Spoilers ahead for the Season 2 premiere of The Masked Singer!
Television's most bizarrely entertaining reality competition series is back! The Masked Singer has returned for Season 2 with a bunch of new mystery celebrity contestants, a little bit of a new format, and more shenanigans from the judges, who will struggle harder in the second season. The first competitors of the season were Butterfly, Egg, Thingamajig, Skeleton, Ladybug, Rottweiler, Tree, and Ice Cream. The premiere was a two-hour event that saw not one but two eliminations. Would the Egg be cracked? Would the Tree have to leaf? Would the judges throw the Skeleton a bone? Here's what happened.
The celebrity contestants all did admirable jobs of performing, and it's pretty clear that not all of them are trained singers. Despite their best efforts, Egg and Ice Cream were eliminated. Let's start with Egg:
Egg -- who named his strength as "well rounded" and his weakness as "cracks under pressure" -- first hit the stage with a rendition of Lady Gaga's "Just Dance." It was an energetic performance with a certain type of grace that, combined with the appearance of a skateboard in his clues, led several judges to suspect that he was either ice skater Johnny Weir or Adam Rippon, who already won one reality competition TV show.
He lost to Butterfly, however, and moved on to the smackdown round against Skeleton. Despite a solid performance of Blondie's "One Way or Another," he lost the smackdown to Skeleton with his "Hard to Handle" by Otis Redding. Ultimately, one of the initial judge guesses proved correct: it was Olympic figure skater Johnny Weir!
Now, onto Ice Cream!
Ice Cream's strength and weakness were no surprise. He was described as "super chill" but weak when faced with "high temperatures." His song was "Old Town Road" by Lil Nas X and Billy Ray Cyrus. While he wasn't the strongest at belting, his costume was a favorite of the judges for the night. The judge guesses were a little more varied for Ice Cream, with picks ranging from skateboarder Rob Dyrdek to DJ Marshmello.
When Ice Cream went to the smackdown round, he faced off against Ladybug. His performance of Devo's "Whip It" wasn't enough to beat Ladybug's "Hit Me With Your Best Shot" by Pat Benatar. The time came for Ice Cream to lose his scoop, and he was revealed as YouTube personality Tyler "Ninja" Blevins! None of the judges got it right! And not Freddie Highmore after all!
Now, how about a rundown of the contestants who are still in the running?
Butterfly
First Opponent: Egg
Strength and Weakness: Grace, Often flighty
Clues: The Butterfly waited the past year for metamorphosis, is now terrified by the place once called home (complete with a picture of London and Big Ben), found strength in the mask, learned to release past and all who clipped her wings, and intends to take the competition "to church"
Song: "Bang Bang" by Jessie J., Ariana Grande, and Nicki Minaj
Judge Guesses: Mel B., Cara Delevingne, Diana Ross
Fan Guesses: Miley Cyrus, Michelle Williams
Thingamajig
First Opponent: Skeleton
Strength and Weakness: Can reach anything, small spaces
Clues: Raps his clues, a gentle giant, loves to sing despite many not thinking it would be his thing, more than fashion shoots and dreams, sneakers, cupcake with four candles, very tall
Song: "Easy" by Commodores
Judge Guesses: Michael Strahan, Steph Curry, Dennis Rodman
Fan Guesses: Victor Olapido, Wayne Brady
Skeleton
First Opponent: Thingamajig
Strength and Weakness: Bone density, no guts
Clues: No fear of death and doesn't overeat, been around the block a few times but far from dead, key to success is always say yes, tired of playing second fiddle, finally gets spotlight all to self, "party on dudes"
Song: "Rapper's Delight" by Sugarhill Gang/"Good Times" by Chic
Judge Guesses: Jon Cryer, Nathan Lane, Dana Carvey, Martin Short
Fan Guesses: Kevin Hart, Martin Short
Ladybug
First Opponent: Rottweiler
Strength and Weakness: Good luck, wind shields
Clues: Chose ladybug mask because she could use some love and laughs after lifetime of drama, born into the limelight with the media always keeping up with gossip, couldn't win no matter how hard she tried
Song: "Holding Out For A Hero" by Bonnie Tyler
Judge Guesses: Lily Collins, Willow Smith, Lindsay Lohan, Jamie Lynn Spears
Fan Guesses: Marie Osmond, Kelly Osborne, Miley Cyrus
Rottweiler
First Opponent: Ladybug
Strength and Weakness: Protective, rib eyes
Clues: Must look best to perform best, first time he touched a pigskin was under Friday night lights, "fantasy champion" ring, bitten by a Rottweiler as a kid, rose to fame almost overnight
Song: "Maneater" by Hall and Oates
Judge Guesses: Russell Wilson, Brian Littrell, Nick Lachey, JC Chasez, Bruno Mars
Fan Guesses: Chris Daughtry, Brian Littrell
Tree
First Opponent: Ice Cream
Strength and Weakness: Lights up a room, highly flammable
Clues: She loves getting dolled up, only useful for one season, wishes the world wouldn't ignore her for more than just what she's known for, doesn't like to spend so long in exile, expert in delicious treats, wants to jazz up career
Song: "High Hopes" by Panic! at the Disco
Judge Guesses: Rachael Ray, Beverly D'Angelo, Zooey Deschanel, Wendi Mclendon-Covey
Fan Guesses: Ayesha Curry, Jane Krakowski, Mariah Carey
The Masked Singer: The Most Surprising Reveals From Season 1
See more of what's in store for the masked celebrity with new episodes of The Masked Singer on Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET on Fox. There are plenty more options coming to the small screen in the not-too-distant future, so be sure to swing by our fall TV premiere guide.
