Just as I watched the last episode of Reacher and feared my television well was running dry, a new series of Bosch: Legacy arrived to make going to the gym less boring.
So begins another series in which the star bounds around saving the day, breaking a few rules/laws/bones as necessary, and ultimately gets paid badly or not at all for their trouble.
I wondered if it was just people like me who were drawn to this sort of story, but whether it’s Buffy or Ludwig, Harry Potter or Stranger Things, plus about eleventy-dozen superhero films, the theme is the same.
See also basically everything from The Littlest Hobo to James Bond. It’s a massively popular genre. Fact is, loads of us like a central character who’s not perfect but who knows what it takes to get things done and, once it’s all over, gets hardly any recognition.
Is this because it’s how we see, or would like to see, ourselves? Does it reflect our own personalities, even if our struggles are against jobsworths, unfair parking fines and computers saying no, rather than criminal masterminds? (I mean, same difference, right?)
And if that’s the case, I wonder whether that’s why, as many of us do, I find myself drawn to a certain kind of car: something a bit quirky, made by an underdog, probably not the best car around but, for all its failings, something with charm. A car with noble intentions, if such a thing is possible.
At the moment, I’m going through a phase of being asked what good cars I’ve driven recently. There have been a number of very respectable, very efficient and extremely effective ones.
And when it comes to the moment of answering, I often can’t remember a single one of them. I can, though, remember most of the miles I’ve driven in, say, a Noble M600, an Ineos Grenadier or a Morgan. Even a Citroën Ami. Or my own Audi A2 or old Land Rover Defender.
These cars are all flawed or compromised in some way or another (within reason: they haven’t murdered anyone for the greater good), but I find them more compelling than the squeaky clean, goody two-shoes, far more accomplished alternatives. Steve Cropley’s new Jeep Wrangler is another case in point.
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We all want to feel a bit special, I suppose.Even if subconsciously, we'd rather feel interesting than boring, which is natural enough.And we probably think it's more interestng to love a car that has its quirks and oddities and even failings, but does a few things exceptionally well, than a car that does everything well enough.Whether we do actually become more interesting by owning more unusual cars, or cars that suggest we are more concerned with getting a bit of oil on our hands and flies in our teeth than getting from A to B efficiently and dependably, is another matter altogether!
Agree Matt
I think imperfect cars (like my 2CV) appeal to enthusiasts whereas accomplished (but dull) cars appeal to those who just want to get from A to B