oh hey, the fog burned off

[aphrodite_mine]

I was going to write about Skins (US), but everyone on the planet beat me to it, and I really don't give a big enough shit to break it down seriously. It's possible I'm growing out of the whole franchise in general, but I didn't like most of it. There was a chance here to correct a lot of what UK gen 1 got wrong (Mad Le Dong? I'm sorry, but no.) and bigger and brighter doesn't equal better. Unlike some Skins fans, I don't trust Elsley to make this a success. I've given up trusting anyone with characters I could potentially love.

I didn't like Cassie, and Cadie still doesn't work for me, though she's more real at least. On some levels. Still an atrocious actress. Stanley was so disgusting I could hardly look at the screen while he was on. There's a ship sailed. The adults are horrific, I'm pretty sure no one disagrees with me there.

What will keep me watching? Michelle. And Tea. At least for now. I'm not giving up yet. I was never wild about Michelle in the original, so it's a big step for me to like her now. Something about her confidence here rings truer. And it doesn't hurt that they're smoking hot. Maybe next week will give some indication why Tea (who is awesome) hangs out with these people. Something that's always puzzled me about Skins is that they expect us to believe that these oh-so-different people are best buddies.

And there's less and more than I was going to say.

Comments

[theroyal-e.livejournal.com]

i wish americans would come up with their own creative television shows. i feel like so many of the popular shows have all been remade from the UK versions. it's pathetic. do the brits ever take on an american franchise? they did just spin out a UK version of Law & Order (and it's pretty good) but that's the only one that comes to mind.

i haven't made it through all of the UK Skins yet so I'm not touching the American version until I get through the original.

Something that's always puzzled me about Skins is that they expect us to believe that these oh-so-different people are best buddies.

i've had this feeling about a few shows, but most especially the L Word. i still don't understand how or why any of them were friends.

[prunesquallormd.livejournal.com]

As a general rule, we just buy the good stuff (and a lot of the bad stuff :D) from the US and show it unchanged. Remaking successful shows is less of a thing here, although it does happen.
On your first point, I'd argue that there are a lot excellent US TV shows. Maybe there's a lot of dross too, but believe me when I say that the same applies here :D

[theroyal-e.livejournal.com]

I guess I don't get why we don't just show the UK versions of various shows unchanged over here. If I want to see the UK versions of Skins, The Office, QaF, and dozens of others, I generally have to get it from Netflix or some other source other than my television. If the American media giants are so damn impressed with a UK show, why not just broadcast the damn show in its original form?

I don't know. I prefer British versions in general. American versions are always too overthought, melodramatic, and sensationalized. I'm sure the Brits are guilty of this as well, but American tv is DRENCHED in it so I appreciate something that's not obnoxiously over the top every now and then.

[immortality.livejournal.com]

i wish americans would come up with their own creative television shows. i feel like so many of the popular shows have all been remade from the UK versions. it's pathetic. do the brits ever take on an american franchise? they did just spin out a UK version of Law & Order (and it's pretty good) but that's the only one that comes to mind.

But the creators of Skins actively sought after making a US version. They wanted to tell more stories and adapt it to a US audience -- not that it needs adapting, but tbqh, if the Skins creators had their way there would be a different version of Skins for every country (which is what they said).

And yes, there have been plenty UK remakes of US shows: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_British_television_programmes_based_on_American_television_series

[aphrodite-mine.livejournal.com]

Yeah, only in the sense that everyone who sleeps with everyone else is automatically buddies.