Queer Eye/Boy Meets Boy | Golden Skate

Queer Eye/Boy Meets Boy

Joined
Aug 3, 2003
Bravo has gotten a lot of buzz for its gay-themed summer programming. What do those who have seen either or both of these shows, "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy" and "Boy Meets Boy," think of them? If homosexuality offends you, you should probably stop reading here:)

Me, I love 'em! "Queer Eye" sounded awful in the previews, but I was pleasantly and joyfully surprised. For those of you who don't get Bravo, "QESG" has five gay men (the "Fab Five"), each with an area of expertise, ie, interior design; clothing -- oops, couture; culture; hair and fragrance; and food and wine, do a make over on the look and apartment of a usually slobby straight guy. It sounds awful, but I think the personalities and lighthearted approach make it work. Plus the straight guy has some sort of romantic goal with the woman in his life; one wanted to fix himself and his place up so he could ask his girlfriend to move in with him; one wanted to propose to his girlfriend; one wanted to be able to take his girl dancing; things like that.

Anyway, I think it's great to see middle class straight men and a variety of personalities among the "Fab Five" interact. One, Carson, is an outgoing queen who is always ready with a choice remark. Sometimes the remarks are playfully sexual, eg, on the episode where the guy was going to propose to his girlfriend, Carson said to the very attractive straight guy, "Look, if your girlfriend says no, the consolation prize is that you get to marry all of us." OTOH, sometimes he's just funny. One guy was rather "plump," though he did look a lot better after the guys had gotten him the right clothes and fixed him up. The guy looked at his new self in the mirror and said, "So do I look like Ben Affleck?" The reply, "More like Ben and Jerry Affleck." The very fact that these very real guys joke around about sexuality is I think a watershed moment for television. (All right, the show is taped for now exculsively in New York, New Jersey, or Connecticut, so they're not exactly in Kansas.) But I think it's wonderful to see the straight guys (one was even a port authority cop) taking the advice of the gay guys, some of whom are completely unaffected and businesslike, others, as I said, are quite colorful, look completely comfortable and ultimately be so pleased with the results. And rightly so. Both the men themselves and their digs look incredibly better after the makeover, which individually are really pretty simple. It's one of those "whole greater than the sum of its parts" deals.

As for "Boy Meets Boy," this seemed like it would be a simple gay version of "The Bachelor." In fact, of the dozen prospective romantic interests for the main guy, James, half of them were secretly straight. No one knew about this secret twist until the very last show, when it was revealed by the show to James that one of the final three guys from whom he had to choose to go on a romantic trip with him, one of them was actually straight. The audience did not know who was gay and who was straight until the end of each show and the sexual orientation of each of the three guys who were eliminated that show. What was most interesting to me was the motives of the straight guys for doing the show, which they talked about in prerecorded interviews on the final show. Some wanted to show that when it comes to love, it's about being human, not about which gender you love. One guy said he wanted to show his family that gay men are not all about sex since he had gay friends in real life and many in his family couldn't understand this. One straight guy said he had made an immediate friendship connection with one of the gay men. He said this guy both complemented him and challenged him and that there was a real spark between their personalities. Ultimately the guy said something like, "It's so rare to find that with another person, and these are the kind of people I want to surround myself with. I'm glad I found out that sexual orientation does not have to be a barrier to that."

I was also unexpectedly nervous when James had to make his final choice. Would he pick the straight guy? The audience didn't know, although the guy who turned out to be straight did give a few verbal giveaways just before he actually revealed it. Other than that, you absolutely could not tell who was gay and who was straight, or at least I couldn't and coming from a dance background, I've been around gay men from a young age. It was also interesting when the staight guy had to confront James, who was not informed of the "straight twist" until two days before he had to make his final decision. For the straight guy to get that close to the end (I don't want to give anything away) when, as he said, real feelings were involved, was extremely difficult. The other twist to the twist was that if James chose a gay guy, he would also get $25,000 dollars whereas if he chose the straight guy, the straight guy got the $25 grand. (Do these producers think up the tough stuff or what? Guess that's why they get paid.)

