television
First Eliminated 'Masked Singer' Turned Out to Be LGBTQ Superstar
The shiny Faberge egg getup should have been a dead giveaway.
September 26 2019 8:56 AM EST
September 25 2019 10:46 PM EST
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The shiny Faberge egg getup should have been a dead giveaway.
The first singer eliminated on The Masked Singer this season turned out to be Olympic figure skater Johnny Weir.
The sports announcer turned costumed entertainer was eliminated after the season 2 kickoff Wednesday evening. Early in the episode, the Egg performed a cover of "Just Dance" by Lady Gaga. Judges actually mentioned Weir as a possible personality behind the mask, TV Guidereports. Curiously, other out stars like fellow figure skater Adam Rippon, Queer Eye host Jonathan Van Ness and fashion design Christian Siriano also were floated as possible secret identities behind the hard-shelled exterior.
Egg won some praise both for the Gaga number but seemed to crack under pressure, critics said.
He can't sing that great but, he was serving it hot like an omelette at a buffet," wrote TV Guide recapper Michael Venable. "Still, he got fried in this competition and headed to the Smackdown, where he was beaten by Skeleton."
Online, plenty of people correctly guessed Egg's identity.
\u201cIs the Egg Johnny Weir? A lot of his costume were swan inspired #TheMaskedSinger\u201d— Frankie Fallwell (@Frankie Fallwell) 1569457208
None— William Hoffman (@William Hoffman) 1569459343
\u201cIf Johnny Weir really is the egg then I think one of the contestants could be Tara Lipinski because you know they\u2019re always appearing together #TheMaskedSinger\u201d— Shirley (@Shirley) 1569462247
Indeed, as the show wound down and it was time to reveal the identity of a booted contestant, the Egg had a great fall, then lifted his mascot mask, and the unshaven head of Weir emerged.
"It was nice to be able to perform and not shave for once!" Weir later wrote on Twitter.
So he got booted, shortly before gamer Ninja would get stripped of his Ice Cream identity.
Like an Olympic medal, a victory of The Masked Singer was not meant to be. But unlike a Faberge egg taken and auctioned off by a bitter ex-husband, the identity of Egg will always be Weir's and Weir's alone.
\u201cAND THE #EGGMASK IS...@JohnnyGWeir!\ud83e\udd5a#TheMaskedSinger\u201d— The Masked Singer (@The Masked Singer) 1569474160