I'm in agreement with MMF. I thought last night's episode was far better than the premiere. It didn't have all that nonsense with the bill collectors and a roid raging ego maniac. It's on the right track, but there's still a couple elements that bother me though.
I don't like that the show buys the restaurant a bunch of stuff, as pointed out earlier by someone else. I enjoy it more in the British version where Ramsay gets the owners to fork out the dough and/or labour for the renovations or equipment of whatever he deems necessary. I find adds a certain charm by showing the commitment of the staff and owners.
The other thing that seems to be missing is Ramsay spending time with the chefs. He's really good at unlocking hidden talents of the sous-chefs and other people that don't get much time in the limelight. Fox seems to cut these parts out, where Ramsay is quite charming and jovial, in favour of more yelling and screaming. Not a surprise I guess considering its Fox, but I like to see the balance of his personality; its part of what makes him so successful in my opinion. Plus its a show about restaurants and they hardly show any cooking.
And lastly, as I mentioned before, the follow up visit. We need to see if things reverted back to the way there were, if the anyone quit, if the customers still like it, etc...
Its still entertaining enough to watch, but I still prefer the British version for now. I hated the American version of The Office at first, so I'm hoping this show comes into its own like The Office did.
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