I ignored this show when it first came out (not long ago) because it didn't really appeal to me at the time. I came home a bit drunk and though "well, this looks like a low-intelligence show" and figured I would give it a go. I have no regrets at all and think it is absolutely fantastic.
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Do you like supercars? Do you like videogames? Do you like racing competitions?
Well if you answered yes to at least one of those questions there is a very good chance that you will enjoy this show. The first thing i thought when i was watching episode 1 is that this seems very similar to "American Ninja Warrior." I tried to find out if that was the case or not and couldn't find the answer.
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What i do know is that Chalize Theron is the executive producer and this is an absolutely massive-budget production that involves an extremely unorthodox race track for various modified cars that is so different from any other sort of car race that exists in the world. To be involved in this involves a truly unique variety of driving talents that only a select few of the planet's inhabitants could possibly possess. We could throw the best NASCAR and formula-1 drivers in the world into this thing with a car of their choice and I honestly think they wouldn't stand a chance.
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There is a great deal of drifting skill necessary to start with but it also involves skills in general driving or something... i dunno, the fastest car I ever drove was a Honda S-2000 and that only has 240 Horsepower, which seriously pales in comparison to pretty much every car in this competition.
It appears as though the type of car used, at least to some degree, is up the the various contestants. Some of them go for extremely high power and others go for a more hybrid-type-thing that is going to have a better balance of control vs speed. The contestants were selected from all over the world and for many of them a backstory is delivered to give us some sort of an emotional attachment to them that for me anyway, seemed very "American Idol."
I have only watched 1 episode and I was glued to the screen. The subject matter is something I am interested in but I don't really feel as though that is truly necessary to enjoy this. It is just so adrenaline-riddled and perfectly edited to get rid of the boring bits that you honestly do not have a chance to be bored, ever.
To me this seemed like a video game. I would be willing to bet that if this show is at all successful (and I am quite certain it will be) that we are definitely going to see a video game for this. I'd buy it. Basically, i haven't been this instantly entertained in a while and I am super-stoked there are 9 more episodes to go.