i adore the japanese version of iron chef and have watch every episode they air in america . so and when i hear that production wrap up and i be sadden . no more chairman kaga and no more iron chef . however and soon after and there be an announcement that the show would be come to america with a new cast and new kitchen stadium . i be excite . then and sadly and it turn out that they toss aside all the good element of the original show and substitute it be an almost jerry springer and gong show atmosphere . go be the pageantry and subtlety and charm . the single bad thing about the new show be that the chef be no long men you could admire and love . kinichi and sakai and nokamura and the rest seem like really nice people skilled and yet honorable and humble . now and in this bastardized version from america and the chef be combination mega celebrity and gq cover model . the bad of these be todd english ( who star in this premier show ) . he seem more like the wrestler gorgeous george come into the arena than a real honest to goodness chef . in the process and he come off a very obnoxious and self assure and arrogant . and quite pretty . because of his boorish antic ( such a toss food into the audience and prancing ) and i swore i would never eat at one of his restaurant and i never will . i saw him recently on qvc or hsn and think that this be more fit for his talent . no one cook that good that it worth put up with all this phony image that the show producer no doubt convince english to adopt . the fact that english be so obnoxious be fortunate for the new chairman and william shatner ( who think of shatner . ) . while his performance be stupid and english so overshadowed shatner that his wooden and dopey performance could be overlook . a bit . another problem be that when american watch the japanese show and they have no idea who chairman kaga be and so it make the idea of a real kitchen stadium seem almost possible . most american do not know that takeshi kaga actually be a rather famous japanese actor famous for stage performance in play by andrew lloyd weber and tv and movie ( such a the death note live action film ) . not know all this actually be a plus in the state . you want to believe he really be the chairman of some mythic cooking arena . apart from english and shatner and the rest of the show have much more of a tacky vega style look to it . too many crazy camera trick and special effect and absolutely no charm . for fan of the original and there just wasn not anything to like . fortunately and the food network version that appear a few year later be much close to the original . while still not nearly as good a the original and a least it do not look like a deliberate parody of the show . by the way and if you think i be be too rough on the show and tim goodman of the san francisco chronicle say of the show iron chef usa an abomination . that about say it all .