Straight Eye
- Wade
Unless you've been shacked up in the Unabomber's cabin for the past month, you've likely heard about the new Bravo reality series Queer Eye for the Straight Guy. Its premise is thus: a female, tired of her straight male companion's lack of (romance / hygiene / tight shirts) calls in a group of five gay men to help him out. The Fab Five invade and assist with tasks ranging from wine selection and home decor to waxing and (of course) shoes.
The show is wildly popular, finally putting the Bravo network on the map for something other than James Lipton's giant stack of pale blue notecards. My wife is a fan, and although I can't say I've watched a full episode it's been on enough in my presence for me to be somewhat savvy about it. And my question is... are gays in general as excited about this show as the straight viewing public?
From what I've seen, the Fab Five play out every stereotype of gay men that you can shake a lisp at. (Or something.) They become caricatures of themselves-- singing Elton John, even. (Although I don't think he was dressed up like Donald Duck at the time.) Is this really the image that gay men want proliferated throughout culture?
Maybe so. They're portrayed as intellectual, fashionable, very culturally aware. Which brings me to my next question... are straight men as annoyed about this show as I am?
Granted... I wear a lot of plaid. I buy my shoes from Payless. I'd rather go to a sports bar than a dance club. But does that make me a dirty, hairy oaf that only drinks beer and watches sports on a big-screen TV under framed pictures of dogs playing poker while wearing a hockey jersey and eating nachos?
Um.
Don't answer that. Guess you metrosexuals know what I'm watching tonight.
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