Boarders' season 2 character twist is bold – but could it spell trouble for its future?

After surviving one term at the prestigious St Gilbert's, Jaheim (Josh Tedeku), Leah (Jodie Campbell), Toby (Sekou Diaby), Femi (Aruna Jalloh) and Omar (Myles Kamwendo) are all back with fresh challenges awaiting them.

While the first season of the comedy-drama was very much centred on them all navigating this new world of the elite upper classes, the show's second outing doesn't let up on the drama as Carol Watlington-Geese (Niky Wardley) has been named acting headmistress and is intent on doing everything she can to get the quintet out of the school.

Each episode, like the first season, brings up new hilarious twists for the group and further exploration of their identities and hopes for the future.

But its the show's finale which packs quite the unexpected punch, as the decision of which two of our five boarders will be kicked out of the scholarship programme looms large in the not-so-far distance. While it could be dealt with like a dark cloud, it actually turns out to be a clever story device used to explore each of the main characters further.

We see how Leah furthers her algebra skills as she balances her activism, Femi discovers a love of drama, Jaheim steps up further into his Head Boy duties, Toby tries his best to bag rapper Unknown T for one of the school's major events and Omar becomes more deeply entrenched in the world of the Raisinettes. All done, really, to secure their place at the school.

But it's the finale that sees them all somewhat relinquish control over the decision-making process and choose to just kick back and have a good time at the makeshift spring ball, even if it happens to be their final time partying with everyone.

Much of the final episode of season 2 is centred around Jaheim, starting off with an awkward video call with his mother Grace – played beautifully and with real emotional depth by Wunmi Mosaku – and then descending as he's left to deal with the fallout of his fling with Florence (Rosie Graham) being exposed to everyone, including Beatrix (Tallulah Greive).

Somewhat the leader of the group, it's unsurprising that Jaheim would take centre stage in the final episode, especially as this season deals more with his personal life and the complicated past he has with his mother.

We see that he's notified along with Omar that they're to be the ones kicked out of St Gilbert's and so, just trying to live in the moment, Jaheim has fun with his friends after allowing his younger brother to spend the night at their mother's back in London.

In the background of the season, Jaheim has also been toying with the idea of applying to an American summer school programme, something his teacher Mackers (William Andrews) recommends him for. But we learn in the show's final moments that while Jaheim wasn't successful for an MIT placement, Mackers has referred him to Midwest, which is "equally as prestigious", he explains.

A place where he thinks Jaheim will shine, it does come with one big catch though – it's not a summer school placement but an exchange for one entire year, starting from next term.

And just like that, the second season is over and the credits roll. What a cliffhanger.

While the future of Boarders is yet to be confirmed, we can only hope for a third season and if it does go ahead, it looks as though Jaheim's future in the series remains uncertain. From a character point-of-view, fans will likely want the best for him, and if that means studying abroad in America for a year then 'that's the way the cookie crumbles', as they say.

But from a selfish fan point-of-view (aka this writer), I can't help but instantly think of how it will impact the show's dynamic moving forward. On one hand, the other boarders could have the best kind of opportunity for their own stories to be fleshed out more without Jaheim around. We could get further into Femi's family life, Leah's navigation of girlhood, what has made Toby so much of a hustler, or what looks to be quite the love triangle that Omar has found himself in.

But on the other hand, if the series is to take a trip stateside, it could lose the very essence of Boarders that has made it so special.

The warranted fanfare around Boarders is that it dissects the British class and educational systems in a hilarious way, poking fun at the ridiculous classism and institutionalised racism that continues to permeate every corner of the UK.

While the US has its own societal issues and themes that could surely be a hotbed of comedy inspiration, if Boarders were to follow Jaheim as he goes to America, it's taking a major risk that may end up making the series feel too crowded.

An interwoven US plot-line also puts the show in danger of seeming like a spin-off. (But if an official one were to be on the cards, this writer certainly wouldn't say no either.)

There are many possible routes that the series could take if season 3 were to be given the green light, one of them being to allow Jaheim to have his American adventure off-screen or who knows, he may not take up the place and remain in the UK.

With actor Josh Tedeku having also starred in Netflix's Supacell, which has already been renewed for season 2, there's every possibility that Boarders could end up with Tedeku's Jaheim taking a backseat in a potential third outing with a reduced role.

But having had Jaheim at the centre of the series for the past two seasons, it's another precarious option to wipe him from the storyline, especially when we've been digging deeper into his story.

Nevertheless, the season 2 finale of Boarders is a bold move by Daniel Lawrence Taylor and a twist like that perfectly sets the show up for more.

Boarders continues to traverse age to shine a light on a variety of Black experiences that resonate with its audience because of the relatability of loneliness or feeling like an outsider.

While the divisive cliffhanger will get fans talking, it's just part of the joy of a show like this one and just goes to show that its future could be bright – even if it does make some surprising shake-ups along the way.

Boarders arrives on BBC iPlayer and BBC Three on Monday 3rd February.

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