‘Top Gear’ Recap: ‘Season 31, Episode 1’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Caution: This article contains spoilers for Episode 3101 of ‘Top Gear’.
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More often than not, there will come a day where our favorite television shows have run out of steam and have to bid farewell to the airwaves and it always intriguing as to what brings them to their end. Because in some instances, they simply stay on the air for too long and outstay their welcome with repetitive storytelling. For others, they run out of original ideas or the awesome concept that brought it to life, is no longer fascinating, or the story moved beyond it. And sometimes, the tastes of audiences simply shift and they’re eager to watch new stories. But some shows, defy all of these problems and stay on the airwaves for ages on end. Simply because they capture something special and one such series that defies this convention and has latched onto something unique, is Top Gear.

For last night saw the thirty-first season of this series come to fruition and well, this opening adventure of season thirty-one was as captivating as any other. In fact, the lads started this one off with quite the bang, by taking the time to return to a series staple… toying with stupid fast cars that everyone would love to own and drive. Since Paddy and Freddie and Chris decided to explore what other track-day specials are out there to enjoy… that aren’t a Porsche 911 and they picked some pretty slick rides. Freddie for instance, chose the Aston Marin F1 Edition, while Paddy chose the Alpha Romeo Giulia GTAm. Which are both beautiful and fast cars, that are perfectly designed for track life and sadly… they both paled in comparison to Chris’ choice… the McLaren 765LT. A car that dusted the others in a drag race by hitting 200 mph no problem.

But of course, to truly see how powerful this car was… they needed to give it a proper track run. Which is why the lads drove these rides to the Silverstone F1 track, wherein actual F1 drivers from each respective company would put these suckers to the test with the Top Gear crew in a powerful relay race. One where the lads would try and beat the pros top times, a feat that they sadly didn’t accomplish. Slightly in part because there was a handbrake mishap involving Paddy’s run, but also because Sebastian Vettel (Aston Martin), Antonio Giovinazzi (Alfa Romero) and Lando Norris (McLaren) are some of the best F1 drivers out there. But it wasn’t a total wash for the TG crew. Since Chris Harris did hang with Lando’s time and only lost to him by a single second. 

However, while that made for an entertaining and fun time, it is the final segment of this episode that is truly of note. For this is where the series showed the audience exactly how this series has defied convention and enjoyed longevity and it accomplished that… with a beautiful tribute led by Paddy. One that chronicled the life and times of Daredevil superstar, Eddie Kidd. Who rose to fame in the 1980s and 1990s by pulling off death defying stunts on a motorcycle, the kind that saw him jump the Great Wall of China and best Robbie Knievel in a Daredevil showdown. But the point of this tribute, was to bring Eddie great joy. Since he suffered brain injuries in his final jump and left the industry because of that. Which is why Paddy put together a Daredevil show for him, to put a giant smile on his face (which it did) and remind him of what he’s done for the industry. 

Which absolutely made it clear… that what keeps Top Gear going year after year… is the passion that the show exudes. For this is and will forever be a love letter to all things related to the road, and the fine gents that host this series are filled to the brim with that very passion and express it during single episode. As evidenced here. And as long as that passion remains, this show will never die, because it simply sucks us in and leaves us eager for more. But all of that aside, we’d be foolish to not take a moment and thank Paddy for that beautiful tribute. Because that was a wonderful walk down memory lane for some and a powerful education for the uninitiated and it is wonderful to see Eddie’s work immortalized here and truly, it will be interesting to see if more tributes await us in Season 31 and if not… that’s okay too. Because all that matters, is that passion and this writer cannot wait to indulge in more of it. Until next time.

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