The racy teen import Skins returned to BBC America this month with last season's young cast replaced almost entirely by a new batch of schoolboys and girls.

Teenagers playing teenagers, moving through high school in real time - what a bold concept! That would never fly on American television.

Over here, we cast our high schoolers far older. And then these very mature "kids" get locked into long-term contracts. The result is . . . ludicrous television, with juniors who look more ready to take an eye exam for reading glasses than for a driver's license.

That has been the case from the crude b&w series of yesteryear (Dwayne Hickman was 29 when The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis went off the air) to the crude hi-def shows of today (Gossip Girl's heartthrob, Chace Crawford, is 24).

Youth is fleeting. But not on TV.

Sometimes, the stars stay in high school through the entire run of the series; at times, they may accede to the inevitable and move on to their first year of college (giving new meaning to the phrase "the freshman 30"). But they always linger far too long.

Ron Palillo (Horshack) was 30 when Welcome Back, Kotter went off the air. Byron Scott (Warren) was 25 when The White Shadow ended. Dan Frischman (Arvid) hit 32 in the final season of Head of the Class.

More recently, the star of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Sarah Michelle Gellar, was 26 at closing time. And this season, Taylor Kitsch (Riggins) of Friday Night Lights will be 28 and Smallville star Tom Welling will be 32.

American TV proves that it's never too late to have a happy adolescence.

Check the label. This week on Jon & Kate Plus 8, the show blurred out the labels of some jugs of drinking water that Kate was slinging on the kitchen counter. That shocked me.

There isn't a show on television that displays brand names as blatantly or frequently. It's a product placement jamboree. I keep expecting the kids to show up with sponsor decals plastered all over their pajamas, like little NASCAR drivers.

On the spot. Awkward moment on Leverage this week.

In the episode, the team took down an abrasive, finger-pointing cable-news host played by Beth Broderick (Aunt Zelda on Sabrina, the Teenage Witch).

In the middle of the show there was an ad for CNN's Nancy Grace and her new book.

Um, who do you think Leverage was using as a template?

Nicely played, ladies. There have been some striking turns for actresses in multi-episode arcs of cable series this summer.

Singer Alanis Morissette, whom I didn't like on Nip/Tuck, has been a revelation on Weeds as a grounded ob/gyn (although I have to question why she would even entertain the idea of going out with Andy).

Maura Tierney was mired in the melodrama of ER for so long that I had forgotten what a lively, engaging performer she can be - until she showed up as a brazen rock-and-roll chick on Rescue Me.

Playing catch-up. The only TV in my house not rigged for the digital crossover was the little set in the kitchen. In my area, the only station still broadcasting in analog is the CBS affiliate, so I'm catching more of the Eye Network than usual.

Goodbye, Matt. Harry Smith is my new coffee companion.

Fixing dinner the other night, I saw, for the first time since its pilot, The New Adventures of Old Christine with Julia Louis-Dreyfus.

I guess I never watch because Elaine was always my least favorite character on Seinfeld.

But it was funny. Really funny. Why didn't you guys tell me?

Contact staff writer David Hiltbrand at 215-854-4552 or dhiltbrand@phillynews.com. Read his recent work at http://go.philly.com/daveon

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