Shameless

[classicmoment]

Based on the movie Shameless produced in 2004.I love all the soapy techniques applied to this series. It just showed me the soap format can work if they incorporate the classic mix of proper storytelling elements: Dilemmas, matters of the heart, moral compass, character driven- well timed stories with multiple arcs etcetcetc. The biggest difference I see are the kinds of characters we care about, and of course on Showtime you can totally make its undertones much darker with a touch of light comedy to lighten it, and these collection of young actors/actresses and sir MACY (William H.)are doing a bang up job. Anyone here watches?

[DRW50]

I don't watch the remake, yet, but I do watch the original show, which began on Channel 4 in 2004. It has some incredibly good, underrated actors, and many shocking, funny, dramatic moments. It's not as good as it used to be but still has its moments, and some wonderful actors, especially the Maguire family. Mickey Maguire is one of the best TV characters ever.

[classicmoment]

Yes we havn't dived too deep too fast; but they are really taking their time here to remove the layers of these characters

[AllMyDaysatGH]

I love the show! I hadn't heard of it until it was a little past the middle of its first season. I heard nothing but good things about it so caught up with it onDemand. I am so glad I started watching. This show is just the best...I'm addicted. I love Emmy Rossum as Fiona. Jeremy Allen White (Lip) & Cameron Monaghan (Ian) are fantastic. My favorite out of everyone is Sheila. Omg, AMAZING. I just love Joan Cusack in this role!!

Not really a fan of William Macy (Frank). He's a good actor but I'm just not into Franks wild drunk antics one bit. I'm more interested in the S/L's other than his. The season was heavy on him and I found my attention going off into elsewhere at times when he was shown. I get he's the star of the show but I think it would be a lot better if he was phased out a bit.

I cannot wait until the show is back next year. Gosh that is so far away, I don't think I can wait! lol. The finale was ok, I'm glad Fiona decided to stay in Chicago. I was a fan of her & Steve up until his lies started to come out. I'd like to see Fiona & Tony (the cop) maybe get closer next season. I don't understand why Lip would go back to Karen after what she did with his dad?? It was definitely a WTF moment for me watching him go so easy on her after being so angry. Also when Ian told Fiona he was gay and she said she already knew. I wanted to know how she knew?? That scene should have been longer. I didn't like the way it ended.

[Juliajms]

I hate Frank passionately, while acknowledging WHM's talent. Frank is an utter SOB, there is almost nothing worthwhile about his character. At the same time, almost everyone in the show is reacting to him, so I don't think it would work without him.

I love Fiona and Steve. It's too bad things had to end the way they did. I think mostly he was a good guy, but he didn't understand how much she loved her siblings. Strangely, even in his alcoholic daze, Frank is the one who understood that she loved them too much to ever put herself first. I'm not sure I ever hated Frank more (well, maybe when he hit Ian) than when he said to Fiona "you love those monkeys too much to ever leave them". It seemed almost predatory. He knows she'll take up the responsibility that he should be carrying, which frees him up to be a selfish ass.

I'm really looking forward to season two and I'm glad this version isn't following the original too closely.

[classicmoment]

Yes let's discuss, I loved that scene between Fiona and Liam they are really incredible young talents (Rossum& Monaghan). The set up and lighting (stage design) set the mood and her pause before her "I know" had me like , I wasn't expecting that. I thought maybe they were coming from a "mothers always know" angle. White is a gem too, I loved his scenes with Wiggins where he declared he loved her during sex and then practically had a mini breakdown at what occured. I love Wiggins too, the writing for her character worries me a bit because they take her all over the place it seems, but her scenes of confession at the father daughter thing was well written and well acted. The sleeper here though is Kenney her scenes confronting Steve for being Jimmy made me feel like I was wacthing a grown woman catching and confronting her sister's boyfriend in his lies, she was so saavy it was like a seasoned vet reaching a character turning point in both directions. It was strange watching the character regress back into being a child easily manipulated again by Steve/Jimmy, but I get it. She plays conflicted very well, and I feel sympathy fotr her having tod eal with emotions she's not ready for

