Last month I posted on BBC America's Top Gear, DISH Network 135, various times) "the best in vehicular chaos, fast celebrities, and top gear jackassery," The mighty Brit-cult that could recently rebroadcast a dashing 75 minute program which took the show principles on a motor bike tour from South to North Vietnam. This single episode, first broadcast in 2008 and just released on DVD last month, captures the many strengths of the program.
It was an exquisitely well-balanced show. Top Gear's patented cheekiness is well on display, with host Jeremy Clarkson stuck on a tiny-wheeled scooter in the rain ("There's no human being as miserable as I am right now!") and sidekicks Richard Hammond and James May motoring along on an ancient Soivet Union jobbie and a rickety Honda Cub.
Most impressive was the deft way in which the team and the production handled the politically loaded issue of the West's past involvement with Vietnam, which is... straight on. There was more than one jibe at US military action, a conversation with a Vietnamese man who was in the war, and a stop at Citadel of Huế, which simply involved the three briefly expressing some honest, human reflections on the monument. Oh, and a threatened back-up of a motorbike which was festooned with American flags and a tiny sound system which blared "Born in the USA."
But the episode wasn't without the wonderfully ridiculous: The three hosts presented one another with large, unmanageable gifts, such as an enormous model of a Spanish warship, which they then toted along with them. The episode ended with a challenge to somehow make their bikes amphibious in order to carry them to a limestone islet bar.
Since the majority of Westerners-- thanks to an overwash of sixties culture--tend think of Vietnam as a dastardly jungle, the program has us at an advantage: Some of the scenery in Vietnam is unexpectedly spectacular, with unspoiled lagoons, dramatic mountains, and cliff after cliff of green vistas. Inquisitive locals, game to put up with the odd Brits, were also often featured.
A US version of Top Gear with Adam Corolla is now in "save" mode on a Netflix queue near you. But without the British hosts in the driver's seats, it's tough to imagine pulling off the same charming blend of snark and awe.
