Tour de France: Unchained

[Sits]

Taking a slight risk here as I’ve only watched two out of eight from Netflix’s new series which aims to do for bike racing what Drive to Survive did for Formula 1.

Will be interested to read the thoughts both of those who follow the sport and those who don’t. I’m in the former category, and I’m enjoying it so far with some reservations. But I think the latter are the target audience. They need to be, to be considered a success.

I can thoroughly recommend Unchained Binge, an eight episode series of podcasts designed to be listened to after each episode.

[longeared]

Well as a cycling fan my review is simple; I haven't seen it and almost certainly won't as I don't have Netflix. (does that make me a target market for them?) Fundamentally though it's not aimed at me, the objective is to try to draw new fans into the sport like happened spectacularly with the F1 and I'm all in favour of that should that be the eventual outcome.

I saw somewhere that Jonathan Vaughters features heavily in one of the episodes. I very much hope he comes across really badly.

[ad hoc]

I too have watched the first two episodes and I'm quite enjoying it (I think mostly as a way to relive last year's Tour, but with an insider view). I'm not sure how easy it would be for someone with no previous interest to get into the sport through it, but I might try and convince my daughter to watch it (she thinks I'm weird for watching cycling but enjoyed the F1 doc series)

The cobbled stage was particularly good to follow from the perspective of the Jumbo Visma team.

Vaughters featured a bit in episode 1 and he came across as fairly honest about his time doping, but a bit rubbish as a team director.

[Sits]

I’ve watched 3 and 4 now. 3 was the weakest for me, but 4 was fantastic, bringing a fresh set of perspectives on a key moment in the race as a whole.

So half way through, and overall I’m really enjoying it. One problem I have is that I’m useless with subtitles as I can’t multitask between visuals and text quickly enough to follow both. So I am watching with dubbing when other languages are spoken and I think the dubbing is quite annoying at times.

[Incandenza]

I haven't watched it yet. I'm a big Drive to Survive fan, and I wonder how close this new series can come to that, since there are so many more different teams and figures in cycling than just 20 drivers and 10 team principals in F1. Though really, it all comes back to Guenther Steiner.

[Sits]

I haven't watched it yet. I'm a big Drive to Survive fan, and I wonder how close this new series can come to that, since there are so many more different teams and figures in cycling than just 20 drivers and 10 team principals in F1. Though really, it all comes back to Guenther Steiner.

It’s pretty clear they are not trying to give the full picture, but focus on individual teams and riders. For a start only eight(?) of twenty-two teams participated so their management and riders take centre stage. But other key protagonists - Pogačar in particular - feature substantially where necessary for narrative, just not via interview or profile.

[Walt Flanagans Dog]

I’ve watched 3 and 4 now. 3 was the weakest for me, but 4 was fantastic, bringing a fresh set of perspectives on a key moment in the race as a whole.

So half way through, and overall I’m really enjoying it. One problem I have is that I’m useless with subtitles as I can’t multitask between visuals and text quickly enough to follow both. So I am watching with dubbing when other languages are spoken and I think the dubbing is quite annoying at times.

I was going to say the same - the in-race voiceover detracts from the drama rather than adds to it, it obviously having been done after the event and with little emotion or sense of surprise in the voice. You also know that as soon as the voiceover says "let's hope there aren't any crashes today", that you're about to see a crash.

Worth watching though, for the behind the scenes stuff and some of the in-race footage they have. The part where Ben O'Connor is barely able to move and his team manager's reaction is "just take it easy for a couple of days and go for a stage win on Wednesday yeah" is particularly jaw-dropping.

[ad hoc]

There is quite a lot of focus on crashes isn't there? I mean I know they;re part of the race, and I know the show is very much much going for the "these people put themselves through hell" narrative, but it;s a bit much. That Jakobson crash in Poland(?) we've already seen many many more times than we really need to. Once would have been pushing it.

[ad hoc]

I’ve watched 3 and 4 now. 3 was the weakest for me, but 4 was fantastic, bringing a fresh set of perspectives on a key moment in the race as a whole.

I liked both 3 and 4. 3 because of the focus on the French teams and the different kind of pressure they're under, plus watching them try to "encourage" a man who'd ruptured a muscle to keep going

[Sits]

I liked both 3 and 4. 3 because of the focus on the French teams and the different kind of pressure they're under, plus watching them try to "encourage" a man who'd ruptured a muscle to keep going

Yes in retrospect my dislike of 3 may have been because this was where the dubbing was most jarring. So my bad, as they say.

[Sits]

Just completed the series; all in all I thought it was excellent. They couldn’t possibly tell all of the stories in eight 40 minute episodes. They also “created” characters to some extent through their editing. But the overall narratives were decent and they painted a good picture. Some of the action footage (not seen on the original coverage) was exceptional.

What I’ll be doing sooner rather than later is watching it sans dubbing.

[ad hoc]

I'm finding it's messing with my sense of time. Today around 4 I thought to myself. Ooh I must finish what I'm doing to watch Le Tour. And then a few beats later. Oh, hang on, it's not actually on is it.

