Top Gear nearing the end????

[v6 stuarty]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1237565/Top-Gear-boss-admits-turning-presenters-cartoon-characters-ratings-plummet.html

Seems that even the producers dont think its any good!!!

[Martyn]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1237565/Top-Gear-boss-admits-turning-presenters-cartoon-characters-ratings-plummet.html

Seems that even the producers dont think its any good!!!

I suspect this has been on the cards for a while.

Top Gear, as a show, won't end. This is probably just a hint that another revamp is on the way. TBH whilst I enjoy the show, I did begin to wonder how much longer they can carry on with the insane stunts and trials, whilst bettering them year on year!

[Mrcento]

TG as a show is dying a death, i fully agree with the article, it just feels too scripted these days

its still an enjoyable watch, just not as enjoyable as it once was, a revamp and back to basics aproach with the scripting is in order imo

[Martyn]

I think its single biggest flaw is the predictability...I mean, how hard can it be?

[flyingscot]

This series has been in the main rubbish and something I used to tune into I don't even bother if I miss an episode now. Indeed they stuffed some of the last series into this one which was a strange move! The airport holiday delays one was meant to be put in the last show for the summer holidays and it looked odd coming a few weeks before Christmas.

It is as the article suggests over scripted and cringeworthingly predictable and I'm glad a re-vamp is on the cards. We talked at work about it needing a year or so off screens before coming back with people interested again. The South America road trip might be good however.

[muppet42]

I think they hit the sweet spot a few years ago and it's been going (slightly) downhill for a bit now. Don't get me wrong, I still LOVE this show. But, and it pains me to say it, I wish they'd make it for lack of a better word - boring :D

[Martyn]

Interesting bit in the news today, TV show of the decade:

http://www.eveningexpress.co.uk/Article.aspx/1539990

Not really surprising I guess, but still. Revamp time is coming soon methinks!

[steve119]

Have to admit less scripts and a little bit more car focus would keep me interested so hopefully that's what we will see in the future!

[Martyn]

Have to admit less scripts and a little bit more car focus would keep me interested so hopefully that's what we will see in the future!

On that note, I dont know about anyone else but I thought Sundays episode was one of the best in a good long while! :thumb: I wonder if even just taming things down a bit might be a big improvement in itself?

[PNL]

With regards to the program I dont like it and that is down to JC [the tit] wish it had been a gun instead of his remote plip they had given him to test..:nutter:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_jACSPipPSE

[Mrcento]

On that note, I dont know about anyone else but I thought Sundays episode was one of the best in a good long while! :thumb: I wonder if even just taming things down a bit might be a big improvement in itself?

I actually thought sundays episode was very, very poor. Maybe it's just because i'm a car geek, but i felt the test drives were very uninformative and shoddy. Jezzas bmw x6 one was ok, but hammonds lexus one was just padded out poorly with special effects, yet in the time he drove it he spent more time talking about the cars rivals than he did about what he was driving.

But still, mays insignia test was awful!!! No opinion formed on it, no detail about it, little or no information about it, no word really about how it drove apart from "it goes well"... Infact, more detail was given from the old woman about how smoothly james may could change gear!!!, she was given 4 times as much time as the car. Not good at all, it's the first time ive not enjoyed a james may test. It was so unlike him, it was a stinker tbh!

There has been a slight tone down in the show imo, most noteably in the recent bolivia special. There was far less obvious scripting and more subtle humour throughout. And imo it was one of their best specials to date :) thats how they need to do it, not like sundays shocking effort where they obviously just couldnt be bothered coming up with ideas anymore :(

[Fasckira]

hammonds lexus one was just padded out poorly with special effects, yet in the time he drove it he spent more time talking about the cars rivals than he did about what he was driving.

Yeah, I quite liked the Lexus as it happens (though not the price tag so much) and especially the digital rev counter but all those stupid effects... urgh. I see enough of them in Need for Speed, I watch Top Gear to actually see the cars, not shots of the car overlayed with fancy pop-art effects. :(

Mays road test of the Insignia VXR though, that was remarkably boring. I felt a bit sorry for the old lady because as she said at the start, hes built her up as this really impressive person which must have made her feel incredibly uncomfortable.
All I learnt/remember from May's review was that the dials light up red in the VXR version when it goes into "VXR" mode. Oh, and the suspension stiffens up.


There has been a slight tone down in the show imo, most noteably in the recent bolivia special. There was far less obvious scripting and more subtle humour throughout.

I disagree about the Bolivia one. Yeah, it was a great special and was fun to watch, but the whole thing dripped of scripting. Every scene, the camera crews were perfectly placed to capture anything that just happened to occur - I appreciate that they have more than one camera crew focussed on them in most cases and a lot is done in editing, but the scenes were too set up.

The thing is, I dont mind scripting. Its entertaining and makes for good laughs, I just wish they made it less evident when scenes were scripted. Like, for once have the cameras not in perfect shooting angles ready to capture the scene. :P

[Andi_F]

I agree with Mark & Fasckira here.

The Lexus its self was and is a very nice car (apart from the price tag!), but Hamster ruined it with stupid Special Effects.

Jezza's BMW x6 bit was quite funny I'll admit.

And as for Captain Slow his Vauxhall Bit was just zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

The week before that when they went to Bolivia, was quite good.

[Venters]

I think your all being to hard on the last episode.

Jezza spent near 15 minutes ripping into how pointless the X6 is.
Score 1.

Hammond did a supercar review that was a 13 year olds wet dream. Seriously who do you thinnk supercar reviews are for? Anybody think Branson decides his next purchase on the strength of a top gear review?
Score 2


Mays VXR review wasn't completely terrible. Just kinda boring.
HELLO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! He was reviewing an Insignia!
Score 3

[Fasckira]

-snip-

Should have put Hammond in the Insignia on the track then May in the Lexus on the road. Instantly more humour would follow. :p