‘Top Gear’ Recap: ‘Season 32, Episode 1’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Caution: This article contains spoilers for the Season Thirty-Two Premiere of ‘Top Gear’. To revisit the Season Thirty-One Finale, click here.
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One particular aspect of the BBC America series, Top Gear, that makes it such a worthwhile watch, is that its hosts are no joke. For Paddy, Freddie and Chris aren’t just enthusiasts/fan boys or gents that are eager to be in front of the camera. They love cars, they the love the road and they will do whatever it takes to really educate the audience on the wonder of automobiles, and they have extensive experience with cars and car competitions, as part of knowing how to properly test them, to the point where they all boast racing licenses now. But what’s wild about that… is that despite loving cars to no end and having professional racing licenses under their belts, the lads have in fact… struggled often in professional races and major events that aren’t specifically designed to test a vehicle.

A reality that has frustrated these intrepid hosts to no end because they know passion and experience should bring about more for the viewer than lower place finishes or just so-so results. Which is why for the season thirty-two premiere… the hosts decided to do something quite unique. In that, they convinced the producers that they needed to do something inventive to snag a few victories and that allowed for them to swing by Florida to try out some new types of races. The kind that would hopefully give our racing heroes (and the audience as well) some wins at last and well, that led to one unique road trip for certain. One that offered up competitions so rare and so special, that likely only regional locals were aware of them before this episode aired,

For instance, their first stop on their tour, was to a Donk Racing facility. Where tricked out cars get a chance to drag race and well… it didn’t take long for the lads to discover that such a race was not easy. For there were spinouts that took place and a jumping of the gun to win a heat as well. Leaving the lads with so-so results again and a lingering worry that perhaps this journey across the pond was going to end with disappointment. A possibility that seemed to be growing into a reality when the lads got stuck and required a tow on the way to their second stop, since that just seemed to be a genuine harbinger of doom. But it was stop number two… where their luck suddenly began to change for the better.

Because the swamp-buggy race they attended, wherein the participants race across a swamp (one that did harbor a crocodile… by the way), was just so wacky and outlandish that the lads quickly decided to just have fun over anything else and despite a tough start, where Freddie’s ride died, and where Chris’ never got into gear… the lads finally managed to place high in a race. For Paddy McGuinness just went for it and had a great time doing so… and that landed Team Top Gear, a second-place finish and a lovely trophy and some renewed confidence. For that win really did inform them that they could do it, they could place high and that motivated them to step up their game a notch racing wise and rush toward to an epic finale. One that pushed Chris Harris to his physical limits.

For he did endure a frisbee injury along the way to the final competition. But the chance to race in Cletus McFarland’s ‘anything goes’ racetrack in a Crown Victoria in a thirty lap battle royale, entitled ‘The Dirty Thirty’, put any injury out of mind. Because this was a chance to really place well in a more traditional race and the determination that came out of that chance, led to one epic race. One where Freddie and Paddy gave their all regardless of their lack of experience in this kind of race, and where Chris Harris put himself in the zone and hung the whole way. To the point where once again, Team Top Gear placed second overall, and that’s huge. Because it showed the lads, they’re fully capable of winning a race and they should win more down the line now that tinges of doubt are removed from their minds. 

In the end however, this was just an epic way to kick off season thirty-two. In part because that was one heck of a road trip. One that was filled to the brim with some hilarious moments for certain. Such as when the lads revealed their Miami Vice themed apparel, and when they played their painful version of cards. But above all, what made this episode so great, was Paddy, and Freddie, and Chris’ outright desire, to step up their game and be better on the track. Because that requires a touch of humility and it was just cool to see them rise to the occasion and well, it’s going to be a treat to see them race again, and of course… continue to share their passion for cars as season thirty-two continues along. Until next time.

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