The announcement of the death of the remake of one of the world's most beloved car shows, Top Gear, was followed with an obvious reaction. Practically everyone who had heard of the original BBC show celebrated its passing with the same fervor as the Ewoks when the Death Star exploded. It's a natural reaction. It's hard not to assume that once we Americans get our grubby remaking mitts on something, we're bound to mess with it too much and screw it up. We've done it too many times to count. The last three Fawlty Towers remakes were the combined equivalent of the sinking of the Lusitania, only with a lower body count.
But just like anything in life, there were pluses and minuses to us Yanks getting our own Top Gear. Now that NBC has ensured that we won't get one this season, here are the lovers and haters of what could have been the second greatest car show that may never be.
Loves Ya: NBC - The network may have had enough confidence to commission a pilot or two, but pulling the plug so close to the finish line shows they worried the production costs would outweigh the response. An American version of the show seemed doomed to succeed from the start because its very nature goes against the grain of network television. It's got to be brutally honest and genuine or it won't work, and there isn't much room in primetime for brutally honest television. Besides, what would happen if NBC helped Americans realize that the Ford Lightning is just a huge piece of plastic crap? Well...
Loves Ya: The automakers - Let's be honest, America doesn't create that great of a car. So how can a show that prides itself on its brutal honesty be that way when it's wedged in between commercials for the Pontiac Solstice or the Hummer H3? Plus, the auto industry is more strapped for cash than a college student whose daily diet depends on whether or not he has running water that week. It would be hard to convince a car company to keep what little ads they are running on your network when one of your shows is ripping their latest gas guzzler to tiny, confetti shreds.
Hates Ya: American Top Gear groupies - Admit it, as much as you thought it was a bad idea to remake it, part of you was excited to watch it. Top Gear has been remade and reproduced around the world and just about all of them have been a success. The same potential for success still thrives in the New World if it's done right. America, the nation that brought you the Thunderbird, the Mustang and the classic 1969 Dodge Charger (without which The Dukes of Hazzard would have been completely unwatchable), deserves a version of Top Gear to call their own.
Hates Ya: Adam Carolla - Some say his eyebrows can change the direction of the tides, and that his role on Buzz Lightyear: Star Command as Commander Nebula convinced NASA to give the Mars colonization project another go. All we know is that the former Man Show and Loveline host has not had the easiest transition from cable to network television the way his buddy Jimmy Kimmel has. Sure he's got his nationally syndicated radio show to put some heavy coin in the bank, but his time in the spotlight has dwindled somewhat since he left Comedy Central to pursue other interests. This show would have been a perfect way to get him that spotlight he deserves because he's a gearhead at heart, a brutally honest opinion churner and damn funny. His all denim wardrobe alone makes him a perfect American version of Jeremy Clarkson.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
1-06-2009 @ 3:07PM
Aaron Slater said...
I had mixed feelings about the show, but I was willing to give it a shot. Unfortunately, as stated, the networks are run by advertisers, and NBC backed off like a ten-year-old who's been caught in daddy's porno drawer.
Until then, there's always grey-market download sites like finalgear.com
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1-13-2009 @ 1:34AM
LMSTahoe said...
There is no comparison to the BBC version. Adam Carolla? He was supposed to play Jeremy? He is nothing more than a taller version of Gilbert Gottfried. Tyler Foust (an arrogant and far less charming Hammond?) Did they not see his work on that Speed show before hiring him?
The BBC version just gels, it has interesting hosts, interesting cars, and interesting challenges!!
I suppose the first items on the US version was each of the hosts in either a Viper, a Vette, and a Mustang cruising Route 66 or the Pacific Coast Highway with a whole bunch of commercials and sponsership logo's from the big three automakers during the breaks. NO THANKS!!!
1-06-2009 @ 3:15PM
Kevin said...
From watching the BBC version on BBCA I wondered if they would be able to pull this off. My gripe about it would be is how would they be able to sh*t can a car and tell people how bad it is without the network suffering. Just imagine they test drive a new Ford and they say its awful and they even show its time is worse then a Chevy, how is Ford going to keep running ads on that network. They were just told their new car is bad.
I think this show would work in the USA to its fullest on HBO or Showtime where they have no advertisers to impress.
Kevin
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1-06-2009 @ 3:17PM
Scott K. said...
"Hates Ya: Adam Carolla - Some say..." I see what you did there... :)
I am a big fan of the BBC version, and don't expect this to be as good, but I was looking forward to it. I am still hoping a cable channel will pick this up and air it.
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1-06-2009 @ 3:41PM
Juan A. said...
I watched the Aussie version and found it painful. Near unbearable (as in the "What Were They Thinking") segments. It turns out I like the UK version just fine and occasionally watch it on BBCA. But what I want to watch is the first-runs of the UK version without any customization for the US.
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1-06-2009 @ 4:20PM
joy said...
I LOVE this show, and was scared we were going to screw up another Brit import. So, I have to say it's one of the best programming decisions those guys have made...in the last month or so.
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1-06-2009 @ 4:21PM
Ari said...
f this. This show would have been awesome, Carolla is hysterical, and his honesty about crappy cars would be enough to get the automakers to do something about it. Well maybe not enough but a good start.
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1-06-2009 @ 4:24PM
Brian said...
I was intrigued, yet terrified, of what the US version of Top Gear was going to look like.
I'm actually happy that they canceled it, because then I won't have to be terribly disappointed by how much they screwed with the original.
I also am happy, because now all my rantings in my office about how great the UK version is, won't go for naught because the US can't make a good TV show.
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1-06-2009 @ 4:26PM
VP said...
Corolla is no Clarkson. That one negative outweighs any other positive you can think of. In the mean time i will happily get brand new episodes every sunday night from Final Gear.
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1-06-2009 @ 5:48PM
Adam said...
I have no doubt that Foust and Carolla would have kicked ass, but NBC has a proven record of hiring talent and churning out crap (phil hendrie anyone). I hope that a network like Spike or Speed picks it up. Since the US automakers are hemoraging money, losing their adverts shouldn't hurt a cable network that much.
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1-06-2009 @ 5:27PM
Smithee said...
I agree that the American version would have been a disaster, but I don't understand why people like the British version so much. It seems to me that for every minute of useful and/or entertaining material there is three
times as much useless padding. If they made the typical episode five or ten minutes long and left out all the efforts to stretch it out to fill more time, I would be a big fan. As it is, I gave up after three or four episodes.
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1-06-2009 @ 9:50PM
Adam said...
Count me among the extremely disappointed. Love Adam Carolla, love cars, and was really looking forward to it. Adam would have ensured that they were honest when it comes to American cars - he rails against American cars all the time on the radio. Come to think, maybe that didn't help.
I'm sure others will blast me for this, but I've watched the UK version numerous times and just don't care much for the hosts. That's why I had high hopes for this one.
Sigh, NBC F's it up again.
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1-07-2009 @ 2:57PM
metz said...
I think Carolla has the snarkiness to pull it off but he lacks the delivery that Clarkson has. The Brits just do that whole put down thing (even when they are playing American like Hugh Laurie) much better than US hosts. Clarkson, Cowell, Laurie, Palin, Fry all have that ability to be brutally honest without making me hate them. I can't think of a single US personality that fits that bill.
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1-11-2009 @ 6:06PM
sTEVE said...
Why DL from mininova, all those that can't watch the BBC?
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