Immediately after the first episode was screened last week,
viewers took to the internet to describe the show as "cringe
worthy", "a total letdown" and "truly awful".
Revolving around the lives of a group of London-dwelling gay
girls, the show was preceded by an eye-popping advertising
campaign.
The show's stars currently grace the cover of this month's
DIVA.
Writing for the Independent, Tim Walker commented: "With my
minimal knowledge of the so-called lesbian 'scene', I'm unable to
confirm whether Candy Bar Girls constitutes a worthy portrayal,
though I suspect not."
Meanwhile, Kaite Welsh, TV and games editor for The F Word, had a
different take. She wrote in The Guardian: "Candy Bar Girls gives
an accurate portrayal, not of the lesbian community as a whole, but
of the lesbians who go to the Candy Bar. And while it's as campy
and staged as any other reality show, it actually treats its
subjects as human beings.
"It's groundbreaking for its lack of coyness about what lesbians
really do together - argue, mostly - and while it isn't a gritty
exposé of life for modern lesbians, it never pretends to be. In the
the end, perhaps, the real stereotype it challenges is that of the
average Channel 5 programme."
Despite some criticism, some Twitter users clearly enjoyed the
programme. One wrote: "Just watched #candybargirls - better than I
expected it to be". Defending the show, another said: "So much
negativity towards #candybargirls from us lesbians..."
"I don't get why people give @Shabby_VH hate?" claimed another,
referring to Candy Bar Girl Shabby, the former Big Brother
contestant. "She's class, I love her! Even watched her on
#candybargirls last night :) She should be on tv more."
The second episode airs on 14 July at 22:00 on Channel 5.
