I'm 44 years old. I started watching Jeremy Clarkson and Richard Hammond back when, here in the U.S., we had to download Top Gear episodes from questionable torrent sites because the show wasn't syndicated here. James May joined after the first year, and for the next two decades I watched and rewatched just about every episode.
I even tried watching the U.S. version with Tanner Foust and Rutledge Wood. I like those guys, but it never captured the same feeling as the original.
When it all came to an end in 2015, I remember thinking it was the end of something we'd never get back. Then, not long after, The Grand Tour with Jeremy was announced. We speculated that Richard and James might join him on the new Amazon series, but we didn't know. At least I didn't.
Then came that first episode. Jeremy lands in the U.S., walks into the parking garage, and there's the blue Mustang. For a moment, there's no sign of Richard or James. Then it happens. Two more Mustangs come into frame, driven by James and Richard.
I remember how exciting that was. It felt like new life had been breathed into something I thought was gone.
We got several awesome seasons that felt familiar to the Top Gear we loved, then the specials. I enjoyed them all. And then The Grand Tour ended. That was sad because, once again, I thought it was over for good.
Of course, we still have Clarkson's Farm, which we love. I watch DriveTribe occasionally, and there's The Smallest Cog and the bits James May puts on YouTube. It's good to have those things. They keep those guys in our lives, but they aren't replacements. Clarkson's Farm feels a bit bigger, to be fair. The rest is kind of a "you take what you can get" situation.
So when they announced the next generation of The Grand Tour, I was skeptical at best, but hopeful.
The BBC tried like hell to reboot Top Gear with new hosts. It wasn't terrible. It was reasonably okay TV, but it never had the same feeling. It's like spending a week driving a naturally aspirated manual sports car, then going back to a modern sports car. The modern car might be good in its own right, but it doesn't compare to that visceral feeling. That's what the reboots were like for me.
The other day, I sat down with Liz, my 12-year-old daughter. She looked at me and asked, "Is it gonna be good?"
"I'm going in with an open mind and wishful thinking," I told her.
I knew the trio had kind of signed off on it, that they were part of handing over the torch, so I was hopeful. Almost immediately, I was laughing. I'm not going to give anything away, but it was absolutely delightful.
The hosts weren't trying to be Jeremy, Richard, and James. They were their own people, having fun and getting into shenanigans. It really did feel like the next generation.
I purposely haven't read any reviews. I didn't want to be jaded by anything I read. I enjoyed it immensely. It feels honest. It carries the character of the original Top Gear and Grand Tour that I've spent most of my adult life enjoying, but it also feels new and fun.
I'll always value the original trio, but I think we've got a good stretch ahead of us with the next generation. I think they did a bang-on job with the casting.