"You obviously haven't been watching this show on MTV," the caller said, and she was right.

She was implying that if we'd watch From G's to Gents, we'd obviously write about it - and she was right again.

The concept: Fonzworth Bentley, Diddy's debonair personal assistant, and an MTV production crew try to turn a dozen lowlifes into gentlemen. Or at least put them through a bunch of silly contests designed to teach them some manners and/or make them blow a gasket and start raining haymakers on one another. Either one makes decent TV.

The outlandish conceit of the show is no surprise, but the way it takes itself seriously is.

We tuned in expecting an hour full of jokes about pulling your pants up, ditching the Mr. T bling and learning proper titles to substitute for dawg. That's all there, but these self-professed thugs and conmen have also managed to inject an underlying thread of sincerity.

Many of the contestants are hustling to stay off the streets, and some have good reasons to clean up their act, like a 3-year-old daughter who's already starting to recognize dad's not contributing to society any more than she is.

If you, like us, were remiss in watching From G's to Gents, we're here to help you catch up with a guide to what this show's all about:

What's a G, anyway?

The contestants tell us that G can stand for gangsta, goon or even guido. We'll let Fonzworth Bentley explain it: "What is a G? Someone who feels that being hard and being tough is the solution to all problems. A G is someone who doesn't show emotion. It's easy to be a G. Being a gentleman takes a lot more effort."

In this show, the G's have names like The Truth, E6, Keson, Cee, D-Boy, T-Jones, J-Boogie, Shotta and Creepa, and come from places like Atlanta, Brooklyn, Los Angeles, Trenton, N.J., and Detroit.

What's at stake

The G's are eliminated one by one during the season, and the last one standing gets $100,000.

"We really want to make a difference in someone's life," Bentley says.

And for most of the G's, the Benjamins - not the self-improvement - are the carrot that keeps them trying to learn more manners than everyone else in the mansion full of hoods.

But the competition also creates a conundrum: As a few of the G's point out, if they act all soft on the show but fall short of the final payday, they've seriously damaged their valuable street cred for nothing.

How the G's get eliminated

The G's are split into two teams for challenges - like playing basketball against street thugs while wearing stuffy cricket uniforms and answering to an etiquette referee who whistles them for infractions such as shouting at opposing players. The winners gain immunity. The losers are up for a vote to be eliminated, with Bentley given the final say. He's quick to get rid of the hopeless - or those he deems don't need the help as much. J-Boogie was shown the door after Bentley agreed with the rest of the G's that the laboratory assistant was nothing more than a "wannabe G." He had a job, after all.

So, is this supposed to be sad or funny?

It's a bit of both. Witness this snatch of dialogue between Bentley and Shotta, a G who wants to turn around his act so he can gain custody of his 2-year-old son:

Shotta: "I don't have a job. I'm homeless."

Bentley: "Not homeless, homeless?"

Shotta: "I live in my car, basically."

Bentley: "You live in your car?"

Shotta: "Yeah . . . I've got a Mercedes!"

From G's to Gents

* 8 p.m. Tuesdays on MTV