There’s no question that Top Boy, with its powerhouse performances and portrayal of modern masculinity in London’s most deprived areas, has changed TV forever. But as the series concludes, it's more overt than ever that the show may be called Top Boy, but the heart of the show lies with its female characters.
If you’ve been watching Ronan Bennett's Top Boy: Summerhouse since it aired on the UK’s Channel 4 in 2011, there is an obvious difference in how the Netflix revival of the series portrays its female characters. The limited narratives for women in the original series led to the departure of Letitia Wright who played Chantelle in Season 1. Wright told Net-A -Porter, “I love it and respect what they’ve created, but I got consumed with the desire to show Black girls in a different light.” With the Netflix reboot, the series has matured and facilitates bringing women-led storylines to the forefront — giving them as much time to develop as those of the male characters.
SEE ALSO: 'Top Boy' Season 5 review: The powerful end this masterpiece of a series deservesRevived by Drake and Adel "Future" Nur in 2019 for Netflix, the show made a point of foregrounding women leads alongside protagonists Dushane and Sully (Ashley Walters and Kane Robinson). Recruiting directors like Myriam Raja and Nia DaCosta for the Netflix reboot didn't hurt either. There's Jaq (Jasmine Jobson), a loyal member of the Summerhouse crew who repeatedly shows that women can do and be anything, even in male-dominated settings. There's Shelley (Simbi Ajikawo aka Little Simz), a single parent and aspiring business owner who wants more for herself and her child, while creating a safe space for the women around her. Their characters are vital to Top Boy cementing its brilliance as a complex story of multiple perspectives. It's as if Netflix's larger platform encouraged Bennett and co-writer Daniel West to feel comfortable exploring the compelling experiences of women on key issues such as homophobia, domestic abuse, and postpartum depression.
Lauryn’s storyline is extremely important in Top Boy
Saffron Hocking as Lauryn. Credit: Ali Painter/NetflixLauryn’s (Saffron Hocking) story throughout the series has been one of the most heartbreaking to witness. We’ve followed Jaq's sister's transformation from a confident, funny, life of the party who thinks she looks like Cardi B because she got her nails done, to a more reserved, solitary woman who has endured domestic abuse and postpartum depression. In Season 5, Hocking delivers another standout performance as she continues to show the physical and mental nuances of recovery from abuse and trauma, and her harmful (and ultimately, fatal) coping mechanism.
In Top Boy's fourth season, Curtis' (Howard Charles) manipulative, controlling behaviour toward Lauryn is a main storyline, as he monitors and restricts her movements, outfits, and phone usage until her life is unrecognizable. Though Curtis is gone in Season 5, we see the lasting effects of his abuse as Lauryn suffers from depression and psychological distress, notably feeling unable to connect with her child and wondering if he looks too much like her abusive ex. Even in the moments she finds herself able to make lighthearted jokes about her son always being hungry, her mood instantly changes when Jaq suggests she try breastfeeding, immediately answering, “No, not today." Though by no means the only way, breastfeeding is often hailed as a key way for mothers to bond with their newborn. And though there is insufficient evidence on whether breastfeeding is associated with postpartum depression, Lauryn’s refusal functions in the show to depict her struggle to connect with her son.
Lauryn’s storyline is extremely important in Top Boy, given the recent increase in conversations around Black women’s maternity and postpartum depression — from the fact that Black women are four times more likely than white women to die giving birth and postpartum depression being 1.6 times higher for Black women than white women and also less likely to get treatment for it.
A rare moment of joy for Lauryn and Jaq. Credit: Ali Painter/NetflixOne of the most powerful ways the show depicts Lauryn’s struggle is with her final day spent with Jaq, before she tragically dies from a drug overdose. We see Lauryn actually happy again as she reunites with her friends at the nail salon, gets a job, and finally figures out a name for her son — a name no one will ever know. For a day, Lauryn regains a fleeting sense of control and empowerment. It’s a realistic depiction of someone recovering from abuse and navigating postpartum depression because there’s no such thing as perfect progress. One happy day doesn’t mean you’re 100 percent better and will never experience a bad moment again. So, when we see Lauryn break her promise to Jaq, and fatally return to using drugs as a way to cope, the show reminds us of the complicated realities of healing.
Jaq makes family number one in Top Boy, despite everything
Jasmine Jobson as Jaq. Credit: Ali Painter/NetflixSimilarly, Jaq’s storyline this season is equally emotive, as she struggles to process her own responsibility connected to Lauryn's death. Throughout her time on the series, Jaq has been loyal to Summerhouse drug leaders Dushane and Sully, to the extent that in Season 3, she assaulted Lauryn after she accidentally leaked gang secrets. But for Jaq, family is always number one.
