Why Top Boy Was Declining Long Before Dushane And Sully Were Killed

Top Boy’s decline didn’t just commence with the final episode—it arguably began after Channel 4 axed the series. The latest instalment, in particular, solidified the show’s downward trajectory, leaving fans thoroughly disappointed by its conclusion. The reasons behind Top Boy’s decline extend well before the demise of Dushane and Sully, highlighting why the C4 rendition consistently outshines Drake and Netflix’s adaptation.

This article contains spoilers for Top Boy Series 5 (Netflix’s Top Boy Series 3)

I have been a big fan of Top Boy since 2017 when I first watched it, as I thoroughly enjoyed the harsh reality of urban gang violence portrayed in London. Much like shows and movies which had come out before like Kidulthood, Top Boy was not alone in its somewhat unique genre.

There were other series that had come out which were similar to it, but Top Boy did isolate itself as a standalone series featuring several prominent actors.

Ashley Walters, who stars as Dushane Hill, was becoming popular, having starred in Bullet Boy, Sket and many others.

Kane Robinson, also known as Kano, was well-known for his musical career and when the two came together for Top Boys debut, fans were in no way disappointed.

I loved seeing these two in the earlier beginning series, their chemistry and character depth were exceptional and made the story of Top Boy ever more believable. So what was this version of Top Boy like and why was it so good?

Why Top Boy Summerhouse was better

Top Boy’s story is simple, Dushane and Sully are part of a firm or gang which controls an estate called Summerhouse. The current leader, or man running Summerhouse is called Lee.

At the beginning of the series, Dushane and Sully’s team is robbed by a rival gang and they are immediately pressed about the money by Lee.

The narrative was quickly set up

He offers little sympathy and orders them to repay the rest of the money immediately, even though he is technically running Summerhouse (to which Sully and Dushane protest) – this leads to Dushane and Sully pondering on the thought of talking to Lee’s boss, or even running the estate themselves.

This sets up the initial main narrative in the few minutes of the series, and nothing is left out when we are shown where the series is headed. Ra’Nell’s mum is heavily sick, and he cares for her on his own, much like many a child in London to disenfranchised families.

His friend Gem starts working for Sully and Dushane later on in the first series as a drug dealer and this leads to many problems. Ra’Nell’s mum seems to be delirious and extremely weak, and his constant care is needed.

In this period, Ra’Nell’s mother is placed under care, and when the social services worker inquires about any children, she fabricates the truth. This stems from her desire to shield her son from being placed in care and to prevent their separation, despite the inherent risks involved.

Gem’s boss is Dris, an unforgiving enforcer for Sully and Dushane whom he learns to fear. The interactions we got between characters were amazing and particularly felt real – like when Dris punches the teacher who tries to intervene when he is pressuring Gem at his school.

The newer versions of the series reflect its influence from Drake & Netflix. This sadly began to infect it and disrupt its originality.

It was Drake who brought the rights to the series and convinced Netflix to revive the show!

London gang reality doesn’t align with Drake’s background—he hails from Toronto. Ashley Kano’s release likely coincided with the news of Netflix taking a break from Top Boy.

Despite their lack of overt joy, the subsequent transformation of Top Boy into a generic, political, and frankly disappointing franchise became evident and unbearable.

Simple music, simple approach

When transitioning between scenes, one thing I started to notice in the Netflix versions of Tob Boy where its reliance or choice to include mainstream rap and drill music. Now the reason that we didn’t see this much in the first & second series of Top Boy was most likely to do with its budget.

With the new Netflix version, we unfortunately began to see a rise in this annoying feature and it completely takes you away from the reality of the scene.

In the earlier series, the music is subtle, appropriate, and straightforward. It doesn’t attempt to divert our attention from the main narrative or the mood of the current scene.

Unlike the frequent references and incorporation of modern rap and drill music in the Netflix version, this approach is not preferred. The earlier versions employed a broader range of musical genres to seamlessly transition and evoke specific emotions in connection to the scene.

And the great thing is that the first series experiments with lots of kinds of music from a few different genres. This subtle approach makes each scene slightly more unique.

Superior dialogue

Here’s a quote from the middle of Episode 1 from Top Boy Series 1, it showcases Dushane explaining to Lee’s boss why he should run Summerhouse:

“I want a good life. I was born and bred in Summerhouse, 26 years old. I’ve got nothing else to be execpt this.”

Dushane Hill

This is said as part of Dushane’s face is covered by the light, almost concealing one side of him. This is as he explains his ambitions to Lee’s boss. It’s a very great moment and almost foreshadows his legacy.

Gem

I think Gem is one of the best characters from the earlier Series as he’s used in a way to portray the innocence and naivety of a lot of the youth within England’s cities who join gangs with the hope of becoming rich or receiving protection.

The idea of his innocence and childlike tendencies is his dog, which is used as a plot device to further his character development. When he is picked up by Dushane, he asks if he can bring his dog, to which they tell him he can’t.

