Stars: Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, James May
Chris Harris, Freddie Flintoff and Paddy McGuinness return to host Top Gear for its 33rd season, bringing back the action-packed car show. The seventh season they've produced together promises to include the same goofy humor and action-packed vehicle challenges.
According to the season description, you'll find Italian taxi queues, French wax figures, Thai vans, Croatian hypercars, German sausages, and of course, in this jam-packed new series.
The BBC's Top Gear will always be divided into two parts: the era of Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May, and everything in between. Clarkson, Hammond and May caught lightning in a bottle, making them nearly unfollowable and subject to constant comparison. In Series 32, current presenters Freddie Flintoff, Chris Harris and Paddy McGuinness put their own spin on the infamous "USA Special." from Top Gear, and they not only live up to the previous standard, but do it better.
For those who don't remember, the US special aired as part of Top Gear Series 9 and featured Jeremy, Richard and James driving from Miami to New Orleans on their first American adventure. The trio took their usual antics to another level and finally ran out of Alabama in one of the most well-known — and unflattering — moments in the series' history. The series 32 premiere "Team Top Gear Does Florida" is everything the US special could have been as Freddie, Chris and Paddy embrace the journey with open arms.
Like the US special, the episode visits Miami and highlights American cars, but the focus is completely different. Before the hosts were baffled most of the time and the joke was mainly on the locals; now Freddie, Chris and Paddy are really happy to visit the United States and the humor is on them. Chris, the most experienced racer, manages to wreck his race car in minutes. Freddie gets stuck in the swamp during a buggy race. Paddy is the victim of a PIT stunt... perpetrated by one of his own co-hosts. There is shame for everyone, but none of it comes from stereotypical places.
Rather, a real sense of camaraderie is conveyed, which is how the current Top Gear trio have succeeded where all others have failed. The series is based on the chemistry between its hosts, because what draws viewers in are the interactions they have with each other and their reactions to situations that are amazing or absurd (or both). The BBC tried different combinations but never had a group that felt united until Flintoff, Harris and McGuinness joined forces. Here, they clearly love each other and support each other to succeed, rather than trying to get each other killed. There is also a reference to Top Gun, because they are back in fashion after the success of Top Gun: Maverick.
The US special had its big moments along with its controversial ones, including a poignant commentary on the devastation of Hurricane Katrina when Jeremy, Richard and James decided to donate their cars at the end. But it thrived by putting the hosts in intentionally controversial situations. "Team Top Gear Does Florida" is a family road trip without the potential apocalypse. The bonhomie is aided by the fact that the stars are traveling together in a beat-up RV and working as a team, rather than in separate cars trying to one-up each other. They just want to have fun and they want everyone else to have fun too.
This road trip is more like the classic Series 10 Top Gear 24 hour Britcar race. There is a real pounding heart to the story and after Chris suffers an ankle injury, an emotional line as inspiring as the end of This Is Us. Watching the last race, it's impossible not to root for Chris and be amazed at what he's doing in a car when he has difficulty walking, and fans can hear the joy in Freddie and Paddy's voices. As the BBC celebrates its centenary with a Doctor Who special, Top Gear has been steadily regaining its form with the current trio of presenters, and this episode is a clear reminder that it is now as magical as ever.
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