‘Top Gear’ Recap: ‘Season 31, Episode 4’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Caution: This article contains spoilers for Episode 3104 of ‘Top Gear’.
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One particular topic that we’ve discussed at length regarding season 31 of Top Gear, is the passion that is present within the show. That love of the car and everything that comes with it, and we’ve talked about it often this year, simply because it keeps popping up within the framework of the season. For week in and week out, somehow, someway, the passion that Freddie and Chris, and Paddy share for cars and everything they represent is put on full display and it doesn’t appear as though it will be fading from this season anytime soon. For this week’s episode was another love letter to the automobile, one that was handled in quite the unique manner when all is said and done. 

For each of the hosts, had the opportunity put their passion on display in a supremely intimate manner. For instance, Paddy McGuinness took the time to express his love of the sheer ingenuity that sometimes goes into creating a vehicle and he was able to accomplish that… by getting behind the wheel of a one-of-a-kind car. For Aston Martin was commissioned by an individual to create the ultimate supercar and they most certainly delivered with the Victor. For this beautiful and slick ride featured a V12 under the hood, which allowed for ridiculous acceleration and power to take the driver to new and exciting heights, and seeing the awe that Paddy expressed for this car hammered home his admiration of the genius that went into building this unique ride.

As for Freddie, well he made it clear in this episode, that one of his long-standing dreams… has been to become a fully-fledged race car driver. Because he’s always wanted to compete and that level and excel at it as well and when we catch up with him here, he’s preparing to make that a dream a reality and tasks us to come along with him to see what the testing and certification process is like. Which includes, training exercises on closed courses and written tests and driving tests and since Freddie prepared and poured his heart into this… he passed and lived his dream. For he and Chris entered a full-on race and while the car failed them, the fact that Freddie found his groove quickly and enjoyed racing immensely… overshadowed any sour news on this day and seeing this play out, really did inform us just how much Freddie loves cars and everything they represent and the joy they bring forth, since they do help for dreams to come true.

In Chris Harris’ case, well he spent a little time expressing his passion for the history of cars and how far they’ve come and all the wild things the industry has seen, and he handled that, by way of a history lesson for the audience. For Chris gave us quite the education on the DMC DeLorean and how the company came to life in a shockingly quick fashion and how hasty ingenuity and a desire to get a car to market, brought forth a vehicle that is a Frankenstein of sorts and really isn’t that fun to drive. But despite the controversies surrounding this car and how it came to fruition… it did eventually fulfill John DeLorean’s dream of being iconic in every way imaginable, thanks to its appearance in Back to the Future.

If anything, it was just great to be immersed in the passion these hosts exude once again. Largely because it allowed for a supremely diverse episode to take place. One that celebrated so many different corners of the automobile world and spotlighting the wonder of the car and the dreams they fulfill and the rich history of the industry, really does remind us of how special they are and how much joy they bring to others and that makes this a feel-good episode when all is said and done. Since it motivates you to get out there and enjoy the open road or maybe pop in Back to the Future and travel in style with Doc Brown and Marty McFly and well, you can never go wrong with partaking in infectious passion and truly it will be interesting to see what other geek out moments await us as season 31 continues along. Until next time.

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