Top Boy Season 3 Review – A tumultuous but enjoyable swan song

Episode Guide

Step Back -| Review Score – 3.5/5
The Tour -| Review Score – 4/5
Birthday Party -| Review Score – 3/5
The Food Is Killing Us -| Review Score – 3.5/5
Has It Come To This -| Review Score – 4/5
If We Are Not Monsters -| Review Score – 4.5/5

If there’s one phrase that encapsulates Top Boy’s illustrious run across both Channel 4 and Netflix, it’s this – Violence begets violence. The five seasons (3 as Netflix, 2 as Summerhouse) have seen a lot of ups and downs along the way, with escalating violence and feuds ever since Dushane and Sully decided to dive head-first into the drug game. And now, season 3 reaches fever pitch and confirms, once and for all, that those in Summerhouse will never be the same again. 

It’s a pity then that this message is condensed and squeezed into a measly 6 episode run. There’s a lot that could have been mined from the character drama and issues that bubble up over the chapters we do get, and in many ways, it’s ripped away just as things are starting to get interesting.

Sully’s decision to kill Jamie in cold blood at the end of season 2 causes rippling effects across the entire criminal landscape. With Sully now stepping up as top dog, Dushane decides to double-down on a life without crime, choosing to support Shelley in her endeavours. Unfortunately, circumstances bring Sully and Dushane back into the same field again.

Dushane is double-crossed and loses his money, while Sully finds himself in hot water with new criminal players in town – the Irish.

Both of these storylines run parallel and intertwine together in equal doses, while extra subplots come and go through the episodes. Alongside this, there’s an on-running narrative with Stef trying to get his head around his brother being killed by Sully, while simultaneously finding solace in Erin.

Erin’s mum, Mandy, has a far more prominent role this year as she ends up playing both the peacekeeper and voice of reason for many characters. One of those happens to be Jaq, who finds herself conflicted for large periods of these 6 episodes. She’s torn between her loyalty for Dushane and Sully, as well as being there for her sister. And this causes some devastating consequences down the line.

Unfortunately, these ideas are not executed as effectively aa they could have been. The Irish, for example, could have been a really interesting angle to explore but the way this is wrapped up is abrupt and incredibly disappointing. There are loose ends and a surprising amount of contrivances involved with this, which works at odds to the drama involving Dushane and his money, which has a lot of tension around it.

Despite this though, the final episode does bring things together in a really satisfying and shocking way. I won’t reveal what happens, but suffice to say that the earlier message about violence leading to more violence absolutely rings true here. The final shot of the series is likely to go down in the same way that The Sopranos did; you’ll either love it or you’ll hate it. Personally, we loved it. It’s certainly not perfect, but that final episode feels like the perfect way to send off these characters into the sunset.

Feel Free To Check Out More Of Our TV Show Reviews Here!