diff --git a/codec/src/main/java/io/netty/handler/codec/ByteToMessageDecoder.java b/codec/src/main/java/io/netty/handler/codec/ByteToMessageDecoder.java
index a206542333..97ecb4638e 100644
--- a/codec/src/main/java/io/netty/handler/codec/ByteToMessageDecoder.java
+++ b/codec/src/main/java/io/netty/handler/codec/ByteToMessageDecoder.java
@@ -200,11 +200,11 @@ public abstract class ByteToMessageDecoder extends ChannelInboundHandlerAdapter
             ByteBuf bytes = buf.readBytes(readable);
             buf.release();
             ctx.fireChannelRead(bytes);
-            ctx.fireChannelReadComplete();
         } else {
             buf.release();
         }
         cumulation = null;
+        ctx.fireChannelReadComplete();
         handlerRemoved0(ctx);
     }
 
diff --git a/transport/src/main/java/io/netty/channel/AbstractChannelHandlerContext.java b/transport/src/main/java/io/netty/channel/AbstractChannelHandlerContext.java
index 0b2a66e4eb..cd7d286284 100644
--- a/transport/src/main/java/io/netty/channel/AbstractChannelHandlerContext.java
+++ b/transport/src/main/java/io/netty/channel/AbstractChannelHandlerContext.java
@@ -36,22 +36,13 @@ abstract class AbstractChannelHandlerContext implements ChannelHandlerContext, R
     private final DefaultChannelPipeline pipeline;
     private final String name;
 
-    /**
-     * Set when the {@link ChannelInboundHandler#channelRead(ChannelHandlerContext, Object)} of
-     * this context's handler is invoked.
-     * Cleared when a user calls {@link #fireChannelReadComplete()} on this context.
-     *
-     * See {@link #fireChannelReadComplete()} to understand how this flag is used.
-     */
-    boolean invokedThisChannelRead;
-
     /**
      * Set when a user calls {@link #fireChannelRead(Object)} on this context.
      * Cleared when a user calls {@link #fireChannelReadComplete()} on this context.
      *
      * See {@link #fireChannelReadComplete()} to understand how this flag is used.
      */
-    private volatile boolean invokedNextChannelRead;
+    private volatile boolean firedChannelRead;
 
     /**
      * Set when a user calls {@link #read()} on this context.
@@ -59,7 +50,7 @@ abstract class AbstractChannelHandlerContext implements ChannelHandlerContext, R
      *
      * See {@link #fireChannelReadComplete()} to understand how this flag is used.
      */
-    private volatile boolean invokedPrevRead;
+    private volatile boolean invokedRead;
 
     /**
      * {@code true} if and only if this context has been removed from the pipeline.
@@ -183,7 +174,7 @@ abstract class AbstractChannelHandlerContext implements ChannelHandlerContext, R
     public ChannelHandlerContext fireChannelRead(Object msg) {
         AbstractChannelHandlerContext next = findContextInbound();
         ReferenceCountUtil.touch(msg, next);
-        invokedNextChannelRead = true;
+        firedChannelRead = true;
         next.invoker().invokeChannelRead(next, msg);
         return this;
     }
@@ -196,16 +187,11 @@ abstract class AbstractChannelHandlerContext implements ChannelHandlerContext, R
          *
          * This is pretty common for the handlers that transform multiple messages into one message,
          * such as byte-to-message decoder and message aggregators.
-         *
-         * Only one exception is when nobody invoked the channelRead() method of this context's handler.
-         * It means the handler has been added later dynamically.
          */
-        if (invokedNextChannelRead ||  // The handler of this context produced a message, or
-            !invokedThisChannelRead) { // it is not required to produce a message to trigger the event.
-
-            invokedNextChannelRead = false;
-            invokedPrevRead = false;
-
+        if (firedChannelRead) {
+            // The handler of this context produced a message, so we are OK to trigger this event.
+            firedChannelRead = false;
+            invokedRead = false;
             AbstractChannelHandlerContext next = findContextInbound();
             next.invoker().invokeChannelReadComplete(next);
             return this;
@@ -222,7 +208,7 @@ abstract class AbstractChannelHandlerContext implements ChannelHandlerContext, R
          * Why? Because otherwise the next handler will not receive {@code channelRead()} nor
          * {@code channelReadComplete()} event at all for the {@link #read()} operation it issued.
          */
-        if (invokedPrevRead && !channel().config().isAutoRead()) {
+        if (invokedRead && !channel().config().isAutoRead()) {
             /**
              * The next (or upstream) handler invoked {@link #read()}, but it didn't get any
              * {@code channelRead()} event. We should read once more, so that the handler of the current
@@ -230,7 +216,7 @@ abstract class AbstractChannelHandlerContext implements ChannelHandlerContext, R
              */
             read();
         } else {
-            invokedPrevRead = false;
+            invokedRead = false;
         }
 
         return this;
@@ -320,7 +306,7 @@ abstract class AbstractChannelHandlerContext implements ChannelHandlerContext, R
     @Override
     public ChannelHandlerContext read() {
         AbstractChannelHandlerContext next = findContextOutbound();
-        invokedPrevRead = true;
+        invokedRead = true;
         next.invoker().invokeRead(next);
         return this;
     }
diff --git a/transport/src/main/java/io/netty/channel/ChannelHandlerInvokerUtil.java b/transport/src/main/java/io/netty/channel/ChannelHandlerInvokerUtil.java
index 265e837775..86e3e269b4 100644
--- a/transport/src/main/java/io/netty/channel/ChannelHandlerInvokerUtil.java
+++ b/transport/src/main/java/io/netty/channel/ChannelHandlerInvokerUtil.java
@@ -80,7 +80,6 @@ public final class ChannelHandlerInvokerUtil {
 
     public static void invokeChannelReadNow(final ChannelHandlerContext ctx, final Object msg) {
         try {
-            ((AbstractChannelHandlerContext) ctx).invokedThisChannelRead = true;
             ((ChannelInboundHandler) ctx.handler()).channelRead(ctx, msg);
         } catch (Throwable t) {
             notifyHandlerException(ctx, t);
diff --git a/transport/src/main/java/io/netty/channel/DefaultChannelPipeline.java b/transport/src/main/java/io/netty/channel/DefaultChannelPipeline.java
index dc43390e1c..cd665d1e9b 100644
--- a/transport/src/main/java/io/netty/channel/DefaultChannelPipeline.java
+++ b/transport/src/main/java/io/netty/channel/DefaultChannelPipeline.java
@@ -584,7 +584,6 @@ final class DefaultChannelPipeline implements ChannelPipeline {
 
     private void callHandlerAdded0(final AbstractChannelHandlerContext ctx) {
         try {
-            ctx.invokedThisChannelRead = false;
             ctx.handler().handlerAdded(ctx);
         } catch (Throwable t) {
             boolean removed = false;