Hooniverse Asks- What’s Your Take on Top Gear USA?
Step away from the lambo. . .
Catching lightning in a bottle once is impressive, doing so twice, remarkable, but a third time? Not gonna’ happen. That’s part of the reason I’ve been less impressed with the new ripoff edition of our favorite BBC car show, Top Gear, which follows the Roo-bar version. Do you find that you are equally unimpressed?
The original Top Gear, which is getting on in years, seems at times like it’s stretching for ideas, but the hosts – Jezza, Captain Slow and the Hamster – share a general loathing for each other that is kind of heart-warming, and keeps me coming back for more..
The American version – now three episodes deep in mediocrity – is hosted by another threesome, but these ones seem to have about as much chemistry as third grade special ed. None of them seems remotely comfortable on camera, coming across with an awkwardness that implies they hadn’t been allowed to take a dump for the 24 hours prior to taping.
Not only are the hosts like limp dicks at a porn shoot, but the whole program, from sets to music, apes the British original – BUT WE STILL HAVE THE ORIGINAL. Can you think of anyone who would cheat on their spouse with their spouse’s duller twin sibling? Nobody, right?
Maybe it will get better, probably it will get worse, there have been a number of uncomfortable high fives and utterances of ‘dude!’ neither of which bodes well. What do you think, is Top Gear USA DOA in your book, or does it fit the bill nicely between seasons of the original, and you simply tape pictures of the British host’s faces to your TV whenever it s on?
Image sources: [ snobmag,ioffer.com]
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You know when sometimes you watch a "brand new" episode of the Simpsons expecting a clever storyline with a start, middle and end that goes via a series of hilarious anecdotes, and instead you get a list of tired one liners that you're sure you've heard before, all crow-barred into a banal, aimless and meaningless yarn?
That's what Top Gear USA sadly feels like.
The editing is good-the cars are great-but the cast is boring-maybe have Georgina Walken recast this
Larry King would bang the twin in a wheelchair. Just sayin.
It's bad. It's really really bad.
The only back from hiring three Asimo´s instead of the current crew, would be the lack of critics on Honda products, other than that the Asimo´s would be less mechanical and could be programmed to be funnier.
An entirely Asimo presented car show could be all kinds of awesome.
I'd especially enjoy the driving segments. Plus, they'd save a ton on wardrobe for The Stig.
Given the caliber of the original, I had low expectations. My expectations have been met.
Before beginning filming, the producers ought to have sent their three hosts on a six month vehicular journey around the world. Perhaps then they would have developed some kind of collective chemistry, instead of coming across as three random dudes who met eachother on the first day of shooting.
At The Movies with Siskel and Ebert was a gem, like TG, mainly because of the hosts. They seemed to love/hate one another, and man could Roger Ebert ever be catty! When Gene passed, I continued to watch, it was never the same though. But unlike TGUSA, I had to watch since there was nothing else. Eventually the internet caught on and there was no longer a reason to watch. I feel the same way about TGUSA, why spend time on that when I could come here? Maybe if they got a season or two under their belt, the TGUSA hosts could get some chemistry, and then it would work. But I think we're in a, "You've got 60 days," kind of world and that will never happen. Personally I did not even make it through a single episode before I closed the tab and went and read bout cars somewhere else.
I've watched parts of Episodes 1 and 3, flipping back and forth with the football game. With such short attention spans, it's no wonder that programs don't get an opportunity to grow into success. I'm not sure that could happen here anyway, as the hosts generally lack charisma.
You make a good point, so it all comes down to is it more that the hosts truly lack that razzle dazzle (that's likely not the technical term) that is missing, or is it the producers and writers that are trying to appeal to to the wider audience that is making it miss for us. I don't know which it is.
+1,000.
They need to sneak off and get in a few bar-fights together.
I've long believed that me and two friends could do a better job – using only two Volvos, one-and-a-half CB7 Accords, and a Dodge Shadow, plus copious alcohol and a decent consumer-quality video camera or three – than Top Gear USA could. Now that it's out, I haven't really changed my mind. It's the relationships between the hosts, combined with their critical and oft-humourous viewpoints, that makes the original current-format Top Gear so enjoyable for me.
Now, we're only a few episodes in, and I'm hoping I'm proven wrong, just as the first season of the real Top Gear was a bit shit – Jason Dawe wasn't really meant for the series, and Clarkson and Hammond took a bit to truly get on well, but once May was added, things started rolling properly by Season 3. I'm still willing to give it a chance. You bet I'd love to take a crack at half-assedly making my own, though.
You should! I think I know of a website that might be willing to show the video.
Please do it!
