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[02x02] July 31st, 2011

[02x02] July 31st, 2011

  • Total voters
    107
Doctor Blade said:
Loved the stig intro.
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Haven't seen the episode - curse you, STREETFIRE - but I remember that the set report from the NBC pilot said "After the titles they introduced the fourth team member, The Stig. This was another film with an Ariel Atom dropped from a cargo plane by parachute and The Stig with a parachute pack chasing it. The car lands but you don't see The Stig open his chute, it cuts right to Stiggy driving the Atom through the desert", which sounds even more awesome.
 
Beech18 said:
So, you're not a writer.
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I'm not sure where this confusion is coming in. No, my profession is not that of a writer. Better? Now can we please stay on the topic at hand? I welcome any further criticisms of my career or collegiate choices via PM.

Anyway, I think that this season so far shows marked improvements over last. They're definitely moving towards developing their own voices as hosts...and I'm not sure they are the same voices that are forced upon them in the title sequence.

I'd like to see one of them step forward to be the defacto "group leader." In TGUK, Clarkson clearly leads things. Not that he is the captain of team Top Gear, but just that he sets much of the tone for the show by creating and instigating conflict with the others and by generally being the most outspoken.

I'm not sure any of the current hosts have it in them to be a Clarkson...but that could be a good thing. As their voices develop, if one of them doesn't stand out as the natural leader of the group, I think it's time to rethink them, but for now, I think that any talks of switching out hosts are a bit premature.

I'll be watching intently every week to see where this goes...it's going to be interesting.

-Nick
 
Finally got to watch it last night. It was a fun episode where I honestly found my self smiling and laughing out loud. (I gave it a 7). My problem is I'm biased because I love TGUK and for some a$$holish reason I didn't want to like TG US but now I do (last seasons Alaska episode hooked me). If US was a full hour of good content (thanks a lot f**king commercials) I would probably give it a 9 or 10. Besides the fact that the show is shorter than original TG due to commercials I thing I would rate it overall nearly as high as TGUK.
 
foxymcfox said:
I'm not sure where this confusion is coming in. No, my profession is not that of a writer. Better? Now can we please stay on the topic at hand? I welcome any further criticisms of my career or collegiate choices via PM.

Anyway, I think that this season so far shows marked improvements over last. They're definitely moving towards developing their own voices as hosts...and I'm not sure they are the same voices that are forced upon them in the title sequence.

I'd like to see one of them step forward to be the defacto "group leader." In TGUK, Clarkson clearly leads things. Not that he is the captain of team Top Gear, but just that he sets much of the tone for the show by creating and instigating conflict with the others and by generally being the most outspoken.

I'm not sure any of the current hosts have it in them to be a Clarkson...but that could be a good thing. As their voices develop, if one of them doesn't stand out as the natural leader of the group, I think it's time to rethink them, but for now, I think that any talks of switching out hosts are a bit premature.

I'll be watching intently every week to see where this goes...it's going to be interesting.

-Nick
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You'd like to see one of them step up to be as leader just like Clarkson. Then you write you're not sure any of the presenters can do it, but that could be a good thing? If you're going to post your opinion, you first need to formulate an opinion.

You don't "write" a Clarkson role. If you (along with Andy Wilman) are responsible for the current TG UK format and write a good portion of the show, then you are the leader. Clarkson doesn't play a leader, he is. One would think a television production major would know that.
 
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You have a 458 and a ZR-1 and you treat the segment like an episode of Motorweek gone wild. I should have been wowed beyond belief. The on going problem with most of the episodes is the writing. This episode highlights the disconnect between the writers and the hosts. I expect more from a show that carries the Top Gear name
 
I have enjoyed the first two episodes of this series more than most of last year's episodes. The first car challenge was good. I liked the stig's skydiving intro and having the audience outside part of the time. Having the map tracking the stig's lap is a nice addition too. But there are still a few things annoying me. The cuts to commercial have been abrupt. Adam is driving at 30 about to go through the junk and suddenly...a black screen, then a commercial. Huh?? And yes, you do need a teaser before going to break. Even TG UK does that on BBC America, though without a voice over. What they can do without is a stupid recap after coming back from commercial. Then after the recap they replay the minute before they went to commercial. Are you kidding me? If they had eliminated all the useless recaps and replays, they might have had enough time for a proper celebrity interview.

I know they are trying to find their own way, but I cannot stand the way they are starting the show. You just can't do Top Gear without starting in the studio, unless it is a really special episode for which there is no audience. The audience defines Top Gear as we know it. Not starting the show there almost gives it a Fifth Gear feel. Not good.

