Queer as Fold marathon on Showtime this month

May 2024 · 20 minute read

June is Gay Pride month, and Showtime shows the entire Queer As Folk (US) series every year!

Season 1 starts today, June 1!

Then it continues with about four or five episodes per day, for the entire month.

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by Anonymousreply 96July 8, 2021 5:34 PM

I have a friend who’s a foldsinger.

by Anonymousreply 2June 1, 2021 11:03 PM

Is this about gay Origami?

by Anonymousreply 3June 1, 2021 11:10 PM

Queer as folds are what we call the employees at Express Men’s

by Anonymousreply 5June 1, 2021 11:19 PM

Ooops ... Origami, of course.

by Anonymousreply 7June 2, 2021 12:45 AM

Fuck you bitches!

You all ruined this thread.

by Anonymousreply 8June 2, 2021 12:49 AM

OP ruined his own thread. But it's all in good fun.

There are plenty of Queer As Folk threads on DL.

by Anonymousreply 9June 2, 2021 12:52 AM

I watched this last year during Pride - the first time I had binged it and first time I'd seen it in like 13+ years. It holds up a lot better than I thought when you watch it all together.

My partner had never seen it and he thought it was great. I forget how groundbreaking this was - even now, you don't see gay sex on TV like they showed it. Scandalous!

Sadly, QAF also marks the last of the big, gay nightlife time period when everyone went out and everyone went to big dance clubs later in the evening.

by Anonymousreply 10June 2, 2021 12:53 AM

[quote] It holds up a lot better than I thought when you watch it all together.

I don't think it does.

The whole thing seems very dated.

by Anonymousreply 11June 2, 2021 12:59 AM

It's not the same without the original music.

by Anonymousreply 12June 2, 2021 1:02 AM

A friend of mine who has since died wrote two of the episodes. He was so thrilled to get the assignment and I think of him every time this show pops up. It still leaves me quite sad. He was a wonderful writer, probably too good for the show in all honesty.

by Anonymousreply 13June 2, 2021 1:03 AM

R11 - when was the last time you binge watched it? Yes, it's a period piece and it IS 20 years old - but the issues they addressed really pushed the boundaries.

Everyone loves to shit all over it - and parts of the criticism is understandable - but it really was groundbreaking. A lot more than Will & Grace or any other gay character on a TV network show since.

by Anonymousreply 16June 2, 2021 1:24 AM

Is this that Gay Origami show I’ve been looking forward to all year? Let me get my bone folder and paper squares out!

by Anonymousreply 17June 2, 2021 1:26 AM

I'm having a wash and fold marathon this weekend.

by Anonymousreply 18June 2, 2021 1:49 AM

I enjoyed the show at the time. When it first aired I led a similar lifestyle pre apps...lots of hooking up, looking for the perfect bf, clubbing, trying to find myself. I identified with some of the characters and knew many guys like these boys. Let's face it...it was basically a stupid soap opera with questionable writing, but like all good soaps, at its heart it had a certain humanity and spirit that transcended the bad writing.

by Anonymousreply 19June 2, 2021 1:54 AM

I happened to be channel surfing today and saw the pilot episode. Then I remembered how adorable I thought Michael (Hal Sparks) was at the time. Too bad his character developed into a real asshole through the seasons.

Who were the gay actors, though? Randy Harrison and Peter Paige. Anybody else? I think everybody else was gay-for-pay.

by Anonymousreply 20June 2, 2021 1:55 AM

Hal Sparks and Gale Harold are still single, R20.

Hmmmmm.....

by Anonymousreply 21June 2, 2021 1:58 AM

First episode is also on YouTube.

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by Anonymousreply 22June 2, 2021 2:05 AM

[quote] Who were the gay actors, though? Randy Harrison and Peter Paige. Anybody else? I think everybody else was gay-for-pay.

Robert Gant, who joined in season two and Jack Wetherall (Uncle Vic) are also gay.

by Anonymousreply 23June 2, 2021 2:15 AM

How’s about that sexy chiropractor who was nailing Michael for awhile, was he gay?

by Anonymousreply 24June 2, 2021 2:17 AM

[quote] Wonder if it hold up???