I'm a pretty optimistic guy. I had extremely low expectations for the show. They were met, just. The presenters have absolutely no chemistry. Oddly enough, the only one I had my doubts about prior to seeing any of the episodes was Rutledge… and I think he is the only one of the three that has any potential whatsoever to save the show. Adam Ferrara is probably the least funny comedian presenter ever. Drew Carey would seriously have been funnier. Hell, I think I'd rather Ellen Degeneres present than Ferrara. This guy seriously made a career as a comedian?! WTF!
That said, the videography is excellent, like the original. They certainly didn't skimp on the budget there. However, it feels like they spent all the money setting the thing up, and then hired some homeless guys who'd seen the BBC Top Gear a few times to write the scripts. Everything is canned, cheesy, and utterly dull. There's zero color commentary. Not wit, whatsoever. Let's be real… 75% of what makes the BBC Top Gear awesome are the biting comments – either those made from one presenter to another, or from the presenters about the cars they're driving. If the presenters never crap all over the cars they're driving, and just talk about how wonderful and rosy everything they drive on the show is, this show won't make it past the first season. It'll be just like every other boring car show on TV, and will probably guarantee that the BBC Top Gear stays on, because that's what everyone will continue to watch.
The show has potential… but it won't go anywhere at all until the presenters begin to feel even remotely comfortable on camera, and with each other. We caught a glimpse of it last week when they all got drunk on moonshine. So… in summation, here's hoping they either A. get drunk on camera more often, or B. grow some testes behind the camera and quit holding back.
It's funny, the opinions on Rutledge are polarizing. Some of my friends have stated they can't stand him. I personally think he's the best one of the three.
I agree completely. Tanner has to get the broomstick out of his arse and lighten up in order to come across on camera as likable. Ferrara is so unfunny it hurts. I seriously want to fast forward through when he’s talking (but I don’t because I said I’d do my best to give the show a fair shake!)
Rutledge has pleasantly surprised me. When I first heard about the lineup, I saw he had some dealings with NASCAR and all hope went out the window. The first couple of episodes had me being pretty neutral about all three, but Rutledge has won me over so far. He’s genuinely funny, the least afraid of the camera, lines are the least scripted sounding – and you can tell he is really and truly having fun doing this and I think that’s what counts when it makes it to your TV screen. Oh, and to call out the LYING BRITS (ha!) in episode 3 is a formal throw of the gauntlet.
I’m not a casting agent so I have no business saying who should replace whom, but I would like to see some quick thinking, ad-libbing car guys replace two of the current presenters. Adam Carolla comes to mind, as do a few others that don’t need a teleprompter to read from.
Oh, and the hanging out around a campfire bit while getting wasted on moonshine? That was so staged it was painful to watch. Go back, watch it again and look at the fire logs and the area around them. Total time actually filmed: hour or so max, what they said: a LOT longer than that. Campfires are NOT that pretty. At least the Brits would have told that TRUTH about that!
Rutledge isn't bad, and I ABSOLUTELY agree about Ferrara. Foust isn't as much of a stick in the mud as one might think, he just needs to forget that there's cameras around. As stated above, they should've been sent to a few different countries together or get stupid in a dive somewhere, drinking heroic amounts of hooch and trolling the locals.
The 'Buick' jokes were way too forced – the only real groaner of the episodes that I've watched thus far.
Carolla would be way better than Ferrara, obviously, but there must be someone else, if Carolla isn't up for it.
Maybe they should rotate people in and out until something gels – Ferrara first, naturally.
Maybe they should have a contest amongst auto blogs – "Do YOU have what it takes to make TGUSA awesome?"
Yeah, that's it…
I'm going to doom this to failure by liking it.
I've genuinely enjoyed the first three episodes.
Yes, at times it feels dumbed-down because they're not yet quite quick enough on the draw, but that will speed up with practice, as well as the audience getting used to the show.
And it's refreshing to have at least one host with 1. actual driving ability, and 2. actual mechanical ability.
It'll be much better once they add a cute kid, Ted McGinley and have a very special episode dedicated to keeping kids off drugs.
Maybe they should add a jump over a shark tank to the "Star in a Small Car" segments.
As I've only watched 1/2 of the 3rd episode online, I don't have much to base my opinion on but…
The music, the cinematography all feels like TGUK and I was handily impressed.
I found the piece about the EVO racing the skiers to be an exact duplicate of TGUK. Imitation is the purest form of flattery but a carbon copy with a different driver is just poor decision making.
Then Rutlidge Wood started talking about the V12 Vantage. He sounded uneducated and seemed to be dumbing down his comments about the car.
I ran out of time and couldn't finish watching the episode.
