S05.E10: South Side Rules

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Frank starts to enjoy the company of his new sick friend and formerly uptight doctor.

Edited March 16, 2015 by ElectricBoogaloo

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Promo:

 

Clips:

 

[tennisgurl]

So, of course, the one second clip we see of Ian/Mickey we get, its of Ian punching Mickey in the face. And then...that thing that I am 98% sure is going to happen. Its like this clip is symbolic of this whole entire season. Everyone gets to get together except poor Ian and Mickey, and then you know who comes along to fuck everything up. 

[backhometome]

I'm shocked that Ian/Mickey got more than 2 minutes of screen time. And they got to kiss first time this season. Of course they can never be happy for more than 5 minutes before it all goes to shit. :/

 

WTF @ Debbie want to get pregnant. I dont get her this season at all.

 

How many different love interests is Fi going to have this season alone?? Its ridiculous. Ironic that she is calling someone out on boycotting her domestic duties. 

 

Fuck you Sammi. I really hope Mickey kills you.

[Primetimer]

Our young lovers' passions get violently inflamed, and Sammi gets even more awful.

Read the story

[ladle]

Admittedly, my entire knowledge of the uniform code of military justice is confined to viewings of "A Few Good Men," but how can Ian be charged with going AWOL if he enlisted under a fake identity and was too young to enlist at the time?  (I mean, I'm sure using the false identity is *some* crime, but if you're too young to enlist, how can you be AWOL?)  And wouldn't his (now well-documented) bipolar disorder be a good defense here?  Also, how did they know his name was Ian?  Did Sammi tell them?  This whole season, whenever Lip was dealing with getting his grant money, I thought his name was going to ping as a military deserter ... but, with the federal government, I guess it's plausible the left hand doesn't know what the right is doing.  

[Advance35]

Maybe that's why I'm not overly invested in Lip's storyline.   The Professor told him just right, he laments about how things are hard for him but he does NOTHING to make his own life easier.  He should have taken those kids to the ER.   I'm glad he wised up in the end and told Kev he's gotta go.  I honestly don't like Lip, I don't hate him like Frank, but I really find Lip unlikeable a lot of the time.

 

The woman hanging out with Frank needs to get perspective.   Whatever is ahead, it will only be worse if Frank is involved.  I'll never forget about "Buttherface", was it Season 2?   I don't think Frank is capable of genuine emotion anymore.

 

Fiona is really slipping and I knew that Debbie listening to that girl go on about how she found a surrogate family when she got pregnant by the brother was going to bear bad fruit.   Debbie is such a simp.  This season has really made her unsympathetic to me.   I guess she's no more disturbed or broken than anyone else in this show and I get that she's lacking structure and stability (Jeez Fiona) but I'm disappointed she's not able to hold it together, it's unfair but there it is.

 

LMAO.  Ian misses the "bitch-slapping piece of south side trash" he fell for.  Ian/Mickey are an utter disaster.   But I honestly can't picture either without the other.  Oh boy.  I had to look away when Ian put his hand on the stove top.   And I cringed when he told Sammi that he's wanted by the army, I feel like I could see the wheels turning in her head.    Was shocked when Mickey and Ian started fighting and even more surprised but not really, to see that for the most part Ian can take Mickey when things get physical.   In the past it's always seemed that Ian didn't want to hurt Mickey but he put him down pretty quick when Mickey went gladiator on Jimmy's dad and again tonight, he seemed like he had the whole altercation in hand.   There an interesting dynamic in a lot of ways.

[Amethyst]

Debbie, have some sense.  Yeah, his family might like you, but a child is forever.  Don't be so stupid.

 

Sammi, I was trying to give you the benefit of the doubt, but fuck that.  She was just being vindictive and I wish the last scene would have been Mickey and Fiona throwing Sammi out of the house by her stringy hair.  Ian had nothing to do with Chuckie going to jail, it was Carl, and he is locked up.  

