Let’s get something straight: Netflix’s reboot of "Queer Eye" most certainly isn’t.
(Sorry, I couldn’t resist!)
Yesterday, I finished the last episode of "Queer Eye." Today, I mourn that I can’t experience the series for the first time again, but I rejoice that I certainly will be watching it again, anytime I need a pick-me-up or just a general reminder that goodness exists in the world.
If you, like me, were too young to experience the original "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy," a revolutionary Bravo series that aired in 2003, then don’t miss your chance to experience Netflix’s reboot. Notably and thankfully, the new Fab Five—a group of gay men each with a particular expertise—are no longer turning their talents on only straight men, either.
In the fourth episode of the season, their client is a mostly-closeted gay black man. While the episode ends with him finally coming out to his stepmother in an emotional and vulnerable moment, the episode explicitly grapples with topics of internalized homophobia, toxic masculinity, and intersectionalism.
But I’m getting ahead of myself. Let’s talk fun stuff first.
I must say I was wary to watch this show. I’m generally not a fan of reality TV unless you count cooking competitions (I was raised on Chopped, whose host, Ted Allen, happens to be the culinary expert of the ORIGINAL Fab Fave). "Queer Eye," however, truly has something for everyone, thanks wholly to the new Fab Five, consisting of Bobby Berk, Karamo Brown, Antoni Porowski, Tan France, and Jonathan Van Ness. It's even got this shout-out for the reluctant straights:
Fan of cooking shows? Culinary expert Antoni teaches men who are only fluent in microwave to cook recipes that elevate their rudimentary (or even non-existent) culinary skills. Like fashion? Tan trades these men’s cargo shorts and crocs for blazers and polished Oxfords. Love HGTV and home renovation shows?
Bobby transforms everything from a basement to a fire station into a gorgeous and functional living space. Karamo, culture expert, is actually a life-coach-slash-therapist in disguise, talking the men through deeper emotional issues and changing their perspectives. Finally, Jonathon teaches the men how to groom properly, but he’s really there to deliver the best one-liners, such as this gem:
However, the real draw of the show is its emotional appeal. All of the Fab Five are irresistibly charming while also being wholly human. Happily, the show includes a diverse range of men making up the Fab Five, from the flamboyant Jonathon to the Pakistani Tan to the black Karamo and the married Bobby.
Each of them brings a unique background and perspective to the show. Karamo empathizes with the closeted gay black man in the South by relating his own experience. He builds bridges with a white, straight southern cop by revealing his fears of being around police officers. Bobby talks religion and sexuality with a devout Christian man. If you don’t cry at least once during the series, are you really human?
Ultimately, that’s the message at the heart of the show: we’re all only human. Gay, straight, or anything in between, we’re all humans who deserve to acknowledge and accept our humanity. The Fab Five don’t only makeover these men, they consistently and regularly preach self-care, confidence, body positivity, and self-acceptance. They know they have a platform to espouse more serious messages, and they don’t hesitate to take advantage of it.
"Queer Eye" is not only an exceptionally charming show, anchored by the genuinely enjoyable and relatable Fab Five, but it’s an incredibly important and relevant one as well. Rather than emphasizing the differences between themselves and the mostly-straight men they make over, the Fab Five seize every instance to build bonds and espouse the similarities that all of humanity has in common.
Much more than entertaining TV, this show is a visceral reminder of our own humanity, challenging us to examine and strengthen our values, basing them around nothing other than acceptance and love. In the eternal words of Jonathon, the Fab Fives truly are saving lives and doing the most.
