This Netflix original series brings quality to reality television and maybe an answer to the age-old question: Which is the fastest car? Ladies and gentlemen, place your bets….

But before you do, there is a twist to the show.

The title of the fastest car held by supercars is contested by some very unexpected contenders, known as “sleepers”. These underdogs are more built than bought. Some custom made cars may not look like much, but they might be hiding a surprising secret under the hood. The reality-show takes you behind the scenes and offers an exclusive look on how to make a car your own.

So, yes, Netflix’s Fastest Car is about cars, but even more so it’s about passion

Sleepers versus Supercars

Fastest Car Start Dawn
via netflix.com

The show was created by Scott Weintrob and produced in collaboration with Conde Nast Entertainment and Large Eyes. What was to become Netflix's first international automotive series, premiered on April 6, 2018, with a thrilling first season. So far there are two seasons out there and fans are on the lookout for a third.

Related: 10 Best Netflix Car Shows All Enthusiasts Should Watch

The whole show is based on the premise of David vs. Goliath, sleeper car vs. supercar. So, most of the 40-52 minute episode is spent showing the creation of these Davids and offer an in-depth view of the creators’ backstories. But by carefully scaling these two focus points, it becomes evident that one outweighs the other. The show is more about the people than the cars, which gives it a wider appeal, but it’s not advertised that way.

On the bright side, unlike many reality shows, it doesn’t try to build up the drama by having the contestants spending all of their time together, to have overblown beef between the racers. This doesn’t mean there isn’t plenty of drama, though, as they tend to pick contestants with very intense backstories, which makes it fall back into the all too familiar reality show cliché. So, if you are dreaming about being on the show, make sure you tick the box for a heartwarming (or heartbreaking) backstory.

Netflix Fastest Car Underdog
via: thedrive.com

There is a lot of build-up leading to the actual race, a quarter-mile showdown that lasts approximately 10 seconds. But sometimes it is worth the wait, especially when you are greeted by interesting scenery. See for yourself…

Season 1 featured the following drag strips: Barstow-Daggett Airport in San Bernardino County (episodes 1, 2, 5, 7), Caddo Mills, Texas (episode 3), California, Calverton Executive Airpark in Calverton, New York (episode 4), Coleman A. Young International Airport in Detroit, Michigan (episode 6), El Mirage Lake dry lake bed in the Mojave Desert, within San Bernardino County, California (episode 8).

Season 2 visited these drag strips: Sebring International Raceway in Sebring, Florida (episode 1), the decommissioned airfield at Marine Corps Air Station El Toro near Irvine, California, (episodes 2, 4, 5, 7), Greenville, South Carolina (episodes 3, 6).

Related: Watch A McLaren GT Take On A Lamborghini Huracan At The Drag Strip

By the end of every episode, the car that wins a round moves on to the championship, which takes place in the last episode of the season. Of course, there is extra pressure and more tension at the battle of the greats.

Celebrity Apparitions

Netflix Fastest Car Aventador-S-Passione
via: blog.dupontregistry.com

The show portrays the supercar drivers as the top dogs to be taken down by the sleeper car drivers. With this setup, it would have been very easy for the producers to pick supercar drivers who were all villainous, but instead of going that route, the producers went with a wide assortment of drivers on that end, just as they did with the sleeper car drivers.

Supercar drivers range from the easy to root against Pepper Yandell, a car photographer who drives a borrowed Lamborghini Huracan, to the hard to root against Debbie Forman (aka Batgirl) who drives her Lamborghini Aventador SV, which has been stylized into a Batmobile that she drives around to charity events for kids with cancer dressed as Batgirl.

Related: Batmobile: The 10 Best Versions of Batman's Rides, Ranked

Meanwhile, the sleeper car drivers typically have pretty tragic background stories and they have either gotten into cars or dove further into their car obsessions as a way to cope with tragedy. Ranging from Corey Caouette who was paralyzed after a fall and had to modify his 1927 Dodge hot rod to make it hand-controlled, to Stefan Sliz who drives a 1987 Ford Thunderbird, which is dedicated to his best friend and brother-in-law, Blake Williams, who was killed in a drag racing accident.

The Future?

Netflix Fastest Car Poster Blue
via: Netflix.com

The future is uncertain. The big question now is will there be a season 3? While there is no official statement about this yet, we are surely keeping our fingers crossed for a return. However, considering the current COVID-19 pandemic sweeping through the world, this will also probably have an influence over the coming season. The best we can hope for, under the present circumstances, is for the next season to air sometime in September 2021.

Contrary to what you might expect from the title, the thing that matters least about the show is which car is the fastest. The real story behind Netflix’s Fastest Car is the story of the people behind the cars and how to build your dream with your own hands.

Next: 20 Things Fans Should Know About Netflix's Fastest Car