Longtime readers of this blog will know that one of my favorite guilty pleasures in life is the British show 'Skins.' I adore it. Right now the show is currently in it's fifth cycle over in the U.K., which means that we're focusing on a whole new generation of kids, the third overall for the series. The show does not feel tired or ridiculous yet. I'm still addicted to the drama and emotional intricacies of life in Bristol.
Unfortunately, here in the States we've been saturated with “controversy” over the MTV adaptation of 'Skins.' There's the claim that 'Skins' might be child pornography, and then there was the news of it losing it's advertisers because of it's racy content. While I applaud MTV for taking on a show that attempts to deal with teen issues realistically, in my opinion their biggest crime is the plain and simple truth that their incarnation of 'Skins' simply isn't good.
If any of you were to go to Netflix Instant and stream the first season of Skins (or find it lurking on the corners of the Internet), I'm sure parts of those episodes would make you feel uncomfortable. I know I was a little taken aback by the language, the nudity, and the excessive drug use, and I like to think I'm pretty open minded about those things, mostly because I started watching 'Sex and the City' when I was 17.
The American version of 'Skins' makes me uncomfortable in a different way. First of all, they have changed some of the names on the show. They've also left out certain characteristics to the characters that are essential to plot development later on. For example, Cadie, who is supposed to be based on the quirky, free-spirited Cassie, does not have an eating disorder. She also has absolutely no chemistry with the boy who plays Stanley, based on Sid, and it's almost awkward to watch their interactions. In the British series, viewers want Sid and Cassie together from the moment they first innocently hold hands on the trampoline.
I don't think it's the minor details that bug me the most though. To me, the overall tone is completely wrong. The adults on MTV's version are made to look completely asinine. In the British version, the adults make a plethora of mistakes as well, everything from affairs to outright neglect, but they also offer pearls of wisdom. Teachers and coaches provide support and some of the parents take care of their kids in the hour of need as only really good parents can do.
MTV's approach to be in your face when it comes to the drugs and sex, and it seems almost comical to watch a show with some of the language bleeped out. Perhaps 'Skins' would find a much better home on another network that wasn't into titilating and exploiting. Not all of MTV's programming is for those reason, and the creators claim they are trying to depict real teenage life, but it seems to me they've crossed over into something that doesn't quite have the spirit, soul, and emotion of the real and original 'Skins.'
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