This guide and all of my reviews contain occasional bits of rude language,
and opinions some people might find offensive but for which I won’t apologise.
Don’t read any further unless you are open-minded.
As hard as I try not to give away too much, I can't guarantee there are no spoilers.
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Shameless – TV Series UK 2004-2013 / (USA 2011-Ongoing)
When Mum shot through, she left 5 kids behind, the oldest being 16-year-old Fiona, and the youngest 2-year-old Liam. Dad is an alcoholic deadshit unable to see his own part in anything that happens – his identity is totally wrapped up in being a victim.
The British have created a swag of comedies over the years, some I liked and some I didn’t. Sometimes, though not always, the Americans have made them better. I found the British version of Shameless almost unbearable – the US producers said they wanted to make something “warmer” and they succeeded.
It’s the character of Frank Gallagher who makes the show almost unwatchable, for me, and to be fair the problem is not with the show; I just have less than zero tolerance for the “Franks” of this world. William Macy doesn’t always play likeable characters, but to his credit he manages to almost humanise Gallagher in the US version, while retaining most of the original weaknesses bestowed on him by the show’s British creator.
Fiona’s fierce loyalty to her deadshit father is a hallmark indicator of family dysfunction. No, I’m not saying loyalty is on its own dysfunctional. Frank might be useless, but at least he didn’t “abandon” his family: His presence provides the continuity that stops Fiona’s meaning structure from crumbling.
Fiona’s boyfriend Steve is entitled to an opinion about Frank’s worth, but he has no right to threaten that structure.
The mother who left her kids makes a brief, apologetic return in season one.
I applaud the unsympathetic portrayal of this character in the UK version, because it challenges the assumption female genitalia automatically equips a person to be a brilliant parent.
The US version is brilliantly written and executed, and it’s not hard to see why it has been a hit. It’s only because it’s so well made and so spot on that it is, at times, excruciatingly painful for me to watch -- not fly-on-the-wall viewing so much as torture by screen-induced flashback. Yes, the US version is definitely warmer. Joan Cusack seems to be having a blast.
MA 15+ Rating: Sex scenes, nudity including male genitals and sex toys – nothing gratuitous, just realistic. Pot smoking and a lot of drinking.
Bingeability – If it doesn’t make you cringe, you could certainly binge on the US version. I don’t understand how anyone can sit through the UK version at all.
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