All in all, the production quality is there but the chemistry and original ideas aren't. TV cannot survive on production quality alone.
Will I continue to watch it? Probably not as my cable package doesn't carry THC and I don't care enough to make the time to watch it online.
Mr. Wood isn't "dumbing it down," exactly… he's a NASCAR guy, and therefore not used to dealing with people who know how an overhead cam works.
Actually, at the taping and at SEMA, he explained that in reality he's an import guy and he's currently working on stuffing a B18 into an '83 Civic, and has an old Datsun pickup. He was giving a lot of love to other import cars too.
While Tanner is obviously the hot shoe of the group, Rutledge came off as the biggest "car guy" of the group.
It seems to suffer from the same disease that all American car shows suffer from – stilted, awkward announcers and fake, scripted banter. The only one who seems somewhat natural is the fat one. If they could do something about how clearly fake the banter is, it would be 100% better. Just have them talk to each other instead of reading a teleprompter.
I did like that they redid the helicopter stunt on public streets instead of just on a track. That was sufficiently different.
well… the first season of Top Gear on the BBC was terrible. I think the 3rd episode of TGA was much better than the first 2, and I think they will get better. I have also started watching Top Gear Australia, and I think that one is better than the US version so far, but they have been doing that one for a few years now as well…….
My only real problem with it is that they're not critical enough. They try to put a positive spin on everything. The TGUK crew hate anything and everything, and that's part of what makes them so much fun to watch.
I think TGUSA would also benefit from some semi-serious car reviews- was it stands, it seems too much like a series of the the UK "Best Of" episodes, where it's all challenges and no real automotive substance. I don't necessarily mean reviews of what critics call "real-world cars", but, for example, James May's review of the S63 vs the 760iL or Clarkson's comparison of the SRT8 and E63 provided meaningful critique while still maintaining the over-the-top tone.
I have seen a slow and steady improvement over the first 3 episodes. It has gone from pretty bad, episode 1 (the helicopter chase was just stupid), to bad (honestly I missed the 2nd episode), to not horrible by episode 3. The adventure with the moonshine cars was actually pretty good, not Clarkson, May, and Hammond good, but not bad. There was even a little sniping at Toyota Solaras. The test track seems to be lacking in any drama whatsoever.
Since Tanner is actually a professional driver, it seems the Stig isn't needed.
Rutledge has the best potential.
If you had never seen TGUK it would be worth watching.
Just because there was Star Wars doesn't mean you couldn't watch Battlestar Gallactic (the 1980s one).
I have a hard time watching it due to cheater Foust.
And the sunglass thing gets, sorry, is old, Ferrara.
Parts of it are fun and entertaining, but the production quality isn’t as good, the hosts aren’t as fun together, and the pacing is off. Although much of the same was true for the first season of Top Gear UK, so I’ll give Top Gear US the benefit of the doubt and see how it turns out. It’s also a lot better than Top Gear Australia, and more entertaining than Fifth Gear, so it makes a good substitute when Top Gear UK is off the air.
I dig it. Admittedly my opinion is skewed by the fact that I went to a taping and to a sneak preview at SEMA.
The on screen dialogue is a little wooden, and the scripted parts of the show are a bit awkward, but the meat of the show, which is the car related material, is good. It took the UK show a while to get up to speed, and I think the same applies here. From what I saw on set, the hosts do seem to have a genuine rapport.
If this show wasn't called Top Gear, or better yet if Top Gear UK did not exist, I think this show would stand on its own a LOT better. Having said that, it blows any previous US car review shows out of the water. It's definitely entertaining and I will continue to keep watching.
Agree completely. The haters need to give them more time to refine. They'll get there, I'm sure.
Spot on. I am liking (not loving) it. I am happy to have a new car show to watch, and have no reason to truly compare it to Top Gear UK (a show that wasn't even as good as itself until Series 3 or so.)
It's going to make a 2nd season for sure, since we all keep watching it hoping it will get better. This 1st season is going to be rough all the way. It might get better next year. There will probably be a host shakedown and at least one of them leaving. The money is probably enough to entice them to stay though. Ferrara is a filthy comedian, he's being held back by TV rules here, probably going to disappear. By having Foust, a professional driver, they could so much more with the driving scenes than UK. They seem to know this and it will appear in more episodes. Rutledge seems good so far. He's being dumbed down, heck they all are, but he might break through it. They should've gone for Regular Joe's in a POS for their track spots though. Way more interesting. Have an unhelmeted STIG! Be different. They should be forced to rebuild/restore a piece of crap car and each episode should have a segment about what they did. This way they get to know each other, we get to laugh and see something that isn't on a lot of shows outside of speed channel and spike. I'll watch it, but it's an investment into a better show.
