Benefit BadGal BANG! Mascara -- Worth the Hype?

Let’s get into our blogger time machine, all the way back to 2011…when Benefit’s They’re Real mascara ruled my makeup bag. It was (still is) stupidly long-wearing, and seriously ripped my lashes out at the root. Then came BadGal, which I never loved. It smudged way too easily. Then came Roller Lash, which I loved, and still do, but it has taken a backseat to the many new mascaras that have come after it.

 Last weekend, shopping at Ulta, I got the opportunity to look at BadGal BANG! up close and in person, and was also given a little deluxe sample!

Here are some thoughts I had on it.

 Claims:

•           36-hour wear
•           Intense black color
•           Water-resistant
•           Smudge-proof
•           False lash effect

  Cost: $24 (US)

Packaging: This mascara comes with a rubbery package and a cap covered in soft-touch studs, like those weird rubbery earrings that were popular when I was in middle school. But let’s talk about that brush. It’s very thin and slightly cone-shaped. It also is very soft and flexible.

Mascara Formula: It is very wet, unlike many of the other Benefit mascaras that I find are a drier formula. In the past, I have found that my BadGal and They’re Real mascaras get better with age, so I’m interested to see how this one performs as it starts to dry out.

Performance: This was the most disappointing thing. It did not create an intense amount of volume or length. It was incredibly underwhelming. But whatever. It was good enough to wear to work, right? Wrong. This smudged so badly. I checked my makeup at lunch and I had the dreaded panda eyes. I tried it out the second day, thinking maybe it was just my eyes being particularly runny or oily. Nope. Same thing two days in a row. For something that claims to have a ridiculous 36-hour wear, that's not acceptable.

Final Verdict: So, is this worth the hype? Solid no. It smudges like crazy and doesn't look very good. I feel very strongly that there are much better mascaras available for much cheaper. You do not need to waste your hard-earned dollars on this one. I will be waiting to see how this performs in another week or two when it dries out, but so far my verdict is firmly in the no category.