It has been a few years since I'd watched the previous seasons of Top Boy, but my notes on those seasons reminded me that I was not taken with the hype, and felt it needed more substance to prevent it feeling like a superficial affair. The third season confirms that opinion by doing just that and being much better than the initial two seasons as a result. This season picks up years after the events of the previous, but it is not essential that you have watched those to be able to jump into this one.
In terms of plot, it is not a wholly easy mix of street-level realism, and American-gangster excess. In some ways it feels very British, very gritty, and depressingly realistic; but then in other ways it offers stylised scenes of bloody violence that seem more at home in a Scorsese film than it does on a London estate. Although having said that, I'm very far removed from that world so what I call realistic might be nonsense, and cinematic executions might be the norm around blocks of flats. Regardless, as a piece of television it is pretty terrific, and I was really surprised how strong it was. It treats a lot of its characters as people, and gives them time to be people - even when it essentially is using them as plot devices, it gives them moments and story. The lead characters are good examples of this, and the writers don't let our "heroes" just become stars and all-powerful, even if the overall narrative does need a bit of that.
There is a lot of money in the production, and it looks terrific; use of locations, use of cityscapes, soundtrack, costume etc. Behind this the crafting is equally strong, with the edit in particular bringing out a good sense of pace. Performances do justice to the space and fleshed out characters they are given, and are generally strong. Walters and Kano outshine the cliché one usually assumes of the rapper-turned-actor; although Kano is by far the stronger of the two. Ward is strong opposite them, with plenty of conflict but yet bravado about him. Romulus is cleverly understated, while Jobson makes a big impact with an upcoming character. Many supporting roles (including the two young kids) are good, and although there are 2D clichés and stereotypes, they tend to be effective in the limited role they play, and the show is better for having them driving the narrative.
A strong season and one sure to bring me back to a fourth if it comes. I had come into it not sure what to expect, and not particularly thinking it would do much more than the previous seasons, but the show steps up in almost every way and is engaging and tense in its grittiness and its excess, but yet recognisably human in its characters - from where it takes its strength.
