I just re-watched 15x05 as a 720p rip, so here is my verdict. But before we get to the action, I must say that reading this thread before I watched the episode built a lot of anticipation. So many FinalGear users rating it so highly, I expected it to be brilliant throughout...
Touareg vs. snowmobiles:
That said, the first segment was a bit of a letdown. It started off well: Hammond giving the new Touareg a shot, talking about the differences to the old one and some truly beautiful cinematography. Great! But it started to go downhill the moment Hammond revealed that he will not be using the car he just thoroughly introduced. The "I made this over night" joke didn't do it for me at all. Of course he was joking, but I had rather seen him announce the change of vehicles in a wittier way.
Example: Hammond standing beside the street Touareg saying: "So this
is the car ... on which
this car is based" and the camera suddenly pans to the racing Touareg and the background music stalls. This is a carbon copy of a joke Hammond pulled when they set the world record for rolling a car, but I'd still have like that miles better than "I had so say something to justify me using the racing car, so I just say whatever and we're done with it". Sorry, that's not even trying.
And it went on when they showed the map where Hammond neatly demonstrated that the race route basically is all over the place. At this point it was pretty apparent that this will not be a serious race rather than some quickly-cut action shots with a shaky camera and some stunts by the snowmobile guys. Trying to wrap that into a race is a bit pointless in my eyes. Sure, you need to justify the piece in some way, but this is not the Top Gear Live World Tour. Jumping a couple of snowmobiles and powersliding a racing Touareg is fun to see when its live, and the scenery sure was impressive, but with the opportunity being able to plan, cut and edit such a piece, I simply expect more. They have demonstrated years ago that they can do pretty much the same thing much
much better (Evo vs. bobsled, s05e08), so one would expect them to be at least on par with that.
And I support the belief some posters mentioned that Hammond wasn't actually driving the car at all times. The pieces on that narrow road in the woods, flicking the car around with ultimate precision ... done by Hammond? I'm sure the man drives miles better than me, but this needs some serious skill and experience. Also, Hammond spitting out the stats during the "race", I would have expected him to explain a few differences between the snowmobiles and a car, and why the former are so good in these conditions except on ice.
Hammond mowing down the downhill poles chasing some snowboarders kind of reminded me of the Evo-vs-Army bit with Clarkson. Hammond "took a shortcut" and accidently ended up there, doing that -
please! The whole thing was a thoughougly planned, cleverly edited fabrication of happenings cloaked as a race. Hard words, I know, but what can I say? Beautiful pictures and good music though...
The News:
... were lacking car info. I was surprised by the substance of the news in the former episodes of this season, so this edition was not as good as I expected it to be. The "ice" discussion was almost painful to watch: perfectly planned in advance and properly executed ... which is the problem.
Of course I am distracted by nice ladies on the street when I'm driving. Of course a sales director called Peugeot working for Citroen is beyond irony. Of course a pedal car 911 is funny. Great! So let's start with actual car news now ... oh wait, the segment is over.
The Veyron Supersport:
So finally, the episode is literally picking up speed. A very nice, well laid-out segment with stunning cinematography. I'm not too fond of the looks of this version (the orange playing a part in that), but it is an awesome car. And Captain slow took his time to explain everything you need to know.
Obviously, it was inevitable to not rehash some of the stuff from his first run at Ehra-Lessien, him having been there in almost the same car doing the same thing. But still, a couple of unnecessary CGI effects aside (lens flair and speed effects), it was beautifully shot, well made and impressive to see. The great lap time was the cherry on top of this delicious dessert.
Tom Cruise & Cameron Diaz:
I'm not too fond of both of these, but Hollowood stars on Top Gear has to be an awesome sight. And it was. Cruise is a bit too dry and serious for my taste, but Diaz is nice: always on the edge, swearing a lot, just enjoying to be herself. Those Hollywood stars are a bit too much in-your-face for my liking, but it was still very interesting so see simply because you usually don't see these guys in such a situation. Seeing Clarkson's face being powerslid around the track in a Jag by Cameron Diaz was awesome. He said numerous times he has a crush on her, so this must have been a wet dream come true for him. :lol:
I found the laptimes to be believeable, too. Granted, they both mis-shifted. But if you looked at the driving, they did everything you need to do with an underpowered FWD car: keep momentum in the corners, use the whole track width, accelerate early, avoid harsh maneuvers. Also, they both cut the final two corners severely, this is where most people lose valuable time. Thus I wouldn't say this was fabricated, they really were flying out there, both of'em. I'm sure we will see even faster times in this car, but they both were very good and interesting to see, even if the interview itself was a tad choppy. Oh, and I didn't really mind the plug, although I understand everyone who dislikes that.
Senna tribute:
I am shocked at how many people here do not even know Ayrton Senna. I mean I am only 32, and I started watching Formula 1 seriously right before when Schumacher joined in in 1991. I remember seeing Senna crash in Imola in '94 vividly. You lot, some not even knowing that he existed, make me feel like I'm 112 years old.
Anyway, the piece. I understand that it was spoiled for some by the presence of Lewis Hamilton. And although I have nothing against the man, this would be my only point of criticism ... if I wanted to criticise it. But I don't, because this for sure was one of the best pieces Top Gear has produced in the last years. It was like a documentary, simply beautifully put together and calmly paced. Seeing Senna racing was beyond awesome, and all those F1 drivers put him at the #1 spot for a reason. This was one quick man, and controversial, too.
At the same time, allow me to point you towards the late
Stefan Bellof, who, hadn't he died in a crash in Spa in '85, probably would have been a great rival for Senna. Unfortunately, he never had the opportunity to really show his talent. Only in the famous '84 grand prix of Monaco, soaking with rain, his skills shone through. With many drivers having stuck their cars into the barriers and the rain effectively rendering the turbo power useless, Bellof closed in on the race leader Prost as well as Senna on 2nd place before the race was red-flagged. Being able to do this in a hopelessly inferior Tyrell showed true skill. I really don't want to take away anything of Ayrton Senna's shine, he truly was awesome. But with Bellof missing, we were robbed of what could have been the biggest duel in F1 ever to see the light of day.
... where were we? Ah right, the episode. Well, judging the rather weak start but then picking up the pace to end with a truly great piece, I give this episode an
8/10. It was a good one overall, but the Touareg as well as the news prevented the full score. Also, I can not agree with this being the best episode ever. This might just end up in my top 10, but I'm not even sure of that. Still, 8/10 is not bad, is it?