'Queer Eye' is nice surprise

HOLLYWOOD — The cable channel Bravo would seem to be courting controversy with "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy," a new series in which five gay men do a makeover on a straight guy.

But, as it turns out, "Eye" is a surprisingly funny, sweet, entertaining show that's sort of a one-way "Trading Spaces" for both the home and the man.

"When you see . . . the real heart of the show, you realize that we're just six guys hanging out," said Carson Kressley, the program's fashion expert. "And in the end, we just wind of being friends. . . . We wind up with a guy who has an increased sense of confidence, looks better, feels better.

"And I know about hockey now. So win-win."

The format of "Eye" has Kressley, Ted Allen (food and wine), Kyan Douglas (grooming), Thom Filicia (home design) and Jai Rodriguez (culture vulture) descending upon a straight guy who really needs help. In the first of two episodes that air tonight (9 and 10 p.m., Bravo), the Fab Five clean up a Grizzly Adams-esque artist and his disaster of an apartment, then help him with a gallery opening for his work. The second episode features a married guy whose appearance and home are both a disaster, and who wants to throw a belated birthday party for his wife.

"Many of them sort of resist a little bit at the beginning, particularly during the shock-and-awe phase of the initial assault on their apartment," Allen said. "And what's really been fascinating to all of us is how they . . . completely buy into the program. By the time you get to that final scene, where we're sort of rooting for him to make it through to the conclusion of the show, they've gotten to a point where they've become sad to see us leave."

Yes, the Fab Five give their subjects a hard time, but it's all in fun. There's a lot of jokes, but it's not mean-spirited. And the guys make fun of themselves more than they make fun of their makeover subject.

"We're rooting for him," Collins said.

"We're his biggest supporter," Rodriguez said.

"Because we want him to be a success," Kressley said.

"We're working with him, and he's working with us," Filicia said. "It's really sort of a collaboration."

And it's a bonding experience.