[yakev724]

Originally Posted by M3PO

It's not that simple though. You are dealing with human hosts and a vastly different budget. They're not assembling Volkswagen Beetles in Mexico.

No once forced them to fill their cars with water from a fire truck and see how far around a lap they'd go. Or do the bumpy road course with eggs in baskets above their heads.

But no. They decided to pull near-entire episodes out of the UK series and recreate them.

It's for the lack of creative content that the show deserves the boot. Sure, the hosts are lacking on many levels but that's not the root problem. It's lack of creativity and original content.

I stopped watching after seeing them sitting around a campfire being drunk idiots for 12 minutes out of a 44 minute airtime. That coupled with 2 minute recaps after EVERY commercial, further decreasing actual airtime to something like 30-35 minutes. I'm amazed that someone at History approved the show's scripts, though the channel (along with Discovery) has been airing progressively worse content over the course of the past 2-3 years.

EDIT: as for other copies/version of the show or something similar, I agree that any new car show is never going to live up to TGUK, for many reasons. But one show I don't mind is Fifth Gear. I don't end up watching episodes but mainly just the big-name shootouts and reviews (mostly on youtube, actually). Just watch the 2 shows' reviews of the Cayman S. Fifth Gear does a relatively good job at going through the important aspects of the car and the feel of it around a track, and then compares it with the competition. JC talks about the nav for a bit, how the producer is buying one, and that it "[annoyingly] has some good points." Not much beyond that. Sometimes I want to learn more about the cars and the driving experience than what TG offers. But then again, TG offers way way more than car reviews, which is why it's my favorite show in the first place.

[MediaArtist]

I was a big critic of Top Gear USA, but towards the end of the last season I was really enjoying the show (beater challenge up PCH, to Vegas on one tank of gas, etc).

I loved when Tanner was trying to drift a city bus, that was pretty entertaining.

They don't get a lot of super cars to review, but they do get interesting vehicles, like the off-road vehicle Tanner used to "race a boat".

[Gavin@MMW]

They all died in that horrible attempt to turn a Cadillac Eldorado into a flying saucer... You guys didn't hear?

[Pangloss]

Tanner Foust is an interesting fellow and definitely belongs in motor TV. The other guys... well I'd love to drink a beer with 'em, but the show is just plain boring.

Towards the end of this past season they finally started doing serious review work. But everything else about the season was just dull and uninteresting. They need to focus more on real scenarios (not jokes -- those only work on UK and they don't do them constantly like that), real cars, real comparisons, and real discussion.

I think it would be interesting if they involved the audience more, and had a better news segment. They should talk about the US car market, trends in the American manufacturers, American driver hobbies like weekend track events and modding, and collectors and restoration.

[krnboy817]

top gear us had the best episode when they did the 4x4 challenge in alaska. other than that it all just seems marketing commercial. it seemed like who ever wanted to market their product on tv got the spot that they built an episode around.

plus, as a host(s) of the show there is no...
1. personal inputs towards the car
2. intriguing and striking knowledge of the car/design
3. unique individual review or explanation of the experience in car(s)
4. vocabulary... they just lack words.

thus never communicates with the viewer. not once did they review a car and made me want to go out and get one... or made me feel like shit for owning one.

to me none of those guys are car fanatic or enthusiast... i mean, when were you ever so boring talking about something you were so passionate about.?

[PINeely]

Originally Posted by krnboy817

when were you ever so boring talking about something you were so passionate about.?

When men in dark sunglasses took away your creative input and gave you a script.

[Pangloss]

Originally Posted by krnboy817

top gear us had the best episode when they did the 4x4 challenge in alaska.

See that's exactly what bugs me about these shows. Why in the world would they devote all that time and energy over something so utterly worthless? Now, if you want to show me how a NEW Dodge, a NEW Ford, or a NEW Chevy truck is best in that terrain, THAT would be interesting.

But giving each of them pocket change and then spending the next 45 minutes watching the pieces fall off some beat-up piece of junk? That is completely useless and UTTERLY BORING. The only reason it works for the UK guys is because THEY are so hilarious -- it's like watching Monty Python test cars. But who wants to see your next-door neighbor do the same thing?

(Though I agree with you that out of all the segments they did like that, that one was the best. It's absolutely impossible to make Alaska boring -- even they couldn't manage it.)

thus never communicates with the viewer. not once did they review a car and made me want to go out and get one... or made me feel like shit for owning one.

to me none of those guys are car fanatic or enthusiast... i mean, when were you ever so boring talking about something you were so passionate about.?

Exactly. In fact, I'd RATHER watch Jeremy Clarkson tell me what an idiot I am for buying what I did. At least when it got my blood to boil I'd be feeling SOMETHING. (rofl)