With “Top Boy,” viewers are drawn into a drama series on Netflix that showcases poignant destinies and lawless life on the streets. MeinMMO author Christos isn’t fond of Netflix series, but this one kept him occupied for days.
What kind of series is it? The series is called “Top Boy” and takes place in the fictional ghetto “Summerhouse” in London. However, it is not the predecessor from 2011 but the continuation that was produced and continued on Netflix in 2019.
Top Boy tells the story of young adults and teenagers who grow up in this ghetto and live together in social housing. The residents are mostly Jamaican immigrants who are not or barely supported by the system in London.
The series takes a different approach, as it not only demonstrates the harshness of the streets and gangs but also the fates and suffering that their families have to endure. At first, I thought “Top Boy” would be a cliché-laden collection of wannabe gangsters showing how cool it is on the streets, but I was truly mistaken.
Exciting tension with hard reality
What makes the series so good? I am a fan of series that show realistic fates and demonstrate how hard life can be anyway. In the case of “Top Boy,” however, I never thought that the series could make me feel so invested.
It is mainly the tension surrounding the characters, who join and develop further with each episode. Jamie, one of the main characters of the series, plays a central role. He wants to support his two younger brothers and provide for them in Summerhouse, but this is only possible with his gang and drug dealing.
Since both parents have passed away, he sees no other choice but the street. Thus, he seizes the opportunity and tries to become the next “Top Boy,” that is, the boss of Summerhouse, and to decimate the competition on the streets.
However, the focus of the story is not only on drug dealing; it also includes the backstories of the individual characters. Each character leads a kind of double life: Jamie, for example, tries to earn money on the street while simultaneously keeping his brother away from the harsh reality.
Suffering comes ever closer, as families are either harassed by the Immigration Authority or come under the radar of other gangs, even though they are not responsible for it.
It is a balancing act between hard reality, the law of the street, and the sacrifice of doing everything for family, even if blood ultimately sticks to the hands. The series remains exciting and surprises with further fates and twists that one could not foresee.
Still, I do not think much of Netflix series, as I often felt they were produced without care or depth, but in the case of “Top Boy,” I make an exception. I would even say it is the best series I have watched in 2023, and the good thing is, it also got its concluding season this year.
So, anyone who wants to watch three seasons full of thrills without an annoying cliffhanger should not miss “Top Boy,” and don’t worry: the predecessor is not necessary to understand the continuation.
Our tech author Benedikt reports on his current series, but it goes in a completely different direction: A series on Netflix is so thrilling because it turns friends into bitter enemies