Next to Top Gear UK, it's terrible.
Next to pretty much any other unscripted program on American television, it's fabulous. I will continue to watch it until the real thing is available on On Demand again.
SUPERFLUOUS: su·per·flu·ous/so͞oˈpər-fləəs/ Adjective: Unnecessary, esp. through being more than enough.
I think it needs time to grow, I think Adam Ferrara doesn't like cars enough to do this show (or maybe his seeming ignorance makes me think he doesn't like them), plus he isn't funny.
Tanner is getting better, Rutteledge needs to be let off the leash more, and there needs to be WAY more stuff like the Aston in the desert.
Tanner should be allowed to hoon the cars more.
Get Adam Carolla now! He can at least talk on camera. Sorry Rutledge, nothing against the south where you are from. The moon shine was a funny bit on your part. So long. If TG USA makes that change, it should age like a cheap suit and be worth watching.
Ug. "Honk-honk-honk, whine, honk-honk. AFLAC!"
Rather have my brain scrapped out of my skull with barbed wire.
(No offense to Adam, you're funny but waaaay to potent in large doses, kinda like raw ginger).
I concur with the LTDScott in regards to the heavy burden of the name.
Unlike most here, I am enjoying it and it's made my short list of shows I make a point to watch. Possibly more telling is the fact that my non-car-guy family members have enjoyed the bits they have seen. My wife loved the bootlegging portions of episode 3, but was antsy to get back to that when the other segments were on. My 16 yo daughter loved "blind guy drifting." This should serve as a motivational tool for her to hone her parallel parking and manual transmission skills.
BTW she can see, so she's got that going for her.
Americans get what Americans deserve.
It is alright to me. These 3 guys have no chemistry at all, but I expect it will get better over time. The first 2 episodes were alright, and the 3rd was enjoyable. Maybe I am biased because I don't have a television, and have to torrent episodes of what I want to watch, but this is good "filler" television.
I don't understand the hate against TG USA… would you rather watch Motor Week?
The first episode was rough, the second a tiny bit better and the third shows they are starting to find their way a little bit. It only improves from there.
Is there not room for two automotive shows in the world and why is it a bad thing for the US to have its own version of Top Gear? That doesn't mean we can't still place the original as the best automotive show (or show, period) on the planet. I watch both of them and can enjoy them as two different things, which they are. Nobody freaked out when CSI decided to add Miami and New York to the cable lineup, but two Top Gears? rabble rabble rabble rabble…
Top Gear USA will have and is having growing pains… but to pain it right out of the gate is a mistake. Imagine if folks did that to the original? We'd have NO Top Gear period.
I feel like people are hating on it, just for the sake of doing so. Yes, I totally agree that the first episode sucked with the minor exception of the Lamborghini part (it was cool to see how real it was for Adam, since he got out shaking).
The three hosts will eventually find a rhythm. The cameras will eventually figure out the hosts and all three will hone in on how this show should work.
They will get there.
+1 to everything you have said.
I wrote off the pre-hate before the show aired to the fact that the opinions are from the internet, and the internet likes to hate just to hate.
I loved the fact that Adam was shaking when he got out of the Lambo. That seemed real to me, and I like the fact that he obviously isn't jaded or bored by it because he's already driven everything (like a lot of other auto journalists are).
But then I have heard complaints from other people about the same segment saying that Adam's shaking was unprofessional and demonstrates what a n00b he is.
Haters gonna hate.
I've driven some fun cars… when I hit my personal top speed, which was less than Ferrara's, I was pumping my fist and pretty much shaking from adrenaline.
Exactly, I love that genuine excitement.
I'll add my "plus one" to everything you guys have stated. Chemistry takes time. Everyone should go watch an early episode from the first season of the current Top Gear UK. It was nowhere near where it is today; May wasn't even on it then.
The TGUS crew is improving and their relationships are gelling. I'm optimistic. It could only be improved by adding me to the cast.
The ingredients are mostly there. Drizzle a bit more soul into the mix and all criticism will cease.
I agree. The first two shows (the third is still in purgatory on my Tivo) were rough. Tanner Foust, while a fantastic driver, has no personality. I used to watch Supercars Exposed and he was the same, dry, nearly lifeless cat on there. But, the chemistry is starting to build, and that's excellent.
Hopefully they will start with their own bits. So far, most of the bits have been based on ones TG UK already ran. That's the most disappointing thing to me. I guess they figure most people haven't seen TG UK, but some uniquely American material will help this show go to new heights.
I keep watching because it keeps getting better, and because I really do want it to be successful.