Maybe it's just me, but the audience still seems to be disinterested in the program. Like they are there only to make noise when called upon. Synchronized cheerers.

Also, shouldn't we all know who the Stig is by now? We don't need an explanation of what he does every series.

That said, it is an improvement from last year. 7/10
 
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I'm simply amazed at people who continue to bitch and moan about aspects of Top Gear than cannot change as long as it's on ad-driven television.

TG USA is 45 minutes long. Unless Obama finally manages to change this country into a completely socialist state and Top Gear USA becomes a product of State Owned Television Channel 2 and charges all of us a license fee to watch, TG USA will have commercials. If the show has commercials, you can expect black screen cuts immediately before and recaps after each break. That happens on every ad driven show in the USA, Britain and the rest of the world. Do you think that happens by accident, or the producer thinks it's a cool idea to waste 15 seconds after each commercial? It happens because studies continue to prove many viewers channel surf through commercials. Those same studies also prove you hook a channel surfers with those recaps.

You want a solid commercial free hour of TG? Move to England and shell out a license fee. Or, vote for Obama in 2012 because if he's reelected, there's a pretty good chance we'll be watching State Socialist TV, whether we want to or not.

Last season, FinalGear complained TG USA copied TG UK. This season, TG USA is doing it's own thing and FinalGear says, "What? Where's Jessica?" "One of the hosts needs to be Clarkson." "They put the audience outside, TG UK doesn't do that. They need to be just like TG UK." "Building monster trucks over night is unrealistic, unlike building two complete trains!"

Fortunately, FinalGear is a microscopic portion of the TG UK and TG USA audience. It is nothing more than comic relief for Clarkson and Wilman.
 
I gave it a 6.

I really enjoyed the first car challenge, which was at times even laugh out loud funny and that is quite rare in my case. The 458 and ZR1 film wasn't bad at all. Some previous posters praised Ferrara's reviewing style and I agree with them - I liked how he said that the ZR1 was all about the power and therefore the interior had to give. This is my first time watching an episode of TG US so I don't know if the power lap on-screen technology (speedometer and lap animation) is new or not, but I very much liked it. Also I liked the Stig's entrance and the lap commentary.

I didn't like the studio bits and the big star segment. Studio performances were somewhat forced and the audience roared too often over the presenters' and guests' comments. However, I felt that the studio bits were not very good in the first few series of TG UK too. All of this improved with time so I hope that it will improve on TG US as well. Anyway it seemed that they cut the studio time to a minimum and went on with the previously filmed segments which were very good.

Now, the most of all I hate recaps. That goes to any kind of TV program. I understand the commercial reasoning and such behind that, but it annoys me quite much and that is one of the reasons I gave it a lower score. To me recapping likens a program to a pointless reality show. It cheapens the program in my eyes a bit. I just don't deem it necessary and that's that.
 
Boogeyman24 said:
Also, shouldn't we all know who the Stig is by now? We don't need an explanation of what he does every series.
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Why should American know the Stig after only 12 shows when the Brits still need a Stig introduction every show after, what SEVENTEEN SEASONS?

Every show, for seventeen seasons, Clarkson (or, rarely Hammond or May) has introduced the Stig with a variation of, " Now ladies and gentlemen, it's time to find out what the Lamboferratisigegg Mk VIII will do on our test track. Some say......."

Every freaking episode wherein the Stig posts a lap time, he's introduced with some sort of an explanation. Every time, even after the fucker wrote and published an autobiography! I guess the British audience is a bit thick, eh?
 
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Beech18 said:
Why should American know the Stig after only 12 shows when the Brits still need a Stig introduction every show after, what SEVENTEEN SEASONS?

Every show, for seventeen seasons, Clarkson (or, rarely Hammond or May) has introduced the Stig with a variation of, " Now ladies and gentlemen, it's time to find out what the Lamboferratisigegg Mk VIII will do on our test track. Some say......."

Every freaking episode wherein the Stig posts a lap time, he's introduced with some sort of an explanation. Every time, even after the fucker wrote and published an autobiography! I guess the British audience is a bit thick, eh?
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There's a difference between a playful introduction (Clarkson) and a drawn out boring "the Stig is the fourth member of our crew and drives every car we review around our track" explanation (TG USA).
 
Beech18 said:
Why should American know the Stig after only 12 shows when the Brits still need a Stig introduction every show after, what SEVENTEEN SEASONS?

