Sex, Drugs and Rock n Roll (Skins)

Member Name: magenta23

Product:	Skins
Date:	13/03/09 (141 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: A great show, with talented and entertaining cast

Disadvantages: Why put at 18 rating on a show about 17 year olds??

I got addicted to Skins from series one an thoroughly enjoyed watching the original characters on their journey through growing up, disgracefully. I was devistated when it ended and a little sceptical about the latest series leaving the likes of Tony, Sid and Cassie behind and giving us the new generation of college friends. I do understand why the writers did it. Skins is all about teenagers at college age and their life, carrying on with the old crowd as they moved on would move away form the concept of the whole show. Skins is about being young. I do think it was a risk though, real fans of Skins series 1-2 will have a real soft spot for the original crew and will this new lot live up to them? After all, there was some real talent in the old crowd. Nicholas Hoult and Dev Patel have proved themselves as very successful actors. So will this new series of Skins give us the next star of the future??

The new crowd as I've called them aren't completely new. Wisely, there's a link form the first 2 series. Effy, our main girl is the brother of Tony and her and her best friend Pandora briefly appeared in series one and two. Skins tends to pick characters you'll relate to. Every college has and Effy, Cook, Pandora or JJ...
Effy - The pretty popular girl, who gets all the guys, can be selfish, but we see her soft side too
Pandora- Effy's best friend, not as cool as the rest of the crowd, a little goofy and naive at times.
Cook - The school Cassanova, a bit of an idiot
Freddie - On/off best mate of Cook. Pretty on the outside, not much going on inside
JJ - My favourite. Autistic, he craves to be normal. Little does he know he's probably more normal than everyone. Sweet natured, he hates people fighting. Everyone loves him, but don't really take him seriously.
Emily and Katie - Very pretty twins, eccentric dress sense, they look alike but their personalities are far from identical
Thomas - A sweetheart, quiet and big hearted. We haven't seen much of him yet, but I'm sure we'll get to know him as the series progresses.
Naomi- Political, stood for school council. Struggling with her sexuality.

Skins is young, fresh and funky. It 's fast paced and has a great soundtrack. NME hailed it as 'the saviour of music' and I have discovered a few favourite new bands on the back of watching it.

The series has been slammed in the press for being over the top. It's been critisied for not portraying teenagers as they really are. The characters in the show are all hopping in and out of each other's beds (and sometimes they don't bother with beds at all when you have a classroom), taking drugs, fighting and generally being thoroughly entertaining. We've lived with watching Eastenders having murders, weddings, adultery and people coming back for the dead all in the space of a fortnight, is the West End of London really this dramatic? If Skins showed teenagers day to day lives as they really were, would it make as great telly? Yes teenagers have sex and drink and have wild parties, just not every night like in Skins. Skins just gives us the highlights of teenage life and makes it compelling viewing.

I take back everything I said about the new characters not being as good. I love them, a few episodes in and I'm a hooked as I ever was. Already some real issues have been addressed too, it's by no means a show that's dumbed down. It really sparks debate and tackles real issue happening to young people. Each episode focuses on one particular character, although the others are in it throughout too. We've had an episode which show Naomi struggling to understand her sexuality, and JJ who's Autism and learning diffculties makes it hard for him to fit in. These are real issues affecting young people and aswell as being great entertainig viewing it's probably a great comfort to many teenagers watching.

Skins also has a great webpage on the E4 website, which gives information on cast and crew and feeds fans hunger until the next episode. Strangely though, as your enter there's a warning 'Adult content alert, you must be 18 to proceed.' Likewise, the series 1 and 2 boxsets have 18 ratings. Surely a show about 16 and 17 years old should be able to be watched by people of that age. Yes it contains sex drugs and nudity, but why put that in if you are then going to say someone of the age it's supposed to be portaying cannot watch it? I don't think it's that hardcore to make it worthy of an 18 rating, having said that it's a bit graphic in places to give it a 15. A difficult one.

Overall, SKINS is the best thing that's beein TV in a while. Catch it on e4 Thursdays at 10pm.

Summary: Top Class new cast, but I still want to know what happened to Sid and Cassie