They're still making new episodes of Motor Week? Maybe it just seems like they're all old since every episode looks like it was produced in 1993 by a local PBS station.
It doesn't help that, at least around here, it's only shown on Sundays at 4:00 AM.
Hey man, don't trash my Motorweek! I've watched that show growing up as a child and I was always drawn to its car-encyclopaedia-ness. I've set my eyes for the first time on a '03 Accord sedan on that show and thought that was the nicest-looking redesign ever, especially compared to the old stodgy model! I love how the format has stayed exactly the same over the duration of my, uh, entire life. It better not change!
Now if you'll excuse me, I need me some John Davis right now…
DBs being DBs, I'll be amazed if it lasts the full season.
I've enjoyed the show. I had zero expectations going in. I never enjoyed any of the hosts in any of the previous work they had done so I was happy after the first episode that I made it all the way through without changing the channel or fast forwarding when I recorded the second episode.
I can't watch the show when the kids are up, they'll drive me nuts and then I'll be pissed. So I watch it when everyone is in bed and I can enjoy a stiff drink and some cars tearing it up. I rarely watch the crap on Speed on the weekend. Or the Spike TV Horsepower block. Those shows are like one giant infomercial. For US Car shows, this is the best we have, IMO.
Gee, now I don't feel so disappointed that I've never watched it.
I like it and I am glad a network finally picked it up even if it had to be History Ch. I know everyone has really enjoyed shitting all over it lately but it's never going to be TGUK, that is all. It needs to develop it's own original American identity with some unique and enjoyable hosts. The original show had it's share of problems and was able to work them out and build a great legacy. I look forward to when this show reaches that level assuming it isn't dropped. Hell, no matter how bad the hosts are, you really gotta enjoy watching the one guy [what's his name??] dirt jump a Cadillac.
What I don't understand is all the comments about it being a "ripoff" or a "copy" of the UK version. Don't you understand that it's supposed to be? It's a franchise. It's why one McDonalds serves the same food as the other McDonalds. Why one Chile's looks like another Chilie's. Of the millions of viewers needed to make this show a success, relativity few have actually seen the UK version. They shouldn't worry about us.
Did the millions of viewers who love "The Office" or "Sanford and Son" bitch because it was a copy of the British "Office" or "Steptoe and Son"?? Most didn't even know the British versions existed. Go ahead and let them copy it if it will make it a success.
As for TGUSA, I agree that they need new hosts. They need people who can think on their feet and make funny remarks on the fly and not just read from scripts. The UK version is scripted also, but it's more the situations that are scripted rather than every word. Another blogger said it well when he said that the "TGUK hosts are old guys that act like 14 year olds….the TGUSA hosts are like young guys trying to act like older, seasoned presenters".
Also, they need to have a little bit of fun with The Stig. Maybe do a short film showing a baby Stig being born (complete with little racing suit and helmet), a toddler feral Stig living in an old race car in back of a garage and racing his first Fisher Price car. Stuff like that. Make him a larger than life figure.
The third episode is the one that TGUSA should have lead off with, IMHO. The bootlegger segments had lots of comedy and off the cuff remarks, and that is what made TGUK the success it is. After watching the first two episodes, I thought I was watching "Fifth Gear USA", and nobody wants that.
Yeah, their use of the Stig is weak so far.
My annoyance is they keep explaining who the Stig is. Don't explain it. People who don't know will figure it out.
And they don't do anything creative like, "Some say…" Come on guys, do something
YES! It should always be Rutledge's job to introduce the Stig segment. In keeping with his Southern roots and the show's "American slant," instead of "some say…" it should be "we heard tell …"
That would be great. You should call the producers!
I keep thinking they should dress up the Stig like Uncle Jesse from Dukes of Hazzard.
I think that's the big problem with Top Gear USA. Everyone was expecting it to be the same as the BBC Version and when the first episode aired people were disappointed. Right now they're trying to figure out what works and doesn't.
I do agree with you on the hosts. If there was second season I would not be surprised if one or all of the hosts were dropped.
I've only watched the first episode. It wasn't godawful, but it wasn't exactly compelling TV either (which explains Eps. 2&3 are still just sitting on the DVR). I've always liked Adam Ferrara as a stand-up and on the various Denis Leary-related shows (The Job, Rescue Me), but this seems not to be a great fit for him. Tanner Foust has the screen presence of a milk-soaked loaf of Wonder Bread and that Poor Man's Kevin Smith, well, I'm not sure I've figured out quite what his deal is.
