VenomousCoffee
Member
I'm watching the first episode now and it's pretty awful. I didn't like the first part because it's more lifestyle porn than wit. But they just introduced this new homophobe Stig and nope.
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The Grand Tour |OT| ...of the world
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Diablohead
Member
part 1 >>> part 2, which to me did not feel as good but still entertaining.
LoveCake
Member
Most of the way through the Christmas/New Year special episode 2 and it's ok, they just doesn't seem to be any direction or point to this trip really, it just doesn't seem as fluid as before, it's like they thought "we need to do a Christmas/New Year special, what can we come-up with in such a short space of time, and they came up with this :/
DOBERMAN INC
Member
This two part episode has been my favourite so far, really back to the style of the old travel specials they used to do.
Apart from a couple of stumbling points in the series, this has been pretty good so far.
Apart from a couple of stumbling points in the series, this has been pretty good so far.
Ravensmash
Member
I assume he means The American, their new stig. I don't see how he or his character is homophobe. Honestly some people should just stop watching them at this point.
Probably referencing Hammond, who's trying to out offend Clarkson recently.
The point is the same as all others - to drive through beautiful, harsh landscapes in a vehicle of some description. The goal of the others was always superfluous anyway, it's no real loss.
The Hammond ice cream gag was a not so subtle dig at a famous (if you are Finnish.) TV advert shown in Finland which is why the studio audience laughed so much.
Most of the people offended by these guys never tend to look at what they say in the entire context of their conversation.
Skellig Gra
Member
Hard to do that when no context is provided.
Benjamin_MFF
Member
Any word on a physical release?
You are on the internet. You know how to use Google. Find that information yourself. Instead people of the social media outrage culture get worked up over a dumb harmless joke.
Besides people have already made up their minds anyway even if they were presented new information.
They are also doing absolutely the right thing by not even responding to this bullshit. Let it blow over, the Internet will soon find something new to be outraged by.
You know now though so it's all good. You have to bear in mind it's now a worldwide show with a truly worldwide audience. You ain't probably going to get everything without looking into it.
Maiden Voyage
Gold™ Member
Does anyone know how many episodes are left? I don't want this series to end. My wife and I have been enjoying them so much!
It's 12 episodes a series so 4 episodes left.
Maiden Voyage
Gold™ Member
I hope they're filming another series now so I have something more to watch in a few months.
Noisepurge
Member
if it's the usual Top Gear production the next season will start airing next September or so
I did as you suggested anyone offended at Richard Hammond's comments do and googled a Finnish ice cream advert and it seems like it's about a man who delivers an ice cream to a woman then goes off with her boyfriend. Clearly that justifies the joke and anyone who's frustrated that it implies being seen as gay is a bad thing regardless of the reference being made is in the wrong.
Being gay is bad for Hammond because he plays a slightly homophobic character with sometimes homosexual tendencies.
His co-presenters also ripped the piss out of him because he sounded so stupid, even the audience laughed at how dumb it made him look.
If this really bothered you so much how come you or anyone else didn't make a fuss when they were talking about traffic lights having sexuality symbols and Hammond says something about "I just wanting to get to the other side... but not that way" and trails off at the double entendre as the audience laughs?
People only tried to make this into something because some articles and tweets came out about it.
Ravensmash
Member
Well, the actual joke was at Hammond's expense - namely it being an utterly ludicrous comment.
Diablohead
Member
For their first series with amazon it's been great imo, things can be improved and I expect them to be next season.
HellforLeather
Member
After watching Namibia, I cant help but feel like this whole season is a disappointment with the The Ford v. Ferrari LeMans stuff being far and away the best stuff they did. The show used to be about cars and occasionally dove into stunts and skits, now its the reverse. Also the stunts used to be centered around the cars, like killing the Toyota pickup or the Reliant Robin. Now the cars are an incidental part of it, like the Battleship skit.
Also the goofy stuff on Top Gear felt like it had a bit more of improvised bits to it (whether they were actually improvised or not) while GT feels like every little aspect has been scripted.
Pretty disappointed overall.
Also the goofy stuff on Top Gear felt like it had a bit more of improvised bits to it (whether they were actually improvised or not) while GT feels like every little aspect has been scripted.
Pretty disappointed overall.
They filmed tent stuff in Stuttgart, Nashville, two days in Loch Ness and finally Dubai. So there should still be five episodes. The two part special probably only counts as one of the twelve despite being split as two.
I guess you are right. Thanks for the correction.
Nova Prime
Member
I hope 'Giovanni' becomes a running gag. I dunno I just find the idea of them having someone to boss about hilarious.
Still about cars, but stuff like beach buggies are still car culture just not traditional reviews and stuff. Which, I don't know if I added to my previous post for things to change for Season 2 or not, but as the series goes on, it seems the format needs less big challenges and more smaller reviews and tests.
In a way, with how things are going, I expect The Grand Tour to become the new Top Gear and Top Gear to become the new Fifth Gear (unless they hit us with a curveball and suddenly Chris Harris and Rory grow personalities).
This is encouraging!
SirMossyBloke
Member
So, like every episode then.
Every time I read that he show is less about cars and they would have more focus on the cars and reviews I'm like what he actual fuck is going on. Who he hell watches Top Gear to get any substantial info about cars they "review".
Like it's always the same. Clarkson is telling you stuff that you can find in the data sheet, is drifting it around corners on their track and tells you that it's either the best car in the world or a piece of shit. They hardly do any scientific stuff and give actual informed advice about cars.