I can say this without giving anything away: All these guys got along together and behaved much better than any of the groups of straight women or men on the "Bachelor" or "Bachelorette" shows. Anyway, I think both "Queer Eye" and "Boy Meets Boy" made a quantum leap in gays on TV. It's one thing to watch "Will and Grace" or "Six Feet Under" and know they're actors; it's another to see guys who could be guys who work at your office going through contrived yet real associations in a combined gay/straight milieu.

So, I want the "Fab Five" to makeover me and my apartment. They just have to find me a nice straight guy:love:

And I have to wonder if Bravo will do a "Girl Meets Girl" show. Of course now the twist is out -- I was going to say "now the cat is out of the bag" but I thought, "Nah" -- so they would have to come up with something else.

But I am interested in what other people think since obviously this is a controversial subject for many people.
Rgirl
 
Joined
Jul 11, 2003
I was at a party last night with a big mix of guests. We had great wine, great munchies and we watched the final expisode of Boy Meets Boy on Tape. Everyone swore they had not seen the show the previous Tuesday. For most of us we were brought up to date by some of guests who had seen all episodes except the last.

One of the guests with a calculting mind was able to guess who the straight guy was. He deduced correctly. In fact, it seemed that we were all wondering who the straight guy was rather than who the gay hunk would pick. And we all had another glass of wine.

Interesting show - why not: Girl meets Girl? Some of the ladies there at the party thought the same.

Joe
 

windspirit

On the Ice
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
Rgirl said:
[...] Me, I love 'em! "Queer Eye" sounded awful in the previews, but I was pleasantly and joyfully surprised.
I had seen only moments of it before (or maybe only ads for it), and I didn't know what to think. But I managed to see one whole episode last week (I think it was, lol), and I loved it! LOL The makeover was for some Greek guy with hideous hair (a kickboxing instructor, quite sweet -- took a bullet for his mom!). I couldn't believe how good he looked when they were done with him. Gorgeous hair! :love: Not my type, but I have to say that they made him really attractive.

So, I want the "Fab Five" to makeover me and my apartment.
My thoughts exactly. :laugh: I don't have time for all those things, and I would love if someone saved me the effort and did it for me (not on TV, though, lol).

I guess I've missed the last episode (it's on Tuesdays, isn't it?), but I'll try to watch the future ones.
 

mpal2

Final Flight
Joined
Jul 27, 2003
I missed the shows last Tuesday. I know they are repeating the fab 5, but will they also reshow the last of Boy Meets Boy? I know who he picked because I asked a co-worker just in case.

I also figured out who was straight. I was telling my co-worker from the beginning that they had to rig it mathmatically to get at least 1 straight guy to the final. Thus the reason for the men assigned to groups. James couldn't get rid of all the straight guys based on the group setup.
 

Grgranny

Da' Spellin' Homegirl
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
Yeah, I'm from Kansas and there's no way I want to watch a show like that. To me, it's all sick. Sorry, that's just how I feel. I'm not putting down anyone, everyone has their own thing.
And it's sure not mine.
 

heyang

Record Breaker
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
As much as I enjoy some reality TV, the dating game ones have not been particularly appealing to me. My favorites are Amazing Race, Survivor and American Idol (all nominated for Emmy). Tried watching Joe Millionaire, Bachelor and Boy Meets Boy, but just didn't do anything for me. WOn't even attempt Temptation Island. I just started watching Big Brother this summer; nothing else to watch, but it's on too many times/week and never at the same time.

Anyway, I do watch Queer Eye. For me, it's the make-over part that's interesting and the Fab5 are comic relief. It's always fun to see someone being 'improved'. The guys do a great job everytime I've watched.

The past Tuesday they taught this guy to dance. He looked like a mini version of Andre the Giant (WWF) when he started. They taught him to shave, bought him new clothes and gave him hair products. Looked so much better afterwards - for once we didnt' see sandals, too. My favorite part of the show was when the dance teacher showed him 'the move' where he brings the girls right hand over his head and leans in for a kiss. The makeover-ee learned that real quick. His girlfriend was really in awe over the changes; she could barely keep her hands and lips to herself. Just good clean fun.

