And what is our favorite tranny icon wearing on the covers of our favorite fashion magazines this season?

LADY GAGA for Vogue
photographed by Mario Testino
dress by Alexander McQueen

I knew Gaga would wear this dress as soon as it walked down the McQueen runway. Kudos to the photoshoot stylist for pairing it with that glorious necklace.

tailcoat, bodysuit and trousers by Alexander McQueen

After infamy for rarely wearing pants, if you’re finally going to wear them, they should be better ones than this.

blouse and pants by Louis Vuitton

Not one of my favorites. She doesn’t look at all natural in this slouchy, parachute business.

jacket by Hussein Chalayan

Pure Gaga. And the shoot didn’t style her with this – this is Gaga’s own actual jacket.

dress by Haider Ackermann

Again, the slouchy, slinky looks are not my favorites. Gaga is stunning, but not in a traditional way, and that means there’s a limited amount of styling that works fo rher kind of beauty. This 1920s flapper thing isn’t really it.

gown by Alexander McQueen

This, however, explains why McQueen and Gaga make for sure a delicious paring. Their daring, their boldness, their believe in fashion as performance art – that combination is rare, and it makes pictures like this astounding.

LADY GAGA for Harper’s Bazaar
photographed by Terry Richardson
dress by Tex Saverio ($3885)

I don’t know which I want more – the dress, the wig, or the chandelier. I’m obsessed with all of it. She’s never looked better, in my opinion.

bra by Kiki de Montparnasse ($225); fishnets by Levante ($17); shoes by Alexander McQueen ($1150)

It’s a Terry Richardson photoshoot, so you know there’s going to have to be nudity. This is a bit more than necessary, but that peach dyed hair is still working for me, and those McQueen booties are YUM.

dress and mask by Alexander McQueen

Stunning.

haute couture gown by Christian Dior, vintage mask and gloves by Thierry Mugler

Creepier than words, but the dress is pretty killer.

top and skirt by Versace ($3025)

Actually a little dull for Gaga. I’ve seen January Jones and Blake Lively in the likes of this dress – the only thing that’s keeping Gaga from looking downright normal as run-of-the-mill mega-hottie are those facial prosthetics.

jacket pants and shoes by Thierry Mugler

Gorgeous. Thierry Mugler is Gaga’s personal stylist-turned-designer, and Gaga walked in Mugler’s first big show in the Fall 2011 season. And when they get together, they really create some beautiful and crazy things. Those shoes are so far beyond insane.

bodysuit by Francesco Scognamiglio

Dayglo macarons and a dress made of boobs. Welcome to the life of Lady Gaga.

LADY GAGA for V Magazine
Photographed by Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin
dress by Thierry Mugler

Not a great photo. The styling is awful, and the shot itself is weak.

I can’t take the stupid wig, but this shot is marginally better.

mask by Peter Phillips

Killer. An African queen.

Definitely ferocious enough for the cover. LOVE that eggplant lipstick.

A very Gaga moment, between the alien-bodysuit shoulderpads and the glittering rainbow face mask. But it all works (except, of course, that rat’s nest of a wig).

But this is a truly beautiful photo.

And this is one of the best Lady Gaga covers I’ve ever seen.

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© Democracy Diva, 2011.