"marshknute" (marshknute)
06/07/2016 at 14:23 • Filed to: Top Gear
1
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"marshknute" (marshknute)
06/07/2016 at 14:23 • Filed to: Top Gear | 1
| 11 |
Spoilers and opinions below, so don’t read if you don’t like spoilers or opinions.
Quite honestly, the only part I thought was awkward was the silly intro with Evans on a stretcher. I thought Evans did a fantastic job in the LT, and I appreciated the Jenson cameo. Oh, and holy fuck, that lap time from the LT. Even by Stig standards, that lap looked flipping FAST.
I will admit, that for the Africa segment they may as well have all been driving the same cars, since they really didn’t provide a single piece of commentary to argue each car’s merits/disadvantages. Sure the challenges can help find a winner, but it would be nice to hear some commentary about why they chose each car and why it is good for that kind of journey. Did they even mention what engines the cars had, or did I just miss that part?
But as a teambuilding exercise between host/guest, I found it quite entertaining. Evans had me laughing a bunch (laugh spitting his water, shouting at Steve to look at the road, drinking all the Tequila sunrise and then topping it off with water). I loved the banter between LeBlanc and Tempah, especially the zee/zed argument. And while I have no idea who the other host or musician were, I definitely enjoyed them for just being so hapless and having ridiculous accents.
Lets put it this way: as a Top Gear road trip, I thought it was loads better than that crap roadtrip to Mexico the old trio did (LFA vs Vanquish vs Viper).
As with old TG, I only half watched the interview. I didn’t know who the ginger dude was, so I just listened to it in the background. I tuned in for Steve’s first car story which was entertaining as usual in his bumbling/chill old man sort of way. And the novelty of the rally stage definitely hasn’t worn off.
So basically, I’m confused as to how everyone hated it, because I thought it was considerably better than quite a few TG episodes from the past few years. Maybe I would have had a different takeaway if I watched it alone instead of with a gearhead friend, but as it is, I loved it.
8/10 Would recommend.
PartyPooper2012
> marshknute
06/07/2016 at 14:28 |
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how could most of us know? Most of us didn’t watch it. I stand in solidarity with Clarkson
Jayhawk Jake
> marshknute
06/07/2016 at 14:31 |
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It’s not cool to not hate it. You’re a loser.
I thought it was fine. I genuinely like Le Blanc, and the Jay Zed comment was hilarious. Evans was OK in the McLaren and reasonably entertaining in Africa. Is the show perfect? No, it’s quite far from that, but it’s not bad.
djmt1
> marshknute
06/07/2016 at 14:39 |
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I thought it was good and a big improvement over the first epsidoe. That said Evans pissed me right off with his continued banter and panto and the whole rookies thing was a bit much.
Benzed92
> marshknute
06/07/2016 at 14:41 |
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Is it just me or does it seem like they are speeding up the lap times? I noticed it a lot when the ACR went around, but it looked off even with the 675LT.
ceanderson920
> marshknute
06/07/2016 at 14:45 |
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I didn’t think it was to bad either. The part where steve was scared shitless from the cliffs was pretty funny! Eddie Jordan got kind of annoying after a bit but overall it was pretty good. The ginger dude (Damien Lewis) has been in a lot of shotime/hbo series. He was one of the leads in Band of Brothers as well as Homeland, where is plays members of the US military. I haven't watched Billions, which is what he was promoting but I have heard good things about it.
njp1589
> marshknute
06/07/2016 at 15:01 |
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I’m not sure how I feel about it yet. Definitely felt this one was miles ahead of Episode 1, but still not good yet.
I’m personally not a fan of Evan’s presentation. The only time the entire night that I liked him was in the aftershow. Much like when he’s shown up on old TG, he appears to be best when the whole thing is a little more conversational. He’s overcompensating to “host” the show, and as a result it just feels... forced? Might be the writing too. They need to get into the groove a bit with their hosts over time.
Star in a Rallycross car is bad. Cringeworthy even. Look to the aftershow interview this week for how it can be done better, even incorporating a version of “the news.”
Challenge was standard TG fare, but the having the talent there the entire time was a little puzzling, but after a while I didn’t mind it. It seems like they might be having all these additional stars booked to just try to bring in more of an audience. I guess that’s fine, but it does feel a little like they’ve just plopped the “stars” on a couch together and forced them to talk about one another.
LeBlanc is surprising me. He’s actually pretty clever, but by my eye there’s such a big difference when he’s given a script or when he’s just told to “talk about x” that it’s a little jarring. Liked the Zee/Zed conversation. Wish they hadn’t used it for a teaser.
I’d give it a 6/10, but also noting that it was enough of an improvement over last week that I’m hopeful for a decent show this season.
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marshknute
> Benzed92
06/07/2016 at 15:25 |
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I think they just keep getting better Stigs over the years. And it’s possible Jenson Button set that lap time since they already had him at the track.
Nimbus The Legend - Riding on air like a cloud
> marshknute
06/07/2016 at 15:25 |
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TG is a great show, if evans wasnt on it...
AMGtech - now with more recalls!
> marshknute
06/07/2016 at 16:02 |
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I liked it. Except for the crying part. It seemed staged, in an attempt to humanize Evans. And it would have been fun to have the F1 LT do a lap a at “70mph”. Break some rules, that shit is fun.
GE90man
> marshknute
06/07/2016 at 20:14 |
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it was meh... I watched half and I was like nope. I didn’t exactly like it when they compared the F1 Long tail to a 675lt, the 675 is just a “cooler” 650 while the F1 long tail has a whole history of heritage behind it and would be considered more like a P1 back in the day
Dusty Ventures
> ceanderson920
06/07/2016 at 22:49 |
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You forgot Damien Lewis’ best role ever, Detective Charlie Crews on the show “Life”