You know, I’m not a HUGE car buff–I consider a car to be little more than a way to point A to point B.  Though I do prefer to get their comfortably, quickly, and without spending an arm and a leg in gas costs–just an arm is good enough by me–I’m not terribly enthused by the thought of cars that look like small spacecraft that go from zero to sixty before you even blink.  I only really know what torque is thanks to high school physics, and horsepower to me means about as much in my car as it does in my lawn mower.

Though I will admit, I DO enjoy British television–I’m abundantly glad for BBC America, and even the older stuff you find on PBS is actually much enjoyed by both me and my family.  My personal favorite is Keeping Up Appearances, because that Hyacinth woman is just six different kinds of awesome, and she’d probably have a fainting spell if she were described as such.

So when the boys out at BBC America’s PR firm (at least I guess they are–they sent me the disk and they’re some old friends) shipped me a copy of Top Gear season 10, I was skeptical. Especially when I discovered that this show’s been around since 1977 almost continuously.  Almost continously, of course–there was a brief interval in which the show was retooled, so how they call this season ten is quite beyond me.

Strange semantics in numbering aside, Top Gear is a show that really got me.  Like I said, I’m not much of a “car guy”, thinking of them more as utilitarian objects than as artistic statements, but man.  The show is hosted by three guys who deeply, DEEPLY, love cars, and will introduce us to all manner of cars and car-related content.   The first episode, for example, features an interview with actress Helen Mirren (of The Queen) that caps off with having her take a lap around a test track and then putting her score up on a wall of fame reserved for guests. They call this their “Star in a Reasonably Priced Car” segment.

They then spend a great deal of time looking for the best road in the world, and you’ve never seen British guys display such sheer glee.

It continues on like this for fully ten episodes, including what they call “the Botswana Special”. They’ll attempt to cross the English channel in amphibious cars.  They’ll stage the most ludicrous drag race ever, involving an Aston-Martin taking on a rocket pack and roller skates.  At one point they will engage the Royal Air Force’s Typhoon jet fighter in a two-mile race with the Bugatti Veyron.  What these guys display here is, essentially, a car show for people who don’t really care about cars.  You can almost feel their enthusiasm as they tell you all about their cars of choice, and that’s the mark of a good reviewer in my book.  Yes, this is partially a review show, but it’s also got a lot more than that, as you’ve seen from the preceding remarks.  This show is almost sufficient to INSPIRE car love in those who don’t have it.  Almost—but man, what a good try.

Basically, if you have even the slightest interest in cars, even the SLIGHTEST, you will find Top Gear to be both engrossing and entertaining, with plenty of laughs and surprises as they introduce you to cars you will likely never see and have probably never even HEARD of.  I had my eyes opened by this little chunk of British programming, and I’m glad for the experience.  Chances are good you will be too.