I waited until the second episode to pass judgement on the Skins US remake and I'm glad I did, because guess what? It's worth its salt after all. The first episode was a shot for shot remake of the first episode of the UK original and I think the main reason it fell flat for me was because it tried to replicate the British culture and characters of the original but set it in a town in America and it just didn't translate. Imagine for example that you took the dialogue and characters of say Gossip Girl and set it in Dublin. It's Lego and mega blocks. It just won't fit.
The new episode instead gave us a completely new plotline unlike one we've seen before. It focused on Maxine (Tea Marvelli) , the most drastic change from the original cast but quickly became my favourite character though I was completely adverse to the idea of the gender swapping of Maxie, one of my favourite characters from the original, but after last nights episode she's really grown on me. Katie is a little different from her British counterpart Cassie going for a more unhinged, dead pan stare, serial killer vibe versus Cassie's dazed and confused act but each works in their own way. Everyone else however, is virtually a carbon copy.
The big Italian family makes for great viewing despite being a little clichéd. I'm also a little disappointed to see that the creators are not doing the whole minor celebrities playing the parents routine which I always got a kick out of in the original. Making Maxine of Italian descent was a nice move.I've got to be honest, I'm finding it hard not to like Tony (James Newman). His acting leaves a little to be desired but I'd find it hard to deny that he's got that smooth charm required to play Tony, a charm that would come across as sleaziness in most actors.
Skins is a mixed bag. I'm impressed by the creators gutsy decision to cast teenage actors as was intended, bringing on the 'wrath' of the Parents television committee who are lobbying to have it examined under child pornography laws and calling it "The most dangerous television show ever" (could they have asked for better advertising? They should quote that on their poster) . For the most part the acting is up to scratch, Not breath-taking but more than adequate. Some of the dialogue falls flat and doesn't quite feel natural and I think that could be part of the British influence not translating to American television. The humour is a little more obvious and things are spelt out lacking the subtlety of the original but that doesn't bother me too much. But let me tell you what does, the censoring. That bleeping of curse words completely snaps you out of any illusions you're under and makes you all too aware that you're watching a tv show. It's unnatural and reeks of producers sticking their noses in. If you're not allowed to say 'fuck' then say 'hell' or 'damn' not ideal but far more preferable to the annoying *bleep*. Also liking Tony's lesbian euphemisms "Worship at the Gucci shrine"..."Pluck the lady harp". Keep 'em coming.
Fans of the original will find it difficult to get over the idea of a remake of one of their favourite programmes and may be left cold by this but I think it could carve out a decent audience in the states (especially with the Parents television committee making it so cool). Skins USA is no masterpiece but it is an antidote to the 'rich kids spending daddy's money' formula that has dominated the teen drama scene since the late eighties. I watched the first episode out of curiosity, the second to do this review but I will be watching the third because I want to see where they go with it.
What's next?
