I think this happened a few seasons ago with Hammond thinking he's hilarious when he is unbearable, Jeremy being offensive for the sake of it and james may just kind of going along with it all. Combine that with the fact they have ran out of ideas and having to resort to wheel chair racing makes a poor program. I want old Top Gear back...
Firstly, why couldn't you keep this in the Top Gear thread? Secondly, if you don't like it, don't watch it, simple? Thirdly, these rants that come around every time a new series of Top Gear starts gets tedious and boring. Oh noes, you don't like it, we understood 5 seasons ago.
All shows degrade over time, it's sad but true (for the most part). Even if a show starts to get bad, I'll still watch it since I feel nostalgic about past seasons.
I was in stitches with the wheelchairs. Go watch fifth gear or whatever if you think it is beneath you.
I'm feeling your pain Boscoe, it's more of an entertainment show with a focus on messing about and engines than it is a car show now. If you watch it from another angle it's a good show... But it's not 'TopGear' as I understand it, which is a shame.
I don't remember it ever being a proper car show, but then again I didn't watch it from the beginning. As others have said, if you don't like it, then you don't have to watch it
Try watching series 7-11. I believe those were the perfect blend of cocking about and actual car facts.
Run out of ideas? The most recent crazy idea was to put cars onto train tracks. I wouldn't even remotely say they are out of ideas... While I do agree that it can get a little immature at times, you have to remember that the show is about mass appeal and entertainment; no matter the controversy, people still love it. My recommendation, take a look at some of the earlier shows, Season 1 in particular, from 2002, and you'll see what the show could have become...and go and watch the old ones after that, and see why Top Gear was refreshed in 2002. The first series of the current Top Gear looked like a lonely pub gathering, and the old one was a car show that had been extended from the 70s; a great car show, but the population, for the most part, simply isn't interested in cars (I'm one of few). As for Fifth Gear...boy has that been a shambles, but I'm glad that they're heading back on track and now trying to be a car show, rather than an entertainment show/extremely poor Top Gear knock-off. GeorgeStorm: We're on series 18. And, of course, their biggest advantage of all...they have Tiff
This is how I remember Top Gear. I lol'd at the top comment. I still watch it but it's no longer a show about cars and car related stuff. It's a show about three middle aged millionaires dicking around, which also happens to feature cars. Whenever you sense an inkling of a serious critique of a car, the illusion is shattered mere moments later when you are reminded that millionaires tend not to think much of cars worth less than £100k. It can be funny, it can be tiresome, but as mentioned above if you actually like cars more than Clarkson, Hammond and May then just watch 5th Gear instead. Or read a magazine.
The weird thing is that Top Gear can still be considered as a great source for car lovers. While magazines, websites and Fifth Gear can talk about how great a car is technically, few of them talk about the way the car makes you feel. Cheesy I know, but that is arguably the most important factor when buying not just a new car, but anything; it might not be the "best", but if it makes you happy, it's the best for you. Magazines tend to overlook that. Eugh, Ferrari Supercars for people who know nothing about supercars...
Don't get me wrong, I still think it's a valid show, but having presenters who are now internationally known stars means that their viewpoint doesn't necessarily correlate with your average viewer. Whilst it's entertaining watching them wrestle with the latest supercar or lambasting a more sensible model for being boring, the show has (rightly or wrongly) moved away from being a motoring magazine towards an over the top stunt-fest where the presenters are considered much more important and entertaining than the cars themselves. It's a format that clearly works well for ratings, but as the comedy becomes more wooden and the features beome more OTT, viewers who are watching for the cars first and foremost are likely to find that the show no longer meets their expectations. This doesn't necessarily stop it from being a great way to kill an hour on Sundays though! Also: Ferrari - supercars for people who want a Ferrari, and nothing else. NOTHING ELSE.
That's most of Top Gear, and has been for ages. It's just the formula; I agree, I preferred it when it was more review-oriented, but that's how the show rolls now. There's nothing to be done really. You could write to them - they do take feedback.
