Queer Eye is back as 2018’s must-see reality TV show
By Maya Mattan, ’20
Queer Eye official trailer courtesy Netflix Youtube channel.
Tan France, Antoni Porowski, Bobby Berk, Jonathan Van Ness and Karamo Brown are five gay guys whose goals are to change people’s styles of living for the better. “Queer Eye” is a reality TV show that came out Feb. 7, of this year. This is the second take for “Queer Eye” after the original aired in 2003. There is a whole new Fab 5 and new audience.
This Netflix original not only received one Emmy, but two. One was for Outstanding Casting for a Reality Program and another for Outstanding Structured Reality Program. They also received a TCA Award for outstanding achievement in reality.
This outstanding show directed by David Collins earned a 93 percent on Rotten Tomatoes and is currently filming a third season. The last two seasons took place in Atlanta, but for the third season, Queer Eye is planning to shoot in Kansas City, Missouri.
This reality TV show is one of the few successful shows that genuinely advocates for queer people. Many people want a better life, but for some, it’s hard to start one. Netflix’s show “Queer Eye” gives opportunities for people who need a little push into the right direction, whether it’s with culture (Karamo Brown), fashion (Tan France), grooming (Jonathan Van Ness), cooking (Antoni Porowski) or home decor (Bobby Berk). Every Fab 5 member specializes in a certain area. These five gay guys will go to people’s homes that are ready for a change and give them a lifestyle makeover.
Not only do participants create a connection with the Fab 5, but the Fab 5 learn from the participant as well. They have helped men with proposals, women with creating a church youth group and transgender people starting a life after top surgery. The Fab 5 can do it all.
The Fab 5 have found acceptance in many communities. For example, Bobby was raised Catholic and was very religious, but once he came out, he was excluded from his church. When he was helping a participant named “Mama Tammy,” she helped him find an accepting Catholic community. They have witnessed many different lifestyles and learned from everyone they have helped and met. The heartwarming moments of “Queer Eye” touch the viewer again and again.
“Queer Eye” is definitely on the top three of must-see reality TV shows. Not only do five gay guys remodel people’s lives, but viewers learn about each one of them, their story in coming out, the difficulties they have faced and how much they’ve grown. Their goal is to put everyone’s differences aside and focus on what we all have in common. “Queer Eye” reminds us it shouldn’t matter who loves who or what gender people identify as or what the color of their skin is or what religion they follow. We all share one thing in common: we are all human beings.