Top Gear fans rant, but not to SBS.
As Top Gear Australia begins to shed viewers, irate fans aren't able to focus their anger at SBS. Here's why.
- Published by David Knox
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- Filed under News
After the widely-reported tumble for the second-episode of Top Gear Australia yesterday, SBS might be somewhat relieved to know that aggrieved fans of the show don’t have a central place to bitch about the show.
That’s because there is no blog or forum on the SBS website for the new show.
Other programmes enable viewer interaction and feedback including RocKwiz, Bogan Pride, The Mighty Boosh, Shameless, Skins, Inside Australia and Great Australian Albums.
SBS’ page for Top Gear Australia allows for no such feedback. Conspiracy? It sounds like it.
But SBS told TV Tonight its production deal does not include the rights to forums, blogs, on its sites.
ACP magazines, part of PBL Media, which publishes the TGA magazine won the right to host the official Top Gear Australia website, limiting SBS to only promoting upcoming episodes online.
Given some of the reactions to the show on radio, in print and online elsewhere, SBS might be somewhat relieved its website can’t be bombarded with criticism.
And what do ACP magazines have for Top Gear Australia online? Not very much. On the ACP magazines page on ninemsn the magazine wasn’t even listed.
Meanwhile some sites have been inundated with very vocal feedback including another ninemsn page, news.com.au, wheels mag, finalgear.com and especially at bhatt.id.au
Meanwhile the next guest on the show next Monday is another SBS identity, Julia Zemiro.
22 Responses
Get rid of it. SBS shouldn’t waste taxpayers money on it. The hosts are try hard copycats.
All the ideas for their shows have been ripped off theUK ones. The helicopter one was a copy of the Rangie and the tank, the car turned into a boat one. The thing they tried differently was that stupied what were they thinking.
Plus the boys have no idea about anything, like the VW golf tdi and fsi. You cant compare the 2 types with just a drive to the Gong. City small trips they should have done as well as the FSI is better value as it has cheaper running fuel costs. if u need a city run about. “The TDI is better as its got a higher resale value” says Charlie. No shit mate, it costs 3.5k more than the fsi.
They are a bunch of amuters and good luck to the BBC in milking it as a franchise if people are stupied enough to pay for the rights.
i dont understnad why people are calling for top gear australia to be cancelled, doesnt anyone remember the original format uk top gear?? it took them (uk) about 7 seasons to perfect it, yet the australian version only gets 2 episodes before it gets critisism??
The new presenters try way to hard to be funny and it seems as if every joke they attempt to make has been rehearsed a thousand times. If SBS want higher ratings then they should probably show both of them, or maybe just axe the Australian one.
The show feels as if it is scripted and the conversations between the host dont feel genuine. Charlie Cox who is he?? He thinks he is somebody I find him boring. Think other presenters are o.k. The track seems boring and slow compared to the UK one. If its Top Gear Australia i think it needs to reflect some of our aussie culture and sayings not copy the UK version. As for the Ford/Holden race felt ripped off, what do you mean cant tell us the result are we frightened of upsetting the advertisers??? Thank god they dont run Bathhurst!! I can imagine what the Clarkson and Co will say about our version of the show and i am already cringing!!! Think i will give ours a miss for a while.
I agree…Charlie Cox should go.
He is too dry and boring. We need someone who is natural, funny and enthusiastic. I have also found the “celebrity” interviews boring.
Also, the camera work lacks the same artistic quality as the UK version. They have stolen the dark filter for the sky but they haven’t got a clue about composition or an eye for detail. I realise they don’t have the same budget and international locations, but at the end of the day, the Aussie landscape is a phenominal landscape to work with. They should be doing better.
Just get rid of Cox and use your imagination and be creative. The rest will fall into place.
I tend to side more with Craig on this one. I’m honestly enjoying it. Sure some of the joke are a bit lame and corny, but aren’t also the jokes in the UK version like that at times too? There are also signs of their own personalities shining such as Warren and the comics which I think are awesome! I have no idea where people are getting the UK carbon copy concept from. I hope they have a chance to settle in and get a second season.
