Oh Dear God!!!

[leowyatt]

Hmmm I can't bear to think how the show will turn out.

I'd put money on it being pap but hey that's just me being cynical.

[Blackstar]

Dear sweet baby Jesus.

[Mark]

Jeremy Clarkson, executive producer and host of the UK “Top Gear” said: “This is fantastic news - but how on earth you lot are going to do it on the wrong side of the road I’ve no idea.”

[iCraig]

****sake. It won't work.

OK, I did happen to say the same thing about The Office US, but that didn't quite work in all honesty. It didn't translate very well in the first few episodes and started to fail. The writers caught it in time though and changed the show's dimension and concept to suit the American audience more. The Office was a very dry British comedy and you can't just transplant it onto American TV and run with it. It needs to have its own identity and its own selling point to its actual audience, so copying Top Gear like this is going to end in disaster. They're wasting their time trying to replicate the hosts and the format so carefully. All that works because it's part of British TV now, it's found its place. Take the raw format of Top Gear: A factual car show with a twist of humour, but make the bells and whistles 100% American, and not transplants from the British show.

[Feek]

No.

Just.

No.

[petemc]

I heard Jay Leno turned it down. He didn't think it would work because the moment the Clarkson character slated a car by a sponsor they'd lose that sponsor. Then they'd have to tone the show done so they don't lose their sponsors. Its quite possibly going to be Americans driving in straight lines saying how great their 200 litre Mustang is.

[leowyatt]

That is the whole point of the show though, the presenters being honest and taking the piss out of each other.

[semi-pro waster]

Originally Posted by leowyatt

That is the whole point of the show though, the presenters being honest and taking the piss out of each other.

I dunno, is there a suitable hatred of caravans in the USA? If not I can't see it working.

In all fairness there aren't too many shows that work all that well as pure literal translations, the humour of various different countries is somewhat idiosyncratic and specific to the country it originates from. It might get a big enough audience of people who "get it" on that basis but it is a bit unlikely to be anything more than 'cult' viewing for the majority.

Good luck to them but Top Gear isn't really so much a car show now as a programme with 3 middle-aged men taking the piss out of each other and hooning around in cars, they all admit as much anyway. If I can reach that age in life and I can afford to do something similar then I reckon I'll have done something right along the way.

[petemc]

Yup. Works perfectly here because its what British people do and they don't have sponsors to worry about.

[Belmit]

I almost want it to get made just to see how bad it is. I'd love Jezza and co to do a spoof US version where they just do a whole show with fake American accents and play up the stereotypes.