‘The Boulet Brothers’ Dragula’ Recap: ‘Children of the Can’

11/8/2023

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Photo of the Cast of Season 5 of ‘The Boulet Brothers’ Dragula’ Courtesy of Shudder.

Caution: This article contains spoilers for Episode 502 of ‘The Boulet Brothers’ Dragula’. To revisit the Season Five Premiere, click here.

Something that comes up time and time again in our discussions of the wondrous Shudder series, The Boulet Brothers’ Dragula, is how well Drac and Swan educate us regarding horror and celebrate our relationship with it. And this has come up so often, simply because for the past five years, and even through Titans, this incredible duo keeps finding new ways to remind us of how we fell in love with horror. Of how we were exposed to it in ways we never thought possible and of course, how those moments that opened our eyes, somehow ties into the rich fabric of the genre. Which really does provide us with incredible perspective regarding the genre week in and week out.

If anything, this wondrous reason to tune in is top of mind today, because it was once again put on display in the show. For ‘Children of the Can’ allowed for Drac and Swan to inform us that if you were a child of the 1980s and 1990s, you were introduced to horror in a manner that you weren’t aware of, through quirky trading cards. For ‘The Garbage Pail Kids’ were filled to the brim with twisted characters that served as a gateway to horror. Since some of those characters were monsters outright, and/or were tributes to classic monsters from the past, giving rise to curiosity on our part, to seek out those monsters and learn about them. All of which, played a huge part in the history of the genre, and introduced so many to it.

But of course, there was a rhyme and a reason to this fascinating lesson, in that… it was up to the monsters to create their own drag version of these iconic cards. One that would impress and properly pay tribute to the spirit of the ol’ GPK, but not before we learned… that no one was sent home last week and that… this week’s episode… was going to make us extremely nauseous. Because Drac and Swan really wanted to use this episode to lean into the filth aspect of drag and boy, did they ever. First by having everyone drink trash smoothies that looked as disgusting as could be. Not to mention, someone was going to have to sit in a well-used port-a-potty to assemble their looks because… filth. Which brought forth some gross moments, the kind that were amplified by the floor show.

Because the monsters learned quickly what the expectation is from the Boulet Brothers and that brought forth some amazing tributes to those classic cards. The kind that featured the perfect blend of cheeky concepts and horror, as evidenced by what Throb Zombie brought to the table. Alongside some perfect horror elements, courtesy of Nohuru’s amazing spider hybrid. But of course, not everyone wowed from beginning to end, since some of the costumes just didn’t resonate or really wow this week, and that’s okay. Because that’s how this goes. But disappointment did lead to one last gross moment in the show. Wherein the bottom looks had to fight for their lives by moving worms and maggots from one location to another with their mouths, and the monster that moved the most, won another shot at the title.

Which was… awful to watch, but hey, this is what happens when there are concerns that there isn’t enough filth in the show. In that, we are thusly treated to some horrendous filth, and hopefully we all learned to be careful what we wish for, and hopefully no one was eating when they watched this episode. But that aside, this was, a great episode through and through. One that once again celebrated horror and its history in a supremely relatable manner and of course, featured some amazing judges once again. Since Matthew Lillard offered up amazing insight, as did Landon Cider. In fact, Landon did some schooling as well, and now that we’ve reached the end of this leg of the competition it is definitely safe to say we are all both nervous and excited to see what lies ahead. Excited because the monsters are bringing it, and nervous… because Drac and Swan aren’t messing around their challenges, either. Until next time.

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