I think the following comment from another, motorsports-related forum sums up why this is destined to fail: "[T]hey seriously hired an unfunny comedian from Long Island who thinks mid 70's Caddy's are the best cars ever made? Really? Really? "
All that said, the first, James May-less series of TG UK was pretty bad itself, so who knows. Yes, it's better than Motor Week, but is it better than the reruns of Arrested Development that I seem to keep watching instead of DVRed TGUSA episodes?
It was better than the premier episode of the BBC version which had the Citroën Berlingo, Pagani Zonda vs. Lamborghini Murciélago, and how fast must you go to beat a speed camera. But that's not saying much. Episode two & three are much better than the first epiosde. For right now, it's not better than reruns.
I have yet to watch the third, but the second was a bit better than the first, and the first kind of sucked. Like many, I think there's a serious lack of chemistry, but I'm more than willing to give it the benefit of the doubt for quite a while yet.
I think it will always lack for the dry humour you get from TGUK, but British humour itself is a tough one to emulate. As long as they don't try to ape that as the show goes on, they should be able to develop a "thing" of their own. And as long as they keep putting cool cars and interesting features together, I'll keep watching while they figure it all out. I wouldn't say every single feature I see on TGUK is fabulous, some are kind of boring and only propped up by the presenters.
Besides, maybe they'll work in a shuffle as they go along through the first season and start to figure things out. How many of us would be keen on Jason Dawe now that we've had years of James May? Although it did make me laugh every time Clarkson introduced Dawe as "not quite pocket-sized". I wonder if we'd find it funny if someone introduced Rutledge Wood the same way. I mean, I might kind of, but collectively as viewers we'd probably find it insulting and ignorant.
I agree to a point. I recently just started watching TGUK from the start, and I couldn't stand Dawes. His car buying tips always met with my fast-forward button.
However, May knocked it out of the park on his first episode. Except when he inherited that stupid car buying segment.
Honestly, I'm enjoying it. It's not as polished as TGUK and the hosts don't have that chemistry, but TGUK's had 15 seasons for that to develop. I do miss the 20 minutes lost to the program for
fridge breakscommercials, but if someone's been watching TGUK via BBC America they won't know the difference.For what it is, I love it.
It's a car show. In the US. It's not NASCAR-centric. It's not Pimp My Ride. It's not produced by Maryland Public Television.
Halle-freakin-lujah!
Granted, it's nowhere near the original, but what television show in the history of the medium is? Comparing TGUS to TGUK is akin to comparing a bottle of Ripple to a 1967 Chateau Rothschild, then complaining that it sucks. I sympathize with the producers' plight. I really do. You've gotta name it Top Gear, or else nobody will watch it – but since you've named it Top Gear, everybody's whining that it doesn't measure up to the original.
That said, there are a couple of things bordering on unforgivable: The reasonably-price car is a Suzuki SX4? Puh-leeaase. Lose the Japanese enconobox & put-em in a V6 Mustang. Or a Challenger. Or a Camaro. Something – heck, anything – to give it something uniquely American. Second, reviews – or have I missed something? Was the gushing over the Boss a review?
I think Adam should accept Uncle Buck's quarter.
Does it measure up to the British version? Hell no. Does it blow every other American show of its type out of the water in terms of production value and catering to my tastes? Certainly.
It's gotten better with each successive episode and, a pessimist by nature though I may be, I think it'll eventually settle into a groove and find a voice most of us will like.
I couldn't even make it through the trailer that was released online a while back.
So far it is OK. Go back and watch early episodes of Top Gear UK, say the ones before James May joined. There was no chemistry (and hardly any audience in the hangar!). Even James' first few episodes feel contrived.
Please History Channel, give Top Gear USA one or two seasons to find its groove. It will be worth it in the long run!
Ok its better than MotorWeAk seriously why is John Davis always seem to be shouting?
episode one
Who knew you could make a Viper boring? Wow! Seriously pick any 3 Hoon Comment Posters from this blog give them a Viper and a couple of Flip Video cameras and they would come up with something more compelling. The 3 LAmbo segment was ok.
episode two
The Lancer Evo ski race was just a bad copy of those UK challenges pointless, we had all seen it before and done better. My interest only perked up when we got to see what the Evo's power lap time was. The blind drifting (in Wisconsin we called drifting power sliding too)segment was ok but just felt too staged edited and forced.
episode three
Foust and Wood discussing the Mustang was ok but they should have taken that tarted-up Mustang and an M3 out on the track or had a challenge or something.
The Moonshine thing worked could have been even better but I still give it a thumbs up. Best segment so far
cast
Foust is fine, definitely a car guy just needs to loosen up and enjoy the show.
Wood seems like he really loves cars car culture and knows a lot. I feel he probably has great moments off camera and the show is not using him as well as they could.
Ferrara not working for me I feel like this is just a job for him I don't get car guy from how the shows have been assembled so far.
