I just finished watching the Top Gear American Special, and I have to say it was the funniest thing I have seen in quite a while.

For those who have not seen it please watch, I promise that you will laugh (five parts total)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzsmpL7v94o&feature=related

It was however quite offensive to Americans, but it was so funny I can look past that. I did find it quite tasteless that they depicted all Americans as fat, gun-carrying rednecks (who appearently eat too much cheese), which is certainly not the case at all, at least not everywhere. They chose to travel through the deep south, so of course they're going to find the typical American sterotype of rude, fat, hicks. I do understand that it is that way down there, but not all of America is like that. Here in the north it is completely different, yet they make it seem like everyone in the US is like that, and it's not.

Anyway, enough of my ranting.
About the show, some of my favorite sound bits

"See that there? He's turning right on a red light, that is America's only contribution to western civilization."

"Only three previous murderers"

"Dent on the roof here, that was caused by a cow"

-"I'm standing next to a Buick Lesabre"
-"Oh, god"

-Radio: Jesus Christ is my lord!!
-Clarkson: "Yes, yes! I agree with you!"

"Would you like cheese with that? Would you like cheese with that? And then they shoot you"

"I've got an alloy here. Check out my alloy"


There were a couple of things though that, while funny, I didn't quite understand. Such as the whole "cheese" thing. I wasn't previously aware that Americans ate too much cheese. I always thought of cheese as more of a European thing anyhow...
Also the whole thing with guns and shooting. They seem to think that every person has a gun and is more than willing to shoot it at a moment's notice (which in some of the areas they visited this was actually true). The car dealers did in fact, talk about guns and killing so casually
But what got me was how Clarkson was so afraid when he pulled the gun out, it was like he had never seen a gun before. Are guns less common in the UK or something?

Anyhow, those of you have seen it, what were your thoughts/reactions?

Btw, I the '89 Cadillac, such a beautiful car

Normal/average people usually do not have firearms here in Europe. Except those who hunt.

Im surprised that you liked it so much Max, since it is quite offensive for the americans, i happened to watch it the last week and as i was watching it i was wondering how an american would feel watching that, if that would had been for Spain instead i promise that this would had been the last time to see any Top Gear episode and about the guns as Antoine says, in Europe nobody (average people) has a gun at home, it is just pointless, perhaps rich people with big houses and money inside have guns, but not even in these cases, at least not in Spain, which i prefere...

I love the Caddy too by the way, it was excellent, shame that the engine wasnt in such a good shape,,, but oh well, im sure you loved the Crown Vic dealership, that was great

Anyway once again they showed the stereotypes of a country, which was excellent for Clarkson since he always says that eh ahtes America, oh well!

I also thought it was a good episode. They mostly made fun of the part of America that Americans make fun of. That whole part at the gas station where they had Hillary for President, Nascar sucks...I could see that pissing off people down south. It'd only work in the south. The people up north would agree and cheer them on. So they picked the right part of America to travel to hit the right stereotypes.

I found it really sad when they hit New Orleans at the end and how 2 years later (think it was 2 or was it just 1) it looks like nothing has changed and how could one of the richest countries in the world allow this area to be like that.

It was actually only one year after the hurricane.
But, as far as America being the richest country in the world, I don't really agree with that statement.
Sure the country as a whole may have a lot of money, but (as clearly shown in the episode) the individual people not so much

By the way, I think the reason I wasn't too offened by it was that the part of the US they visited isn't anything like the part I live in (the north). As ahight said, it the part of the country the rest of America makes fun of. But my only problem is, it was portrayed as such that every part of America is like that. Which very is misleading to people in other countries who have never been to America who watch the episode. I saw comments on youtube from after watching the video that said things like "I'm never going to the US" or "I am afriad of the US". America is not a mean, scary place to visit (unless of course you go to Alabama) but the video makes it seem like it is.

In movies, series, etc. there have always been stereotypes like that, and you will always find people who believe that the whole country is like some particular examples. There are many people in US who think that in Europe we live like 100 years ago. And there are many people in Europe who think that in US everybody is a redneck like what is shown in that video, or a fat stupid guy, etc.

I thought it was a pretty funny episode too. I had recorded it a while back and never got around to watching it, but this discussion prompted me to finally watch it. I got a kick out of the "Big Stig" comment, and the part where Clarkson said something about the motorsports park being deserted because the left and right hand turns was "too complicated for the colonials".

The cheese connection was lost on me also, maybe he was thinking of Wisconsin and the "cheeseheads"?

It was too bad they had to end it on the downer of New Orleans. An instructor for a training course I recently took was from Mississippi which apparently also sustained great damage. He asserted that the reason much of New Orleans is still in shambles is that they are waiting on the government to come in and fix it up instead of doing it for themselves as the people did where he lives.

don't forget "...or maybe everyone had just been murdered"



Ha! Don't count on it anytime in the next century

About "richest country in the world": in Februrary we made vacations in the USA, a roundtrip with a rental car (a 2008 Chrysler Town and Country) From N.J. to Niagara Falls (Canadian site), across Pennsylvania to Washinton, Philadelphia and finally New York.

We were really a bit shocked about the worse condition of the roads and highways. New York state had the worst streets, New Jersey, too, Maryland was better.

A strange view for us was also the electricity-and telephone-cables, hanging around every where over the streets. This is uncommon in Europe, except on the far countryside, our cables are in the ground.

I don't understand the jokes about Americans and chesse, too. In Europe the variety of cheese is much wider, especially in France, but in Holland, Switzerland and Germany, too.

Why do you think our gas is so cheap? We have virtually no taxes placed on it (which pay for such roads) compared to in Europe.



I know, that's what I thought too

Well, that of the cheese is a joke stablished in many many movies, like when they show those big bottles fluor-like of cheese, ive seen that many times.

In Belgium we have both: taxes and bad roads.

Cheese: I just had to lough. This weekend in our village there is a gourmet-market, with good food, offered by the local restaurants. A small food-market is included.
There is a Dutch cheese-dealer, too. On his trailer is written "Der Käse-König" ("the cheese-king"). He offers "the best cheese, naturally only from Holland" and so on. His trailer has a plenty of blue-white-red flags on top. But he made a big mistake (incredible for a proud Dutchman): he took French flags.

Perhaps this is the reason. Has anyone seen this cheese-bottles somewhere else except in the USA?

Watch "Blues Brothers". There this stuff has a little place

What do you mean "bottle of cheese"?
Like melted cheese? call me American, but I'm getting hungry for nachos just talking about this!

Yes, we mean this bottle with cheese-cream. You press the cheese (or cheese-similar material) out like a plastic ketchup- or mustard-bottle.

Exactly that's it, nachos are mexican, do you usually eat them Max?

@CCF: I just had Spanish food: a few "Panicilla's"

And the sweet red, I prefer, shall be Spanish, too. I don't trust the text really - in tiny letters on the back you could read "bottled in Germany" - so there is the question, if this wine is matured in a Scania-, Mercedes- or Volvo-truck.
Don't let wine-lovers like DynaMike hear that, but the price for a 1-liter-bottle is 1,29 Euro.

Panicillas? or Panecillas rather? im not sure of what you mean though, what is it? if you explain me please