Did Queer Eye Just Pull Off The Perfect Proposal?

Everyone loves a proposal. There’s a charming movie called The Proposal starring Ryan Reynolds and Sandra Bullock (go ahead, fight me on the fact that it’s charming). Bachelor creator Mike Fleiss will soon premiere a reality show called The Proposal, a pageant-style competition that ends in an engagement. When you get engaged, everyone asks for your “proposal story” — and it had better be good. We love watching people find happiness, which is why the second episode of season 2 of Queer Eye is causing a lot of chatter. At the end of every episode of Queer Eye, the hero must go to some major event or achieve an obstacle that before seemed insurmountable. In this episode, hero William announces to the fab five that he wants to propose to Shannan, his girlfriend of three years, showing her that he’s ready to make the ultimate commitment. She’s the one who nominated him for the show, saying that he’s “stuck in the ‘70s with his style,” keeps making veggie wraps, and is basically stuck in a rut.

There’s hope for William yet, though. When asked to list his favorite things, he says, “movies, Shannan, and cheese” (which, same, for two out of three, although I’m sure Shannan is lovely). He says that Shannan “completes me in a way that no one else ever has…she’s the one.” He’s ready to make the leap from boyfriend to husband, he just needs a little nudge from the guys and a script from Karamo to do it.

The proposal, which goes off without a hitch, is magical. It has people on Twitter swooning.

(It’s true; episode 1 is a total tearjerker.)

Wonder what that last person meant by “I Shannan you?” Well, let me tell you!

Since William and Shannan love movies so much (he’s sci-fi; she’s rom-com, although he’ll watch a romantic comedy if she wants to), the proposal takes place during an outdoor movie. Except, when the movie is supposed to start, there's a different movie playing. It’s a short film starring the newly made over William in an all-white tux. Filmed in the fab five’s loft in Atlanta, the proposal video has William playing someone very similar to Joseph Fiennes’ interpretation of William Shakespeare in Shakespeare in Love. He’s a poet of sorts who thinks that love isn’t a strong enough word to describe how it feels when you’re head-over-heels for someone.

“Why is there no word more than love?,” he pontificates. “I’m going to create that word!”

A bit of acrostic poem-ing (not a verb, but go with it) leads him to the letters that make up Shannan’s name. He rearranges them and gets SHANNAN. “I Shannan you! I must tell the world!,” he exclaims like a mad scientist.

Then, the movie ends. William, wearing the same all-white tux, walks out onto the stage (he had told Shannan he was going to get them some drinks). Shannan is already sobbing from watching the video, and she fully breaks down sobbing when she sees William on stage. He rushes through the audience to get to Shannan’s table, where he gets down on one knee.

“Everything in my life has brought me to you," he says. "All my regrets, all my choices, and all my tears. I wouldn’t change a thing. And I’m ready for our next step to begin. I’m ready for us. Shannan Ann Eller, will you marry me and be my wife?”

She says yes, everyone claps, and we all drift away on a cloud of elation, remembering that there are in fact nice things in the world. You just have to watch Queer Eye to find them.

William and Shannan leave the theater hand-in-hand, pausing to kiss frequently along the way. She asks what happens now, and he says “This is where you end credits.” Just like the romantic comedies Shannan loves.

According to Instagram, they’re getting married this weekend.