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Mon Nov 22, 2010 1:00 pm

Chris W wrote: I almost had a seizure watching the show because of all the in car camera shake. One was enough for me.

Seriously...

The hosts have no charisma and make the show rather boring to watch... :?

Mon Nov 22, 2010 9:32 pm

chickengeorge wrote: I didn't like how they tried to make it EXACTLY like the BBC version. They even call their driver "the Stig" and dress him the same.

Agreed-- it's a crappy copy of the original. It's a dumbed-down version, but then again, it's aimed at US audiences, so maybe this is necessary...

No tension between the hosts, either. And Dan Neil would have been a worthy host but they didn't have the brains to make that happen, either.

Mon Nov 22, 2010 11:36 pm

we are on our 2nd series of aussie top gear down here

series 1 got caned,sacked 2 hosts
series 2 aint much better :roll:

originals still the best

Tue Nov 23, 2010 12:11 am

Top Gear really isn't a show about cars. It's about the three hosts having a good time on-camera and incidentally driving some cars around.

Nobody will succeed trying to clone Clarkson and company. They have to develop their own personalities and interactions. Unfortunately, the American presenters don't have much to work with in that regard.

Now, if they could get Jay Leno, Tim Allen, and perhaps an attractive foreigner in the mix. I wonder what Sabine Schimtz is doing? Oh, and while I'm asking the impossible, let's suspend the rules of network reality and let the presenters say what they want to say. I doubt that the Hitler Channel has much ability to resist sponsor pressure.

Tue Nov 23, 2010 6:44 am

Jay, Tim, and... Danica. I'd give THAT show a chance any day.

Tue Nov 23, 2010 10:15 am

KTPhil wrote: chickengeorge wrote: I didn't like how they tried to make it EXACTLY like the BBC version. They even call their driver "the Stig" and dress him the same.

Agreed-- it's a crappy copy of the original. It's a dumbed-down version, but then again, it's aimed at US audiences, so maybe this is necessary...

No tension between the hosts, either. And Dan Neil would have been a worthy host but they didn't have the brains to make that happen, either.

Watched it , It was horrible with no class at all.

Tue Nov 23, 2010 10:28 am

Jay Leno and Tim Allen? Really? Wow, you guys have less imagination than the current producers!

Tue Nov 23, 2010 10:42 am

so I've seen the bbc version online, but do any US cable channels pick it up? I'm on UVerse

Tue Nov 23, 2010 11:46 am

BBC America

Tue Nov 23, 2010 11:53 am

crofty wrote: Jay Leno and Tim Allen? Really? Wow, you guys have less imagination than the current producers!

I don't know crofty... I think they would do a better job than these retards they currently have. I would even go as far as to say that they should have Danica Patrick as the stig. In the end it doesn't really matter because I see this thing flopping worse than Uma Thurman's tits.

Tue Nov 23, 2010 12:02 pm

Quote: I see this thing flopping worse than Uma Thurman's tits

:lol:
funny

Tue Nov 23, 2010 12:12 pm

Bart Dunn wrote: BBC America

gracias. looks like I get BBC America, but not offered in HD

Tue Nov 23, 2010 4:39 pm

KTPhil wrote: No tension between the hosts, either.

Is that really desired? The Brit TG hosts poke a lot of fun at each other but I don't see that as tension. They truly seem to like each other.

IMO, the thing that ruins most of the British shows that get imported to the US is the need to make the shows "edgier" and to introduce conflict.

Example: Scrapheap Challenge/Junkyard Wars. The Brit program had two teams that were polite, competed cleanly, and even occasionally helped each other achieve their goal. After importing it to the US they turned the focus away from the things that they were building toward the personalities of the team members. They had them yelling at each other, stealing and hoarding hardware. Made it pretty much unwatchable except for Jerry Springer fans.

Tue Nov 23, 2010 6:45 pm

It was lame and somewhat corny. That Cobra heli would have toasted that viper 100 times over before it left the airport.

Tue Nov 23, 2010 9:34 pm

I cannot say this enough. New Top Gear is HORRIBLE. Everything about it is wrong.

May, Hammond and Clarkson are irreplaceable. These American presenters are completely unable to share banter or disagreement in any way. And above all, they're ALL THE SAME GODDAMN PERSON.

Europe is a far better setting with far better cars and a far richer Automobile history. You aren't going to find a Lancia Lambda, Fiat 600 Multipla, Morris Mini or Volkswagen Scirocco from this decade or the past decade in the US.

All the US has had for the past few decades are shitty cars that can perform well in a straight line and nothing more.

Wed Nov 24, 2010 8:10 am

It felt like a product promotion show. There was no criticism, no thought, no creativity. Apparently the Dodge Viper is the most incredible car ever made.

It didn't help that they parroted Jeremy Clarkson word for word. They didn't even try to be anything other than an imitation. They even went with "all we know is, he's called The Stig." So lame.

They also missed the greatest comic opportunity. I'd have laughed my ass off if they'd really pounded the Viper into the ground with a missle from the copter.

Wed Nov 24, 2010 8:27 am

I`d like to know what the Top Gear guys from Brittan have to say about this total flop.

Wed Nov 24, 2010 9:34 am

twinwindows wrote: I`d like to know what the Top Gear guys from Brittan have to say about this total flop.

Doubtful they would be impressed with the Americanized
version of their show. Clarkson in particular.
Let's hope it will be cancelled soon to put a stop
to the lameness.

Wed Nov 24, 2010 10:00 am

I can see why a the show has to be "Americanized" as I'm sure most others can too. The people who control the popular media in the US have a need to sanitize the output to satisfy the people who pay the bills, the program sponsor.

You have no chance of running a series where there is contentious/controversial content, on a major TV Channel at prime time. Don't blame the presenters, they've had their balls cut off before the first recording. :?

Wed Nov 24, 2010 11:05 am

John Moxon wrote: I can see why a the show has to be "Americanized" as I'm sure most others can too. The people who control the popular media in the US have a need to sanitize the output to satisfy the people who pay the bills, the program sponsor.

You have no chance of running a series where there is contentious/controversial content, on a major TV Channel at prime time. Don't blame the presenters, they've had their balls cut off before the first recording. :?

That's all true and an unfortunate consequence of our corporate-dominated system of everything here in the US. That being said, the writers (to the extent there are any--it doesn't appear so) have made no effort at all to make the show their own. It's almost like they sat them down for an afternoon in front of the BBC version, and said "here's a Viper--now go do that!"

There's quite a bit they can do that's fun without running afoul of the sponsors (to the extent that there are non-Viagra sponsors on the History Channel), while remaining true to the spirit of the show's concept. But bringing no original perspective to it and merely trying to copy someone else's style of humor are formulas for abject failure.

Hopefully they find their own voices and way of doing things. The hosts need to get a few cases of beer and spend some time time getting to know one another and getting to understand the American car culture (which isn't limited to "cars" as such).