I'm glad that all of the guys aren't flamboyantly gay since I don't like the stereotypical image of any type of person.
 
Joined
Aug 3, 2003
Thanks for the feedback, folks. And I mean everyone. One of the things I've always liked about GS is the open feeling, at least most of the time;), of being able to agree to disagree.

Heyang,
I don't like the dating shows either and wasn't that interested in "Boy Meets Boy" at first. But I started getting into it by about the third show when the guys who had gotten eliminated revealed if they were gay or straight. I've been around gay men a lot since I was 16 and thought I could "pick 'em." I was SO wrong sometimes! Once "BMB" became "educational," I got into it. I also liked that there weren't a group of catty women or supercompetitive men. Most of the guys looked as if they were genuinely having so much fun and getting along, that it was easier to for me to like the show.

Whoever said they had it mathmatically rigged so that I straight guy had to be in the last group sure got that right. I think they are going to be doing reruns; I heard something about a "BMB" marathon (Piel, if you read this, "BMB" sounds like something else, yes:laugh:?!) But if I'm not mistaken, there was at one straight guy in every group of three that was eliminated. Don't quote me, though.

Joe,
That must have been an interesting party! I think the last straight guy standing gave himself away by the things he was and WASN'T saying on the final episode. So that was not a difficult call, but even up to the second-to-last show, I wasn't sure about the last three. Bummer that he was the only one who had to face James with the ruse. I felt bad for the guy. James was like, "Traitor! Infiltrator!" But James seemed okay with it later.

But I'll ask you, Joe, since the people at the party thought they should "Girl Meets Girl" as well. What should the secret twist be if it's lesbians? The straight thing is already known, so they can't use that again.

In general,
I agree that the "Fab Five" are so funny that it helps break the ice. Plus some of the guys are SO schlubby, lol. Some are way cute, though, mmm, mmm. The guy on the most recent show, Fuzzy Wuzzy, wasn't the best looking, but he sure has a great personality. And his girlfriend is hot, too. Take note, guys -- personality. I'm glad too that the five are not all flamers. Carson flames enough for all five, lol. That's what I liked about "Boy Meets Boy" too, that you got to see a range of personalities among the gay men. I like the trend. I think it's the most important step forward in terms of the media for gay men since RuPaul hit it big with "Super Model."
Rgirl
 
Joined
Jun 21, 2003
It takes a village, people.

I love Queer Eye. To me, it's just a bunch a guys goofing around, having fun and not taking themselves too seriously. I don't want to wax too philosophical over a light-hearted TV show, but I think that this is a GIANT step forward in portraying men who are unabashedly guy, but so what.

My favorite is Jai. Unfortunately, his role -- culture -- is not very well defined. Although he did try to get one of the straight guys to buy The Best of Cher cd -- no dice:laugh:. Unfortunately, their worst failure so far was trying to teach "Andre the Giant" to dance. Move or no move, he wasn't any better than when they started. Also, I didn't like what they did with his apartmernt -- it was just as junky, with the same fire hydrant and tomato plants as before. And I didn't like the big palm tree mural that they gave the Greek guy -- if that had been there originally, that would have been the first thing they would have got rid of. But they did his backyard beautifully, plus cooking those racks of lamb -- can you believe that four ranks of lamb cost $700 at Lobels?

See, what this show really needs is me -- the straight super-cool sunglasses on the Queer Eyes.
---------------------------------------------------------------

Now about Boy Meets Boy, I didn't watch it because it seemed like one of those "How to marry a millionaire" shows. Since I didn't see this actual show, I will just say in general: I don't like shows that mock the institution of marriage and hold it up to ridicule. Like people who get married on talk shows. If you had even the slightest inkling of what you are saying:

"... for better for worse, for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death us do part ... thereto I give thee my troth..."

you wouldn't be up in our face on TV acting a clown.

Mathman
 
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Joined
Jun 21, 2003
PS. One more thing. The hardest sell is the hair and grooming guy. It is possible that after the show is over the "victim" will try to dress better and to clean up his apartment once in a while.