We see it in how she interacts with her partner Becks (Adwoa Aboah) and how she tries to help her sister the best way she can — even though she's limited by the street code she was brought up on, only speaking about feelings on superficial levels. Though she's fiercely protective of Lauryn, when her sister tries telling her how hard it has been, Jaq responds, “I get it. I do, but I’mma be real with you, Lauryn. I ain’t really tryna hear all that.”
For so long, Jaq has been the stoic but emotionally unavailable protector of those she actually cares about, and the fact that she feels like she’s failed her family packs a punch for her. It showcases how Jaq’s vulnerability has always bubbled under the surface, but in Season 5, episode 5, we see it explode as she crumbles with guilt over the real impact of drugs on people's lives. Jaq's subsequent decisions mark a change in Top Boy, as the show asks its characters and viewers whether all these characters do to be on top is worth it.
Top Boy Season 5 highlights the power of women in communities
NoLay as Mandy. Credit: Ali Painter/NetflixThe female-led storylines of Top Boy allow the show to depict more than just stories about drugs and violence. They explore how the constructs of society, in which the lower classes are predominantly affected by social issues such as gentrification and threats of deportation, force people to take whatever opportunities are available to them to make money quickly and support their families. The final season highlights the power of women in communities, something that's been prevalent throughout the whole series. We see the devastating social issues that people face on a daily basis dramatically played out onscreen, those that overwhelmingly affect women, with characters like Ats' mum Amma (Jolade Obasola) who loses her son in Season 4 because he starts to sell drugs as a way to support their family while she can no longer work due to threats of deportation. In Season 5, Kieron's mum Dianna (Michelle Asante) watches her son be forcibly removed from their home by immigration officers and almost deported, despite communicating with the Home Office. There are characters like Prisha, who, in episode 5, accepts her eviction from Summerhouse after relentless threats from developers. “We're tired, Mandy," she says. "It’s so much stress. I can’t do this anymore.”
There’s also power in the actors cast to portray these women on Top Boy. Take Mandy (Natalie Bianaca Athanasiou aka NoLay), for example. Given a much more prominent role in Season 5, Mandy changes her life around to look after her teen daughter Erin (Savanah Graham) and become a leading community activist seeking better for the people of Summerhouse, notably steering the protest to save Kieron (Joshua Blissett) from deportation, alongside Jaq — there's even a huge artwork painted of Jaq and Mandy on the Summerhouse wall afterwards. Offscreen, NoLay is a rapper whose music talks about speaking up for women. Just her presence in the rap industry, where women continually aren’t acknowledged as highly as men, is inspirational. Likewise, this is something Little Simz, who plays Shelley, raps about in her song "Venom": “It’s a woman’s world, so to speak /pussy, you sour /never givin’ credit where it’s due ’cause you don’t like pussy in power.” It’s empowering to see how Top Boy has used these women’s real-life experiences to channel their characters' motivations.
The mural seen in Season 5, episode 1 of Mandy and Jaq. Credit: Ali Painter/NetflixThe range of female characters on the show from Shelley to Jaq and Lauryn remind us of the nuances embedded in women's experiences. Just because they exist as part of the same criminal underworld doesn’t make any of their experiences remotely close. But it does remind us that, behind all of these male characters, are the girlfriends, mothers, sisters, friends, daughters, and other women in their lives whom their criminal behavior and decisions affect.
This is particularly shown with characters like Shelley; after her plans to open a chain of beauty salons with Dushane fall through and his behaviour becomes erratic, she leaves him. Eventually, she tells him that she wasn’t with him for the money but refuses to stay because: “I’ll also always be second best. You love money and you love power. You’ve never had enough love left over for me.” Shelley may initially appear as a love interest for Dushane, but her role on the show develops and extends beyond that, even seeing her create a place of refuge, employment, and joy for the women in her community.
Simbi Ajikawo and Ashley Walters as Shelley and Dushane. Credit: Ali Painter/NetflixThe final season also reflects on the importance of young women. Erin’s (Savanah Graham) story with Stefan (Araloyin Oshunremi), while being the source of light-hearted moments, is also the source of important discussions around sexual health, empowerment and respect, and combating grief — especially when a loved one is taken away violently.
Top Boy leaves Black British culture on a high as it tackles important social issues and provides brilliant entertainment. But when we witness the brutal death of Sully in the final scene, and the distinctive swag of his killer walking away, it becomes clear that Top Boy has been driven by its strong female characters — who, in the end, are the ones who come out on top.
