‘It has made my weekend’
Rating: 5 out of 5
After all the turmoil of the recent election, seeing Jezza, Captain Slow and The Hamster has definitely made my weekend. Saw the episode at 12:01 MST and I have to say their production format is way better than Top Gear. Similar but not the same, which needless to say I’m glad. BBC’s Top Gear format is getting really old. These three characters really know what we were missing, and know how to put up a great show, and what a show it was! Their chemistry together is unparalleled and incomparable.
Isaac Chang, USA
‘Was it worth the wait? You bet it was’
Rating: 5 out of 5
Like many other massive Top Gear fans, I was there last night with the remote control in my hand waiting to begin The Grand Tour. Was it worth the wait? You bet it was and the boys are back on top form. Visually stunning, with the whole programme filmed in 4K, the motoring sequences were spectacular.
The studio sequences are funny and Clarkson is back to his non-PC best with freedom to express his own tongue in cheek views, and Hammond and May are doing their best to reign him in but with not much success. I can’t wait to see the rest of the series. Thankfully, the whole lot is not available to watch in a box set binge. I could see myself putting my other commitments for the day to one side!
Colin East, London
‘Simulating Renner’s death was as amusing as pubic lice’
Rating: 2 out of 5
It was just more of the same. Despite Amazon claiming it as an original it was a carbon copy of Top Gear with only the bare minimum of superficial changes, enough I imagine to keep the BBC’s lawyers at bay but nothing worth £200 million.
There was the usual jingoism with cries of how the RAF is the best and some back and forwards with the American audience who disagreed. There was a re-run of killing off Ross Kemp but this time with Hollywood stars for no particular reason I could see. Doing to death Kemp wasn’t funny the first time round and simulating Renner’s death by having a dummy fall from the sky was about as amusing as pubic lice.
The cars were quite interesting though and we did get to see how fast a professional racing driver could drive three near identical cars around some tarmac, which was nice. Watching the fake surprise as an American gun nut supposedly shot down a drone was a sign of just how clichéd the trio were willing to be to garner the most pathetic of laughs.
Richard Hammond was annoying, James May is nothing but a fool compared to the other two and Clarkson was his normal self, alas.
Tintenfische, Birmingham
Absolutely great, it really does prove that lots of what made the show fantastic was the dynamic of Clarkson, Hammond and May. The bombshell at the end of the episode gives some more insight of the more recent news headlines about Clarkson...
I hope that the executives at the BBC dont feel too bad after they are finished watching.
Just watched it and it *started* tired on Amazon. Yes, bit spectacle and squillions of dollars skunked on the opener, but, well, it's all a bit samey. The three blokes aren't ageing well, they are stuck in their tedious roles and no amount of shouting and gurning can disguise the fact that the new show is like a parody of Top Gear. It has the same superb production values (the camera-work is epic), but far less wit.
My verdict? Meh.
‘It’s a little less energetic compared to Top Gear’
Rating: 4 out of 5
Exciting to see the three musketeers back. The first episode, like any pilot episode, was more like an introduction to each of the different segments and features. It’s a little less energetic compared to Top Gear (maybe because of the American crowd) but it’s just the first episode. I’m hopeful that it will get better and more exciting as and when the episodes progress.
Sreedhu, Michigan
‘They are the best they have ever been’
Rating: 5 out of 5
Wow, simply wow. You know you’re about to watch something special when the first four minutes are gripping you like nothing before. Jeremy, James and Hamster are back on top form, the best they have ever been. A refreshing and interesting way to look at cars and keep us interested. They did it.
Tim Saxby, USA
‘It is gleefully environmentally unsound and a huge waste of money’
Rating: 0 out of 5
The whole thing comes across as a laddy/frat boy caper - it is gleefully environmentally unsound and a huge waste of money. Clarkson and Richard Hammond are arrogant and full of themselves. Clarkson is particularly vile and the other guy (can’t even remember his name) sort of bumbles along and does what he’s told. Why he’s there I do not know - someone to make tea for the other two while they’re deciding which ethnic groups to attack that week?
The show represents everything imbecilic and selfish about petrolhead culture and no doubt appeals to the kind of people who triple overtake you on a rainy morning in the fog.
Mr Public Transport, Scotland
After a really shitty 19 hour day, watching that when I finally got home brought a smile to face. You cannot replicate the chemistry they have, nor their infectious, childlike enthusiasm for cars. That opening scene in the desert was joyous, and captured everything I love about Clarkson, Hammond and May (and Willman). Amazon have a real winner on their hands. Bravo chaps.
‘It’s not quite working but I’m sure it’ll be a big success’
Rating: 2 out of 5
This is essentially Top Gear on dodgy steroids. A lot more money has been thrown at the program but it’s still the same old stuff which is both it’s greatest strength and its weakness. Clarkson is even more smugly irritating than before. He comes across as a school yard bully with the other two as his hangers on. The cars are secondary to the bickering relationship between the three of them, which is why it works and the BBC reboot didn’t.
Despite all the extra money spent on it, it feels less than the BBC incarnation. Maybe because of the money they don’t have to try so hard. Maybe they need time to settle down with the new production crew. Either way, it’s not quite working but I’m sure it’ll be a big success.
Christopher, Harrow
You can tell us what you think of the show in the comments below.
Apart from the 'fake fight with the audience' edit and the multiple dead celebrities section, I thought it was great. The opening sequence where JC walks away under an umbrella & ends up in the desert was brilliant. Several laugh out loud moments throughout. High production values, great cars..... top stuff. Grand, if you will. (Yes, fellow guardianistas, I know I'm just a simple minded, planet destroying, utter pleb. But I enjoyed it).