Queer Eye

[aroraborealis]

At moominmolly's recommendation, I started watching the reboot of Queer Eye a week or so before my vacation, and I pretty rapidly inhaled all eight episodes of the first season. I never watched the original series, so I can't compare the two, but I was surprised and impressed with a lot of what the new series is doing, and in particular, the profound transformation -- not just in their personal styling or digs, but in their inner landscapes -- that some of the participants seemed to undergo through their time with the Fab5.

Not every episode is as inspiring and moving as the others, and I think they sequenced the episodes wrong for maximum emotional satisfaction and reward. The episodes as sequenced on Netflix are:

1 - You Can't Fix Ugly
2 - Saving Sasquach
3 - Dega Don't
4 - To Gay or Not Too Gay
5 - Camp Rules
6 - Renaisance of Remington
7 - Below Average Joe
8 - Hose Before Bros

I recommend watching them in this order: 1, 8, 3, 7, 2, 6, 5, 4. If you're only going to watch one episode, make it episode 4.

Which is to say, I think episodes 5 and 4 are the peak of the magic of the show. They maximize the opportunity of getting a handful of tuned in, compassionate experts to work with someone who is ready to and wants to making a meaningful change in his life but needs to guidance, structure, or other leverage to make it happen.

I'm not normally a reality TV watcher, but I'm really glad I watched this series, and I'm excited for the next season!

What have you been watching and enjoying recently?

Comments

[coraline]

I need to remember this next time I want screen time.

I don't watch a lot of visual media, but I have been very slowly working my way through Elementary, White Collar, and the GBBO, all of which make me very happy in different ways (well, the first two are similar in that they have a fun moderately diverse cast, and a nice episodic rhythm of tidy mysteries, and characters I care about.)

[crosslet]

Agree with you on the new QE series. I was skeptical at first but then binge watched them. I watched the original and the reboot. I like the reboot better and think the show tries to focus on a connection with the "guy"

This past weekend I was recovering from the flu so I was forced isolated from the family. I watched the Medici and the Borgia. Medici is good. Borgia -- I prefer the original Showtime version.

[fenicedautun]

Try Versailles. It's bonkers in the best way.

[fenicedautun]

Sorry, the Versailles was for crosslet, since it's similar to Medici.

Some other recommendations:

The Crown is fabulous
Series of Unfortunate Events season 2 (releasing this week) (season 1 was fabulous)
Godless was pretty good if you like westerns
My Next Guest is... is pretty interesting
Great British Baking Show/Great British Bake-off has a few seasons on Netflix, and it is really fun
Crazy Ex-Girlfriend is better than I expected (and given the stellar reviews, I had pretty high expectations)

Can you tell I watch TV? (Often while doing other things, but still)

[eestiplika]

Ok, i'm going to do it and watch the Queer Eye reboot. Thanks for telling me about it!

[amber_phoenix]

You know about the Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, yes?

[aroraborealis]

I don't! But evidently, I should?

[amber_phoenix]

you should!

[amber_phoenix]

Watched episode 1 of Queer Eye last night. So good.

[tshuma]

I watched the first episode of the Queer Eye reboot at the recommendation of my cat-sitter and enjoyed it, but got distracted partway through #2. I'll skip ahead to #8 and come back to the Sasquatch thanks to your recommendation.

I binged the 7 episodes of Anne With An 'E' while traveling a couple of weeks ago, and now I'm re-reading my way through the entire Avonlea Chronicles after at least a decade of only occasionally picking up book three or book eight (my favorites). It's well-done, even though I disagree with a number of the choices they made to make things more dramatic or tense than they necessarily were, and I have *no* idea where they think they're going with the story now.

Other than that, I don't pay attention to current television for anything but Madam Secretary.