 

Things were going too well for Ian and Mickey at the moment, I was just waiting on the other shoe to drop.  Pity, because I really wanted to see them go out on a date.  Their scenes are some of the best of the show.

 

But if Ian was AWOL this whole time, didn't the army already look to see if he was hiding at his house?  Not sure how that works. but I figured that would be the first place they would check, and they would probably check again.

 

Although I don't like the subplot with him hooking up with his teacher or the weirdness with her husband, it's good that Lip is finally understanding what school really means to him.  And Kevin was just avoiding going home, it was time for him to leave.

 

Fiona needs to end the marriage with Gus because this hookup with her and Sean is going to happen.  I don't know if Gus would do it, but they could try an open relationship.  At any rate, there's no point in him and Fiona staying married.

 

Pleasantly glad that the Frank/Bianca thing wasn't the entire episode like I was expecting.  I actually like the two of them together, just not a whole episode of it.

[tennisgurl]

Is there some kind of petition we can sign to permanently remove Frank and Sammi from our TV screens? Please? I`ll sign it 400 times, they just need to be GONE! And take Fiona`s 14 love interests with them! 

[jbrecken]

If Mandy was still in town Sammi would be so run over.

[Chaos Theory]

I am actually liking Frank's story for once.    I like him and the dying doctor he is hanging out with.  

 

Well Sammi I think this time you went too far.   I could see why she ratted on Carl but to do so on Ian held no benefit for her.  It was unmitigated anger and vengenous on the entire Gallegher family. 

 

Speaking of the Ian Mickey stuff was the usual mix of sad and sweet and funny it has bee all season.  

[Blue Castle]

This season is so bad that it's easier to list the things Shameless is doing right than the things it's doing wrong.  So here's what I liked:

 

• Most of Ian and Mickey's scenes except when Ian punched Mickey and picked a fight with him using offensive hate speech.  (But I really did love the fact that they were going to go on a date to the Sizzler(!) and they were singing Pat Benatar.  That was great and they're so cute when they're allowed to be happy for five seconds.  Too bad it really was just for five fucking seconds.)
• Sasha Alexander telling Lip to grow the fuck up and appreciate all the shit that landed in his lap.
• Debbie still being skittish around Ian since he almost killed her last week--that was sad and believable..

 

And...that's it.  The rest of it was boring, stupid, or stupid and boring.

[Slovenly Muse]

~sigh~ I can't remember the last time a physical altercation between lovers made me feel so damn happy. Ian's speech to Mickey was so fucking great. I mean, yeah, it's awful, but it's who they are. Everything about their relationship is rough, always has been, and it just WORKS.  (Full disclosure, watching Mickey beat the crap out of people makes me very happy, for reasons!)

 

Ian's arrest was heartbreaking. God dammit, that was brutal.

 

But Sammi... she has no idea what she's done, does she? Besides doing the unthinkable and punishing Ian for Frank's (and Carl's) mistakes, I mean. If she thought being on the wrong side of the Gallaghers was rough? That's nothing now that she's pissed off a Milkovitch. Boy am I looking forward to seeing THAT play out!

 

I don't care to comment on the rest of the episode, except to say, Lip? Ditching Amanda to spend time with your married prof who is never going to want you as anything more than a fling, is so super dumb. Then again, Amanda has been reeling him in very smartly all season, she may not be out of the game yet! Everyone else's storylines can DIAF.

