Top Gear Oil vs. Wind

Series 20 Episode 1

It’s the start to a new season of Top Gear.  The trio is back for their 20^th series.  They begin with clip form the upcoming series.  These clips have already been filmed, and the in studio segments have yet to be filmed.  They begin with a segment dedicated to new “hot hatchbacks”. Jeremy says the “hot hatch backs” from the 1980’s are more exciting than those you can buy today.  But with the new cars being introduced they decide to see if any of these new cars live up to the past generations.  Richard is driving four different “hot Hatch backs”.  They are the Renault sport Clio 200, the Peugeot 208 GTi, and the Ford Fiesta ST.  Richard discusses each car in depth and put all of them through their paces on the track.  He also put the three cars against each other in a drag race.  At the end of the segment Richard says all of them are good but the Ford is exquisite.  After he is done James explains the race between him and Jeremy.  The race is between a boat and a car up the coast of New Zealand.  James will be on an Americas cup racing boat called the AC45. 

It’s the fastest production sailing boat ever made reaching speeds of over 30 knots.  The crew consists of all winners of the Americas Cup, the most prestigious trophy in yate racing, and the captain is Sir Ben Ainslie, he is a four time Olympic gold medalist.  Jeremy will be in a Toyota Corolla rent a car. 

The race is not a race between a car and a sailboat, it’s a race between oil and wind power.  As the race begins Jeremy goes all out in the rent a car, while James is off to a rocky start.  The crew has to put up a different sail.  Jeremy is treating the car like he has no care for it at all he side swipes a guard rail, jumps the car, and has complete disregard for its well being. 

James however is not having an easy time on the boat.  The waves are beating him up and the crew is ordering him around. 

They take a break from the race to go back to the studio.  They are introducing a new reasonably priced car.  The new car is a 2013 Vauxhall Astra Tech Line; it includes a lifetime warranty.  For the launch they invite various celebrities to come and do laps at their test track.  The celebrities include Charles Dance, Warwick Davis, Rachel Riley, Joss Stone, David Haye, Jimmy Carr, Mike Rutherford, and Brian Johnson.  As each celebrity set times in the car, Jeremy and Richard entertain other celebrities.  After all the lap times have been set, the race between James and Jeremy continue.  James is winning but miserable and Jeremy is attempting to catch up.  As James continues in agony, Jeremy is on smooth paved roads charging along.  When Jeremy realizes he is far behind he decides to take the back roads.  This soon turns into a big mistake when the road runs out and he has to off road and turn to a gravel road.  While on the gravel road he has an accident, and run into a wall while trying to avoid a tractor.  At the next town Jeremy reports to the rent a car center to trade in his damaged car for a new one.  The new car is the same model but a different color.  When the road Jeremy is driving on becomes curvy he resorts to driving on the beach, which in New Zealand is considered a highway.  As Jeremy gets closer to the finish line he has to drive on gravel roads.  When the road runs out he resorts again to off-roading.  When James is sight of the finish line he is told the boat cannot get to shore, he is told he will have to jump off the boat and swim to ashore.  James reaches the finish line first, his face is beat red, he is soaking wet, and is soar from the beating of the waves.  Jeremy arrives but cannot make it in the car to the finish line and must walk 100 yards to the finish line.  Jeremy says he was going to tell every one that they need to shut down the oil and gas and switch to wind, but then he sees James. And says look at what the wind will do to you; it beats you up and turn you red. 

In the alternative ending to the show Jeremy would have won the race.  He would have made it to the finish line on the beach as James was swimming ashore.  James would have seen Jeremy driving down the beach and said he had gone through all that for nothing.  Jeremy would have then proclaimed that wind power is stupid and all the windmills need to be removed from Britain. He would then put on his "smug" face.  

Top Gear media research

Top Gear has become synonymous around the world.  The three presenters have become icons in the automotive industry and TV world.  They travel the world making rude comments about cutlers, cars, and popular icons.

One article about Top Gear I would like to bring to attention in my research of the show is an article about the branding of the show itself.  Catherine Johnson wrote about this.  She wrote, “The development of content brands threatens to sever the relationship between the programme and the broadcaster. What is branded is the programme itself and not the corporation that broadcast it; Top Gear rather than the BBC.” (Johnson, 2013).  She talks about how Top Gear has made its own brand out side of just being a BBC created brand.  TG is its own brand being known around the world. 

The next article I would like to bring to attention is one written by Kieran Tranter and Damien Martin.  They discuss masculinity of the show and how it has become law of man.  The show appropriates masculinity as being a law men must follow.  They say, “there are cars. Usually, new, expensive, fast cars being driven at speed on racetracks, or objects of desire surrounded by the mostly male audience on the cavernous set (an aircraft hangar at Dunsfold Aerodrome in Surrey).”  They are examining the humor and cultural references that make the show one of the laws of masculinity. 

