The Netflix original series Queer Eye, the successful reboot of the early 2000s show of the same name, is a show about helping people get out of ruts and live their best lives. The original series typically focused on helping straight, cisgender men become their best selves.
While most of the first season does primarily focus on straight, cisgender men, it also breaks away from that formula by assisting a gay man. Every person featured in this season went through incredible visual and lifestyle transformations. Here is a look at the most drastic ones, ranked.
Episode 7: Joe
Joe is a stand-up comedian living with his parents in Norcross, Georgia. When the Fab Five came to him, he had recently lost weight but was still wearing the same baggy clothes and lacked confidence in his personal life, appearance, and in his stand-up material.
When the Fab Five had finished with him, he dressed in the correct sizes and had run his stand-up material with smaller audiences before hitting the stage, where he killed with his set. Joe was still living in his parents’ basement and Bobby Berk, the designer in the Fab Five, changed it to look more akin to a bachelor pad and more appropriate to take dates home.
Episode 8: Jeremy
Rather than redoing his house, Jeremy opted to get the Covington Fire Department redone so that it could better accommodate himself and his coworkers. Jeremy was open about his distaste for fashion and typically stuck to wearing polos and khakis when outside of his firefighting gear.
Bobby redid the entire fire department and Tan helped him learn more about fashion in order to make himself more presentable. The entire Fab Five helped him and the Fire Department prepare for and host a fundraiser for the rural firemen training program of which Jeremy was in charge.
Episode 1: Tom
Tom was the first person featured in the reboot. He’s retired and loves classic cars. Before the Fab Five, he spent most of his nights drinking red neck margaritas and watching television. He had divorced multiple times and considered his most recent ex-wife, Abby, to be his soulmate.
Jonathan Van Ness, the hairstylist and grooming expert, helped Tom learn how to take care of his lupus through skincare routines while Tan France, the fashion expert, showed him clothes that were more stylish than his typical shirt and jean shorts. Bobby also put new furniture into the apartment and redecorated the backyard. At the end of the week, he took Abby on a date to a car show and the two hit it off.
Episode 3: Cory
Cory is a policeman whose daily attire consisted of a t-shirt and basketball shorts. A big NASCAR fan, he also had his memorabilia confined to and cluttering the basement. He did not feel comfortable with himself or in his own home.
By the end of the episode, Tan taught him to dress nicer and remain comfortable, and Bobby integrated his love of NASCAR into the rest of the house in a way that his wife approved. He also learned about different perspectives by having a one-on-one conversation with Karamo Brown, the culture expert, about police culture. The episode ended with Cory, all dressed up for the occasion, taking his family to see the play Finding Neverland.
Episode 5: Bobby
Bobby Camp is a devoutly religious man who works multiple jobs in order to make ends meet for his large family. The house was constantly cluttered with the six children’s toys and things taking up most of the space in the house. Bobby himself was lacking in basic self-care such as good hygiene and adequate sleep.
Bobby Berk, along with Jonathan, probably helped him the most during this episode. Bobby reorganized the entire house and created a designated room for the children, which also served as a dining room, and he also created space designated for Bobby Camp so that he had a means of relaxing after a long day at his jobs. Jonathan helped the family make their one bathroom function more efficiently on top of taking Bobby to the hair salon for a new look.
Episode 4: A.J.
A.J. is a civil engineer out of Atlanta, Georgia. His best friend, Al, described his apartment as a literal man cave and mentioned in passing that A.J. had a tire in his closet. At the start of the episode, A.J. has a boyfriend without being openly gay. He never came out to his dad before he passed away and was looking to avoid that same mistake with his stepmother.
A.J. was hosting a party at the end of the week he spent with the Fab Five and had invited his stepmother, planning to introduce her to his boyfriend. Bobby spent the week essentially gutting the house and refurbishing it to fit A.J.’s style while keeping some of his things such as a swing in the living room in the apartment. Antoni taught A.J. to cook tamales for his stepmother and Tan helped him discover his personal clothing style. His stepmother did come to the party and was very accepting of A.J. and his boyfriend.
Episode 6: Remington (Remy)
Remy is the third featured person out of Atlanta, Georgia, during the first season. He lives in his grandmother’s house, which he seems to have inherited, but it still was decorated the way his grandmother had it in the 1970s at the beginning of the episode. He also did not cook much or do a lot of laundry. His wardrobe was almost exclusively gym clothes.
Bobby and Tan updated his home and his wardrobe, respectively, and Antoni taught him to make Remy’s family’s recipe for macaroni and cheese and took him on a whiskey tasting with Karamo in order to learn more about whiskey for a whiskey punch Remy and his mom makes. While his appearance did not change much other than his personal style, his house changed from a portal to the 1970s to a modern single person’s house.
Episode 2: Neal
Neal is a programmer out of Atlanta, Georgia, who, at the beginning of the episode, had long hair and a long beard, and existed in one outfit for extended periods of time before changing, according to his friend Ben. Neal also felt a lot of pressure from his parents about his looks.
To help him prepare for an app launch party he was hosting at the end of the week, Antoni taught him to prepare simple party food such as grilled cheese sandwiches. Meanwhile, Bobby fixed aspects of the house that Neal’s dog had destroyed and got rid of the excess hair that came from the dog and Neal himself, and Tan talked to him about Indian and Pakistani culture while updating his wardrobe. Jonathan cut the hair and beard in order to make it look neater and more professional, making his by far the most drastic change.