Review: Shameless, S2, E5 – “Father’s Day”
Air Date: Sunday, February 05, 2012, 9:00 pm ET/PT on Showtime
Rating:
Frank comforts Sheila after she learns of Eddie's death. Photo cr: Cliff Lipson
Sheila (Joan Cusack) hasn’t come out of the house since running back inside last week, choosing instead to hide in her bedroom to avoid any more calamity. But misfortune always seems to find Sheila. Poor thing—she just can’t get a break. Frank (William H. Macy), on the other hand, is only interested in the life insurance money Sheila might be entitled to since finding out her husband Eddie is dead. I know Frank is trying to be serious when he cries with Sheila over Eddie’s demise, but all it does is make me laugh. After all, he’s the one who killed the bastard!
Sheila is more agoraphobic than ever, choosing to urinate in a bedpan she gives Frank to empty. I know he’s devoted to her—at least for the time being—but that’s carrying it a little too far for my taste! Then again, if I had almost been crushed by a falling airplane wheel and then found out my husband was dead, I might hide in my bedroom too. Too bad Sheila doesn’t realize Frank is trying to take advantage of her. What I don’t know is whether it’s her agoraphobia that prevents her from figuring that out, or whether she’s just a bit on the simple side. Whatever it is, Cusack plays her role to perfection.
Fiona smiles at Steve as he drives off. Photo cr: Chuck Hodes
I like the relationship Fiona (Emmy Rossum) is forming with Richard (Johnny Sneed), the rich guy Jasmine (Amy Smart) set her up with at the nightclub. He respects her and treats her like a lady at the wedding they attend even though Greg (Robert Gant), one of his smarmy friends, treats Fiona like a high priced call girl. I swear, I wanted to slap that douche bag in the face! Richard is such a nice man and doesn’t care that Fiona is not what she claims to be. Could this be the one to get Steve (Justin Chatwin) off her mind? He’s back, you know. If it were me, I’d definitely go with Richard. He’s the type to put his lady on a pedestal and who doesn’t want to be treated like that!? Basically, Fiona is a good person who has to deal with the crappy life she’s been dealt. She deserves so much more than a car thief. But you can’t overlook the chemistry between Fiona and Steve, which seems to come so easily to Rossum and Chatwin.
Lip finds out Karen is pregnant, and has a hard time dealing with the fact it could be his. But with odds of 20-1 (as Fiona figures out), it’s a pretty sure bet he’s the dad. I love the advice Frank gives Lip about accepting responsibility for Karen’s baby.
“The best gift you can give? Neglect. Neglect fosters self-reliance. Now do the right thing—split.”
How very Frank of him! However, when Karen tells Lip she and Jody (Zach McGowan) “got hitched,” and she doesn’t want Lip to be a part of the baby’s life, the look on his face tells me he’s still living in a state of denial about his feelings for her. The thing is, I think Karen’s also living in a state of denial.
Debbie yells at Carl for renting out Frank's room to a hooker. Photo cr: Sonja Flemming
Jody keeps his shorts on while making breakfast, which is a nice change from last week, although I certainly don’t mind seeing that rock hard body. I wonder how long he works out to achieve those abs. I want to commend McGowan for the way he portrays his character as he plays dumb really well. I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry at his stupidity in the barbecue lighting scene!
Veronica (Shanola Hampton) thinks Kev (Steve Howey) is cheating on her when she finds out he wasn’t where he said he would be the previous evening. She is one crazy ass bitch! I love the sexy leopard lingerie she flaunts as she ties Kev up for some kinky sex, or so he thinks. There’s nothing like using sex to get what you want from a man—or a huge set of garden shears. There’s more than one way to skin a cat—pun intended! I’d fess up too! Hampton and Howey have amazing on-screen chemistry. The fire just sizzles between them. It’s probably not too hard for Howey because Hampton has one of the finest bodies around. But their characters have a lot more than sex going for them. Veronica understands her man needs support and a little TLC sometimes, even when he comes up with crazy ideas.
