Skins is a British teen drama
focusing on students in college (the British equivalent to our junior and
senior year of high school in the States – basically the university preparatory
years). Currently, the series is on its seventh series (which will feature
characters from all past generations). It has gone through three generations, as
the cast is different every two seasons. Thus, generation one’s story is told
in series one and two.
The show is told from the
perspective of the teens, and thus the adult characters often come off as
absurd (with particular characteristics exaggerated). The teens deal with the
stresses of growing up, first relationships, school, and just being at an awkward
age. While the show has a very party-going and hip bunch (versus say The Inbetweeners, another good
British teen series), it tackles the drama of being a teenager very well and
tells wonderful stories with its diverse cast.
Skins was created by Bryan Elsley and Jamie Brittain (he only worked
on series 1-5, but is returning for 7, its last). The entire series is filled
with fantastic young actors, but generation one has yielded many up and coming
stars. The main cast includes: Nicholas
Hoult (who has since starred in A
Single Man and X-Men:
First Class, and has WarmBodies upcoming), Joe Dempsie
(who has since taken a role in Game
of Thrones), Mike Bailey,
Hannah Murray (who took a role
in Game of Thrones and is set to return to Skins in series 7), April Pearson, Larissa Wilson, Dev Patel (who starred in Slumdog Millionaire and The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel,
and is now on The Newsroom),
and Mitch Hewer. The first
two series also have great reoccurring characters (headlined by Kaya Scodelario who became a
main character in series 3 and 4 and is returning in series 7, and also features
Giles Thomas, Georgina Moffat, Peter Capaldi, Aimee-Ffion Edwards, and Lisa Backwell, who also became a
main cast member in seasons 3 and 4).
Skins is one of the best
teen-centric dramas on TV, unafraid to delve deeply and unflinchingly into the
drugs, sex, music, intense emotions, and comedy of today’s teens (when most TV
shows are tame) and the overall experience of being a teen, which is very
relatable as we all went through it. It is a must-see for fans of teen dramas
and comedies. It also has a brilliant soundtrack (see here).
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