Nick appears to be a great big swaggering cock of a young man, acting like a braying wanker whenever he’s with his teammates, sleeping with his girlfriend’s friend. To humanise him is a monumental task, and one which this episode just about pulls off. If only it didn’t start off like an episode from the last generation. Leon Levan is a life coach for whom failure isn’t just frowned upon, it’s there to be beaten until it becomes pure success! Being suicidal is just admitting failure, as he tells his colleague, who’s trying to top himself. It’s all like a bad episode of Shameless. But once the tone gets serious for a while, we see the obvious brotherly love that Nick has for Matty. A love that turns to extreme envy at Matty’s free and easy approach to life, turning destructive when he sees Matty having sex with Liv he can only dream about. This sets off a chain reaction of self realisation in Nick. The emptiness of his relationship with Mini. The need for someone to stand up to his domineering dad. The need to make peace with his brother. And most importantly, learn to not be so self-centred. If there’s a weak link, both Sean Teale and Sebastien De Souza just don’t convince as Nick and Matty. Both are fine in small doses, but cannot carry a whole episode with their stiff, awkward performances, only coming alive when smashing the place up. After a shaky start, this episode soon clicks into place during the second half. Despite the wooden acting from the leads, there’s some great writing shining through. Once we start to learn about Nick’s home life, we understand him better. And it’s a credit to Skins that one of its most unlikeable characters is also one of its most nuanced. Read our review of episode 4 here. Follow Den Of Geek on Twitter right here.