R10 (aka Siskel) thinks it does. R11 (aka Ebert) doesn’t think it does.

by Anonymousreply 25June 2, 2021 2:18 AM

Queer as Fold has generated many origasms over the years.

by Anonymousreply 27June 2, 2021 2:18 AM

If only there was someplace like the Showtime app where you could watch every episode whenever you wanted.

by Anonymousreply 28June 2, 2021 2:22 AM

[quote] How’s about that sexy chiropractor who was nailing Michael for awhile, was he gay?

He is straight and, apparently, Chris Potter was not too happy filming making out with guys like Hal Sparks on the show.

by Anonymousreply 29June 2, 2021 2:31 AM

[quote] If only there was someplace like the Showtime app where you could watch every episode whenever you wanted.

If only everything in the world was free of charge.

If only people could be decent and nice sometimes, instead of sarcastic cunts.

by Anonymousreply 30June 2, 2021 2:37 AM

My current boyfriend and I would watch it cuddled up in bed when we first started dating. So I have happy memories of the show. It was of its time, depicting a gay scene and lifestyle now long gone, that was, for me a happy one. It's a shame those days are over and today's gaylings don't get to sample the wonderful nature of those days.

by Anonymousreply 31June 2, 2021 2:38 AM

It was offensive then and it's offensive now.

by Anonymousreply 32June 2, 2021 2:38 AM

To quote Kimber Benton from Jem & The Holograms: It was outrageous!

by Anonymousreply 33June 2, 2021 2:41 AM

I couldn't stomach more than 5 minutes of this crap. I only saw it when Showtime had a free preview of it, and even then I felt overcharged. It made me embarrassed to be gay. Embarrassed.

by Anonymousreply 34June 2, 2021 2:43 AM

Sharon Gless was fabulous as Debbie.

by Anonymousreply 35June 2, 2021 3:07 AM

I always get her mixed up with Tyne Daly.

Anyway, R35, I concur. She was brilliant!

by Anonymousreply 36June 2, 2021 12:45 PM

Showtime is really doing it up big for Gay Pride month!

Just yesterday, they showed Queer as Folk, Moonlight, The L Word, and Brokeback Mountain!

They also aired a documentary on gay marriage.

My local cable network has eight different Showtime channels, so they can program a lot of gay content. I love it!

by Anonymousreply 37June 2, 2021 1:52 PM

Why the fuck has The L Word gotten a reboot but not Queer As Folk?

by Anonymousreply 38June 2, 2021 1:58 PM

R34 is a total fanboy who watched every week and bought all the DVDs

by Anonymousreply 39June 2, 2021 1:59 PM

[quote] Why the fuck has The L Word gotten a reboot but not Queer As Folk?

Queer as Folk does get a reboot. However, it's the British version that is being rebooted. I guess Russel T. Davis, who owns the QAF franchise, didn't want to deal with Showtime and vice versa.

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by Anonymousreply 40June 2, 2021 2:06 PM

I enjoyed the couple of nude shots of very well hung Dean Armstrong.

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by Anonymousreply 43June 2, 2021 3:29 PM

... and Peter Paige's peter.

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by Anonymousreply 44June 2, 2021 3:30 PM

R45 =, idiot. Lesbians always get more acceptance than gay men in the media and entertainment industry, that's a fucking fact! I'm not trans retard!

by Anonymousreply 46June 2, 2021 3:37 PM

Stupid non-proofreading OP.

by Anonymousreply 48June 2, 2021 3:40 PM

Queer as Fold Premiere Episode: Meryl folds butter into puff pastry.

Spoiler alert, episode climaxes with resultant pain au chocolat.

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by Anonymousreply 49June 2, 2021 3:44 PM

In Queer as Fold, Babylon is a laundromat with a lot of folding going on in the backroom.

by Anonymousreply 50June 2, 2021 3:48 PM

Season 2 was the best season... It introduced the hottest hunk Professor Ben! But to this day, I still can't understand why he was attracted to Michael...

by Anonymousreply 51June 2, 2021 3:48 PM

[quote] But to this day, I still can't understand why he was attracted to Michael...

