American television has been trying to copy and adapt popular British television series for years. Much of the time the American version pales in comparison, but there have been notable exceptions. Without Britain’s Till Death Us Do Part, we wouldn’t have the legendary 1970’s series All in the Family. More recently, popular shows The Office and American Idol were brought stateside after the ideas proved to be hits across the pond.
The BBC’s Top Gear first began in 1977, and has been a hit around the world. Not surprisingly, American networks have tried to fashion their own version. In 2005, The Discovery Channel launched a version with the British hosts Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May introducing clips and segments from the first five series of the UK version. Americans weren’t impressed with the rehash. In 2008, NBC ordered and shot a pilot, which received generally favorable reviews, but nixed the idea when their Knight Rider reboot went belly up.
This third attempt just might be the charm. Produced by BBC Worldwide, the History Channel’s version of Top Gear is for all intents and purposes, a carbon copy of its British counterpart. The segments are nearly the same as those seen in the UK series. We get “Power Laps” where the mysterious and always helmeted driver “The Stig” takes one of the cars being reviewed for a lap around the Top Gear test track. “Big Star, Small Car,” retitled “Star in a Reasonably Priced Car” features that weeks guest celebrity driving a Suzuki SX4 Sportback around the track. “The Challenges” segments are just as bizarre hear as they are on the UK show.
The hosts for the show are comedian Adam Ferrara (Rescue Me), professional racing and stunt driver Tanner Foust, and automotive analyst Rutledge Wood. It would be unfair to expect the threesome to have the chemistry of their UK counterparts—Clarkson, Hammond and May—at this point, as they simply haven’t had nearly the same amount of time to develop a rapport. Even so, they are laid back, knowledgeable and fun. Most importantly, It seems like they’re not afraid to be themselves.
For those not familiar with Top Gear, specifically Top Gear USA, Each episode has the hosts taking on a challenge. In one episode, the team is in Alaska, all with different trucks, and they have to take them through a series of very difficult situations. In another, three different old GM cars put through series of challenges to decide which one should be brought back into production. In one of my favorite episodes of the season, there’s an all-terrain race against a HALO parachutist. Some crazy stuff to be sure!
Celebrities appearing in the “Star in a Reasonably Priced Car” segment this season are: astronaut Buzz Aldrin, Dominic Monaghan, Ty Burrell, Kid Rock, Tony Hawk, Michelle Rodriquez, Tim Allen, and Bret Michaels.
If there’s one obvious weak point to Top Gear USA, it would be some poorly written comedy bits that occasionally lead to some awkward looks. Aside from that, this is a solid show that will likely only improve in its second season.
This standard DVD is presented in a solid anamorphic 1.78, with no real blemishes to speak of. The audio is a simple Dolby 2.0 that does the job, but isn’t anything special. Given the cool cars, and racing aspect of Top Gear USA, this is one of those instances where a Blu-ray might be nice at some point.
We get the following special features:
- Webisodes: Nine in total, and one to two minutes each, these nine segments are basically jokes the hosts played on each other while on location. “Bearded Baby,” “Project Car 2,” “REI Trip,” “Smoke Machine,” “Sardine,” “Incident,” “First Car,” “Evo Tanner,” “Tanner Intros Germany,” and “Guys See Moose.”
- Poolside Chats: Eleven in total, and lasting one to two minutes, the hosts briefly discuss various subjects. “Airport Logic,” “Cliff Driving,” “Tanner The Great,” “Intense Paranoia,” “Fan Clubs,” “Cars For Tomorrow,” “Car Hoarders,” “Friends Like These,” “Favorite Moments,” “Best Laid Plans,” and “Racing Minivans.”
- Audio Commentary: We get a commentary track on the Alaskan set of “America’s Toughest Trucks.” It is a very funny track as the trio debate what you say on a commentary track and who the type of people are that listen to commentary tracks on shows like this.