I do however agree with the comment about the race track…definitely needs improvement as I also have no idea what “Clarkson Corner” is!
what idiot decided that blogs/guestbooks/forums were a copyright deal?
Censoring the internet: Australia says No
or in honour of LBUSA…
sensoring the internet??? Computer says no!!!!
I also agree with Richard H. I have issues with the shouting and the inability to make a decent call about the cars they are testing. If the car isn’t any good tell us. I honestly don’t care how similar it is or isn’t to the UK one. I can cope with the fact that the set and the hosts look the same as the UK one is you squint but they need to convince me they actually know what they are talking about.
My gripe about the show is that SBS said they had an open audition process for the presenters- that they weren’t looking for the next Jeremy, Richard and James. It is a shame that the three presenters are so easy to pigeon-hole as copies of Jeremy, Richard and James.
Maybe it is time to put the show on hiatus, do some research into what Australians want in their version of this otherwise great show and bring back the UK version where the presenters know about cars and how to entertain!
I wonder if poor ratings for the SBS version will damage the Top Gear brand in Australia. Also had Channel Nine (also owned by PBL Media) won the rights to remake the show, it would have been able to cross promote with the Australian version of Top Gear magazine.
I think Richard H is right about that young guy and the way he talk and act like a try hard.
The show is alright at least they show cars that are fordable.
Edith, SBS advises they are to return the comments section to Bogan Pride soon, once they clean up some offensive comments. Think the moderators got a bit of a wake up call…..sometimes I know how that feels.
I think the problem is there is nothing natural about, it’s to rehearsed , no funnies and the little guy needs a good shower, shave and clean cloths he looks like hes been dragged by the scruff. but with it being only the second ep they may calm down and relax its early days.
I thought the presenters improved in the second episode, and besides some filming issues with the track, i can’t really fault them on much.
You can no longer comment on bogan Pride either? They’re removed the comment section on the blogs? WTF? Can somebody tell SBS to fix this!!!
I agree with Richard H on this one.
Also think the presenters (I’m thinking three NEW presenters at that) need to develop their own style instead of trying to mimic the style of the UK guys.
thanks for the link David
I was really surprised at how most people who commented on my site vehemently hated the show, out of 310 Comments (and more to come i’m sure) perhaps only 5-10% were willing to watch a few more episodes and see if the Top Gear Aus presenters got more comfortable in their roles and the production process improved
One thing I do agree with my readers about is Charlie Cox, I suspect there’s a chance that he could be replaced for Season 2 like Jason Dawe was dumped after season 1 of UK Top Gear
the presenters are woeful, the jokes don’t work and they seem to be completely uniterested in what they are doing. One of the guys(young one) looks like a deer caught in the headlights.
I hated the way they presented the What were they thinking segment. The UK guys show passion, knowledge and and deliver great jokes and interesting facts about the cars and so forth they make you want to watch the show, the aussie make me want to turn off.
I think they chose bad presenters and are trying way to hard to be funny and hip and it’s falling flat.
Finalgear is technically the only unofficial place to rant about Top Gear Australia.
James May and few of the production staff almost read it every day or when they air shows
Sounds like a dumb reason. There should be no reason SBS couldn’t have a forum for discussing the show.
I’m curious as to why people don’t like the show though, its not quite the same as the original Top Gear, but i though it was pretty good, and still watch every week.
To be fair – i never exected this show to get much appreciation. It was either gonna be “too much like uk top gear”, or “not enough like top gear UK – too much of an Oz twist”.
I’ll leave it until the end of the season before passing judgement, after the hosts have all warmed (hopefully) into their roles.
My main gripe – the star in the moderately priced car – I get no feel for the track, and the filming is usually sub-standard. An intro to the track on ep1 would have been handy. e.g – “Clarkson corner” means nothing to me – like, is it a sharp corner/ a chicane? It just seems like a lap of bollard-avoidance, and a few corners…….
I don’t get the problem people have with the show, is it the hosts? Are they just used to the UK crew they can’t get past having someone different running things. I’m enjoying it and hope they get the go ahead for another batch of eps in 09!