Layla's Keeper
Honestly, I have always felt that Callum's finest work was the XK180/F-Type roadster. That car, with its dramatic wraparound windshield and decklid headrest fairings, its radically curvy fenders, and its beautifully faired in headlights, was gorgeous no matter how you viewed it.
And I feel Callum lost steam after the F-type was canned and that it's part of the reason the Vanquish, the DB9, the AMV8, and the Jaguar XK aren't as adventurous, daring, and classically beautiful as the DB7.
Although a lot of this is true, your opinion is disregarding the design brief that Callum was given with every single one of these cars. For instance, Aston Martin hasn't ever really had a radical, out of the loop design face. They've always revolved around class and sophistication. For example, the company would never want to release a dramatic, radical design, because that was never what they wanted with releasing a new "flagship" coupe, the DB9. For the Vanquish, however, Callum was most likely given the task of coming up with a more daring and edgier model to fit in the range. He did that, if he succeeded is a personal opinion of every viewer. I can't really understand some of the more adventurous lines there, but that's just me.
You keep mentioning the F-Type and XK180, which is a stellar, more unique design. Now take a look at what Callum's task was at Jaguar, at the time. He had to create a model that would both stun and impress everybody, in an effort to "uplift" the Jaguar name (not the case with Aston). He knows the car was a success without a doubt, the fact that it got canned most likely did not affect his mindset.
Keeping this all in mind, let's see take a look at another Callum design, and the company's intentions with that model. Ian Callum designed the BMW Z8. Now, who is going to complain about that design? What was Callum's objective with the Z8? Look at the results...
Now, that brings us to the question, why does the new XK resemble the AM line so much? Jaguar still needs a revival, but they have a lot to lose, their entire name. The XK revival had to be just as spectacular as the previous, but still needed to have class, and this is where that AM influence comes in. That's my guess. I say, give Callum another chance with a more lose and raw design brief, and he won't disappoint. Make him design a TVR, then he'd shine.
"What was even more wonderful was that my brother Moray and also having his own success. There's a photograph of the two of us together infront of the DB7. I said to Moray that his Lagonda concept would make a great Jag. He said 'So would yours.'"
-Ian Callum, describing the day of March 3, 1993, in Geneva.
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