 

ETA: Nope, actually, I do have another comment. Is Deb still 14? Or is it 16 by now? I've lost track of her age. In any case, I feel really sketchy about a girl that young being on the pill. Not because she shouldn't be having sex, but because those hormones can wreak HAVOC on your body, and they are so costly and inconvenient. Someone still in the throes of puberty should be exploring other options, like a copper IUD for example. I get really fed up when the media seems to embrace the message that any young woman wanting to have sex needs to alter herself with artificial hormones in order to be responsible. There ARE other options that are safer and healthier. I get that her story needs to involve her taking/not taking birth control by her own choice, but with so many women having such a rough time with oral contraception, and the ecological ramifications of all these hormones ending up in the water supply, I get riled up when TV shows and movies lazily perpetuate this myth that all women and girls who want to start having sex must automatically go on the pill because that's what they're "supposed" to do, with no acknowledgement of alternatives (especially when the girl in question is flat broke and has so little structure at home - the cost and routine of the pill is not the best match for those circumstances!) Media: Stop telling girls this is the only right way to become sexually active!

Edited March 23, 2015 by Slovenly Muse

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Now I really want to see Mickey and the Gallaghers team up to take Sammi out. I don't necessarily mean murder her but at the very least they need to kick her ass out of the house and get her out of their lives. Trying to get revenge on Carl and Fiona through Ian was so low, and it really highlighted what Lip said earlier about South Side rules. You don't do that to each other. The Gallaghers have been putting up with Sammi's shit for way too long and I kept hoping they would kick her to the curb but now they HAVE to. They can't let a snitch live in their house.

 

I did laugh at the fact that Fiona was incredulous that no one had done things like paid the water bill or bought groceries. If you, as the LEGAL GUARDIAN of these children, haven't done these things why would you expect someone else to magically do them? Hopefully this is the wake up call Fiona needs to finally remember that she is responsible for these kids (the water bill and the food, not Ian being carted off). And the irony of FIona introducing the "previously" segment by saying that she's taking care of five kids. Uhhh, not really.

 

Lip was dumb enough to be honest with Amanda about having sex with his professor. I know he and Amanda aren't joined at the hip or in a committed monogamous relationship right now, but at the very least don't actively offend the girl who offers you sex and a car. He could have just said he had to go to office hours which was not a lie. Besides, you don't want to give your potential ex information that can get you expelled from school. He has no idea how petty or vengeful Amanda can be so telling her that he's banging his professor and selling drugs is not a great idea.

 

Ugh, Debbie. DON'T DO IT.

[tennisgurl]

God, this season...its like the writers made a checklist of what people wanted to see this season, and then did the exact opposite.

 

Like when the Gallagher siblings all hang out? When they all had each others backs? Well, too bad for you! They all get their own sub plots and hardly talk.

 

You wanted Fiona to devote more time to getting her life back on track, and being a good guardian? Too bad! She gets a million love interests, and she spends more time worrying about her new buddy Sean than any of her siblings

 

You liked it when Carl wanted to cure cancer, and Debbie wanted to go to college? Too bad! Now all Carl wants to do is deal drugs and go to jail (and his family is all pretty much ok with that) and Debbie raped her friend, beats up her ex friends, never learns anything from any of that, and is now trying to get pregnant at 14 so she can be in a family that supports her!

 

Wanted to see Ian deal with bipolar disorder, and everything that's happened to him? Too bad! Be satisfied when he gets 5 minutes of screen time per episode.

 

Like Ian and Mickey together? Too bad! It takes them AN ENTIRE SEASON to kiss, they never have sex, have barley shared more than two actual conversations together, and when they do, terrible things happen!

 

I know what you wanted! You wanted to have Mandy and Sheila, two long time characters, be written out to make room for Sammi, a hideous excuse for a human being who exists to give us someone to hate other than Frank. Awesome! 

 

Sorry, that kind of turned into a rant. Honestly, there is a lot to like in this episode, and in this season, but I am getting really bitter here. These writing choices are just...baffling to me. 

