I didn't have any trouble getting used to the new car, at least physically. It's pretty bad ass, and that's enough for me even if it's a Ford. The color changes and morphing were pretty lame, though. It's hardly a novel effect and it seemed to be played up unnecessarily. It was like watching KITT change into "super pursuit mode" all over again, meaning I had to roll my eyes. I also giggled when KITT gave Sarah her earpiece because when the dash opened it exposed what was clearly an Apple Bluetooth keyboard. Maybe that KITT is a Mac explains why it took the bad guys so long to hack in.
My biggest disappointment had to do with the car having no personality to speak of, quite unlike the original KITT. I can't blame Val Kilmer for more than 50% of that, because the writing for KITT seemed very flat. Though I still think Will Arnett would have made a better KITT. Oh well. The original KITT had humanity and warmth, and I hope it won't be replaced by just another bad ass robot in this show.
There was a lot of cheesiness to overlook. Silly lines like "our database intercepted..."; a Mustang that can't shake a bloated SUV on a twisty road; classic countdown when being hacked. I could go on, but cheesiness was par for the course in the original series, so I can't deduct too many points here.
The Hasselhoff cameo was OK and I hope he stops by from time to time, but I wish there was a little more continuity, especially between the cars. They could have done more with the original KITT, even if he was in parts and William Daniels wasn't interested.
And as for the human cast, though the acting was somewhat uneven, it was quite watchable. Most importantly I actually liked Mike Tracer, at least enough to tune in again.
Like the acting, the non-original music was a little uneven as well. Sometimes it worked and really punched up the action, and other times it felt very out of place. No worse than second-rate covers of pop songs, I suppose.
In the final analysis I give it an 8.5 out of 10. It may not quite have the power to bring back my childhood, but it has potential and actually kind of felt like Knight Rider.