But no straight man is ever going to use those beauty care products that the grooming guy is pushing. Or, for that matter, clean his toothbrush, LOL.

MM
 
Joined
Jul 11, 2003
Mathman - From what I saw of Boy Meets Boy, it was not about marriage as it was about picking a mate. Marriage was never mentioned. But, imo, the interesting twist was that some of these guys were straight and the viewers seemed to be trying to pick out the straight ones. I think the point of the show was What you see is not necessarily What you get.

The queer eye was for me just fluff. Some of those Q guys also had poor taste in their expertise, and I think the producers really had a job finding those decrepit straight guys.

Joe
 

SugarCoated

Rinkside
Joined
Aug 15, 2003
i dont like that show boy meets boy but i absolutely LOVE Queer eye for the straight guy. It's so funny and i tell everyone to watch it if their in a bad mood.

my father however whos a bit homophobic hates me watching the show. He doesn't think its funny.

oh well.
 

mpal2

Final Flight
Joined
Jul 27, 2003
I was looking through the People magazine with the Laci Peterson story on the cover and they had 3 fasion designers to a "clothing makeover" on Carson. I hated everyone of the new looks, they were boring same old every guy look. Carson is free to keep his own style. It's much more interesting.
 
Joined
Jun 21, 2003
But did you see what Carson wore to the MTV video awards. What was that, some kind of 70s retro swede jeans?:laugh:

MM
 
Joined
Aug 3, 2003
Joe--re Girl Meets Girl and the "some are married" twist. I think you have a future in producing reality TV. Great idea!

Mathman--I would go further than Joe and say that "Boy Meets Boy" was just about finding a date. Yes, sure, James was hopeful and the gay guys in the group were hopeful about finding a "potential" life partner, but they all seemed very realistic that whomever James picked was really just going to go on the extended glamour date with him (I think it was a cruise, no pun intended) and that anything more than that was gravy.

ITA that those marriage shows are the WORST. The most serious one they had was where if the people who hooked up actually got married, they each won something like $100,000. I think there were eight couples. It restored my faith (for a nanosecond;)) in the integrity of the American dating public that not one couple got married. It would have been easy to cook up a scheme and say, "Let's get married, get the money, live together platonically as long as the contract says, and then split." But nobody did it. And the seriousness with which each person took the whole situation impressed me, even though I hated the show.

I have no problem with "pick a date" shows. Those are just like blind dates set up by TV producers. Though actually on some of the shows, you at least get to know the people a little before you "go out" with them. My best friends have done a lot worse, I'm telling you.

And ITA with Joe that the point of "Boy Meets Boy" was not really who James picked for his date, but that you couldn't tell who was gay and who was straight. Plus it was six gay and six straight guys having a lot of fun together, and I think that is also a quantum leap (sorry to steal your lingo) forward for the gay community. Though no doubt there will be some kind of backlash. Just keep that pendulum swinging and inching toward the right direction, I say.

And I forget who said this, but I think Carson's own style is just fine, too. As for what he wore to the the MTV Video Awards, pfft! That was nothing. If you think that was anything to talk about I have two words for you: L'il Kim.
Rgirl
 

Lcp88

On the Ice
Joined
Jul 27, 2003
I LOVE Queer Eye For The Straight Guy! I think it really is funny (espcially Carson ;)), and they do make the straight guys look A LOT better.
I saw about 5 min. of Boy Meets Boy and wasn't all that impressed. It was too much like Extreme Dating, ect.
Laura
 

windspirit

On the Ice
Joined
Jul 26, 2003
mpal2 said:
I missed the shows last Tuesday. I know they are repeating the fab 5, but will they also reshow the last of Boy Meets Boy?
They did yesterday (since it's already after midnight) on Bravo, I think. I watched two last episodes. I have to say that it was so much better than "Bachelor"(?). It was more about people's interactions than a contest. No cattiness, just people having fun.

The guy James picked was great, but I would've picked the other one. He had such beautiful eyes :love: , and was really sweet. The straight guy - no spark there whatsoever.

Grgranny, I can understand you may not like the idea of something like that at all, but by calling it all sick, you are putting someone down.
 
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