The third article I would like to examine in relation to the show is one written by Stephen Harrington.  This article examines how the shows presenters can assist with political journalism.  Harrington writes, “The analysis of the show is here framed in the form of three ‘lessons’ for journalists, suggesting that some of the entertaining (and highly engaging) ways in which Top Gear presents information to its viewers could be usefully applied in the coverage of politics” (Harrington, 2010).  The show presenters can show people that something many consider to be irrelevant and even boring can be made into something everyone can watch and enjoy. 

These are just some of the articles I intend to examine and contribute to my own research and opinions about the show and its presenters. 

Harrington S. Top Gear, top journalism: Three lessons for political journalists from the

world's most popular TV show. Continuum: Journal Of Media & Cultural Studies [serial online]. December 2010;24(6):933-942. Available from: Communication & Mass Media Complete, Ipswich, MA. Accessed November 10, 2015.

Johnson, C. (2013). From brand congruence to the 'virtuous circle': Branding and the

commercialization of public service broadcasting. Media, Culture & Society, 314-331.

Tranter, K., & Martin, D. (2013). 'The Cutting Edge of Cocking About': Top Gear,

Automobility and Law. Law Humanities Law and Humanities, 1-18.

Top Gear India Special

Series 17 Episode 7

The episode I watched this week was from series 17.  It is episode 7.  The episode starts out with the three talking about England’s diplomacy with India, specifically the trades between England and India.  The three are standing in front of the new prime ministers house.  They say the prime minister told them not to go to India.  They ignore his orders.  When the three arrive in India, James arrives first with a 1976 series 1 silver shadow Roles Royce.  Jeremy arrives next with a 1995 Jaguar XJS.  Richard is the last to arrive in a 2000 Mini Cooper.  All three of the cars have been made in England.  The three are there to cement that Britain is a great country and they make good cars.  James and Jeremy have chosen cars that are typically not considered to be reliable cars.  They have a long journey starting in Bombay India ending at the boarder crossing with Kashmiri.  First they must make their way through the city of Bombay.  Their first challenge is to improve on a lunch delivering system.  They are challenged to beat the lunch delivery system, which is operated by men called dabbawalas.  The accuracy of the system is 99.9996%.  The three think they can improve by using their cars to beat the train used by the system.  The mission fails when Jeremy is in too much of a rush and leaves the lunches he is supposed to deliver behind.  Then James and Richard are left to pick up the slack.  Richard in his small Mini spills most of the lunches all over the roadway.  James gets lost and arrives many hours later.  After the horrible loss they load their cars onto a train to Jaipur.  While on the train the three decide to put banners promoting British good and services.  

The banners are too long to fit on one train car.  As the train passes stations some of the cars depart the train and the banner is ripped creating some inappropriate words.  

At one of the stops James is left behind and meets up with Richard and Jeremy at the final stop.  While in Jaipur the trio hosts a hill climb challenge.  The three are the final competitors of the hill climb; they agree they will not be the fastest because they are being diplomatic.  Jeremy however disregards the agreement and finishes with a first place time.  Therefore failing at the challenge.  The boys decorate their cars in Indian cultural decor.  

Their next stop was Delhi.  On the way they must travel on a dual carriageway, which in India are very dangerous due to the limited police activity or lack of any on the roads.  When they arrive in Delhi they must host a trade show showcasing English made goods.  During the trade show Richard is in charge of parking the guests cars.  He is unable to keep track of all the keys and throws them all in a bucket.  Jeremy tries to put on a fireworks show, which goes wrong when one of the fireworks goes through a building where they are putting on the show.  When the guests try to leave they cant because Richard has confused all the keys.  The trade show is a complete failure.  The next day they were to leave to the boarder.  The journey would be long and full of difficult terrain.  The three outfitted their cars with off-road equipment.  James and Jeremy ruin the ride of their cars by putting too big of tires and messing with the suspension.  While on the road to the boarder the three encounter native v

illages, steep and rugged roads, and dangerous cliffs.  By the end the cars had been beaten up quite a bit.  At the peak of the mountain pass the three cars are put on display for all to see.

During the coarse of the show the tree travel through India.  The images of India are dirty and crowded.  The images of India might be accurate but they are not positive ones.  The images are showing how in disarray the country is considered to be.  The country is considered to be a developing country.  The Indian race is portrayed as a underdeveloped race. 

The content of the show is portraying Indians in a light of negativity.  When images of India are shown on screen the Indian people appear to be dirty, poor, and underdeveloped compared to western culture. 

The textual analysis of the show I think would be that English culture and race are far superior to the Indian culture and race.  The socially constructed images of race are those of prejudice and racism.  The Indian race is not portrayed in a positive light.  They are seen as being lesser social class and lesser people when compared to western cultures. 

