Top Boy – Picture: Channel 4
Fans of Top Boy had a disappointing start to the year with some of the original show removed from Netflix and likely more to follow. Season 1 of Top Boy: Summerhouse is no longer on Netflix globally.
Beginning its life on British television on Channel 4, Top Boy is beloved crime drama series created by Ronan Bennett. It ran for two seasons on the UK channel before eventually being canceled.
You can see an excellent breakdown of the history of the show via Netflix’s Still Watching Netflix channel. After 6 years of being canceled, the show eventually received a revival at Netflix thanks to an unlikely source. Drake.
The show is returning for a second full season at Netflix (technically season 4) in 2022 with the new season having filmed throughout 2021.
Full Removal from Netflix Innevitable?
When Netflix revived the show they notably did not add the new season to the current show’s page despite technically being the third season.
Instead, Netflix renamed the first two seasons as Top Boy: Summerhouse with Channel 4 branding and gave the new season its own title entirely as just Top Boy.
This is the first time Netflix has done this for a revival. If we look at Black Mirror (similarly acquired from Channel 4 although ownership is somewhat different) all seasons both old and new were and continue to be listed together. Likewise, shows like Lucifer and Designated Survivor are too.
This suggests us to us that Channel 4 always had the intention of removing the first two seasons from Netflix at some point.
It’s also worth pointing out that while it’s not recommended to start from Netflix’s season first, it is possible to do so and skip the first two seasons. Again, not recommended but eventually, this is going to be the only option it would seem.
Netflix lost a number of show’s early seasons at the start of the year. The US lost all of the early seasons of The Great British Baking Show while most Netflix regions internationally lost early seasons of Heartland.
Will you miss Top Boy: Summerhouse when it’s removed completely from Netflix? Let us know in the comments down below.