Every show, for seventeen seasons, Clarkson (or, rarely Hammond or May) has introduced the Stig with a variation of, " Now ladies and gentlemen, it's time to find out what the Lamboferratisigegg Mk VIII will do on our test track. Some say......."

Every freaking episode wherein the Stig posts a lap time, he's introduced with some sort of an explanation. Every time, even after the fucker wrote and published an autobiography! I guess the British audience is a bit thick, eh?
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Troll much?
 
Boogeyman24 said:
There's a difference between a playful introduction (Clarkson) and a drawn out boring "the Stig is the fourth member of our crew and drives every car we review around our track" explanation (TG USA).
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The American Stig intros are shorter than Brit Stig intros.
 
Numbers from:
http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/20...-sight-breaking-bad-leverage-much-more/99356/
This episode got 2.126 million views with a .9 share, UP 167,000 viewers, about 9%, from the season premier last week (1,959,000 views 0.9 share). So if you liked it, good, there's a fair chance we'll get more if it keeps beating itself in ratings. If you didn't...they'll have a chance to improve. Of course, we're still early in the season, so it's too early to make a judgement, but its a good start.
 
Rossco said:
Am I the only one who was a bit disappointed to see a rare VW caddy destroyed just for a few laughs?
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Mint version too. Atleast the Top Gear UK guys have shitty examples of the cars ie buying a cult car with pefect panels to f*** up is just so wrong!!!
 
Beech18 said:
Every time, even after the fucker wrote and published an autobiography!
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Two actually, if you count Black Stig's 'Flat Out, Flat Broke'. Just sayin'.

And do you really think Obama is going to turn the US into a socialist state? How pathetic a view you have of America!
 
@Beech18 While I do agree with you about Obama trying to screw us all, the recaps after the commercial breaks are awful in every way. I can't think of any other show, whether it's on cable or ABC, NBC, CBS, etc., that goes back and recounts what happened 2 minutes ago for an entire 60-90 seconds.

bryanbeachboy1970 said:
Two actually, if you count Black Stig's 'Flat Out, Flat Broke'. Just sayin'.

And do you really think Obama is going to turn the US into a socialist state? How pathetic a view you have of America!
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OK, compare the National Deficit before he took office to the National Deficit right now http://www.usdebtclock.org/ and then tell me he's not trying to force us into a socialist state. Oh wait, you're probably one of those people receiving a handout from the government. So, of course, you would be one of those that voted for him.
 
bryanbeachboy1970 said:
Two actually, if you count Black Stig's 'Flat Out, Flat Broke'. Just sayin'.

And do you really think Obama is going to turn the US into a socialist state? How pathetic a view you have of America!
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Drummin003 said:
@Beech18 While I do agree with you about Obama trying to screw us all, the recaps after the commercial breaks are awful in every way. I can't think of any other show, whether it's on cable or ABC, NBC, CBS, etc., that goes back and recounts what happened 2 minutes ago for an entire 60-90 seconds.



OK, compare the National Deficit before he took office to the National Deficit right now http://www.usdebtclock.org/ and then tell me he's not trying to force us into a socialist state. Oh wait, you're probably one of those people receiving a handout from the government. So, of course, you would be one of those that voted for him.
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can we keep this pure, please? if i want obama bashing, i'll listen to the smooth tones of Rush Limbaugh. i'm here for Top Gear only.

i give this an 8/10. i feel the First Car segment could of been a bit more, like the UK's 17 year old challenge, but i've more than enjoyed it. and the Corvette/Ferrari 458 was top notch in my opinion. especially, since i'm very familiar with the mountain roads they were driving on. they were just miles from my place, and of course, i've driven that road plenty of times. and yes, it is that fun. this season can easily out do season 1.
 
At this point I have been disappointed in the show, Id rather gouge my eyes out with a rusty spoon then watch more dumbed down version of the show.
Parachuting Stig? Really? Exactly how bubble gum can we get? But wait. Toss in a background of young men and three women as a sampling of demographics.
Foust had the chance to talk up the Ferrari, Adam could have gone on about the nuances in the Vette - instead they had a mocked up slow drag race with numerous shots replayed.

I do want entertainment, I am willing to give up some technical jargon. But it is clear the producers are more interested in capitalizing off the franchise and pumping in sponsors over making a quality show. They have the plans to make it successful, just steal a script from UK. UGH this show is awful. Adam Carolla's "Car Show" is embarrassing the good name of "Top Gear" America version.

My thoughts of this show are 180 degrees from last year. Someone please do something with it before the idea is ruined completely.
 
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