Bye bye, "Queer Eye"

Four years and a hundred makeovers later, "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy" quietly calls it a series with a finale airing at 8 tonight on Bravo.

"Queer Eye" was, of course, a huge hit that made piles of money for NBC Universal and launched at least a couple of careers into the stratosphere (Ted Allen appearing as a "Top Chef" judge doesn't count). But it did something else. At the time "Queer Eye" debuted in 2003, NBC had been holding onto Bravo for a year or so and was figuring out what to do with it. "Queer Eye" refined Bravo, and helped NBC see that programming one might initially deem "alternative" could be aimed right at the mainstream. It's very similar to the way "Real World" helped redefine MTV as a channel of reality shows that mirrored young people's obsessions with fame and accumulation. (Not that I'm enamored of MTV today, but let's not deny it was a brilliant move away from music videos, which were of limited value because MTV couldn't own them.)

With the success of "Queer Eye," Bravo felt confident to launch a boatload of alt-stream shows: "Project Runway," "Work Out," "Blow Out," "Top Chef," "Boy Meets Boy" — OK, that last one probably wasn't meant for the mainstream. But you get my point.

As for the show that started it all, Bravo seems eager to be done with "Queer Eye." It blew through ten episodes with double runs in October, the last two of which will air tonight. There's not even much promotion on the BravoTV.com website, which seems more interested in hyping the return of the "Real Housewives of Orange County."

But make no mistake: Before "Queer Eye," Bravo was a laggard ratingswise. After "Queer Eye," the channel got a makeover and is still looking good.

• Earlier: Podcast with "Queer Eye's" creators
• Earlier: Queer Eye for the straight female viewer