He was an HIV positive, middle aged guy into New Age philosophies. Michael was the best he could get and even Michael ran for the hills initially.

by Anonymousreply 52June 2, 2021 3:53 PM

In Queer as Fold, Babylon is a Kate’s Papers always running out of Origami supplies at a fevered pitch.

by Anonymousreply 53June 2, 2021 3:55 PM

R40: Davies always said the beauty of the British version is that young gay kids could watch it in their bedrooms, blanket over their heads, picking up the UK's Channel 4 over the air. It was subversive and easy to see. Compared to the US where you needed to have Premium Pay TV, which a lot of kids wouldn't have in their bedrooms anyway. US society is so repressed.

by Anonymousreply 54June 2, 2021 4:44 PM

I’d rather see an American version of Its A Sin, based on its own characters and NYC setting, not just a rehash of the British series.

by Anonymousreply 55June 2, 2021 4:46 PM

QAF didn't exactly present a sterling portrayal of what it means to be gay. With the exception of Emmett and Ben, the male characters were pretty psychologically damaged.

by Anonymousreply 56June 2, 2021 6:00 PM

r56, it was supposed to be a drama show, not feel-good entertainment. You create more drama that's relatable with flawed characters, who have good intentions, than prim and proper characters.

by Anonymousreply 57June 2, 2021 6:04 PM

R24 & R29 Chris Potter was allegedly made a number of homophobic remarks while on set and hated doing the sex scenes with Hal Sparks. Apparently Potter did not get on well with the cast or producers and was fired at the end of the first season.

by Anonymousreply 58June 2, 2021 6:40 PM

R58 Yeah the cast has alluded not like Chris Potter over the years. Robert Gant was significantly better on the show and had good chemistry with Hal Sparks. The US QAF was my guilty pleasure when it was on the air. I would watch it in my room with the volume turned down as low as I could so my parents wouldn't hear. In all honesty, it was not a great show. It had it's moments but it became overly "soap opera" very quickly. In the beginning, the sex scenes were "shock value" to garner the show attention and get people talking, but after the first season it felt less daring and more "obligatorily." I do think the show is much better in the later seasons in terms of writing, but still goes for those big soap storylines: "Brian's cancer," "Babylon 5 is destroyed" etc.

R56 While I don't think characters should be perfect, one thing against QAF is out of the three leads (Brian, Justin, Michael) none of them are particularly likeable. It was the secondary characters that actually made the show e.g. Ted, Emmett, Debbie, Vic, the really dykey one whose name I forget (not the blonde one, I didn't like her acting).

by Anonymousreply 59June 2, 2021 7:20 PM

Say what you want about Thea Gill, but girlfriend knew how to moan!

by Anonymousreply 60June 2, 2021 7:41 PM

Love to watch the very special Pride episode on occasion.

by Anonymousreply 61June 2, 2021 8:15 PM

R50 Thea Gill (aka Lindsey) is the blonde one. I don't actually think she is a bad actress, the three lead actors were the worst on the show if we're being truthful, but I think she's one of those theater trained actors whose performing style don't translate as well on TV. Her performances reminded me of the woman who played Dr. Crusher on Star Trek. She had the same kind of affected delivery. Gill kind of seems "moody" in real life. I remember the cast reunion that took place a few years ago, and she looked like she wanted to be anywhere by there.

by Anonymousreply 62June 2, 2021 8:20 PM

Today's gay programming on Showtime:

Queer As Folk, Brokeback Mountain, Dallas Buyers Club.

by Anonymousreply 63June 2, 2021 8:21 PM

I rewatched QAF last year when my area was in lockdown & wow it's terribly written in a kind of it's so bad it's good way. Seasons 1 and 3 are the best I think and the second season is by far the worst of the five.

by Anonymousreply 64June 2, 2021 8:40 PM

For me, the final season was just too depressing. Sure, the show was a trashy soap, but for most of its run it found a good balance between comedy and drama. The final season was just one sad story after the other, downright pessimistic.

by Anonymousreply 65June 2, 2021 8:47 PM

Someone needs to mention that the show had far greater appeal to frauen than to gay men and that even 20 years later many of them obsess over it and stalk the actors and all that.

Anyone who has been on DL for more than three years is aware that for many years DL was infested by a Hammer/Chalamet Crazy level of fan frauen who were obsessed with Gale Harold and wanted to believe that his relationship with gay co-star Randy Harrison was as real offscreen as it was onscreen.

