Queer Eye for the Straight Guy
Jul. 26th, 2003 02:28 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
thistlechaserPeople who know me won't need this extra bit of information, but for those who don't here it is: I have no problem at all with gay folks. I have gay friends and co-workers. I like seeing them as characters in TV/movies/books, and I occasionally RP them. Heck, I read fanfics about them all the time.
Queer Eye for the Straight Guy is a new TV show on Bravo. Five gay men "help improve" a straight man. Redo his apartment, hair, wardrobe, all that. The promos worried me a little, but I still wanted to see the show.
Since it's on, I'm watching it. I was right to be worried.
How many cliches can you fit into these "characters"? At least half of them lisp, at least two of them prance (really, prance) around with limp wrists. Though this guy is straight, they keep touching and grabbing for his crotch.
One little exchange made my jaw drop:
They're checking out his apartment, seeing what changes to make. One of them reaches into his laundry and pulls out the guy's jock strap. He then pushes it onto his own face and inhales deeply. He then announces (in a lisp) that it was dirty.
So what are a group of gay men to do with a dirty jock strap?
They decide to boil it in a pot on the stove.
Gay guy #1 offers to pour some soy sauce into the pot.
Gay guy #2, in a knowing flirty-mocking tone: Oh, I think it already has "soy sauce" in it!
Gay guy #3, in a sly tone: Is it soy sauce or boy sauce?
And they all giggle gayly. I didn't even know there was such a thing as "gayly giggling" before this.
If I was a gay guy, I think I'd be offended by this.
Queer Eye for the Straight Guy is a new TV show on Bravo. Five gay men "help improve" a straight man. Redo his apartment, hair, wardrobe, all that. The promos worried me a little, but I still wanted to see the show.
Since it's on, I'm watching it. I was right to be worried.
How many cliches can you fit into these "characters"? At least half of them lisp, at least two of them prance (really, prance) around with limp wrists. Though this guy is straight, they keep touching and grabbing for his crotch.
One little exchange made my jaw drop:
They're checking out his apartment, seeing what changes to make. One of them reaches into his laundry and pulls out the guy's jock strap. He then pushes it onto his own face and inhales deeply. He then announces (in a lisp) that it was dirty.
So what are a group of gay men to do with a dirty jock strap?
They decide to boil it in a pot on the stove.
Gay guy #1 offers to pour some soy sauce into the pot.
Gay guy #2, in a knowing flirty-mocking tone: Oh, I think it already has "soy sauce" in it!
Gay guy #3, in a sly tone: Is it soy sauce or boy sauce?
And they all giggle gayly. I didn't even know there was such a thing as "gayly giggling" before this.
If I was a gay guy, I think I'd be offended by this.
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no subject
Date: 2003-07-26 02:33 pm (UTC)How sad. Why can't a series be made about real people, some of whom happen to be gay? Oh, wait. That would require somoene able to write a plot.
Back to worrying about my well. (Yeah, it's gorgeous up here in the northern hinterlands. I just wish the darn well was working properly.)
no subject
Date: 2003-07-26 02:37 pm (UTC)I just wish the darn well was working properly.
Well, if it stays broken too long, let me know and I'll FedEx you some bottled water! ;)
My Stereo-typical Reply
Date: 2003-07-26 02:43 pm (UTC)*I* am offended by this, even though I am not a gay man. I happen to be a partially gay female with gay male tendencies.. XD!!
My girlfriend was talking about watching that show, but since I didn't have cable, or satillite, I couldn't very well see it. I'm GLAD that I couldn't see it now! That's just stupid, and stereo-typically disgusting.
I agree with the previous comment. Why can't people just write a show up that deals with REAL people, in REAL living? Because no one has the fucking brains, or balls to do it. Most likely, the people who wrote up this show, are all straight as a gate. It's plain to see that they have no actual reference material for this, except when they see a particularly flaming gay man on the street, or in other movies.
Why can't people understand that not all gay men are flamers like that? I've met very VERY few gay men who actually act like that. In all the gay populous that I have met in my 21 years of life, only 2 actually spoke with a lisp, and acted like that in general. One of them had a NATURAL lisp to begin with... o.O
I'm getting tired of the stereo-types with these fucking movies, and shows... I swear.. one day.. I'm going to write a series/movie/show that deals with REAL people acting the way they would in REAL life. Not some stupid stereotyped show about stupid stereotyped people.
This totally blows. Thanks for the heads up, though. I'll pass the word on to
Re: My Stereo-typical Reply
Date: 2003-07-26 02:53 pm (UTC)The other odd thing is that this isn't a fictional show (but I wouldn't call it a reality show, I don't think). I'm not sure how many writers there are in this, but *someone* had to pick out and approve the characters...
It's depressing.
Re: My Stereo-typical Reply
Date: 2003-07-27 01:00 pm (UTC)I understand what you're talking about. The stereotypes of everything you can think of - homosexuality only one small brick in the whole wall - have spiraled way out of control in the past five or ten years, and don't look like they're going to clear up anytime soon.
However, you have to realize that it doesn't matter how stupid, how stereotypical, how blatantly wrong a show is - a TV program is concentrating on what will absorb the most viewers, not what will interest the people who aren't just looking for a cheap, stupid laugh. To the masses, flagrantly, unrealistic gay guys (who are more likely than not straight in real life) are what is amusing, what is "funny", what is worth watching, and that's exactly what TV shows are looking for.
