Rarely has a television series been so eagerly anticipated by some, and so dreaded by others, as the American adaptation of the grittily sublime British series "Queer As Folk." When hardcore fans of the original heard that Showtime was preparing an American version, they immediately assumed that the remake would be unable or unwilling to recreate the original's brash honesty and take-it-or-leave-it storytelling style. Even in the age of such no-punches-pulled cable classics as "The Sopranos" and "Sex and the City," "Queer as Folk" represented an unprecedented experiment, an unapologetically gay-centered soap opera which was as explicitly erotic as the boldest heterosexually themed programs. American programmers, schooled from infancy on compromise and consensus, would reflexively soften the show's edge and dilute its bite, turning filet mignon to pabulum, fans of the British show feared. But while the American version may be a tad milder than its British counterpart - which has never been seen in the United States, airing abroad only in Canada - the series has won over many of the doubters since its December debut. In this incarnation, "Queer As Folk" has been re-imagined as a sometimes overly earnest vision of young gay life, filtered through the eyes of writers Ron Cowan and Daniel Lipman, the team responsible for "Sisters." It has some significant stylistic differences, but so far there's been little if any evidence of retreat from the original's candor regarding homosexual themes. Where the British series presented its story in real time, Cowan and Lipman indulge in frequent flashbacks, providing backstory for the members of their large ensemble cast. This tendency to psychoanalyze, along with a penchant for moralizing, have been the main complaints about the series so far. The actors say that they relish the greater depth of the character development, however, allowing them to bring more rounded depictions to their roles. Thea Gill, the Canadian-born actress who plays Lindsay, a lesbian who gives birth to a son fathered by Brian (Gale Harold), the series' heartless male lead, says that the relationship between Lindsay and her partner Melanie (Michelle Clunie) has benefited from the American series' wider time frame. "What's nice about our relationship is that it's the one committed relationship in the show," Gill says. "It's the one with the longest history. We've been together for eight years, and it's actually a relationship that's developed over time. We've thought of having a child together, and with that come the more everyday aspects of living together. And with the everyday aspects come the dangers and the problems that arise out of committed relationships." The increased attention to the relationship between Lindsay and Melanie is one of the key differences between the American adaptation and the British original, which had focused almost entirely on the men. It's an alteration that has garnered near-unanimous praise from fans and critics alike, however. The two women and their relationship form an affecting emotional core for the series, and their scenes together provide relief from the more freewheeling antics of the show's men. Gill credits this to the writing and to the chemistry between Clunie and herself, which she says was there right from the start. "On our first meeting, I felt like I already knew her," Gill says enthusiastically. "The walls broke, and we trusted each other immediately. She's very open and giving, she's out for the scene, she stays generous and open." Many pundits were expecting a firestorm of conservative outcry in response to "Queer As Folk's" American debut, as has often been the case with other television or film treatments of the gay community, especially ones whose sexual scenes are as graphic as those in the show's first episode. Though no firestorm materialized, viewers were certainly surprised by the frank sexuality of the series. The biggest controversy that arose, however, was generated by a member of the cast, not an outside critic: Hal Sparks, who plays Michael, commented in an interview that, as a straight actor, he found playing gay love scenes "like kissing your dog." Gill doesn't want to comment on Sparks' remarks, but adds that she herself has no such problems with her love scenes with Clunie. "I don't find it difficult or uncomfortable at all," she says. "I am an actor, and at any given moment there's a moment in time where I suspend myself. It makes it easy when you have someone so good to work with opposite you. I've been in situations where it's more tense and uncomfortable and nerve-wracking, and it has been actually with male actors. "I've done a couple scenes with females," she continues, "and it seems to be somehow easier. I understand female relationships, even though I'm in a heterosexual relationship. "I think that my take on sexuality is that people put labels on it and try to make it man/man or man/woman," Gill says. "I think that true sexuality transcends all of that, and we can have moments in life where we can feel sexual and it has nothing to do with another human being. "It's a whole other level we may reach someday, where we don't need anything of that and it's just allowing ourselves to be." (Kevin Dickson is a Los Angeles-based correspondent for TV Guide Canada.)