Every 'Queer Eye' Episode Ranked by Emotional Impact

Netflix's reboot of Queer Eye has taken viewers on an emotional and empowering journey since it premiered in early 2018. Now in its third season, the show continues to find ways to tell intimate, human stories as the Fab Five make over people's lives, and while every episode is bound to get you in the feels in some way or another, some are more emotionally impactful than others. Here, we rank every episode of Queer Eye by how much it made us sob. (Photo via Gavin Bond/Netflix)

24. "Big Little Lies," Season 2, Episode 6: Arian's episode was one of the most difficult to watch. After failing a class he needed to get his diploma and lying to his mom about graduating from college, he continued to lie about his employment and seemed generally resistant to change. Happily, he has since graduated and found a good job — but we didn't get to see any of that in the episode. (Photo via Netflix)

23. "Below Average Joe," Season 1, Episode 7: The transformation of Joe, a 33-year-old comedian who lived with his parents, was sweet, but there were some awkward moments, too — like his not-very-well-received comedy set at the American Legion. (Photo via Netflix)

22. "Bedazzled," Season 2, Episode 7: Sean, the 18-year-old musician whose best friend and biggest influence in life was his godmother Lulu, had a perfectly fine episode that saw him transition into a new life of young-adult independence. It just didn't really bring us to tears. (Photo via Netflix)

21. "Dega Don't," Season 1, Episode 3: This early season 1 episode touched on the subtle kinds of social commentary that would appear in several Queer Eye episodes to follow. It started when the Fab Five's vehicle, with Karamo driving, was pulled over by a policeman. The officer turned out to be the man who nominated the episode's MAGA-hat-wearing subject, Cory, but Karamo struggled to see the humor. Karamo later talked with Cory about his reality as a Black (and gay) man in America, but the episode was otherwise not very emotional. (Photo via Netflix)

20. "The Handyman Can," Season 2, Episode 4: Jason was planning to move away from Atlanta to Reno, leaving behind his friends — and his BFF/long-simmering love interest. The handyman, who is also a longtime Burning Man devotee, ultimately got the confidence he needed to stay and build his business and love life, but the writing seemed like it was on the wall and felt a little anticlimactic. (Photo via Netflix)

19. "Baby on Board," Season 3, Episode 8: Although Tony's episode culminated in a proposal that totally made us tear up, it didn’t feel like there were many other breakthroughs in his journey. Cute family, though! (Photo via Christopher Smith/Netflix)

18. "Make Ted Great Again," Season 2, Episode 8: Ted Terry is the young and hip mayor of Clarkston, Georgia, and he had his life pretty together even before Queer Eye. But with the help of the Fab Five, his appearance and home — and, ultimately, his political career — were taken up a notch. This was a classic feel-good episode, if not a total tearjerker. (Photo via Netflix)

17. "Sloth to Slay," Season 3, Episode 7: Thomas, a super sweet and painfully shy 21-year-old gamer, was super receptive to the Fab Five's "make-better," and it was a joy to watch him come out of his shell. The episode also had its share of tears as Thomas' older sister, Krissy, whom he has been very close to since their mother died, fully supported her little brother, fighting for what was best for him. (Photo via Christopher Smith/Netflix)

16. From Hunter to Huntee," Season 3, Episode 1: This episode took Jody out of her head-to-toe hunting camo and into a glam, champagne-sipping glow up. But it only scratched the surface on other issues, such as the loss of her brother, her job as a prison guard, and gun control. It was lovely and touching, but not one of the most heart-wrenching episodes. (Photo via Christopher Smith/Netflix)

15. "Hose Before Bros," Season 1, Episode 8: The season 1 finale was a dose of firefighter-filled fun (hello, Magic Mike routine!), but it was also a bawl-worthy look into the life of the truly selfless Jeremy. A firefighter and father of five adopted children, Jeremy opted for a makeover of the firehouse instead of his own home, and asked to be dressed to impress for fundraiser instead of his own off-duty life. He also talked openly and bravely about the particulars of his job — saving people as well as watching them die. Honestly, try not to cry. (Photo via Netflix)

14. "Camp Rules," Season 1, Episode 5: This season 1 episode is another example of the good Queer Eye does, not just in helping people improve their own lives, but also in offering valuable perspective and different outlooks on the world. In this episode, the Fab Five helped Bobby get his home and routine together for his six children and wife, even giving the couple a redo on their wedding reception. They also spoke candidly with him about religion and the LGBTQ+ community. He tearfully thanked them, and we couldn't help but cry, too. (Photo via Netflix)

13. "When Robert Met Jamie," Season 3, Episode 4: Robert used humor as a deflective tool, and the Fab Five had their work cut out for them trying to improve his self-esteem. Just a week out from his wedding, they spruced him up wonderfully, while also helping him make healthier food choices for him and his family. (This episode drew some fat-shaming critiques, but it's worth pointing out that Robert asked for help making changes in his dietary and exercise habits.) His make-better demonstrated the Fab Five's knack for breaking down emotional walls and really making a difference in someone's life when they're receptive to it. (Photo via Christopher Smith/Netflix)

12. "Unleash The Sexy Beast," Season 2, Episode 3: This episode was pretty standard in improving Leo the bartender's home and appearance. Where it really made an emotional impact was when Karamo took the hardworking father of two to father-kid playgroups, and the painfully shy nice-guy started to open up to his community. All the feels! (Photo via Netflix)

11. "A Decent Proposal," Season 2, Episode 2: This episode really boiled down to the ultra-emotional proposal at the end. Before that, the Fab Five helped William deal with some of his social and relationship anxieties — including replacing the furniture that his girlfriend bought with her ex-husband. Like a lot of Queer Eye episodes, this one was heavy in unexpected ways. (Photo via Netflix)