These tendencies are also reinforced only moments later when they joke with him and ask him if he’s ever been to the countryside.

Now this subtle question is used once again to show his ignorance and wholesomeness. This is because what they are asking him is if he has ever been to the countryside to sell drugs.

To this Gem replies that he went once to Hampshire with his “Nan” (Grandmother).

The beauty of this simple interaction is that it cements our perception of him early on. This is so when bad things happen to him and he grows as a character we understand that he’s just a kid and does not deserve it. Dushane and Sully’s influence on him shaped his growth going forward.

Without giving too much away there’s a scene midway through the first series where Gem says something like: “Why would they do that to me? Dushane and Sully know I’d never betray them, I look up to them” – he’s loyal to them but very blindly and naively, not realizing they’re using him for their gain.

Lisa

Another character who gets overlooked is Ra’Nell’s mum, whose performance I thought was amazing given he co-star (RaNell) just didn’t cut it in my opinion.

At the beginning of series 1, she is extremely sick and bedbound and is looked after by RaNell.

However, later on, she is admitted to a care facility and looked after by an old friend, who goes to check on RaNell from time to time.

By series 2 she builds up enough energy to be able to return home and look after her son, wherein she finds herself in a problem with the landlord.

Her unrelenting effort to fight for her business adds to her resistance as a character, and she is meant to symbolise the many single parents who bring up kids in London and work jobs.

Uniformity of most of the characters

Most of the original characters from the beginning series of Top Boy were very well-classed. They didn’t look like Super Models and looked just like normal teens and young men and women.

Their hair was messy, they didn’t have any if not a tiny bit of makeup on and looked like the type of kids you’d expect to see drug running in London.

It sounds kind of harsh to say but they didn’t have much about them. They just looked like regular kids, and that really should have been the aim. Not mainstream actors and actresses who look like they belong in a JD sports ad, or the background of one of Central Cee’s music videos.

The issue I had with a lot of the cast for the new series is they just didn’t look like how you expect London gang members to look. I’m not trying to throw shade at their acting abilities.

However, when they all look like they could be in Britain’s Next Top Model, it’s tough to believe these people are hardened gang members who go around shooting and stabbing their rivals.

Take a look at a search result from a simple Google search relating to Gang members being sentenced in London:

What we got in Top Boy were a lot of wannabe gangsters. They looked like they belonged at a Drake concert more than the vice-ridden streets of London.

I get this isn’t a great argument, as their acting abilities should be more important than the way they look. However, a lot of new series characters possessed poor acting as well.

Jaq, Si, Stefan and many of the new Summerhouse crew who replaced the original OG’s such as Dris are all great examples of this. The worst part was that many of them (most notably Stefan) possessed terrible acting, and this made it even harder to buy them as characters.

I know many people who hated Pebbles as a character, so it’s not just me and the replacement of the older characters, it’s a shame this is where Top Boy ended up.

I want you to cast your mind back to the Channel 4 version from 2011. Remember Kamale? and Dris, as well as Hasan? and try your best to compare them the the newer characters from the Netflix version.

Like I keep saying, it’s not like they were on another level, it’s that they were more believable.

Top Boy’s corporate turn: Why Dushane and Sully had no impact

Top Boy started on Channel 4 in 2011, but after two seasons it was axed by the broadcaster. The reasons for this are unknown, and it could be anything. However, in 2019, a new series was released, and this was all to do with Netflix and the popular musical artist Drake.

The series initially grabbed my attention because of how real it felt. There were no flashy shots or stupid soundtracks, and of course, the series was as original as it could get.

Much like Death In Paradise, whose potential downfall I wrote about here: Is Time Running Out For Death In Paradise? – I think that the initial two series we got from Top Boy Summerhouse is the best version of it there will ever be.

This is the truth, and I cannot see it ever coming back. With Sully and Dushane’s death at the end of the Series, it did seal the nail in the coffin.

It’s similar to how Richard was killed off in Series 3 of Death In Paradise, and Dwanye’s poorly done departure much later. After these events, the series was just not the same.

Top Boy Summerhouse will always be better

To understand my point about why Dushane and Sully had such a good run in Top Boy Summerhouse, we have to understand what the difference is between the two. It’s all to do with Netflix and their influence.

You see there is no doubt that Channel 4 let the producers for the first series have much creative freedom, and sadly when it didn’t get much attention it was drawn back as the audience was too small.

Was it axed for no reason?

Although this may not have happened I’m confident it was similar. Wales Online reported that there was no real reason that Channel 4 provided when asked by writer Bennet. This was the response he gave:

“No answer came back to that, I didn’t understand it.” To this day to show’s creators have little idea why it was booted off the channel.”

So why decide to get rid of it? Well, I don’t know. However, I surmise that it was too niche for any worthwhile audition Channel 4 would be able to pull in.

Moving on Top Boy’s short stint was not over, and miraculously Drake announced a new series of this undying crime drama.

Finally, Sully and Dushane would feature again and we’d see a continuation of the series. This era of Top Boy was most likely the best of the series released from Netflix.