Not sure why they disappeared--a few years back there would sometimes be as many as a dozen posts a day about Harold, but they seem to be gone for good.

by Anonymousreply 66June 2, 2021 9:15 PM

Well, it's not like Gale or Randy are big A-List stars. The crazy fans moved on to the likes of Timothée Chalamet and Armie Hammer or before that shipped Sterek on Teen Wolf or Larry from the boy band One Direction.

by Anonymousreply 67June 2, 2021 9:18 PM

Fair point R66, but (and longer term posters can confirm) it seems as if those Harold-Harrison Stans had been a fixture on DL from the time the show first aired until around 2018 or 2019 or so. Quite a long run.

by Anonymousreply 68June 2, 2021 9:21 PM

i like this show but it didn't age well and went downhill after season 2

by Anonymousreply 69June 2, 2021 9:22 PM

The music seems different during this rerun session. I don’t recognize any of the songs used except the intro.

by Anonymousreply 70June 4, 2021 11:13 PM

I watched it all in the late 00s. It was always good to be watching a gay show, but honestly, I didn't really like it that much. A lot of my friends find it weird, but I, as a gay man, really loved The L Word, but was ambivalent about Queer as Folk.

by Anonymousreply 71June 4, 2021 11:24 PM

[quote]It was of its time, depicting a gay scene and lifestyle now long gone, that was, for me a happy one. It's a shame those days are over and today's gaylings don't get to sample the wonderful nature of those days.

That's so interesting to me, because I saw what was depicted on the show - the self-medicating, the rejection within the community, nastiness and shallowness - as being really off-putting. In the sense that I never wanted to be a part of that.

I like that now we don't have to go to the same one or two clubs over and over again, just to be around other gay people, and in that environment. It was a lot of broken people being horrible to each other. The younger generations are growing up without having it be such a big deal anymore, which means they get to live their teen years properly and aren't bringing that into their 20s, 30s, 40s and beyond.

Just my two cents, you understand.

by Anonymousreply 72June 4, 2021 11:33 PM

R70 - I had read (in another DL thread) that the music was only licensed for the original run and so they've had to go an find replacements for most of the songs.

by Anonymousreply 73June 4, 2021 11:36 PM

I'm wondering if the show had been called "Queer as Fold" if it would have been better?

by Anonymousreply 74June 4, 2021 11:37 PM

Thanks r73. I dug out the old CDs I bought. Fun to listen to while cleaning the house. A bit silly upon second viewing but still fun. Especially Debbie. Nostalgia time.

by Anonymousreply 75June 4, 2021 11:42 PM

They really should have shown some of the prep that went into the anal sex scenes. The spontaneous butt stuff between Justin and Brian was often laughable. (Maybe Brain was into shit?) I guess they didn’t want to offend all the fraus watching.

by Anonymousreply 76June 4, 2021 11:57 PM

R62, to see some instances of Thea Gill's acting REALLY not working, check her out on Dante's Cove. She stands out from among a cast of people who are barely actors, especially in a late story line where she is possessed by evil.

by Anonymousreply 77June 5, 2021 12:25 AM

R70 & R73 Yup the licensing for the show's music was only purchased for the televised version of the show. When the show was released on DVD, the cost to license the music for DVD use was deemed too expensive and replacement songs were found. This was very common when TV on DVD became a huge thing in the early 00s & studios began releasing their catalogues on DVD. The original licensing for music never anticipated a demand for tv shows to become available on home media (prior to DVD it was generally only movies that were released on VHS for home use). Most successful TV shows would just be rerun in syndication for a number of years after their original airing. When DVDs came in studios had to go back to the original owners of each song and purchase the licenses again & it was so expense it was would have made a major dent in the profitability of DVDs. I remember when Dawson's Creek was being released on DVD in the mid-00s (yeah, I was a fan of that show....) there was a huge controversy with fans because all the music was changed. Kevin Williamson said it would have cost Warner Brother's millions of dollars to buy the licenses for the DVD release & it was either find other music or the series won't be released.

by Anonymousreply 78June 5, 2021 12:31 AM

If you have Showtime, you should also have Showtime Anytime. You can stream the series at your leisure. Now I regret buying all those DVDs…

by Anonymousreply 80June 5, 2021 1:00 AM

I'm pretty certain the DVD Box set releases during the show's initial run in the US feature the original songs. Never checked on the DVD (and Blu Ray?) releases after that.

by Anonymousreply 81June 5, 2021 1:07 AM

R81 I have the original DVD set for season 1 and season 2 released in 2002 and 2003 respectively & the right on the box it says that the music contained on the DVDs have been altered from the original broadcast version.

by Anonymousreply 82June 5, 2021 1:41 AM

Hmmm. I've read that the 2007 box set of the complete series has the original music.

by Anonymousreply 83June 5, 2021 1:59 AM

^ Source: owners of said box set on Amazon and Reddit

by Anonymousreply 84June 5, 2021 2:00 AM

It doesn't say anything about altered songs on my Collector's Edition box-sets which were released right around the time the shows were aired on Showtime.