[ad hoc]

Finally finished it (that's not a comment on the programme, just other stuff got in the way). I enjoyed it and kind of wish it had been a couple of episodes longer. Couldn't help but wonder exactly how much footage they'd shot and how many staff they had. The Alpe d'Huez episode for example, they had conversations in Thomas's bedroom, conversations in Pidcock's bedroom, discussions with Powless, and so on and so forth. How many other climbers who turned out not to have a role in the stage did they leave on the cutting room floor?

Can't understand why they didn't have that moment where Vingegaard waited for Pogacar when the latter came off on the descent in the crucial stage in the Pyrenees. Was it because they wanted to set up a narrative of it all being mega competitive and there was no space for that kind of sportsmanship? If so, eurgh.

In general, though, there are so many stories and subplots in the race that they obviously had to drop some (eg there being no explanation of why Van Aert was in a green jersey and Pogacar in a white one, and no sight at all of a polka dot one), and they did a pretty good job of choosing. My favourite bit, actually, was Jakobson just making the time cut off and then simply collapsing into the fence

[Sits]

I liked the fact that Jakobsen sort of topped and tailed the series. But they didn't need to show his Poland crash so many times.

A rider like Magnus Cort might feel a little hard done by, but I guess so will a few.

Anyway I'm about to start my second run through, without dubbing.

[KingsburySaint]

There is (was?) a Spanish language documentary following Movistar on Netflix. I think it's called A Perfect Day or something.

It was quite enjoyable as it showed the team to be a bit of a mess, as they were blown away by Jumbo Visma/UAE. The riders probably came across ok because of it. I quite enjoyed their reactions to that Tour de France time trial

[Sits]

There is (was?) a Spanish language documentary following Movistar on Netflix. I think it's called A Perfect Day or something.

It was quite enjoyable as it showed the team to be a bit of a mess, as they were blown away by Jumbo Visma/UAE. The riders probably came across ok because of it. I quite enjoyed their reactions to that Tour de France time trial

The Least Expected Day. It's so chaotic, it's hard not to have a bit of a soft spot for Movistar after watching.

[KingsburySaint]

That's it. Thanks. Yes they are a right gang but I certainly felt better towards them afterwards.

[Kevin S]

There is quite a lot of focus on crashes isn't there? I mean I know they;re part of the race, and I know the show is very much much going for the "these people put themselves through hell" narrative, but it;s a bit much. That Jakobson crash in Poland(?) we've already seen many many more times than we really need to. Once would have been pushing it.

This was exactly my wife's take on it. We've watched the first and won't be watching the others.

I found it quite good as a way of getting me thinking about the Tour again. As old timers of the cycling threads will know I got very, very into it for about 2011-2019 but I've drifted away with circumstantial changes and the pandemic and stuff, as well as taking an interest in other sports. So it was good to see a bit more about who the big names are, because in my head the top GC riders are Froome, Nibali, Thomas, Roglic, and Dumoulin with decent challenges from youngsters like Bernal and Pogačar while Valverde clings on to the top ten somehow.

[Mumpo]

Also two episodes in, enjoying it for what it is - a gateway for newcomers, simplified but not dumbed-down, with plenty of skinny from the team cars for existing fans. I didn't realise the directions over the team radio was so incessant - every turn, every move, everything seems to warrant an update. No wonder riders take their earpieces out.

[Mumpo]

Episode three, with its emphasis on the French teams was great, because I was worried the whole thing was going to basically be about Jumbo-Visma.

Disappointing that the phrase "Gives you wings" was used a few times over episodes two and three without ever being put in context.

[matt j]

Watched the whole thing last week in the span of probably 24 hours. Started out really annoyed with the editing and some of the story 'choices', but overall enjoyed revisiting last years tour.

Still a bit annoyed that all the talk of 'getting a French rider a win'.... No comment on Laporte's awesome stage win.

[Sits]

[Hot Orange]

I'm on episode 2 and the fake race commentary is doing my head in. Enjoying it otherwise, though.

[Logan Mountstuart]

Well I've just finished this. I'm a hard bitten tour fanatic since around 1987 and lived a long time in France, and get all the nuances.

It was enjoyable. I really liked Jacobsen.

After the last episode my main feeling was I wanted the old Quickstep Chef d' équipe to be my Dad, and I really wanted to punch the Co - Alpecin manager in the face until he couldn't talk ever again. The world is full of a million privilidged twats like him who have their insane dreams and end up ruining other people's lives.

And Geraint Thomas. I've always been suspicious of any hardbitten Anglo Saxon, logical invasion of the tour. Years of fucking Motorola/ US Postal/Sky theory of pragmatism over passion. But he's a Celt, and a fucking glorious man who gets it.

And Wout van Aert. Oh Wout van Aert. So fucking magnificent that he was born in Herentals.

[Snake Plissken]

Watched it last week. As someone who hasn’t dipped into the Tour for a few years I really enjoyed it. It follows the DtS template to the letter but that’s not a bad thing.

Marc Mediot seems my kind of nutter but as mentioned, the Alpecin manager is very punchable.