I know I’m not alone in my observation though, as even The Sun featured a piece mocking the ending of the series: Top Boy fans rip into Netflix’s ‘flop’ ending. Thinking of watching Top Boy Series 1? Buy it on DVD here: Top Boy (Complete Seasons 1 & 2).

It all had to do with the way they decided to kill both Sully and Dushane. In the series before, Sully shoots Jamie.

Dushane and Sully’s fate

Dushane is essentially killed because he robs Jaq and makes off with the drugs she is carrying.

As a result of this, Sully executes Dushane after chasing after him. It’s a fitting but disappointing end for him.

After this, Sully is in a park, when he is approached by Jamie’s brother and gets a handgun pointed at him, thinking he will shoot, Sully tries to reason with him, and to his surprise, he is let go. As Sully gets into his car and sits down he is shot in the head and dies immediately.

In my opinion, Dushane and Sully’s fate was meant to symbolise the ever-ongoing cycle of gang violence in London.

No matter what you did, who you killed, how many people feared, respected, or loved you, you either ended up dead, bereaved or in prison.

Fitting end?

Let’s not forget that both are cold-blooded serial killers who deserve only the swift hand of Justice. Think of all the people they murdered over the years.

Remember Ra Nell’s mum’s friend who got shot by Sully in season 1? Or when they dug Kamale’s grave, buried alive in it, made him reveal the location of a safe house, then coldly executed him after he pleaded with him to let him go?

And you know what? That’s a powerful and important message to send because gang violence in London and other places is never-ending.

On top of this, knives being easy for even young boys to buy, the cycle of violence is never easy to break.

I understood and still enjoy what the ending was supposed to mean, however, that’s not my issue here. What was the point in their entire story if this is the culmination of both of their legacies?

What was their arc? Grew up in Summerhouse, sold some drugs, killed a few people, dead at 35?

Come on! I think we can do better than that, and the fans certainly did too.

The most recent series of Top Boy was mocked online. Fans expressed their displeasure with the ending of the much-loved series.

Better ending?

I think it would have been better if the two had ended up in prison. This would also be more satisfactory as it would symbolise that most people aren’t above the law.

Having both of them be killed in the space of minutes is maybe a more conclusive ending for them, and as I said, it completely seals the series’ fate.

There is no way it can return; maybe this was the showrunner’s ambition.

Why the Channel 4 version is superior

You’ve realised so far that my favoured version is the original, there is no hiding that. So why? Well, it’s simple. The Channel 4 version is authentic, original, and believable. It didn’t try to do too much or shy away from action or violence.

The Netflix version tried to do too much and live up to the previous series, whereas the original was experimental, authentic and emboldened because it wasn’t trying to prove anything, whereas the Netflix version was.

And you know what? – That does kind of make sense. If Top Boy had been slowly building up a reputation and then Drakey Boy found an old clip of it on Instagram and thought:

“Woah, this British gangster show is so cool, they sound awesome, I bet this is how it is in London man” – the crime drama I once loved was inevitably going to be more over the top with each new release.

In my opinion, this is what happened and is the main component as to why Dushane and Sully couldn’t save Top Boy. 

Think I’m giving him too much heat? Have a read of this article by the Guardian, which even though very much loathed by me, did a perfect job of explaining his influence in the series: Top Boy: ‘The show needed to come back’: how Drake rescued the druglords of Top Boy.

The problem is that by the time Modie escapes in series 2 of the Netflix series, the show is already going downhill, and it just gets progressively worse.

The characters, the set design, storylines, dialogue and especially believability. It becomes a joke, and as each series goes by, it tries more and more to convince us that it’s just like the old version.

However, with stupid music being played between every scene, characters pulling out guns over minor disputes, and a flimsy storyline to run on, this spelt the end for Top Boy in my opinion.

It’s very much like Death In Paradise with everything after series 2. It just wasn’t the same.

I know it’s a poor comparison, but if you’re thinking of bothering with the Netflix version if you’ve just finished series 1 and 2 of the Channel 4 version, here’s some advice. Don’t.

Dushane and Sully were the driving force behind Top Boy. Their brilliant chemistry, well-written dialogue, violent (but realistic) tendencies and unrelentless loyalty to their profession meant that you rooted for them even though they were scum bags who groomed children and killed and robbed people for money.

The Netflix version precipitated and cemented their downfall and that is why I despise it. Just like True Detective series 2, 3 and 4 for example.

If you enjoyed this analysis and opinion about the new series, please give this article a like and share it with your friend or on Reddit. If you disagree with me, please let me know in the comments below. I’d love to hear your thoughts.

References

• Top Boy Fans express displeasure with the newest series ending [TheSun.CO.UK]
• Bullet Boy [IMDB.COM]
• Sket [IMDB.COM]
• Kane Robinson [IMDB.COM]
• Channel 4 [GOV.UK]
• Drake [Wikipedia.ORG]
• Drake revives Top Boy through Netflix [Standard.CO.UK]