All Rise...

Judge David Johnson's other car is a Bentley Continental Supersports.

Editor's Note

Our reviews of Top Gear: The Complete Season 13 (published October 16th, 2010), Top Gear: The Complete Season 10 (published April 23rd, 2009), Top Gear: The Complete Season 11 (published January 25th, 2010), Top Gear: The Complete Season 12 (published January 25th, 2010), Top Gear: The Complete Season 14 (Blu-ray) (published February 19th, 2011), Top Gear: The Complete Season 16 (Blu-ray) (published August 8th, 2011), Top Gear: The Complete Season 17 (Blu-ray) (published February 20th, 2012), Top Gear: The Complete Season 18 (published July 14th, 2012), and Top Gear US: Season One (published August 5th, 2011) are also available.

The Charge

Before the Stig's fall…

Opening Statement

The 15th series of the mammoth motoring show brings in the biggest stars, the fastest cars and the…um…tastiest Malomars.

Facts of the Case

This set contains six episodes this series; featuring Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May up to their usual engine-related hijinks. Some highlights: Jeremy test-drives the three-wheeled Robin with little success, James takes an all-terrain tour of an active volcano, the Stig puts the Bentley Supersports through its paces, the reasonably-priced car is jettisoned, a pair of snowmobilers are raced by a Volkswagen, the guys build low-cost custom motor homes and James May—Captain Slow himself—attempts to break a world record in the new Bugatti Veyron. All in glorious high definition!

The Evidence

The leap to HD continues to benefit this show greatly. Sure, Clarkson's craggy face looks a whole lot craggier in the enhanced resolution, but just take a gander at that Veyron now, blasting past 260 miles per hour. If there was a reality show built for the next generation optical format it's Top Gear.

Substance-wise, the six episodes remain good fun, offering a mix of serious—if sporadically sarcastic—reviews of cars that you will never be able to afford even if you had three lifetimes to pull together the down payment, lively celeb interviews, juvenile banter and, what has become the bread and butter of the show, hilarious challenges.

There are some gem challenges in this series, starting with the motor home competition, a ridiculous custom build-off that has Jeremy driving around in a Citroen with a two story flat attached to its roof and James trapped in a soda can bolted to the top of a Lotus. Then you have the second-hand sports saloon challenge (Richard buys a death trap!), a four-door supercar test featuring a wedding and duct taped pants and, lastly, a loving tribute to the erstwhile British sports cars of yore. Nothing here approached the grander and hilarity of classic challenges like the amphibious vehicles, the cheap police car or the British-Leyland competition, but there is still much amusement to be found.

What does exceed previous seasons—at least from the Yankee's point of view—is the star power. Each episode, Clarkson "puts a star in a reasonably priced car," interviewing a celebrity then timing his or her lap around the track. Instead of news readers or British TV personalities I have never heard of, Season 15 brings us Rupert Grint, Jeff Goldblum, Cameron Diaz and Tom Cruise. Diaz continues to irritate as much as flypaper ripped off of my inner thigh, but Cruise brings it, sharing some great anecdotes and delivering the most memorable celeb lap ever.

As far as the Blu-ray, the 1.78:1 HD transfer is very good looking even if it is rendered "only" in 1080i. So close BBC! The step up from previous DVDs is stark, making Blu the only way to watch this show. Take a gander at the volcano segment to fully embrace the step-up. Audio is 2.0 stereo, which, admittedly, is disappointing, considering the sound and fury that can be wrought by a V-12 turbocharged engine. Extras: a lengthy one-on-one with James May as he commutes to work, outtakes and extended scenes. Bonus materials are not in high definition.

The Rebuttal Witnesses

According to the disc case: "for clearance reasons certain edits have been made." They must have been slight, because these aren't the 40-odd minute abbreviated shows from BCC America.

Closing Statement

Not quite boasting the technical horsepower, Top Gear 15 still looks great and the shows are petrolhead Nirvana.

The Verdict

Not Guilty. Powwwwweeerrrrrrrr!

Give us your feedback!

Did we give Top Gear: The Complete Season 15 (Blu-ray) a fair trial? yes / no

What's "fair"? Whether positive or negative, our reviews should be unbiased, informative, and critique the material on its own merits.

Share This Review

Follow DVD Verdict

Other Reviews You Might Enjoy

• Fear Factor: The First Season
• It's Easier For A Camel...
• Dirty Jobs: Season 4
• Flavor Of Love: The Complete First Season