Despite my initial misgivings about the new gay shows on Bravo, I have to say they’ve turned into the most exciting television on this summer season. So much of the debate centers on whether they perpetuate stereotypes or are good gay images. (See for example the American Prospect’s review). But that seems to me to be secondary to a more interesting issue: how the two shows encapsulate the differences between Los Angeles and New York gay culture. Queer Eye, with its downtown men, depicts a social universe in which minute and complicated cultural decisions become central status markers. Boy Meets Boy on the other hand is populated with West Hollywood twinks who aim for social distinction with a combination of youthful looks, pleasant disposition and middling professional aspirations. The comparison might not be fair, given that dating shows attract less than desirable representatives of any culture, but the geographic-cultural difference is striking. And for that matter, the American Queer as Folk has always been more about West Hollywood than Pittsburgh or even a general national gay life.
By the way, I wonder what’s up with the AbFab-like hostess of Boy Meets Boy. Along with Paradise Hotel, it seems that reality TV producers are scouring Santa Monica for whatever blonded English women they can find.
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