Skins
By Jamie Brittain
Skins is probably one of the best television shows I’ve seen in a long time. To top that off, before noticing it was available to stream from Netflix, I’d never even heard of it. I suppose this is because it’s a British series, but even so it has a lot of really strong actors with great performances. Skins is the story of a group of teens in a smaller English suburb who is led by Tony (a grown up version of the child actor from About a Boy), with a cast of other friends who are from mixed backgrounds and poverty levels that all come together to form this unique web of teen drama, sex, and drugs.
Each episode in the first season focuses on a different one of the friends and their background while interspersing bits of story line to tie them all together in the world of the characters. Each character has a really interesting background that aches of love and loss, even though they’re only 17. Perhaps it’s just the English way for teens, but these kids party as if they were in their late 20s, it’s pretty amazing more of them don’t end up dead or pregnant—but it makes for an interesting dynamic that is really different from the way I grew up here in the States.
I don’t want to reveal too much plot because it’s so good, but what makes the show interesting is that there is a strong sense of duality in all of the characters, you love and hate all of the characters at the same time, but I suppose that’s how life is. Tony’s character in particular is interesting at how quickly he deceives his girlfriend Michelle and best friend Sid over and over again yet still comes off likable.
The second season picks up after a strong finish to the first and progresses more broadly through the world of the characters and focuses less on each character and more on what’s happening to the group which I think favors very well to differentiate itself from the first season, and also finishes strongly with a logical and agreeable finish. I know there is a third season that picks up with a whole new cast of characters but I sort of consider the first two seasons to be it for this show since I fell in love with the characters so much.
I think what made this show unique is that it was honest and real without apology of judgement and allowed each character to live their life in a way that didn’t compromise who each of them were from the beginning of the show. This isn’t 90210 or anything like it, it’s a realistic portrayal of teen life and how hard it can be and I couldn’t be more excited.