Fuck this piece of crap right in the EAR. Arrrgh

[beandelphiki]

So this whole Queer Eye for the Straight Guy thing seems to be getting bigger and bigger. Everyone and their dog is watching this show.

I've been informed that the show is Not That Bad, really. And I shouldn't worry about it reinforcing stereotypes about gay men, or anything like that. It's a funny show, really! I should watch it! I'll like it!


Surfing across lj, I'm seeing the commentary:


One of the negatives for me is that I think the Fab 5 can sometimes be a little too cutting in their post-Make Better evaluations (when they watch the week's subject on closed circuit TV to see how much of the Make Better pointers the guy remembers for whatever special event prompted the Make Better in the first place). Color Me Inconsistent, but I'm comfortable with them being catty to their fairy godsons to their faces in a way I'm decidedly not wrt them doing it behind their backs. Case in point: In last night's show with Andrew L., Thom (Interior Design) commented, "Oh well, I guess you're not as dumb as you look."


Yeah I've heard a lot of people say they aren't going to watch because of the stereotype thing. But honestly, I think the show empowers gay men. It implies (indirectly of course) that they are better at being men than straight men are.

...I mean honestly, the ideas some of these straight guys have! They clearly need to have the "don't be stupid" riot act read to them and the Fab Five are just the ones to do it.

[emphasis mine]


Oh, yes. Sounds like a show I'd absolutely LOVE! It's clearly not reinforcing any, y'know....stereotypes or shit like THAT!


As a general rule, I like to reserve judgment until I can see things for myself. And I'm usually pretty good at being objective up until that point. But I have no way to see QE-SG right now (no TV) and in the meantime, most of the things I'm hearing about this damn show make me blisteringly pissed.

Comments

[veronicabat.livejournal.com]

I don't deny that it reinforces stereotypes. But I also ... don't give a shit :/

You're entitled to your opinion, though, so no one should be trying to "make" you watch it ...

[vuurvasthouden.livejournal.com]

I must echo veronicabat's sentiment.

I was subjected to it via raven_wolf the other night. It was hilarious...now I'd just like to know if those guys would come to MY apartment and give it a makeover. It needs it badly.

[beandelphiki.livejournal.com]

Heh. My bedroom is currently the room for the kittens, so I have cat poop ground into the carpet.

[beandelphiki.livejournal.com]

Suppose it's not so much that it reinforces stereotypes as it is that it reinforces stereotypes that I really hate.

[criminalasylum.livejournal.com]

Blargh!

It makes so many stereotypes just put out there. I wish they had a disclaimer. I am least like any of those gays. I have none of the talents they do. I don't like the fact that they do talk behind the guys back and I don't like that they insult the guy. While I found it funny, and still do, I don't think I'll watch it just because of the Fashion Gay. I hate him, he more than any of the others.

It doesn't prove that their more adept at being men anyways, because the common stereotype is that men are like the straight guys.

[kshatri.livejournal.com]

oh, ther's a million reasons it sucks, but there is something really touchingly cute about the straight guy taking all this advice from the gay guys and being all happy about it!

[beandelphiki.livejournal.com]

Now THAT interpretation made me laugh.

[beandelphiki.livejournal.com]

The Fashion Guy? Is that Carson? I've heard a lot of complaints about one of them, and I think it was Carson...


It doesn't prove that their more adept at being men anyways, because the common stereotype is that men are like the straight guys.

But d00d, the definition of "man" is changing! If you're not a metrosexual, well geez, don't expect to get laid. By either sex. :P

[i-drink-febreze.livejournal.com]

None of the Fab 5 seem obviously gay to me, except the fashion guy. He has 'the lisp' and he's very touchy feely with the straight guys, which I'm sure they love, haha.
Eh, I think it's a cute show.

[unintentional.livejournal.com]

Mm. I didn't like it upon hearing the name, "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy". I could just see the stereotypes piling up. A couple of friends and I were discussing how any gay influence on TV is a good thing, but I don't buy it. I also don't like that the only "gay influence" that is ever "positive" on TV is upper middle class white dudes. [shakes head]

[beandelphiki.livejournal.com]

He lisps?

*dies*

[beandelphiki.livejournal.com]

Mm. I didn't like it upon hearing the name, "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy".

Now if they truly wanted to be subversive, they could have reversed it, eh?

*is promptly shot*

any gay influence on TV is a good thing, but I don't buy it.

I don't buy it either. When this show was discussed in gaystr8alliance, someone was commenting that gays are going through a sort of "initiation" period on television similar to the one blacks went through in...the 70's? I think.

I also don't like that the only "gay influence" that is ever "positive" on TV is upper middle class white dudes.

Well...I leap to defend QAF here! They're not all upper middle class. Several of them are just...middle class.

Haha, okay, kidding. Definitely, I agree with people when they say they'd like to see a little more diversity. I mean, I also agree with people say, "one or two shows can't represent everyone," but there's a reason some people call QAF "Queer as White Folk."

Aaaand I'm shutting up.

this has nothing to do with the above post. . .

[clonedsheep.livejournal.com]

hey there i just added you. :-)

i was just reading your friends guidelines and I was wondering if you were familiar with this site:

http://marnanel.org/joule?user

[unintentional.livejournal.com]

Regardless, I'm not too hip to any of the TV that's on nowadays. I stick to the Disney Channel and Comedy Central, and that's that.

[veronicabat.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I can understand that.

Re: this has nothing to do with the above post. . .

[beandelphiki.livejournal.com]

No I wasn't, that's groovy. :)

Welcome aboard.

