Eye, eye, Captain!

Aside from Surprise-themed shows, another genre I enjoy watching a lot are makeover shows. Whether they’re making over people, homes, cars or what-not, there’s a satisfaction in seeing how that transformation ultimately changes a person’s life.

Despite that, I never really watched - not even an episode - of the OG “Queer Eye for the Straight Guy” in 2003. (The show was later renamed to just “Queer Eye” eventually.) At the time when everyone was SO into this show, and the cast even went to Manila, I was watching something else.

Fast forward to 2019, and the show now has a reincarnation on Netflix. Same concept, same format, but updated content.

When I was just at home last September and October, it was one of the things I stumbled on to on Netflix. It was entertaining, but I didn’t find it as gratifying as the other “makeover” show I was watching, which was “Tidying up with Marie Kondo.”

Last week, I saw on Netflix that the “Queer Eye” series had a new spin-off, “Queer Eye, We’re in Japan!” As a Nihonphile, I decided to watch an episode to see how it was.

By golly, it was such a great show! The subjects they chose and the stories behind them were so compelling and real. Having been a long-time and frequent visitor of Japan, and also getting insights about their personalities from Mark, I knew that this type of show would be so beneficial for Japanese.

You see, as a people, the Japanese don’t like to stand out. They are more comfortable blending into the background and staying within the parameters of the norm. So much so that they’d rather lose their identity than express themselves individually.

Also, they’re the type of people who would never talk about their feelings. Not to their family, not to their friends, and definitely not too strangers. But after seeing the first episode, and how the subjects slowly opened up to the Fab 5, it was refreshing to see that change of attitude and mindset. And this change ultimately transformed the way they felt, also the way they looked and lived.

Actually, the emotional transformation of the subjects were more gratifying to watch than their physical ones. Which is actually a first for a makeover show.

Plus, their Japanese counterpart - Kiko Mizuhara, and guest Naomi Watanabe - was also such a joy to watch. They gave that very important Japanese perspective that guided the makeover guys.

This series was so good. I ended up binge-watching all 4 episodes! Each one was a joy to watch, but the 4th one was the best for me.

Hoping that they have a 2nd season of this show. It’s something the Japanese need in their lives.