The show feels to scripted and stale. They need a working chemistry of car guys bantering like Autoblog podcast guys. If they have it some how the process of filming and editing sucks it out of them before it gets put on the screen.
I'll keep watching because "I want to believe" I'm not expecting gold like the Clarkson's Ford Fiesta review but i know they can do better than what we have seen to date.
Had a big comment written, but IntenseDebate ate it. Luckily you basically covered it for me. Wood works, Foust needs to loosen up or something and Ferrara oughtta be replaced.
Having been at the taping, I can say that there's a lot of off-camera chemistry and banter that shows potential for the show.
Apparently the in-studio banter is the result of a table read of the news topics and whatnot, then turned into a script. The process is not kind to the feeling of naturalness. IMO, the directors/producers need to let the guys off leash more. Looser scripts, more audience interaction, more running around the set. Let the swear a little and just bleep it out. (They're total potty mouths off-camera).
first episode was crap. and buzz was about the worst star to showup.
second episode was a bit better, blind drifter was an enjoyable segment.
third episode was best so far. moonshine running was an enjoyable segment and showed some promise.
plotting those 3 episodes on a graph indicates an increasing level of enjoyability. thus it will remain on my dvr recored list.
plus… bbc america no show new bbc top gear. put the two on the same time segment and my opinions might be different.
It was a bit of a softball interview, but you can't deny that Buzz Aldrin is a pretty cool guy. He once punched out a moon landing hoax theorist:
[youtube ZOo6aHSY8hU http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZOo6aHSY8hU youtube]
dont get me wrong, hes a bad ass. but not really break out episode interview material. he should really just stay home. its been downhill for him for a while now
Excellent! I never knew there video of that. It's too bad Buzz didn't knock him down. Sibrel was a jackass.
They do have an impossible job of living up to TGUK. Yes there's no chemistry, yes they are all a bit uncomfortable on camera. But at least the filming is excellent. And the stunts are pretty good too. I'm willing to give them a chance. As many have said, TGUK wasn't very good at all the first couple seasons.
Just a reminder, you can watch the entire latest episode streaming on the History Channel site:
http://www.history.com/shows/top-gear/videos/top-gear-flying-coupe-deville#top-gear-flying-coupe-deville
For some reason I am not able to watch an episode all the way through. I will be ten minutes in and end up getting on my laptop, then next thing I know the show is over.
Dayummm…. do you guys see what passes for auto-centric television in the States (Motorweek…zzzzzzz, the Nascar/Speed channel…please end it now) TGUS will never be a good as TGUK. However, it is still worlds better than any auto related program on the States. It has been only 3 episodes, with the third really shining in my mind. TG excels when the hosts are given a challenge and travel outside of their normal routines. The third episode started to show that there is some chemistry among the hosts. I'd say give it a full season to see if the show improves or not. Still, I will take TGUS because more TG is better than less TG.
For the record, it took TGUK several seasons for the hosts to gel. Even later, there where segments that did not mesh (TG stunt driver for instance). But TGUK, is allowed to mature because they are on BBC without real commercial pressure. The fact that TGUS is on (and even better on History) is a leap of faith for any network worried about pissing off any potential sponsors. So far, TGUS had insulted Suzuki and Buick. That says something to me, that History Channel is not pulling the reins too tight and allowing the hosts to speak their mind. TGUS is in the inevitable position to try to please TG purists yet still attrack new viewers. It will piss off the purists in the effort to gain ground in the crowded cable lineup. Quite frankly, I am fine with that. I still will religiously watch TGUK when their next season comes around. I
I honestly enjoyed the third episode, but was sad to see the Cadillac broken before it could do some dancing on the track. I really wanted to see it drift, evading the Charger.
Also, the show needs more rain. I think.
I didn't enjoy the first episode, the second was Ehhh, the 3rd was pretty good in my opinion. If anyone remembers, the 1st season of Top Gear UK wasn't too swell either. If they replaced Rutledge, I feel it would be better. He just seems too keen on EVERYTHING. Although his pukeing in the 3rd episode was awesome.
It's been getting better with each episode. It's going to take them a while to find their stride.
I think they're underestimating Americans' intelligence (there's a phrase never thought I'd use), everything seems overly simplified and dumbed down. I understand that they're going to explain who The Stig is and do the sappy "There will be no…" show intro for a while, most people in the US haven't had 15 odd seasons of TGUK to get the basics down like we have but they seem to be pandering to the lowest common denominator audience. That's just not going to work, those people avoid the History Channel out of fear that they might learn something (assuming they manage to flip over at some time when they aren't showing truckers or lumberjacks).