10. "The Renaissance of Remington," Season 1, Episode 6: This episode starred Remington, who certainly needed upgrades in the cooking and wardrobe departments, but most importantly needed help redoing his late grandmother's house, which hadn't been touched since the '70s. Bobby gave Remington a space of his own that still paid tribute to his family, and the 27-year-old was a mess of emotions at the reveal. Us too! (Photo via Netflix)

9. "Lost Boy," Season 3, Episode 2: When the Fab Five met camp director Joey, he had recently made the difficult decision to move further away from his son in order to take a good job and have stable housing. He was great at getting his campers to open up and feel comfortable, but he couldn't do the same for himself. So the Fab Five stepped in to not only update his outdoorsy ways, but also build up his self-esteem and help establish new routines — and a better life — for him and his son. Joey's protective walls easily came down, and it was a tear-filled joy to watch him flourish. (Photo via Denise Crew/Netflix)

8. "Saving Sasquatch," Season 1, Episode 2: Neal the app developer might go down as one of the show's best subjects. He's one of the best examples of someone who seemed initially reluctant to the Fab Five's ways, only to slowly, gradually let his guard down. At the end, Neal opened up about how his week on the show helped him out of a dark time in his life, and he just beamed with newfound confidence. It was one of the purest examples of the magic that the Fab Five truly work, and we couldn't help but cry at it. (Photo via Netflix)

7. "You Can't Fix Ugly," Season 1, Episode 1: The very first Queer Eye episode was one of its most defining. Tom, a sweet man who liked "redneck margaritas" and cars, was still in love with his ex-wife, Abby, and hoped to make an impression on her by getting his life together. His trademark quote, "You can't fix ugly," tells you everything you need to know about this self-deprecating man's confidence, but at the end of the episode, he cried as he thanked the Fab Five for their help — and so did we. (Photo via Netflix)

6. "Elrod and Sons," Season 3, Episode 6: We started crying the moment we met Rob. He was nominated by the best friend of his late wife, Allison, who died of breast cancer. Rob, now a single dad to two boys, was in the midst of a move when the Fab Five stepped in. They helped prepare him for the next chapter in his life, both emotionally and in more practical, concrete ways. Bobby even created a space in Rob's new home to honor Allison's memory, and he had it embossed with her own handwriting. The emotions in this one were over the top, in the sweetest way. (Photo via Christopher Smith/Netflix)

5. "Sky's The Limit," Season 2, Episode 5: This powerful season 2 episode showed Queer Eye at its best. The episode opened with the Fab Five in their loft, attentively watching footage of their subject Skyler, a trans man, undergoing top surgery. Throughout the episode, Skyler shared his story and made an emotional second attempt to have the gender changed on his license. There was also a scene in which Tan and Skyler had a tearful talk about trans issues. The episode drew some criticism for focusing so much on Skyler's surgery and making him educate the guys about the trans community, but in a post-episode interview, he expressed nothing but gratitude for the experience and the Fab Five. There were also many moments of unadulterated joy, including a surprise appearance from Skyler's idol, Todrick Hall. (Photo via Netflix)

4. "Black Girl Magic," Season 3, Episode 5: Jess, a self-identified "lumberjack lesbian," was the show's first lesbian hero. The 23-year-old was kicked out of her adoptive home after coming out as a teenager, and had struggled to make ends meet and to find her identity as a young, Black lesbian in the years since. Bobby and Karamo helped Jess reconnect with herself and her biological sister, and in the end, she hosted both her sister and her friends at her beautifully redecorated home, where she embraced her chosen family and her newfound confidence. The episode was a lesson in resilience and connection — and a start-to-finish tear-fest. (Photo via Christopher Smith/Netflix)

3. "To Gay or Not Too Gay," Season 1, Episode 4: AJ, a 32-year-old civil engineer, was scared to come out to his stepmother, but the Fab Five helped him resolve his regrets over not coming out to his father before his death, and at a party at the end of the week, AJ not only showed off his refreshed style and home, but also read his stepmother a personal and impactful coming out letter that he addressed to his late father. The two broke down and she assured him she loved and supported him. We're crying just thinking about it. (Photo via Netflix)

2. "Jones Bar-B-Q," Season 3, Episode 3: Sisters Deborah and Mary Jones (AKA Little and Shorty) are two bright spots in an already joyful Queer Eye universe. The female BBQ pitmasters do everything for their family, working long hours at their small food stand to help put Deborah's daughter through college. From their makeovers (including new dental work for Mary), to bottling their famous BBQ sauce to grow their business, every scene felt like an emotional breakthrough. It was deeply profound to see how the attention given by the Fab Five was internalized by these women, who weren't used to being taken care of. It was a standout episode, and one we'll be revisiting often. (Photo via Christopher Smith/Netflix)

1. "God Bless Gay," Season 2, Episode 1: In terms of not only the emotional impact, but also the real-life effect the Fab Five can have on people's lives, this season 2 opener remains one of the strongest. In it, we met Mama Tammye, a selfless community leader whose goal was to renovate her church's community center. Tammye and her sister lost their mother to cancer and are both survivors of the disease themselves. And Tammye's son Myles, who is gay, had recently moved back to their small town, and was nervous about whether he would be able to reintegrate into their tight-knit, religious community. Tammye's generosity was on display throughout the entire episode, and by the end, as she spoke at the town's homecoming event about the importance of accepting all people, everyone was in tears. (Photo via Netflix)