Top Gear and American Stereo Types

USA Eastern Road Trip

This episode of Top Gear takes place in the United States.  The boys are on holiday road tripping up the eastern side of the US. Jeremy is in a Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG, Richard is in a Porsche 911 GT3 RS, and James is in a Ferrari 458 Italia.  They begin in the North Carolina on the Blue Ridge Parkway.  Their first stop is an old NASCAR racetrack.  Here they proceed to race around the track where Jeremy becomes a little tail happy.  He proceeds to ruin the rear tires on his SLS.  He needs to find new tires for the car.  He finds himself in need of help from the mayor of the town he is in.  The mayor is seen as being as a southern hick.  The dominant ideology of the people who are trying to find him a tire are seen as being dumb lower class Americans.  The British presenters are seen as being higher class and of the dominant class.  When Jeremy finally makes it to his overnight stay the other two are already there.  They next scene is the three presenting the news back in the studio.  They are focused on Christmas gifts for the motoring enthusiast.  When they return to the road trip they find out they are staying at a motor racing park and hotel.  They are told to go race around the track.  Jeremy again becomes too tail happy and ruins even more tires.  James and Richard engage in a proper race.  Richard tries to keep up with James but is unable and spins off the track.  The boys are presented with another challenge.  They are to perform a drive by shooting.  They are to shoot out of their car at paper targets.  When the three receive weapons training Jeremy becomes over enthusiastic.  The are competing against each to see who can score the most points in the paper target, which are in the shape of their ex performance car driver known as the Stig.  Jeremy is the last to; he cheats by using a rife instead of a handgun.  After another knights stay they are told to report to New York City.  On the way they find a drag strip where Jeremy and James race in the rain.  Neither car could complete a race due to the track being too wet.  After they leave the track they cut back to the studio where Jeremy interviews Director Danny Boyle.  After the interview the tree end up in New York City.  They are given the challenge of making their way up town.  However they are not allowed to use the ring road. The winner would appear on an American morning chat show.  They think it will be some American pop show, but they in for a surprise.  The show is a morning work out yoga show.  James wins the race and when he appears he looks so uncomfortable.  After the trip is over they cut back to the studio where Jeremy and James race the same two cars in a drag race.  The race is a dead tie.  

The Americans represented I in the show are seen as hicks.  They have southern accents, which are seen as a sign of inferiority.  One of the tire shop owners has such a thick accent he is said to not even be speaking English.  He also has a large beer belly, a shirt with cut off sleeves, and tattoos.  He is seen as being lower class and of lower standings than the British men.  While the southern Americans are being seen as lower class, the show they are set to appear on are seen as having high class Americans who are extremely popular.  The southern Americans portrayed in the show are not what all Americans are.  The images portrayed in the show are false images. 

Top Gear Africa Special

Series 19 Episode 6

In this episode of Top Gear the trio is headed to Africa for their yearly two part series special.  They start in the studio introducing their special to the live audience.  Jeremy is the first to arrive in his second hand estate car for no more than 1500 pounds.  He arrived in his BMW 528i.  He describes his car’s previous owner as someone who probably took their car to the max on a budget.  The car has two different sets of tires and it’s a manual.  Richard is the next to arrive.  He arrives is a Subaru Impreza WRX.  Jeremy describes the car as one driven by a moron.  Richard says he has the right car for any job.  When James is the last to arrive both Jeremy and Richard poke fun at his Volvo 850R.  As they stand around poking fun at each other’s their challenge arrives via a producer.  They were to find the source of the river Nile.  As they begin to drive they come to lake Victoria.  They tell the viewers that the lake Victoria is the source but when another producer turns up and says no it is not the source is still disputed and experts cannot find the true sources.  They then go on to look at a map and determine they need to go further south to find the true source.  The trip will not be easy with muddy roads, dangerous narrow roads, and river crossings.  While traveling through a capitol city they encounter the worst traffic they have ever seen.  The traffic jam takes them two days to get out of.  As they travel their first over night hotel has been set up Richard, who finds the worst over night stay possible.  After their first night in the hotel they realize they need to find different over night accommodations.  They decide to make their estate cars to accommodate them for overnight sleeping.  At the reveal Richard creates a small RV in the back of his Subaru.  James creates a small library in the front of his car, and a small workshop in the back with a cot to sleep on.  Finally Jeremy makes the back of his car a luxury sleeping quarter.  In the front seat he fitted a small fridge filled with beer, and outside he has fitted a full bathroom. 

            As they continue with their journey they drive through the jungle, on unpaved bumps roads, and down mud-slicked paths.  Their journey takes them through many different countries in Africa.  They finally determine they need to explore the Serengeti to find the source of the Nile.  Once they arrive to where they think the source could be it’s an all out race between the three to find the source.  In the end James determines he has found the true source and is the winner. 

            The episode is full of very glamorous panning shots of nature.  There is a lot of narration by the three presenters letting the audience know what is going on and what they think about what they think about their journey.  The camera work for the show is a lot of in car single person self-interviews of each presenter.  There are also shots from chase cars focusing on each of the presenter’s cars while they are being driven.  The editing of the show is done very well.  They go from a long set up shot, to an in car close up shot, to flowing shots of each car, to panning scenery shots, back to close up shots of each presenter.  The camera work assist with the whole aspect of the show. 

           

            I watch the show because of the scenery shots, car following shots, and the in car close up interview shots.  I enjoy how the presenters make their opinion known to the audience.  The production of the show adds a lot of deciding factors of my love for the show.