S1E1: The American remake of e4’s Skins premiered on MTV last night, and there’s no real doubt that every single recap on the interwebs today deals with the pros and cons of adaptation. Did it work? Yes? No? Why? Why not? Question? Question? Question?
Anyway, believe it or not, there are people out there who haven’t actually seen the original e4 series and really don’t care whether or not the adaptation works or not, which includes me. The British Skins has been one of those shows on my “watch list” for awhile now, and although I’ve accidentally seen about 20 minutes of the pilot episode, I haven’t got around to watching the show, for whatever reason. But with with American remake, we here at Hollywood.com have decided to exploit my lack of knowledge to bring a new perspective on the show. My innocent ass will be watching and recapping alongside colleague Sam Morgan, our resident Skins-fanatic who, quite honestly, knows an unhealthy amount about the show.
So here’s how this recap will go: I’ll give my reaction, and then it will be followed by Sam’s reaction. That way, we can see how the American version looks next to the British version, and if it has a chance.
Eric: Now let’s talk about episode one, “Tony,” which follows our main character named, well, Tony (James Newman). He introduces us to the world of Skins, which is set in a place that seems like New York City, and all of his friends. And my initial reaction to this world? Well, to be honest, it seems pretty fucking stupid. So far, everything in the world of Skins is about as far as realistic as you can get. Sure, kids have sex. And sure, kids do drugs. But like with every MTV show ever, any type of realism is lost because every interaction is presented as such a huge deal. Not much feels genuine, but rather very forced. For example, when Tony keeps calling Michelle “Nips” over the phone, it felt more like a moment where the writers were saying “hey, look at this character, he’s so hip and cool, listen to the way he talks!” rather than presenting us with a conversation that might actually happen. And that moment wasn’t alone, because that’s how a majority of the interactions between characters in “Tony” operated. Granted, I know it’s a show about teenagers and shows about teenagers are inevitably going to be dramatic and over the top, but right now, things feel a little too Degrassi for my liking.
Maybe wanting Skins to be realistic isn’t the right way to watch this show, but through its promotions, I got the sense that MTV didn’t want to dance around the realities of youth — showing drug use, sex, etc. But when they present the characters in the most stereotypical and cliche ways, any truth in their actions is lost. Hopefully, it gets better.
Sam: Oh, Eric, you hooligan.
I will give you that these interactions and dialogue felt a little forced. But I know why they were forced – they skimmed it straight from the original pilot episode. They updated the references and trimmed some things to make room for American broadcasting standards but it was pretty much a shot for shot remake of the original.
But did it work? I think so. Since I’m able to see between the lines of what they were doing, what they had to do, and what they wanted to do, I think the show will be fine. The changes they made felt right and will distinguish it from the original. Considering the promo they ran for the second episode features Tea (who is the gender swapped version of Maxxie) and not Cadie (Cassie’s replacement who was the focus of the original second episode) it seems they are following the American Office way by using the pilot as a basic “suggestion” then running off on their own merry way.
If you agree with Eric that everything felt forced, don’t worry. I think they will grow into a show, much like the original. If you want real teenagers doing “real” things, go watch Teen Mom 2. That’s real teenagers. This is a stylized version of real teens doing things that real teens do. Don’t discount it yet because they were forced to use the same plot from the original.
But for the obsessed out there, I was happy with the changes they made. Making Maxxie a lesbian seems fine with me. In fact, it looks like they’re taking this opportunity to strengthen up the weaker characters from the original. And, having Cadie outside of the car when it rolls into the water is more thematically appropriate considering how disconnected she is from the rest of the group.
Also that bleep is really fucking annoying.