 

Even the Ian/Mickey stuff left me feeling kind of mixed tonight, and I love them with all my fangirl heart! Look, on the one hand, I get that they tend to be pretty rough with each other, and I get why Ian picked a fight. He felt numb, or he wanted to go back to a time when he was happier. I get it. But, did he have to punch his boyfriend in the face and call him that incredibly not nice word? He does remember that his boyfriend was abused by his evil homophobic father for his whole life right? Who also beat and raped him for being gay, and then tried to kill him? Mickey is hardly a delicate flower, but that seemed pretty messed up. And on him being too delicate with him? Again, I get it, and I do see both sides here, but, due to the lack of screen time Ian has gotten lately, and the lack of screen time they have gotten as a couple, it comes across as Mickey running himself ragged to be the perfect boyfriend, pushing aside his MANY issues to help Ian through all this, who basically changed every aspect of his life to become the guy Ian wanted him to be in the first three seasons, only to be told by the only man he has ever loved that all his efforts did more harm than good? It makes their relationship feel one sided, or that since Ian did the emotional heavy lifting early on, Mickey needs to make up for it now. I know that that's not what they're saying here, I know that Ian loves Mickey, I know that he needs extra love and attention now because of his illness, I get all that, its just what you get when you give main characters no perspective, and no screen time all season! 

 

I need to think on this more...

Edited March 23, 2015 by tennisgurl

[Blue Castle]

 

God, this season...its like the writers made a checklist of what people wanted to see this season, and then did the exact opposite.

 

This is exactly how I feel!  So many insane and awful choices made by the writers this year when there was so much interesting material they could've explored instead. 

 

And Ian calling Mickey a "f****t" bothered me more than anything else in the episode.  Ian was there when Mickey's father beat him to a pulp twice and called him that same word.  Twice.  I keep remembering Ian in season three after Terry beat them both up and forced Mickey to have corrective sex with Svetlana.  In season 3 Ian was trying to convince Mickey that it was okay to be gay and that his dad was "an evil, psychotic prick" for how he treated Mickey.  So, I really don't believe that Ian, who had witnessed the abuse Mickey suffered first hand for being gay would ever call Mickey that word.  it broke my heart a little, actually.  I've wanted a nice romantic scene between Ian and Mickey since 5x01, but the slur ruined it for me.  At least they were cute in the last scene before it all came crashing down.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

I am not condoning Ian's use of the word, but I feel like he was so desperate that he was doing anything he possibly could to provoke Mickey. It's similar to when he put his hand on the stove earlier in the episode. He knew it was the wrong thing to do and that it would hurt a lot, but he felt like he had to do it in order to feel something again. And he knows that Mickey loves him and doesn't want to hurt him (as seen by how much Mickey initially resisted when Ian began picking this particular fight). He knew he was going to really have to hit below the figurative belt to get Mickey to physically fight him again.

[Blue Castle]

I am not condoning Ian's use of the word, but I feel like he was so desperate that he was doing anything he possibly could to provoke Mickey. It's similar to when he put his hand on the stove earlier in the episode. He knew it was the wrong thing to do and that it would hurt a lot, but he felt like he had to do it in order to feel something again. And he knows that Mickey loves him and doesn't want to hurt him (as seen by how much Mickey initially resisted when Ian began picking this particular fight). He knew he was going to really have to hit below the figurative belt to get Mickey to physically fight him again.

I know what you mean, but I still feel like there were other ways for the writers to get there in the scene. It felt off to me. I mean, Ian witnessed Mickey being beaten and sexually assaulted by his father while that word was used. It was a horrific experience for the both of them and I don't think ian would ever call Mickey that. He could have used other derogatory language (he's called Mickey a coward and a p***y before), but I don't think he'd call Mickey the same horrible thing his father did during a sexual assault.

[backhometome]

 

I know what you mean, but I still feel like there were other ways for the writers to get there in the scene

I agree with the Ian/Mickey fight. I get what they were going for but I didnt really like the dialogue for some of it. 

 

And its getting really exhausting that they literally cant be happy for more than 2 seconds without it going to shit. 