Feels like some people are watching them for the wrong reasons.
Like it's always the same. Clarkson is telling you stuff that you can find in the data sheet, is drifting it around corners on their track and tells you that it's either the best car in the world or a piece of shit. They hardly do any scientific stuff and give actual informed advice about cars.
Feels like some people are watching them for the wrong reasons.
adamantypants
Member
I don't live in Finland and I would have never ever thought of Googling Finnish ice cream commercial
But this is also true. Most people have probably already forgotten about it. I heard about the controversy before watching the show and I immediately took it as a poor joke by Hammond trying to outdo Clarkson, and failing badly.
The special was great, hopefully the rest of the episodes keep up the momentum.
They really need to drop the celebrity brain crash segment if all they are going to do with it is kill off their guests. That shit might have been funny the first two times, but it is really killing the flow of each episode for me. I am also not to impressed with The American so far either.
They really need to drop the celebrity brain crash segment if all they are going to do with it is kill off their guests. That shit might have been funny the first two times, but it is really killing the flow of each episode for me. I am also not to impressed with The American so far either.
Robot Carnival
Member
missed the 5th eps and on because of bunch of year end work but just caught up now. eps 5 was kinda meh. there were some good parts but over all I'm not feeling it. eps 6 was pretty good especially with the GT documentary. then the 2 part special is an absolute thing of beauty. it's true the best thing about TG. heck, people can easily tell me it's a TG special of old and I would believe it.
Roude Leiw
Member
last episode was so so.
Surprisingly conversation street was good this time.
Surprisingly conversation street was good this time.
TylerDurden4321
Member
I've watched every Top Gear episode since 2005 or so, but I can't take the Grand Tour anymore. Everything feels so fake and scripted, losing all the natural chemistry the three had. It started to go that direction for maybe 6-7 years, but The Grand Tour is that progression squared. Top Gear always was scripted, but they used to hide it better. Telling us that they supposedly slept and kept warm under their buggies is straight up offending the viewers intelligence. Same goes for giving Hammond a make-up sand stormy look while drinking a beer at the hotel bar. It's too much for me.
If it were on normal television, I'd record the show and browse through it every week, watching what might be ok, but as Amazon probably tracks how many people are watching the show, I feel obligated to "vote" by not even browsing through episodes from now on.
If it were on normal television, I'd record the show and browse through it every week, watching what might be ok, but as Amazon probably tracks how many people are watching the show, I feel obligated to "vote" by not even browsing through episodes from now on.
Diablohead
Member
The new NSX looks nothing like an NSX, reminds me of a mclaren.
SirMossyBloke
Member
Weird. Jeremy Clarkson said he was going to do the subtitle gag again with the Chelsea footballers, but no subtitles came up. Watched it on Microsoft Edge. Did anyone get them?
Fallout-NL
Member
Agreed, I still enjoyed the episodes because they didn't manage to ruin the sense of adventure entirely. But man, they come close. The shit they come up with is just ridiculous. So ridiculous that it jeopardizes a lot of the authenticity their 'journey' easily could have had... had it not been so fucking ridiculous.
They did sleep under their buggies apparently, they have designated sleep stops which they missed because they got lost.
http://www.mirror.co.uk/tv/tv-news/richard-hammonds-lucky-escape-grand-9476057
TylerDurden4321
Member
I've slept at a fire outside once without a blanket. I woke up in the middle of the night, the fire was out and I couldn't feel my body anymore from the cold. I've never been so cold in my life.
The three travel with a big camera team in land rovers (I'm sure they have isolation blankets, gas cookers and whatnot for emergencies), I'd never believe they'd sleep in their clothes without blankets or sleeping bags in the sand, sorry. That Hammond would tell BS like that to a newspaper makes it all even more sad.
If there was a way to find out what really happened, I'd bet 20 bucks right now that they slept every night in a hotel. And that's fine, just don't lie so blatantly to your viewers that it's offending. Bending the truth a little for dramatic effect and hide it somewhat... I was always fine with that on Top Gear.
Also, that was just one little example. Even if everything from the special was true and unscripted, it wouldn't change my mind about how fake and scripted The Grand Tour feels to me. I really don't wanna talk about it anymore, but feels good that I'm seemingly not alone on the "feels too faked" impression.
RadioactiveLobster
Member
The fake subtitles were baked into the episode (in orange text) so you can't have missed those.
SirMossyBloke
Member
100% no subtitles. I'd especially see them if they were in orange.
You've lost me, sorry. So even if it's true, it doesn't matter because you've decided it isn't?
Diablohead
Member
For series two I would love to see more trackday stuff like episode 1 and more test track reviews, I enjoy the grand tour for what it is currently but I would love to see more down to earth stuff.
TylerDurden4321
Member
No no, then it would still be "ok, in this one thing I was wrong" but a) I wish they had delivered this danger better and more convincingly and b) there have been still too many other "too scripted / fake" things about the series that one example doesn't turn the ship around for me.
If you don't feel that it's too fake and scripted than that's great for you, hope you keep enjoying it. I didn't come here to shit on your enjoyment of the show. Just wanted to say how I feel about it as a long time Top Gear fan (and Amazon Prime member since the first day it was available in my country).
Also to see how other GAFfers feel about it.
RadioactiveLobster
Member
That is odd because I had both the orange "fake subtitles" and the normal subtitles showing up on top of each other.
EDIT: An example. Orange is baked into the show and shows regardless of subtitle settings. Other is normal OSD subtitles.
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