I for one am not particularly interested or thrilled about the prospect of Netflix Drive to Survive Season 4, but at the same time do realise the value of the series for Formula 1 and the new fans it is wanting to attract.
I only got to episode seven on the last one… Nevertheless, I acknowledge the PR spin that has attracted a great following for F1, especially in North America, which is good. Because it hopefully entices these new fans to study the sport further, beyond Netflix, and realise what Drive to Survive really is – a series that (overly?) dramatises an already extremely dramatic sport.
The drift into the unreal and fake is inevitable. While behind the scenes conversations and reactions – fly on the wall style – are riveting viewing, the narrative is questionable too often. But it sells F1 well.
At the same time, how do you make the Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton and their Mounting at Monza more exciting and dramatic than it was in real life? Ditto their entire feud filled contest. We shall see…
The Season 4 release date of March 11, coincides with day one of the final preseason test in Bahrain, the final curtain-raiser ahead of a new era for the sport, a new exciting future for F1 with so much to look forward to and to report on.
Yet set to overshadow all this positive and good stuff, Drive to Survive Season 4 comes along to scratch old wounds that should have been stitched up long ago and forgotten. Instead, we have a huge dose of over the top, over-dramatised regurgitation of 2021.
Question to Netflix and the Drive to Survive producers: Why so late?
Why allow what will be a very contentious series, amid the increasingly toxic Max-Lewis partisanism, to cloud what we have going forward, namely the new era for F1? New officials, new officiating, new rules new cars… A new page and the new excitement that comes with that.
Although it is all too late for this season, in the future why not premiere the series ahead of the first preseason F1 test? Or even this weekend, five days ahead of the final test?
I for one will find it tough to watch the series on release date as the focus will be on what’s going on in Bahrain. I already know and shelved away last year’s F1 season. To switch off and relax, Drive to Survive is not high on my view list when the couch beckons; Emily in Paris is more like it!
This is a shame because it would have been cool to finally nail that 2021 coffin lid closed around now (or a lot sooner) with a good old binge watch, process the Drive to Survive interpretation and put it to bed once and for all, with a flourish of Netflix poetic license.
And then a week to forget about it and focus on what is set to be an epic 2022 F1 season.
Thus for me, the far too late March 11 release date does F1 no favours at all. In fact, it is irresponsible too, considering the venom spewed up by that Abu Dhabi finale prior to Season 4 release.
Imagine the shitstorm when it releases because whatever conclusion Drive to Survive comes to will be slaughtered mercilessly by one half of the F1 fanbase and hailed gleefully by the other half, with their respective armies of keyboard warriors taking to social media cesspool to relive it all over again.
Not cool and ill-advised Netflix.