Queer Eye has only been on our screens for two years, but they’ve already blessed us with four seasons and a spinoff–Queer Eye: We’re in Japan! Taking the fab five’s talents halfway across the world is a big swing, but it’s one that paid off.
The heroes were some of the sweetest yet such as Yoko-San who devoted her life and home to hospice care in honor of her deceased sister. One thing is clear: the world needs more of the Fab Five’s tidings of self-care. Until then, here are 10 Hilarious & Unforgettable Memes from Queer Eye: We’re in Japan!
More Like The Culturally Sensitive Five
A decidedly unhygienic and Western trait is the tendency to wear shoes in the home. One of the strangest things about watching home improvement or makeover shows, Queer Eye included, is watching strangers burst into someone’s home without ever removing their shoes.
It can be even more disgusting when the guests proceed to track in the dirt from the outside world while nitpicking over their host’s belongings. Thankfully, in Japan, it’s understood that everyone removes their shoes in the home, providing for some much-needed reality in this reality show.
Shoutout To The Interpreter
Unlike another Netflix show, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up with Marie Kondo, the interpreter for Queer Eye: We’re in Japan! is never seen on the screen while the Fab Five interact with their heroes and the guys know little to no Japanese.
Thus, the interactions take on an almost superhuman quality as they seamlessly (through the power of editing) interact without ever translating. Thankfully, at the end of one of the episodes, they introduce the interpreter and acknowledge her hard work that went on behind the scenes.
Emotional Moments
Every season–sometimes every minute–of Queer Eye is engineered and guaranteed to make you reach for the tissue box. But the season of Queer Eye: We’re in Japan! had some especially emotional episodes.
One, in particular, explored the marriage between Yasuko and Makoto who were best friends but lacked intimacy in their relationship until pushed and helped by the Fab Five. The words shared between the two were so deep, it touched and shook many fans to the core long after they finished the episode.
The Love Of Makoto
Another meme based on the hero in the meme above, Makoto was also a breakout from Queer Eye: We’re in Japan! Makoto wanted so badly to show his wife he loved her but had no idea how to express his feelings, having never been taught how to do so.
When he finally did, with the help of Tan and Karamo, saying, “I am saved by the fact you exist,” it ended up being the most profound and beautiful thing she, or any person watching, had ever heard. We’re still crying.
Bobby Werk Still Wins
Bobby has always been the unsung hero of Queer Eye. While Antoni makes guacamole and Jonathan shows the heroes how to make a homemade face mask, Bobby renovates entire living spaces in a matter of days.
In the original series, he’s done multiple room homes and even church community centers in the American heartland. But Bobby takes it to another level in Queer Eye: We’re in Japan!, his skill and creativity flourishing in the microscopic and multifunctional apartments of Tokyo, proving that he is the true star.
Antoni & Yoko-San’s Date
Easily the most precious (and one of the most deserving) heroes to ever be on the show, Yoko-San couldn’t contain her crushes on the boys, especially Antoni. And Antoni couldn’t resist showing her attention back after she had been so singularly devoted to taking care of others for so long.
So when Antoni took her on a date to teach her how to cook, Yoko-San pinched and hugged him all over, making even Antoni blush at times. Yoko-San’s bold, moves were the sweetest in the middle-aged mom game.
The French Tuck Is Real
https://eggsaladstain.tumblr.com/post/188769661255/karamo-asking-the-real-questions
If there’s anything other than “self-care” that’s broken through to the masses from Queer Eye, it’s stylist Tan France’s signature French Tuck, an easy finish on a look that involves tucking in just part of the front of a shirt or sweater.
Part of Yoko-San’s big personality also included wearing costumes and dressing up, so Tan had to include one of her signatures looks in her makeover reveal. But Karamo had to point out with a bit of good humor that Tan was also sacrificing his trademark.
Tan Dealing With Some Tough News
The Queer Eye guys broke all kinds of new boundaries when they went to Japan by entering a new country and also broaching the taboos around Japanese love and sex. The Fab Five are usually pretty good at handling their reactions to information they find to be shocking or upsetting.
But when Tan learned that Makoto had not made love to his wife in years, he couldn’t hide his horror. Thankfully, Tan stepped up to help Makoto get back in touch with the intimacy he was missing in his relationship with his wife.
Antoni Is Still The Weakest Link
https://days-of-august.tumblr.com/post/188837612862/antoni-sitting-on-the-floor-talking-to-a-rice
It’s been a joke since the inception of the Queer Eye reboot that Antoni doesn’t really pull his weight as much as the other guys. While Karamo gives people therapy for the first time in their lives and Bobby renovates their homes, Antoni shows the heroes how to chop an avocado or takes them to eat pasta.
It’s what we’ve come to expect and Queer Eye: We’re in Japan! is no different, finding Antoni doing not much of anything beyond talking to a rice cooker and flirting with Yoko-San.
But At Least He’s Pretty!
All this to say, at least Antoni knows how to serve a bold look in a way that’s unique from the other members of the Fab Five. In keeping with the tradition of the show, the guys still watch how their heroes do once they’re gone, this time from the comfort of a Tokyo loft with Japanese model Kiko Mizuhara joining.
As always, Antoni also prepares a little drink and appetizer for them to enjoy, and his pseudo kimono look in this loft scene is nothing less than iconic.
