comedy (having done several successful one-woMan shows) but she also has a handle on costuming, which is usually the downfall of other comedy queens. She also has skills to read other queens and be shady when required. I’m looking forward to her run on All Stars.

Chances of winning: High, but again seems more a Katya than an Alaska.

8. Thorgy Thor

Okay, so I’ll be honest. I don’t see Thorgy going far this time around. As much as I love Thorgy and her infectious energy, there’s something missing that prevents her from reaching the kind of drag-race winner quality that some of the other queens have. Just like Katya, MAX, Jujubee, Latrice and Courtney Act, to name some, Thorgy just seems destined to be one of those queens who can do well on drag race, but will not win it because they don’t cut it in that special way the usual winners do (I initially thought Sasha Velour belonged to this group, but boy was I pleasantly surprised). Thorgy is definitely a gifted queen, a funny, charming, witty performer who can be catty and cutting as well, but editing was her big issue in season 8, and also Bob the unpainted Drag Queen. I have a feeling that Thorgy wouldn’t do as well as she did in a competition with queens as potent as, say, Shangela or Bianca or even Ginger. But I am ready to be surprised and proven wrong, because no one can dislike Thorgy.

Chances of winning: Hopefully she won’t be the Ginger Minj as seen in All Stars 2 here.

9. Trixie Mattel

Trixie was, along with Chi Chi and Shangela, the most obvious pick for All Stars 3, and she has it in her to battle it with them for the crown. In her season, Trixie was shafted, losing out twice, both undeservedly (Sound familiar, Tatianna?). But Trixie also wasn’t a fully developed character yet, so its great to see her compete again with a surer confidence and a better understanding of how drag race works. But Trixie also comes in with an immense amount of pressure, because fans expect her to breeze through the challenges, but that will not be the case because as much as Trixie has grown with Katya, she still could fail when it comes to scripted challenges or to the format of the show (looking at you, Alyssa). There’s nothing much to say, except that All Stars 1 and 2 got rid of all the major threats, and now Shangela and Trixie have a real shot at winning the crown they have been denied at least twice. Both have that and the immense fan expectations in common going into the competition, and it will be interesting to see how they cope with that, and also how they compete with each other as they, and everyone else, know that it’s for either of them to lose the crown. As challenging as the All Stars 1 and 2 were, Chad and Alaska had no real threat except themselves. After Manila was sent unfairly packing early on, the only competition Chad had was Raven, but Raven is no Chad, or Manila, when it comes to performing. Similarly, Katya and Detox might be exciting and fun queens, and Alyssa might be the most infectious creature to walk through the doors of that workroom, but none of them have the discipline or performance skill of Alaska who is arguably the best contestant the show has seen (I know Bianca and Sharon fans will disagree, but.. sue me).

Chances of winning: Gurl, don’t trip, and you got this.

I am also highly interested in seeing an all-winners season of drag race. Imagining Alaska, Sharon, Bianca, Jinkx and Sasha really bringing their a-game and their post-drag race acumen to perform to perfection… I’m already seating with anticipation.

Queens who could have made the cut, or should prepare for All Stars 4.

Laganja Estranja: Memorable. Wacky. Now polished and a fan-darling after a disastrous season. Amazing performer.

Ongina: The original bald queen. Talented. Funny. Adorable. Inspiring. Hopefully makeup has improved and is not afraid to put on wigs.

Valentina: Miss Fan Favorite. Controversial. Polished. Learning lyrics now. Secretly bitchy so would be great to see that side too.

MAX: Polished. Unique. Talented. Unfairly eliminated in a setup. Still holds a certain mystique (which basically means she hasn’t done a lot, but just enough to keep people wanting more). Hopefully learned to be more of a queen.

Nina Bo’nina Brown: Sue me.

Stacey Layne Mathews: It’s so obvious, henny.