From 2003

Showtime network's most popular show was marketed

as niche programming. It's advertising has been almost

exclusive to magazines and websites for gays, because the

show centers an a group of gay club creatures and their

extended family. They expected a bit of an uproar from

the straight community - which didn't happen. What did

happen in a big way, is that the show has developed a cult

following among (mostly) straight women. 

Almost half of the Queer As Folk audience is female.

Public appearances by the cast are overwhelmingly

attended by women. Who knew that so many women

wanted to see guys having sex - but apparently, we do.

Sure, there's the soap opera quality of the stories, and we

care deeply about these characters, but that doesn't

explain the mania that surrounds Brian and Justin, Ben

and Michael, Emmett and Ted. We know what we like

and we like what we see.  

It isn't as simple as guys like to watch girls, so girls like

to watch guys. The male fantasy of watching two women have sex is primarily

based in homophobia. A lot of straight men don't want to get too comfortable

watching a guy in a sexual situation. Where two women are involved, it's all

good. The dynamic of a woman watching a sex scene between two men is

different. When a woman watches a heterosexual sex scene, she's checking out

the girl. We are naturally territorial and even predatory - that may not be PC

these days, but it's true. The girl in the scene is viewed as competition, and

seeing how we stack up often overshadows the eroticism of the scene.   

With Queer As Folk, there's no competition. We get to see men being sensual

in a whole new way. We hear the talk in the locker room at the gym, and it

isn't about us. We see them worrying about finding love, balancing their

private lives with their work, dealing with families who aren't necessarily

supportive. We hear their insecurities expressed in explicit terms. Their

constant obsession with weight is familiar territory. So is the alienation some

of them feel in the work place. Best of all, we get to see men being sexual in

ways we've never seen, and in places we can't go.   

There's an inherent attraction to anything forbidden. You might see an

occasional "Fag Magnet" at Babylon, but no women are allowed in the back

room. As viewers, we get to follow uber-queer Brian Kinney on the prowl. We

admire his freedom, his abandon, and his fierce loyalty only to himself. Heady

stuff for women who are generally conditioned to think of others first, and to

be passive in relationships. The idea of a world built to provide nearly

anonymous sex is something most women don't encounter. What would life be

like if we had such freedom? What would it be like never to apologize for

what we want?  

As it turns out, their was a ready-made audience for QAF. "Fandoms" are a

phenomenon embedded in the world of television. Groups of fans organize

around shows, many of which are based in science fiction and or fantasy. They

gather in chat rooms, email groups, online forums and fan conventions.

There's a well-developed tradition of "fan fic" - fictional stories written by

fans using the framework and characters of the show. Much of the fiction is

"slash", which  traditionally depicts straight characters in erotic, homosexual

situations. There's some argument as to whether Queer As Folk fan fic counts

as slash, since the characters are gay. Most in the fandom either don't split

hairs, or they point out that half of the actors on QAF are straight.   

The actors are a powerful draw for straight women as well. Queer As Folk is

an assembly of some of the most attractive men and women on TV. Knowing

that the irresistible Mr. Kinney is straight in real life makes watching him all

the more alluring. Gale Harold, Hal Sparks, and Scott Lowell draw women to

the show in droves. The addition of 18 year old Harris Allan is sure to draw an

even younger female demographic to the show.  Another interesting

development is that the openly gay actors- Peter Paige, Robert Gant and Randy

Harrison- are as sought after by screaming female fans as the straight guys.

Not only is watching guys have sex an unexpected turn-on, but it apparently

doesn't  matter if they aren't attracted to women. It's an interesting contrast to

the tendency for fans to prefer single actors over married, but then a wife or

girlfriend is competition. Just ask Ben Affleck.  [Written right after he split w/

J.Lo -- Ed.]

On the down side, I'm starting to see what I call the "Playboy Effect" in the

fandom. Feminists have complained for years about men who become so

conditioned to the airbrushed images of women in centerfolds that they have

unrealistic expectations of real  women who don't have the advantage of

perfect lighting and Photoshop touch-ups. Frequent scenes showing clubs full

of hairless, perfectly tanned and

toned men who know

how to dance and how to dress seem to be affecting the expectations women

have of men. The bar has been raised, boys. From the Hot Dancing Gay Boys

(HDGB's for short) that fill Babylon to the lithely elegant Mr. Kinney to the

sculptural perfection of Robert Gant, we've seen the best in the hottest scenes

and from every angle. It might just be that the current fervor for Queer Eye

for the Straight Guy is a sign of a cultural shift- that we want our men

Metrosexual. If we're going to be held to the ridiculous standards of

Hollywood and 7th Avenue, don't expect us to settle for less in our men. The

irony is that what the religious right sees as the decline of Western civilization

may be just the opposite. All this grooming and dancing is positively civilized

in a whole new way. Who knew a bunch of good-looking club kids from

Pittsburgh would be the beginning of a new wave of social change?