Sir Macy as Frank. Frank is a drunk narcissist but I agree with Julia he's wierdly the glue that holds the cast of charcters together with their drives/motivations and situations. When he goes off into one of his many speeches, it's wierd how it's written, it's like three points are met each time 1)Frank's selfish 2) Frank's a narcissist liar 3) Frank's lazy but he may not be as dum as he looks, and then the overlying issue is Frank's a drunk

[classicmoment]

P.S. Joan Cusack Rocks

[AllMyDaysatGH]

I could not agree more! They did take her all over the place, at times I just didn't understand WTH she was doing. I think they took it way to far with her. I found her very fun & interesting in the beginning, it wasn't until after that purity ball (which I thought was insanely hilarious & wrong, LOL!!) that I really started getting turned off by her. When she had sex with Frank that was just the end of it for me. That was just to much. So disgusting!!

But I agree the scenes where Lip said he loved her were quite good...

Great observation...ITA

And I see what you guys are saying about Frank...

AGREED!! She is made of complete awesome. I LOVE her on this show. Sheila is my fave character. She's hilarious, fun, amazing. I was so happy for her when she finally brought up the courage to go outside ... ;-)

[classicmoment]

*Edit* I totally meant Fiona and Ian here, sorry.

I want them to flesh out the Veronica character just a bit more. I kinda understand White and Wiggins (their character's) dynamic, it's like an understanding of each other beyond the defense mechanisms. It's, in a yucky kind of way, what a relationship should and shouldn't be rolled into one. I mean as the girlfriend you shouldn't do the father (but remember he had her try to to do it to Ian too), but it's like ,in an essence of true love ,forgiveness has to happen and understanding has to happen and sympathy has to happen. It was touching in a gross sort of way.

Also I see the dynamic of Frank and Ian was supposed to connect and lead to the Ian paternity issue but How is LIAM (the last obviosuly of AA descent) Frank's? I though for sure Ian and Lip managed to mess with the paternity results

[Juliajms]

Frank had an AA ancestor. The title of that episode was "Nana Gallagher Had an Affair".

[London]

YAY finally a topic -- will touch more on my thoughts later.

[classicmoment]

That left me like . I love that the writers have such a sense of humor though

[Y&RWorldTurner]

I've only ever seen the first few series of the UK version, so I pretty much had no interest in this.

Does it faithfully follow the UK series?

[classicmoment]

No it adds an allamerican twisted sense of humor to it, the characters are pretty much within the same elments as they are defined on the UK version, but the writing for this gravely differs by the sense of humor, the sense of culture it brings, and it manages to surprise you somehow.

**edit**8 I'm not sure if Sheila was apart of the original but J.Cusack rock it in her role here

[dc11786]

The pilot followed "Shameless" almost scene for scene. The following episodes were fairly faithful. In the original, Steve dropped Frank off in Paris, while in the Showtime version he was dumped in Canada. The third episode, which I recently rewatched, they repeated the "Mandy claims Ian raped her" situation except decided to introduce Mickey as one of the brothers instead of waiting four more seasons to do so. The fourth episode followed the Kev / Veroinca marriage scheme. Since then, the show has deviated a bit while picking and choosing the stories to tell. The Ian paternity situation was dealt with in the first season of the Showtime version, while it was addressed four or five seasons in on the original. The original, by the way, dropped that bombshell in a much more shocking situation. Monica's return was similar in the first season, but it played out a bit differently.

Sheila Jackson, Joan Cusack's character, was in the original show. Her and Frank married and had twins before Monica came back permanently and ousted her.

I thought the ending to the Liam situation was hilarious. The idea that Fiona might lose Liam to Monica / Bob was heartbreaking and the revelation that Liam was actually Frank's son was too much.

In the original, Kev and Veronica were written out fairly early on (end of seasons 2?). I think Steve Howey and Shanola Hampton are awesome as Kev and Veronica. They were concerned with having a baby in the original. The Ethel plot works for me and Howey shines as a pseudo-father and Hampton is great as someone who is trying not to become too attached. I was excited when they casted Anthony Anderson as Marty, Veronica's crazy as [!@#$%^&*] brother, and brought in Carol, Veroinca's mom, for a couple of episodes. They are major players in the original. I would love to see them return.

More comments later. Anyone else watchign the original on Sundance? They just finished season six or seven in February and now they've jumped back a couple. Lip's still around and Karen has married one of the Maguires.