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Post by chariset on Aug 7, 2010 16:53:03 GMT
....eerrrrrrrrrrrr... I don't know. It could be decent or it could be a cheap knock-off of the original. It seems to have potential to go either way. It doesn't look like much right now, but then neither did the current TG. But since they won't be able to avoid sponsorship pressure like the BBC version, I don't think they'll be able to talk as freely. www.youtube.com/watch?v=Goa7PDR1rqc |
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Post by nobody on Aug 7, 2010 17:13:03 GMT
Sorry but our boys would never ask are you all right just after one of them killed a car.
They would get straight to down to taking the piss. ;D
Although the one with the dark hair and checked shirt was sort of cute, I take it he's hammond.
So the big question is who is the bloke with the beard supposed to be?
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Post by devil-may-care on Aug 7, 2010 17:30:49 GMT
I so agree, "Are you all right?" What the??? No never! If I'm honest, it didn't look that bad. I have no idea how I'm going to be able to see it though. Strange, coming from an American. (no satellite or cable coming into our house) I can watch just about anything that comes out of the UK but am stumped on how to see anything broadcast here. Maybe my neighbor will record it for me.  They have to work on wardrobe as well. Matching shirts?? |
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Post by violetrose on Aug 7, 2010 21:28:57 GMT
Oh my goodness, the plaid! I can hear Jeremy asking if they'd lost a bet or something...
Yeah, and the "are you all right?" and high-fiving? Oh lord. x.x I don't know. I watched it last night and I didn't cringe, but if it's three guys going around a track acting stupid (and having no personality or chemistry), I am extremely skeptical. :-\ I think Original Flavor have set a standard so high that I don't think anyone has a hope of trying to match it. I've never seen TG Australia, so I have no clue how they handle it...
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Post by xjsarah on Aug 7, 2010 22:16:31 GMT
I thought the big beardy bloke was supposed to be the US version of Jezza, although I stand to be corrected. He seemed big enough and noisy enough to fulfill that role!  ;D |
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Post by aeromanda on Aug 7, 2010 22:51:35 GMT
My ultimate opinion is that without Jezza, Hamster, and the wonderful Captain Slow it is NOT Top Gear! And those of you that pointed out that the one presenter asked "are you alright?" were quite correct in asserting that the boys wouldn't ask that. It makes me kind of cringe when I think that they may be making a fluffier, more PC, more (for lack of a better word...) "American" TG. And to me it seems that they are well on their way to "Americanizing" it because TG is, as the TG3 have said, "three middle aged men mucking about" and they only ever talk about Hammond being appealing to the ladies. But look at the presenters that they have for the US version. All young and I guess they could all at least be called good looking. (Not to my taste really but they aren't unattractive.) Just going on that basis it makes me wonder what else they may have done to it. All of that said, I think that it could be a good show. I think whether or not it is a good show will largely hinge upon the chemistry between the presenters. The TG3 (UK) have perfect chemistry and I just don't know if that can be duplicated. In that clip the yanks seemed a bit stiff to me. However, it could take a season or two to develop the right chemistry and the way American TV is they may not be given that long before they are canceled. It could be a good show, (I'll reserve judgment and give it a chance) but it won't be TG.
(After rereading this post I realized it may sound a little anti American. I just wanted to add that I'm from the US and love it here. I just love TG and don't think it should be messed with! I think the BBC should distribute and promote it more widely in the US!)
Thanks - rant over. ;D
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Post by Wyvern on Aug 10, 2010 19:03:25 GMT
Three fairly ordinary looking blokes, doing daft stuff in cars.
It's not much of a formula, but it seems to work, yet there have been a couple of attempts already and the results have been mixed. I liked Top Gear Australia, but the balance wasn't there in the first series and although the chemistry improved in series two, the ratings didn't. Series three has moved networks and only kept one of their original presenters, so it will be interesting to see how it pans out. I also watched a few episodes of Top Gear Russia and to be honest, although it had a budget of nothing, it reminded me of the early years of our current version of Top Gear, which were, frankly, rubbish - but entertaining rubbish.
