As another Formula One winter break enters the calendar, Netflix took to their yearly tradition of releasing a new season of Drive to Survive. The show's most recent season follows aspects of the 2023 Formula One race season. Once again, the reception to the show has been polarizing and so it seems best to give a review of all ten episodes in order to see why the show is so divisive every year.
The divide between viewers usually stems from the shows now recognisable formula: recap clips, pit box insights, and ‘state of the art’ commentary. Unfortunately, those who already did not like the show can expect to hold this position for the time being because Netflix decided to stick with what they know. Viewers were presented with ten episodes that followed the same plot: A teams introduction, their problem at the start of the season, idle chit chat about said problem, and then the Team Principle claiming they can fix it. While this formula was completely squeezed dry during the season, Will Buxton (the shows patent commentator) made the most of it, claiming “They (Haas) didn’t even bring a knife to a gunfight, they brought a spoon.”
If you put the safety net formula to one side, this seemingly puts the spotlight on four teams out of the ten: Alpha Tauri, Alpine, Ferrari, and Mercedes. Each got two episodes dedicated to them this season. The first of the four to see the spotlight was Alpha Tauri. “Fall From Grace” quickly introduces and then says farewell to Ricciardo’s replacement- Nyck de Vries. The rookie was pitted against Alpha Tauri veteran Yuki Tsunoda as he tried to get to grips with Formula One. This ultimately ended in disaster as his ‘experience’ could not prepare him. “Three’s a Crowd” sees the fallout of Ricciardo’s Dutch injury. Alpine’s double feature is far lest varied; both “Civil War” and “C’est la Vie” focus on the rivalry between Gasly and Ocon. Mercedes first episode “Leap of Faith” focuses entirely on Lewis’s contract as the season comes to an end. As Mercedes talk about endings, Ferrari’s episode focuses on the beginning of new Team Principle Fred Vassuer as he tries to bring Ferrari back to their glory. The final episode for the two is conjoined, focusing on the rivalry for P2 in the Constructors Championship across Las Vegas and Abu Dhabi.
The remaining episodes were dedicated to Mclaren, Williams, Aston Martin, and Haas (Williams and Haas sharing an episode). Similarly to Ferrari, Mclaren aimed to recover from the previous season. However, it became clear this would be a struggle as Mclaren struggled to build a strong car until updates were added during the season. Aston Martin opened the season, focusing on Lance Stroll’s recovery after his wrist and foot injury. Ultimately, Stroll makes it back into an F1 car in time for the season to begin. Like the final episode between Mercede and Ferrari, “The Last Chapter” focuses on the rivalry between Williams and Haas, in which Williams come out on top.
While it may seem that the season was packed, there was a significant amount that Netflix did not feel the need to include. 2023 was Red Bull’s most dominant season, with them coming out on top, however there was not a moment in the show dedicated to said topic. Similarly, a moment reflective of Barcelona 2016 for Mercedes in Qatar was overlooked.
Overall, Drive to Survive season six stuck to what it knows: cookie cutter commentary, secondary plot points and drama. However poor the show may be, there is something charming about seeing the same content regurgitated months later, in a slightly less educated format.