Here’s what you missed in the New Year’s Eve episode of Shameless
By Reed Gaudens
Shameless closes out 2017 with an episode directed by Emmy Rossum that finds Frank heading to Canada and Fiona flirting with Ford.
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While we were all counting down to the much anticipated conclusion of 2017, Shameless kept throwing the Gallaghers into the fire with a fittingly chaotic episode to close out the year. Returning to the director’s chair after last season’s stellar debut, Emmy Rossum helms the season’s turning point toward the big finish. And if Frank’s journey to Canada is any indication, getting there will be half the fun.
2017 was a collectively crumby year to put it lightly, but in the television world, the Gallaghers were smacked with the worst of the drama. In their last show of the year, the Gallaghers found themselves climbing more uphill battles as Ian turns his combative powers to a conversion church, Fiona mulls over a move into her own apartment, and Frank shuttles immigrants to Canada for cash. New year, new Gallaghers? No chance. In case you were too caught up in the New Year’s Eve festivities to catch the latest episode of Shameless (or didn’t stream the episode online early), we won’t let a Gallagher yell at you before next week’s all-new episode. Here are five things you missed on the South Side while welcoming 2018.
1. Fiona’s complicated.
Even though Fiona doesn’t believe it, complicated could is understatement. In the span of five minutes, she awakes in a maelstrom of crying babies and knocking doors to discover Carl borrowed her car. And that’s not even accounting for seven full seasons of complications. Anyway, Fiona ponders moving out on her own in the empty unit in her building, which leads to Ford walking in on her dancing in her underwear. One thing leads to another and the two are off on a tour of Chicago architecture, punctuated by Ford denying Fiona’s kiss… because she’s complicated. How’s this for complicated: Ford has fathered five children for lesbian couples, two of which will be Nessa and Mel’s. Is Fiona’s life about to get even more complicated with Ford?
2. Lip can’t find a new sponsor.
We were right to start worrying about Lip. He’s barely hanging on by a thread with the crumbling state of affairs surrounding him. His friends are dropping like flies to the allure of alcohol, and it weighs heavily on him. But for the first time, Lip meets a sponsor named Barb (guest star Lea DeLaria) who gives it to him straight: These aren’t his burdens. It’s not rocket science to figure out where Lip contracted this tendency for codependency. (*cough cough* His upbringing.) He continues to make the dramas of others into his traumas, when he’s actually doing okay for himself. Apart from meddling into Sierra’s mess of a relationship again. When will he learn?
3. Debs isn’t pregnant.
Sure, we devoted our worry to Lip, but we really should have saved a slice of that concern for young Debbie, who’s waving her freak flag for better or worse. After realizing that she’s had more unprotected sex than her morning after pill can cover, she scrambles into high-stress mode, which includes taking no less than 15 pregnancy tests and finding a new job. In the end, she works a freelance gig as a “sexy welder” and gets her period, but aren’t there stories more empowering for Debs than those centering on accidental pregnancies and regretting her decisions?
4. Ian fights homophobia.
Apparently Shameless wants to move past the passion behind Ian’s war on Fiona as quickly as Ian does, as there’s but little a mention of his motivations behind the “Occupy Fiona” movement. It was weird, right? And there was no real reasoning? Cool, we’re all on the same page. This week, Ian turns his vitriol to a conversion church that drove one of the youth center’s kids to attempt suicide. Ian and Trevor sit in on one of the pastor’s depressingly heinous teachings and return with Biblical receipts. Never mess with an Ian Gallagher on a mission. He and Trevor invite the LGBTQ+ kids being forced into conversion to their center. Checkmate.
5. Frank’s business venture goes north.
Well, Frank’s turn as a law abiding citizen was a short-lived phenomenon. As you’ll recall, Frank found himself on the receiving end of his first firing and couldn’t land another job to save his life. His natural follow up? Shuttling immigrants up to Canada and scoring cheap medication while he’s there. It’s not the most legal of business plans, but for the time being, it’s the most sustainable option Frank’s got. It’s worth noting that Shameless uses this story as a takedown of the president’s unfriendly relationship with immigration laws, as Frank credits his success to the “Twitterer in chief” and his era of “false fear.”
Next: Shameless season 8, episode 7 recap: Why it’s time to start worrying about Lip
Odds & Ends:
- Elsewhere, Kev and V continue their exploration of domination, extending from outside the bedroom and into the bar. Kev stands up to Svetlana’s demands, and it doesn’t sit as well with her as it does with V.
- Carl enjoys (well, mostly enjoys) a committed relationship with his former rehab patient Cassidy. It’s hard to tell where Carl’s latest romance will take him, but it’s far less interesting than his ploys to earn his military school tuition.
- It’s time for Fiona to get the happy ending she’s worked tooth and nail for her entire life, and if that means a future with Ford, let’s go. Let’s do this. She deserves a handsome Irish carpenter.
What did you think of the latest episode? Let us know in the comments!
Shameless airs Sundays at 9/8c on Showtime.