Retro_Link Posted August 3, 2009 Share Posted August 3, 2009 Really wasn't a great episode... that Advert piece took up almost 25mins and it was pretty boring and unfunny tbh. Yeah the James May thing is starting to annoy me a bit... I don't mind when they imply the fact he's gay, that can be seriously funny, but lately during 'the news' section, they've been having him coming out with some rediculously obvious scripted 'jokes'/moments of idiocy... and it just isn't funny imo, more cringeworthy. Thought the two cars they tested at the start were pretty dull, and the Aston footage at the end I found a bit too much maybe, style over substance what with the footage of the scenery changing through the windscreen and the excessive clouds etc... Thought Jay Leno was quite an alright guest though, and Hammond with his cool wall crane was pretty funny! Next series I'd prefer them to focus on more cars, even if they do it in funny ways, epic races... instead of the almost 'sketches' we got this series. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReZourceman Posted August 3, 2009 Share Posted August 3, 2009 Aye, I did like the episode. Overall the series has felt not quite upto the usual standards though. I did however love a few of the segments....that...trip...and....stuff. But yeah. I need moar next thyme. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caris Posted August 3, 2009 Share Posted August 3, 2009 Short season or was it just me? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Retro_Link Posted August 3, 2009 Share Posted August 3, 2009 Dunno, they have been about 6 eps recently... though was this one just 5? Tbh, I'd prob rather they had longer breaks, worked on the episodes more and came back with 10 show series. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gizmo Posted August 3, 2009 Share Posted August 3, 2009 In fact I think this one was 7. But yeah, it did feel really short, though I've thought that about the last 3 or so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbob Posted August 5, 2009 Share Posted August 5, 2009 It did seem like a short-ish series, even though it was 7 episodes. 6 of which were great episodes, but i think the 7th episode seemed "tagged on" as it were, like there was a spare week before something else was due to begin on the BBC. The Volkswagen ad was decent enough i believe, Jay Leno on the show i believe added the save to what i believe was a weak episode. It was decent enough, just not up to scratch as previous episodes have been like. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris the great Posted August 7, 2009 Share Posted August 7, 2009 i was just talking about this with a mate, it felt like the budget cut had bassicly crippled the show. but why cut its budget? there may be a credit crunch, but top gear is still the most watched BBC program. as we pay for the BBC with the licence fee, how about we get more budget in programs we like? BBC 3 and 4 show utter shite, no one watches it, its a waste of money. for instance, did any one see that new comedy "we are krang"? it was utter, utter shite. unwatchable dross. its ment to be a comedy, yet it failed to raise anything resembeling a smile out of me, and i laugh easily. how about the fact there was recently ANOUTHER serise of two pints of lager and a packet of crisps? did any one even know about that? horne and corden wasnt very good, what exactly are we paying for? why not scrap the crap and inflate top gear budget? it seems stupid to kill off a great program to finance woefull atempts at comedy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Retro_Link Posted August 7, 2009 Share Posted August 7, 2009 (edited) I dunno, if anything I think they may be spending too much money on the show and it's suffering as a result (as strange as that may sound). This series they blew the budget on loads of trips abroad (the trip to the Ice Circuit Race, the trip to the Classic Car Rally etc). I think it needs to go back to basics more... I was watching some classic episodes on Dave today and they were so much better than this last series. They were actually testing cars! Now all they seem to do is the 'buy a car' challenge and road trips! Stuff like when they take a new BMW, Porsche and Jaguar XKR to that beach in Wales and test them out doing drag races, torque/handling challenges etc... and when Richard takes a new Golf and has it struck by lighting to test the new chassis design. It's really fun to watch but at the same time they're actually giving you info on how cars compare to one another and which are the better buys etc... Which they don't do anymore. Edited August 7, 2009 by Retro_Link Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fierce_LiNk Posted August 7, 2009 Share Posted August 7, 2009 It's pretty simple why so many people are not satisfied with Top Gear this series. It's similar to "Second/Third Album Syndrome." The creators look at what they've achieved so far, and they always try to better it. How do you improve things? Well, you take all the best bits from the previous series, and then you improve on that. Right? Not entirely. A lot of viewers are finding that the current series is a bit un-balanced. It's un-balanced because like music artists, they try to improve upon their past successes. With a show that has been going for many a series such as Top Gear, the danger is that it becomes boring if you keep doing the same thing. However, they've fallen into another trap where they've perhaps tried to do too much when really simplicity can be best. The danger with trying to do more daring things is that you overblow things and try to make it too much of an "epic." It's a common problem that all good tv programmes or music artists or film directors encounter. However, it can be overcome. The problem is when you set the bar really high, there is always that drive to set it even higher. So high that it can sometimes become unattainable. The creators just need to go away, look at restoring that balance, and come back with that desire to make another great series. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbob Posted August 8, 2009 Share Posted August 8, 2009 With Top Gear, even though the current format is entertainment and excellent, they should go back to basics. Have one or two big challenges like the older series had and more car tests. It was more enjoyable this way, like the Welsh plains test where drag races, torque tests and all that again. Pretty much like what Retro said really. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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