It also makes no sense for Showtime releasing soundtracks during that time as well if they couldn't get the rights for the songs used on the show.

by Anonymousreply 85June 5, 2021 5:45 AM

Sorry, ... which were released right around the time the show's seasons aired on Showtime for the first time.

by Anonymousreply 86June 5, 2021 5:49 AM

I don't know about the DVDs but when the show was streaming on Netflix the soundtrack was absolutely changed.

by Anonymousreply 87June 5, 2021 6:05 AM

Music licensing contracts end after a while. The first commercial releases should have the original songs, later editions possibly not. By the time the show got on the streaming services it did change as pointed out by others.

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by Anonymousreply 88June 5, 2021 6:06 AM

[quote]I don't know about the DVDs but when the show was streaming on Netflix the soundtrack was absolutely changed.

Showtime swapped out the songs when they brought it back for their first June Pride binge in 2014.

by Anonymousreply 89June 5, 2021 6:13 AM

[quote]When the show was released on DVD, the cost to license the music for DVD use was deemed too expensive and replacement songs were found. This was very common when TV on DVD became a huge thing in the early 00s & studios began releasing their catalogues on DVD.

Very much like what happened with Daria. All that music was so much a part of the show, yet I think only one song made it onto the DVDs - the rest was replaced with background music by Splendora, I think. And it's fine. But I discovered so much cool music through Daria, and so many scenes are entwined in my mind with certain songs. It would be nice to see it like that again.

by Anonymousreply 90June 5, 2021 6:18 AM

R83 - yeah, that's the version I have, and I'm pretty sure all the right songs are on it.

by Anonymousreply 91June 5, 2021 6:20 AM

There is a difference between shows like Queer as Folk and 90s shows like Daria. Queer as Folk immediately released DVDs and soundtracks while still owning the music rights. MTV did not release any video box sets, or DVDs, of Daria while still owning the rights to the music. Same goes for another great 90s show of them called Undressed.

Music licenses don't end within a few months. Sure, back in the 90s producers didn't think about releasing DVDs or, sometimes, soundtracks of their shows. But that quickly changed in the aughts and those early releases still contain the original music. As soon those music licenses end the owners of the shows replace them with some generic songs and give these new versions to streamers to make a few more bucks.

by Anonymousreply 92June 5, 2021 6:34 AM

I still have my VHS taped-off-the-TV (remember doing that?) episodes of Daria somewhere at least. Trouble is, don't really have a VCR to play 'em on anymore, haha.

by Anonymousreply 93June 5, 2021 6:41 AM

I could never watch the American QAF with all the horrible wooden actors like Gale Harold. The guy who played Randy was good, Emmet was good, Hal Sparks played gay well. I hated his mother and the two lesbians, too OTT. The blonde lezzy was a terrible actress, as awful as Gale Harold. Plus the whole series was like living off styrofoam for a year. No nutrition or substance. Just a bunch of nasty, empty vessels feigning at real life.

by Anonymousreply 94July 8, 2021 9:08 AM

There were *some* superb episodes in the American version. Really superb. That said, there was never an elecrifying moment as in the English version when Aiden Gillen walked into that hospital with a face like thunder. Unforgettable scene.

by Anonymousreply 95July 8, 2021 9:29 AM

R94 One of the issues the show had when it was first in development was that agents didn't want to send their clients to audition, so this is why the show was cast with mostly unknowns and people with less than stellar acting abilities. I always thought that the three leads (Brian, Michael and Justin) were the weakest actors of the bunch and that the secondary and recurring actors were all better performers. Except I agree, that Thea Gill (the blonde lezzy character) was a terrible actress as well. Interestingly, Thea has really distanced herself from the cast in recent years and has only appeared once during the many cast reunions over the past few years.

by Anonymousreply 96July 8, 2021 5:34 PM

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