Channel 4
Nature abhors a vacuum and you know who else does? The users and suppliers of illegal narcotics. Top Boy‘s first episode climax created such a vacuum with the shooting of Irish Joe. Gentlemen of the criminal fraternity will look to fill that vacuum with the quickness. Albanians stole the Irishman’s drugfood after shooting him meaning Dushane‘s grip on the drug trade on the estate looks to be slipping. Trevor is angry about his food being late and a revenge hit on the Albanians is aborted after Dushane realises they have strength in numbers. This could be a tricky one.
Also having an eventful week is Sully who’s still palling around with Psycho Mike. In an always welcome development in this economy they get an offer of work – kill Sully’s cousin Jermaine Newton for £9000. A capital idea they say but as is so often the way with money fuelled murderous employment the caper doesn’t go smoothly. After kidnapping him and telling him it’ll cost £20,000 to cancel the hit they have to wait around for him to raise the money. Jahmene’s fam find out about his abduction and seem to be riding towards the rescue. How could this have happened? Sully had his best man Psycho Mike on the case. Oh right.
Down at the bottom of the pecking order things are looking bad for Gem when bad Vietnamese Chinaman Vincent makes him deliver a package to a Chinese Chinaman. Vietnamese Chinamen are some of the worst Chinamen you will ever encounter and if Plop Boy does nothing else but inform the public of this fact then it’s been a worthwhile venture.
Vietnamese Chinamen are some of the worst Chinamen you will ever encounter and if Plop Boy does nothing else but inform the public of this fact then it’s been a worthwhile venture.
Among the other kids Michael, Nevaeh and R’Marni go shoplifting and it’s future De Montfort University alumnus Michael who gets nabbed by security and it’s him carrying a load of crack and heroin that he has to explain away to the police. It takes about 30 seconds for him to fold under questioning and mention Dushane’s name. Information about Kamale‘s murder quickly follows. Then when he comes back he loses a big pile of drugs to the little phone thief kid. That boy’s going to be a terrible disappointment to everyone – he’ll fit in just fine at De Montfort.
Then when he comes back he loses a big pile of drugs to the little phone thief kid. That boy’s going to be a terrible disappointment to everyone – he’ll fit in just fine at De Montfort.
Lisa meanwhile seems close to another nervous breakdown when she learns that developers are buying up the entire street and that the way her business will be developed is the way Max Spielman develop photos – ineptly, expensively and leading to their inevitable destruction. We live in a world of people perpetually surprised by the effects of advanced capitalism, fam.
Lisa’s business will be developed the way Max Spielman develop photos – ineptly, expensively and leading to their inevitable destruction.
It’s a rough old week for Dushane. With Irish Joe paralysed in hospital he’ll need to adopt new strategies, make new allies, formulate the kind of a five-year plan Stalin and the inhabitants of Dragons’ Den seem to approve of so much¹. At least he gets to bang his solicitor Rhianna but even she’s giving him backtalk and tells him that his position as plop boy on the estate merelymeans that he’s the king of a shit hole in a manner oddly reminiscent of Simon O’Donnell addressing Joe Joyce and telling him he’s “the king of dog shite”.
It’s tough at the top, boy.
The verdict: Look out Dushane – he’s Irish!
Marks out of 10: 7.5
¹ On current form if he spits some bars over some wack beat boxing they’ll offer £250,000 for 1% equity in his chocolate fireguard enterprise.