To be honest, I think this has every chance of working quite as well as the other two franchise versions, and possibly better. It's important to allow for cultural variation, because there's no need at all to have American (or Australian or Russian) presenters pretending to be British, or to have British cultural sensibilities. Whether there's an audience for it is another matter, and depends whether people are watching Top Gear for its own sake, or for the rather unique chemistry between the presenters. It's worth keeping an open mind about it.
Remember, Top Gear's been running since the 70s - it has had many presenters and many format changes. Franchising is just another step towards world domination.
PS: While the US presenters haven't been hit with the ugly stick, none of them is exactly Brad Pitt. They seem a bit young, maybe, but they look pretty normal to me.
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Post by devil-may-care on Aug 10, 2010 19:36:07 GMT
Aeromanda, I agree with your thoughts about the Americanizing of TG. Practically everything made here for television is so watered down and politically correct that I lost all interest over five years ago. The networks are so afraid of offending someone, that they figuratively tie their own hands from doing anything creative.
I've noticed over the past 10-15 years, American networks have been remaking British television programs. They take a popular show from the BBC and think, "Hey, this is great! Our American audience will love it! We'll just make 800 changes to it!" They b*stardize BBC shows left and right. Then they fail, and they cannot figure out why.
Initially when I heard they were thinking of making an American Top Gear, I was against it. Please don't ruin another British show! But this one seems to have potential. If they stick to their guns and let the guys have fun, it could work. I'm interested in seeing what they do.
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Post by chariset on Aug 10, 2010 20:16:34 GMT
Yes, and that's why I'm thinking this could be decent. It won't be as slick and polished as UK Top Gear, and the hosts won't have the same chemistry for at least a year or two, but they've already got that joyful "I had no idea a car could do that" glee .. so maybe there's hope
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flyslip
Smutty Mayhemer
Hello...
Posts: 357
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Post by flyslip on Aug 11, 2010 0:32:28 GMT
Aeromanda, I agree with your thoughts about the Americanizing of TG. Practically everything made here for television is so watered down and politically correct that I lost all interest over five years ago. The networks are so afraid of offending someone, that they figuratively tie their own hands from doing anything creative. I've noticed over the past 10-15 years, American networks have been remaking British television programs. They take a popular show from the BBC and think, "Hey, this is great! Our American audience will love it! We'll just make 800 changes to it!" They b*stardize BBC shows left and right. Then they fail, and they cannot figure out why. It's not just British shows they do this to, either. The American version of Australia's Kath and Kim was just atrocious. They took a finely-nuanced comedy about aspirational bogans* in Melbourne's outer east, and reduced it to... well, as far as I could tell, a series of sight gags based on their outlandish eighties-inspired clothes. The dumbing-down the Yanks did was just mindboggling. *bogans = chavs = rednecks (very, very roughly, but if I tried to explain I really would be here all day. So yeah, in other words they picked something that really wasn't capable of traveling well, to begin with. I admit I hated the Australian show anyway, but that's more because it was just a bit too close to a documentary about where I grew up and some of the people I grew up with, so the comedy was secondary!   ) |
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Post by Wyvern on Aug 11, 2010 8:14:30 GMT
On the other hand, although it isn't as sharp at times, the American version of The Office can be very, very funny.
The American version of Dear John was dreadful, though...
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Post by beckstar on Aug 11, 2010 13:41:33 GMT
Hmm... I'm not sure... If they're going down the cocking about route it has some potential, and the presenters seem like just that - reasonable presenters. But what about the actual car reviews and the news sections. Will they only review / mess about in American cars or will they also use European cars, supercars etc - if not it could be a lot of boring straight-line driving in samey muscle cars...
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Post by dit on Aug 11, 2010 15:51:27 GMT
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Post by beckstar on Aug 11, 2010 18:52:55 GMT
Oh dear. Top Gear AND Americans... *dives into The Guardian with some trepidation* |
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Post by SonicSophie on Aug 11, 2010 20:51:16 GMT
Just seen this comment on the article...
"may is quite funny if a bit frustratingly dim"
"5th gear is a better programme for serious reviews (plus the presenters actually know a lot about cars, unlike may and hammond)"
Apparently James is dim and knows nothing about cars (and Hammond too)... what planet does this guy live on? o.O
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