Honestly, I didn't particularly like the 23rd season of Top Gear, it was a massive change for the worse and just didn't feel right at all, it's best to forget it ever happened, even though it wasn't nearly as bad as the 2/10 rating on this website would suggest.
With the new 24th season however, things are looking MUCH better. Harris, LeBlanc and Reid are a far better team now than they were last year. There are genuinely funny moments in the show, the atmosphere is friendly and relaxing and they really feel like they've been doing this for a very long time. I dare to say the show feels less scripted than The Grand Tour, as remarkable as that might seem. They're not as iconic as the old trio, obviously, but let's go back to the time when Clarkson, Hammond and May were at the beginning of their Top Gear career...judging just on that, the new trio's future looks even brighter.
I like the new style of including celebrities into the show, with all three presenters talking to the guest at the same time, and including the guest into what used to be "the news" segment of the show. It just feels more natural than a one-on-one style that Clarkson used to do. They finally have a properly challenging car for the quests to drive as well. Cinematography in the show is as good as ever, BBC knows what they're doing, they obviously have huge budgets and are taking the show seriously. Is it as good as "old" Top Gear? Well...yes, and no. Overall, I still prefer the old trio, simply because I've spent so much time watching that show and became so familiar with the old chaps that I feel like watching old friends on the screen having fun. However, these first two episodes in the 24th season are really good, better than the ratings (7,5 at the moment) suggest, and I assume that is due to people still giving the show bad ratings simply because they're unwilling to accept the change.
If they continue in the same direction, we have a lot of happy hours ahead of us. The best part is, the old trio is not going anywhere, so we can now watch two shows at the same time. Double the content. Who can hate on that? In fact, The Grand Tour is a format that suits the old trio far better, after all, episodes with epic roads trips or challenges were what made the old Top Gear great in the first place. On the other hand, the new trio are a great team, they seem to fit together well and this format of the show with individual car reviews (which Harris does best, sorry Clarkson) and smaller challenges or duels really suits them.
8/10
With the new 24th season however, things are looking MUCH better. Harris, LeBlanc and Reid are a far better team now than they were last year. There are genuinely funny moments in the show, the atmosphere is friendly and relaxing and they really feel like they've been doing this for a very long time. I dare to say the show feels less scripted than The Grand Tour, as remarkable as that might seem. They're not as iconic as the old trio, obviously, but let's go back to the time when Clarkson, Hammond and May were at the beginning of their Top Gear career...judging just on that, the new trio's future looks even brighter.
I like the new style of including celebrities into the show, with all three presenters talking to the guest at the same time, and including the guest into what used to be "the news" segment of the show. It just feels more natural than a one-on-one style that Clarkson used to do. They finally have a properly challenging car for the quests to drive as well. Cinematography in the show is as good as ever, BBC knows what they're doing, they obviously have huge budgets and are taking the show seriously. Is it as good as "old" Top Gear? Well...yes, and no. Overall, I still prefer the old trio, simply because I've spent so much time watching that show and became so familiar with the old chaps that I feel like watching old friends on the screen having fun. However, these first two episodes in the 24th season are really good, better than the ratings (7,5 at the moment) suggest, and I assume that is due to people still giving the show bad ratings simply because they're unwilling to accept the change.
If they continue in the same direction, we have a lot of happy hours ahead of us. The best part is, the old trio is not going anywhere, so we can now watch two shows at the same time. Double the content. Who can hate on that? In fact, The Grand Tour is a format that suits the old trio far better, after all, episodes with epic roads trips or challenges were what made the old Top Gear great in the first place. On the other hand, the new trio are a great team, they seem to fit together well and this format of the show with individual car reviews (which Harris does best, sorry Clarkson) and smaller challenges or duels really suits them.
8/10