[siegeengine.livejournal.com]

I'm not sure if you should watch it, but I'm pretty sure you wouldn't like it. ;)

The thing about the problem you're having with it is, as I'm sure you know, that most of what is bothering you is coming from third parties... rather than from the horse's mouth.

I've watched it, as you know, and don't have a problem with it. The thing about stereotypes is that most people are watching very closely for gay stereotypes and completely ignoring the possibility of straight stereotyping, and how that could be hurtful to people.

In that respect, I think you're absolutely right, at least in theory. I mean, that's the whole gimmick of the show is that "queer" guys can help "straight" guys, because, one supposes, they're "better" somehow.

The odd thing is that the show itself doesn't stress "gayness" or "straightness." It emphasizes knowledge and experience, over lack of attention to detail. The fashion guy is a fashion expert... and he uses his skill as an expert, to help someone who is inexpert, rather than using his skills as a "gay" to help a "straight."

Same with the interior decorator, the food expert, etc. etc. They don't emphasize, "you dumb straight fool, let my gayness show you the light..." they just emphasize, "here's why what you're doing isn't working, and this will probably work better for you." It's really quite benign.

Of course, there is some camp, because that's part of the gimmick, and the camp sometimes includes jokes, which are kind of funny, but might be the thing that ends up pissing you off and making you hate the show, I'm not sure. Things like, the one guy picking up the puppet and having it say, "I see straight people!" is kind of meaningless and was kind of funny, but didn't really have anything to do with "gays vs. straights" or anything like that.

Anyhow... I think that's why there is the confusion... because others who are praising the show are emphasizing the lack of derogatory gay stereotypes, while you're paying much more attention to the stereotyping of straight people.

*shrugs*

*hugs*

[beandelphiki.livejournal.com]

The odd thing is that the show itself doesn't stress "gayness" or "straightness." It emphasizes knowledge and experience, over lack of attention to detail. The fashion guy is a fashion expert... and he uses his skill as an expert, to help someone who is inexpert, rather than using his skills as a "gay" to help a "straight."

Yes. I totally believe that. I honestly believe (or I'd like to!) that if this show really WAS presented as gay vs. straight, it wouldn't be nearly as popular as it is now.

But...

(Okay, the following is sort of pointless observations. I'm not stupid enough to think complaining or commenting on the show is going to, say, get rid of it. I don't even know if I'd want to get rid of it, now that it's out there. But I think its a good idea to examine how these things affect us, so I'm going to. *nods* I'm not trying to argue with you, exactly, or piss you off, but present some ideas I've had.)

Regardless of how it's presented, what are people getting from it? Take the comments I've listed up there. Tongue-in-cheek? Probably. But is there a grain of sincerity to it?

It's true that I get angry over the straight stereotyping (kudos, by the way, since I think you're the only one who picked up on what was really bugging me, despite my bolding), but hey - there was a guy who's journal I checked out who was getting very upset over some comments in the QE-SG comm. And they weren't comments about the show, they were comments about gays in general.

I mean, I spotted a post over there (in the aforementioned comm) where some girl was complaining abut how she doesn't have a Gay Best Friend(tm). Now true, it's awesome that she thinks gay people are cool and all that....but what is a gay friend to people? Proof that they're not homophobic? Now, maybe, a status symbol? I mean, doesn't this show indirectly go about proving how "cool" gays are? So it's cool to have one on your arm!**

Someone in debate mentioned that the stereotype of black men having huge dicks may not be negative, but it's still a step away from "zero."

I don't doubt, of course, that all of that was not the intention of the show. (Heck, the only real intention of the show is to make money.) It reminds me of a writing exercise Richard put us through in English...

We wrote for five minutes on anything we wanted to. Then some of us read our stuff out loud. One girl had a piece where she talked about how the inside of her head was "a night without stars."

Richard then asked someone, "What did you hear in Jessica's? What are the words that you remember?" And this other girl replied, "well, she has stars in her head."

And the reader said, "No, I said I DON'T have stars in my head!" And that was when Richard said, "Yes, but in order to say they are not there, you had to first put them there, and that is what people are more likely to remember."

QE-SG may, in the execution, take away the "gay vs. straight" thing. But in order to take it away, it has to be put there in the first place. Does that make sense?

Anyway. I'm going to shut up now. :P I really wasn't trying to argue with you, but it'd be cool if you could tell me what you think. *nodnod*

-Bean

**P.S. Would you mind if I auctioned you off on Ebay? *hopeful look*

[siegeengine.livejournal.com]

yeah, you're right about "putting it there in the first place." I guess the whole premise of the show is set up as a kind of dichotomy, where on the one hand, they're saying that it's "gay vs. straight" but on the other hand, that's not what they're really showing.

So, it really is their fault, because they've marketed their show that way. So, the people who "want" to see prejudices can ignore the rest of the show and laugh at the things that make them laugh.

I know that, in general, the ends never justify the means, so I guess I'd have to condemn the show for its marketing tactics, on general principle.

[haleth.livejournal.com]

**P.S. Would you mind if I auctioned you off on Ebay? *hopeful look*


...
I should have something to say about this, I know. But I really can't think of what.

[benthecube.livejournal.com]

You know, I can understand where you're coming from. I'd probably be somewhat offended by the stereotypes being presented by this show and/or it's title, but I'd probably watch it anyway. I'm a sucker for fine camp and gay humour, regardless of how it's presented. Maybe I'm contributing to the stereotype in that respect, but honestly, who cares? The people who don't understand the difference between the stereotypes and reality are just simply not worth my time.

[beandelphiki.livejournal.com]

Well, I wouldn't say it's necessary to condemn the show...just to be critically aware of it's influence. *nodnod*