I wouldn't blame the writers for not having enough balls to write a "real" reality show; they're just doing their jobs, creating a show that will draw in viewers. I would blame the people who have watched the similar crap shows in the past, whose fanship only gives rise to even more crap in the future.
Besides, and this is more off topic of my post than anything else, a "real" reality show would be boring. Would you like to sit there and watch a TV show about anybody you know? Mine would be boring as heck; fifteen minutes of every episode would be about me on the computer, and the other half would be me... let's see, eating, playing video games, reading, or working. Exciting! ;)
Re: My Stereo-typical Reply
Date: 2003-07-27 09:06 pm (UTC)If it were you, or something you were touchy about people making fun of, would you want a show out there that blatantly pokes heavy fun at your lifestyle? All these shows out there, reality tv or not, are getting stupid, and disgusting. They are taking people's ways of living, and twisting them for their own perverse amusements, just to get some ratings, and make a quick buck.
If someone wanted to make a reality show about someone's life, like yours for instance, peppygrowlithe, and it was 'boring'... who cares? These shows they are coming up with are ridiculous anyway, so even if the show was nothing but you sitting in front of a computer screen, I bet there would be a small percentage of people out there that would watch it, wondering what you were doing in front of the computer.
It's just all stupid, and rather pointless. The more I talk about this, the more offended, and angered I get. All these stupid shows made for a stupid television for people to watch and laugh at other people's lives, just so they don't have to sit and analyze their own. That's all it is... tune their lives out by watching, and making fun of other's.
It's the average human person's way of living. Sad, and pathetic if you think about it.
There are some people that are so addicted to their silly little shows that I bet they couldn't even tell what colour their children's eyes were... or probably even how many children they had.. or IF they even HAD children!
This is me, bashing the television again.. XD!!
In any case.. there are so many views, and opinions on this, that it's hardly worth talking about any further.. but I did feel the need to make at least this last comment.
And, Thistle, if they were not gay men, et cetera... the general populous would find it less amusing, of course. Because it wouldn't be a twisted version of things they really know nothing about to begin with, so they can't laugh at it because it's too normal.
But gays aren't twisted versions of normality.. they ARE normality... Their 'normal' is just different than society's 'normal'...
Who the hell wrote the definition for "NORMAL" anyway? They should be shot....
Anyway.. I'm done ranting. ^-^;;
Please.. no one hate me for my comments. (scampers out)
-T
Re: My Stereo-typical Reply
Date: 2003-07-29 09:21 pm (UTC)Anyway, I wrote this one time before, but LiveJournal screwed it up (gasp! *Our* LiveJournal?!), and then my IE crashed before I could do it again. Then my computer crashed. So that's why I delayed. I know you logged on every day, begging to hear from that peppygrowlithe guy, shedding a tear when you didn't see one, but you can stop sobbing now; I'm here!
Some things are better experienced than seen, and the same applies in the reverse. If I were to go out and have the most delicious meal ever (... sadly, given me, it would be burgers with ketchup and jalapenos, donuts, and Dr. Pepper...), it would be a wonderful experience... and something not very fun to watch. Likewise, if I was walking to the store to *buy* Dr. Pepper and donuts, and a car driving by splashed a puddle and got me soaking wet in muddy water, it would be a very crummy experience, but (to those of us who don't like to think when we watch TV) a funny thing to see. You see? Reality TV can't be realistic, because reality is something you need to experience. If reality TV isn't weird and zany, it's not worth watching.
But you are right, I do agree that people spend way too much time amusing themselves on computers, TVs, and other stuff and not enough time building up relationships with the people that *matter*. And hey, if you can pull off a "real" reality TV show, I'd watch it! ... I mean, if I, like, saw a commercial for it, and it said "A reality TV show by piperz!", otherwise I wouldn't know it wa... ... um, okay, good night.
Re: My Stereo-typical Reply
Date: 2003-07-31 10:57 am (UTC)And then, I actually went through with it, and hung myself. I am typing to you from the afterlife.
Well, maybe not.
But if I DO ever make a reality show, I'll let you know.. (grin.) And you can get my autograph, because I'd be all cool, and rich... you could stay at the castle I will build.. It will have no TVs, but it will have four computers.
But it's sad really... I ranted so much, and then look at how much time I spend on the computer? I used to sign on EVERY SINGLE DAY, even if I wasn't online for but an hour.. I'd still sign on.
I am just like everyone else... H-Y-P-O-C-R-I-T.
And I can spell, too. ^-^;;;
In any case, I just made a post here to tell you that I added you to my friends list. I'm so amused that you added me. ^-^ Yay, Friends!
Hm. That is all.
I think I'm done rambling now.
(adds you to her list, in return.)
-Teri
amused
Date: 2003-07-26 11:12 pm (UTC)Re: amused
Date: 2003-07-27 08:40 am (UTC)Yeah, and that's what was bothering me about it, I think. If they weren't gay and didn't act gay, would it be funny? Nope.
I'd feel the same about a show that made the characters funny just because they were stereotypically black or fat or Asian or anything like that.
hmmm
Date: 2003-07-27 09:57 am (UTC)I found it funny because the people they found were so scary disgusting...
...hard to say, the road to acceptance is paved with odd turns. I can't say definitively that the show is "good" or "bad" for gay people or not, much like Queer as Folk, there are certainly some gay people who act like the 5 designers on that show... [yes I know they are pandering somewhat] is that wrong to show?
no subject
Date: 2003-07-28 08:05 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2003-07-28 09:13 am (UTC)