Ethel and Malik take their kids on a play date. Photo cr: Richard Cartwright
It looks like Ethel’s (Madison Davenport) relationship with Malik (Justin Mitchell) is moving along as they take their kids out for a play date. But when Malik finds out how Ethel became pregnant, he takes matters into his own hands, and not in a good way. Davenport is to be commended in her portrayal of her character. Ethel is so matter-of-fact about how she got pregnant, it’s almost like she thinks it’s the normal way to have sex. I would imagine this topic isn’t something this young actress has come across in her everyday life. This is quite a commentary on the Mormon lifestyle given Ethel’s description of being held down so her elderly rheumatic husband could impregnate her, and how painful it was. How disgusting, disturbing and sickening—an appalling thing to do to an 11-year-old girl on the brink of womanhood.
Funny and memorable lines:
Bev to Fiona: “Got any Vagisil? I been scratchin’ under the hood all night.”
***
Frank to Lip: “That’s the Gallagher sperm—ambitious, relentless, everything we’re not once we’re born. Like heat seeking, baby making, guided missiles. Won’t be long before the whole country is nothing but Mexicans and Gallaghers.”
***
Kev, as Veronica handcuffs him to the chair: “Hey just remember. If you’re gonna sit on my face, I have that sinus thing, ok?”
***
Ian salutes Col. McNally. Photo cr: Sonia Flemming
Throughout season two, Lip has been trying to help Ian (Cameron Monaghan) get into West Point, so when Col. McNally (Peter Murnik) drops off a West Point application for Lip, Ian is not only upset, he’s totally pissed at Lip. Monaghan plays this scene beautifully. The way he snaps to salute, back ramrod straight, with a hopeful look on his face that soon turns to disbelief and disappointment is spot on. But the absolute worst and meanest line of the night is uttered by Ian, right before he and Lip get into an awful fight in the bathroom: “Fuck you, Lip. You can get back to your whore who can’t be sure if your kid is your son or your brother.” Ouch!
“Father’s Day” is another beautifully written, acted and directed episode of Shameless. It’s a perfect balance between light and dark comedy, providing a significant amount of pathos along the way. Just my cup of tea for a Sunday night.
Tune in to Shameless, Sunday nights at 9:00 pm ET/PT, only on Showtime.
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All photos courtesy of Cliff Lipson / © 2011 Showtime/CBS Entertainment. All Rights Reserved.
Linda
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2 comments
Hi Darci,
Thanks for your very insightful comments. I, like you, think Lip will be a MUCH better father than Frank ever was. Besides, you can’t get much lower than Frank, right?
I think all the actors are awesome, but Madison Davenport is really blowing me away. She is wise beyond her years. I’m very much enjoying the relationship Ethel is having with Malik, but something tells me there’s more than meets the eye with Malik. I was shocked he had his father kill Ethel’s husband in jail.
Thanks for reminding me about the awesome music in Shameless. I’ll have to start commenting on it in my reviews, as sometimes, it’s almost like an extra character –not that Shameless needs any more of those! LOL!
Aaah I really like Lip, I’m hoping that unlike Frank having a kid will bring out the best in him. Despite all his dysfunctions (I especially hate how cruel he can be to Karen) I think Lip is one of the best-hearted Gallaghers and although he will probably always be dysfunctional to some degree, I’m hoping he can get it together enough to be a good father despite his flaws.
Anyway, great episode, had some really awesome other moments like when Ethel and Malik are shown hanging out and sharing ice cream and you can see they’re really starting to like each other…the way the actors use expressions and body language is masterful and the song (“Canadian Thanksgiving” by Graham Wright) really adds to the vibe, too – this show is always featuring great music.
Speaking of music, I loved the song so much during the part where the cops catch up with Frank and ask him about the sex tape they found of him and Karen that I had to look it up (it’s “Beacon” by Fellow Bohemian) I am ALWAYS getting in to new music because of this show.