The biggest problem that I see is that it seems excessively scripted and they insist on sticking to that script.
Ferrara is a genuinely funny guy, I ran into him at a bar after a show a few years ago, I don't know if he's a full-on petrolhead but he's definitely a lot funnier than they're letting him be. To be honest, I vastly prefer his brand of comedy to Carolla's dick & fart jokes.
Tanner is a racing driver, what did you expect? There were a couple glimpses of what might be a personality that peaked through during segments in the second and third episodes so I've got some hope that he'll loosen up and the producers will at least lengthen his leash. Honestly though, at least it's not Kimi Raikkonen.
Rutledge seems to have been pigeon-holed into the role of the hick southerner.
I have faith that the show will continue to get better if given the chance but will not bet surprised if one of the hosts are replaced in the second season. The thing that I think it is missing the most is the a host willing to look like an idiot. Part of the charm/camp of TGUK is that the host are happy to look like morons. They understand that people enjoy watching smart people make bad choices. The US host need to stop trying to look cool and be happy to make mistakes. The biggest thing they are missing is a main host though. Clarkson is a very big personality and TGUK is very much his show. He gives it focus and drives the interaction between the 3 of them. The US has no leader. I say ditch Ferrara and start looking for a new guy.
I would rather watch Motorweek.
Top Gear Mothership can be incredibly clunky too, and Top Gear Spinoff has all of that plus much, much, more.
Robert, watch any of the episodes from the first two seasons of the "new" Top Gear series then give me your opinion.
Until then I'm going to continue to give this series it's 2 season chance.
I have honestly enjoyed it. As much as the original? Of course not…
But this last episode (3) was much better than the first two. I like the fact that they are rehashing some of the more fun bits from the original… It will let them grow.
Mark my words, season 2 will be a ton better… Not to mention that it seems the hired the same guys for the filming as the UK version. Awesome looking for the most part….
They just need to loosen up a little. The news segment of episode three was absolutely painful to watch. If it were Clarkson, May and Hammond they would've put their two cents into each news topic. Here, they were just listening to Ferarra list out all the topics on the paper. Some opinions, please! It gives us an insight into what you like, what you want to see, y'know, your personalities! That's what the show needs!
I'm giving them another chance, just because I know these three can do it. I can smell it.
TG UK has 3 car guys. This show has one car guy, a racing driver and an unfunny standup comedian. I'll still watch as it's the best motoring program with new episodes on TV right now, but a change of hosts would do a great deal for the show. I did enjoy them getting drunk and spitting moonshine on the fire, but I don't think we're going to get enough moments like that.
I'll just go ahead and put in a vote for replacing Ferrara with none other than Jonny Lieberman.
He's funny, insightful, opinionated and well spoken. Although, per his own words "they already filled the bearded, bespectacled goofy fat guy role".
So either Loverman or Wood has to shave and/or get contacts, whatever. Seriously, Lieberman could be America's Clarkson.
While I'm pontificating on the cast, Foust and The Stig seem redundant.
Collins and former Stigs have all been drivers of roughly Foust's talent, so there's no reason to have them both.
To be honest, I'd be fine to have them deviate from the TG mold and just have Foust be the resident "good driver". Have him do the hot laps and (gasp) talk about how the car handles, etc. Then have one of the other two weigh in as more normal people.
Even though most of the criticism seems pointless (Awesome vs. New.) This is truly a great point.
Can't stand the US Top Gear, but then I can't stand the original Top Gear either. Clarkson is a boring one-trick pony and the other guys are essentially nonentities. Having to watch video of any of them driving is painful. And what's worse is that they don't seem to know much about cars either. I've stopped taking note of the errors. Original vs US clone? It's a toss-up. At least Foust can drive. Best solution? Find episodes of Fifth Gear, turn down the sound, and watch Tiff Needell and Jason Plato handle the same cars so much better.
I actually like it. The cinematography is pretty, and the moonshine challenge was fun to watch. The banter – while scripted – is not bad…..I was genuinely amused with Tanner's comments about the Mustang's live rear axle and useless splitter. I know that they're playing stereotypes (Adam = guido, Tanner = tuner/ricer, Rutledge = southerner), but that's true of the original, too.
People should lighten up and enjoy the new show for what it is, not worry about the original. Besides, there are a few times in recent series when I've started to think that the UK version is getting past it's prime. Clarkson's tendancy to fake things for the sake of a spectacle is getting old. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1232… http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-4715… http://www.autoblog.com/2010/04/13/mclaren-boss-c… http://www.autoblog.com/2009/07/21/i-top-gear-i-d… http://jalopnik.com/5165418/ferrari-to-top-gear-s…