Stars: 5/5
Things just keep getting better for the Fab Five and the third season of “Queer Eye.”
Tan, Bobby, Karamo, Antoni and Jonathan are back and more caring, compassionate and fabulous than ever. This season of “Queer Eye” reached out much farther than past seasons have. While the original show from the mid 2000s was tailored to straight men, the Fab Five of the reboot experimented in helping other gay men and even a transgender man in the first two seasons of the show.
The third season featured many firsts for the show. They decided to do an even number of men and women in season three. The show had its first woman in episode one, first duo in episode three, and their first lesbian in episode five.
“Queer Eye” has been a tear-jerking, heart-wrenching show from the beginning, but season three somehow seems to top anything they’ve ever done. The stories are profoundly touching from a husband who lost his wife to cancer to a young, lesbian black woman who was kicked out of her adoptive parents’ home for coming out.
The show starts off very strong with Jody Castellucci, the show’s first woman. She is passionate about hunting, and much to the horror of the Fab Five, most articles in her home and closet are camouflage or taxidermy.
Instead of trying to force Jody into a more feminine lifestyle, they let her take the lead. She tells them that she wants to be more feminine and they help her achieve that without leaving behind other sides of her personality. In the end, they help her achieve a look and a space that leaves her feeling feminine and beautiful without sacrificing her love of being outdoors and hunting.
Karamo does something in this episode that almost made me like Karamo as much as the other four guys. He acknowledged the fact that it’s ridiculous that five men were trying to teach her about femininity and what it means to be a woman. He assembled a group of diverse women to talk with Jody about what being a woman means to them. 
What I found so touching about this season is the Fab Five’s commitment to not change who these people are. So many of the people on season three have huge personalities accompanied by particular tastes. The Fab Five makes sure to help them create a version of themselves that is the best that they can be.
Episode three features the show’s very first duo, sisters Deborah “Little” and Mary “Shorty” Jones. These two women run their father’s business, Jones Bar-B-Q. The Fab Five truly went above and beyond for these ladies.
In addition to doing their hair and buying them new clothes, the Fab Five completely renovated the restaurant and assisted the ladies in finding a company to bottle their famous Bar-B-Q sauces to sell to wider audiences.
The most emotional scene of this episode — and maybe even the entire season — was when the Fab Five decided to give Mary a trip to the dentist to fix her teeth. From the beginning of the episode, it was apparent that whenever Mary would laugh or talk, she would cover her mouth with her hand. After she received her new smile, she cried tears of joy and smiled for the rest of the episode — no hand involved.
Episode five features the show’s first lesbian, a woman named Jess. Jess was kicked out of her adoptive family’s home at the age of 16 because she was outed to her parents. Ever since then, Jess had struggled with not only discovering who she was and her identify, but also where she belonged and her sense of family.
Seeing Jess connect with the Fab Five was an emotional experience for anyone watching. She connected with Bobby because they share similar stories of being forced to go to church as children and being kicked out of their homes for being gay. She connected with Karamo as someone who was often told that she was not black enough or not gay enough.
With the help of the Fab Five, Jess was able to accept and love the fact that she is a black, lesbian woman.
This season of “Queer Eye” demonstrated just how above and beyond the Fab Five are willing to go to help these people. Bobby often renovated entire houses. Karamo took a few people to a local gym to talk about mental health while showing them that working on their physical health can be just as important to someone’s mental health.
By far the most exciting addition to the show, however, is the presence of a small French Bulldog named Bruley, whose owner lives down the hall from the Fab Five loft and and allows him to come visit whenever he pleases.
Season three had many silly little additions to the show like Bruley. Antoni had a dramatic PSA about not keeping to-MAH-tos in the fridge. In episode four, they inserted interview clips with married couples to fit the theme of a wedding episode. In the end of episode seven, the Fab Five tells us what their spirit animals are, and tensions get high when Bobby and Antoni both want to be a corgi.
Every season of “Queer Eye” has thousands of small life lessons that viewers can take away, but I believe season three focused on three main themes: It’s okay to ask for help, family is who loves you and supports you no matter who you are, and it’s important to love yourself at any stage of your journey.