[Advance35]

I get why many didn't enjoy it but I actually found the baseball scene one of the most authentic between Ian and Mickey this season.   Ian knew exactly what he was doing.  I think he has a very strong understanding of who Mickey is and what makes Mickey who he is and knows how to get certain reactions.

 

Ian HATES that he has to take medication, he HATES that he (for now) feels numb and muted on the medication and he definitely hates that it's made him temporarily impotent.  Mickey dealing with him while wearing gloves just tipped him over the edge.  Neither is a well adjusted person IMO and I think that's why we get scenes like the Baseball field.   For good or for Ill, dysfunction is how they function.

[SimoneS]

I wish Fiona would spend some time with Debbie and less time on her man of the moment. Debbie needs guidance and support. She is floundering and there is no one there.

 

I loved Mickey and Ian's scenes. I laughed when Ian told Mickey to suck harder when he cannot get it up. Yes, they can be dysfunctional, but they are entertaining and strong couple. I was glad that they finally connected. Too bad they were only happy for two seconds before Sammi fucked it up. Sammi needs to be thrown out on her ass.

 

I don't get how the army can charge Ian when he was underage when he signed up. The army is culpable for not checking out his id properly. The Gallaghers should threaten to go to the press. Talk about an embarrassment that the army signed up a mentally ill underage boy, what's next, terrorists? Besides if the army does charge Ian, all the costs associated with his mental problems go on its dime.

 

Come on, Lip. His future is so wide open. He needs to grow up and use the connections that he is making at M.I.T.

Edited March 23, 2015 by SimoneS

[patchwork]

I can't believe I'm about to defend Sammi, especially with the stunt she pulls at the end of the episode, but did Fiona seriously expect the woman to carry on looking after the house when she's being shoved out the door? 

 

Fiona waters the husband's plants but completely fails to notice her own house doesn't have any food? I'm growing to hate her as a character and the writers for doing this to her. In contrast what they're doing with Lip, while not always interesting, does feel like natural growth and his LIs are part of that growth while Fiona's just seem to exist in order to separate her from the rest of the Gallaghers.

 

I'm not sure how the military works but considering the circumstances I can't imagine Ian getting punished in any significant way. 

[SimoneS]

I am not counting Amanda out. I think that she can wait out Lip's crush on the professor who will no doubt dump him sooner than later. 

[fliptopbox]

Now I really want to see Mickey and the Gallaghers team up to take Sammi out. I don't necessarily mean murder her but at the very least they need to kick her ass out of the house and get her out of their lives. Trying to get revenge on Carl and Fiona through Ian was so low, and it really highlighted what Lip said earlier about South Side rules. You don't do that to each other. The Gallaghers have been putting up with Sammi's shit for way too long and I kept hoping they would kick her to the curb but now they HAVE to. They can't let a snitch live in their house.

 

I did laugh at the fact that Fiona was incredulous that no one had done things like paid the water bill or bought groceries. If you, as the LEGAL GUARDIAN of these children, haven't done these things why would you expect someone else to magically do them? Hopefully this is the wake up call Fiona needs to finally remember that she is responsible for these kids (the water bill and the food, not Ian being carted off). And the irony of FIona introducing the "previously" segment by saying that she's taking care of five kids. Uhhh, not really.

 

Lip was dumb enough to be honest with Amanda about having sex with his professor. I know he and Amanda aren't joined at the hip or in a committed monogamous relationship right now, but at the very least don't actively offend the girl who offers you sex and a car. He could have just said he had to go to office hours which was not a lie. Besides, you don't want to give your potential ex information that can get you expelled from school. He has no idea how petty or vengeful Amanda can be so telling her that he's banging his professor and selling drugs is not a great idea.

 

Ugh, Debbie. DON'T DO IT.

THIS. All of it.

 

I'm tired of the past couple seasons turn into "who will Fiona fuck next?". I really think she and Gus would be better off to divorce or get an annulment or whatever you do to end a quickie marriage that was a stupid mistake. She just can't reel herself in around men and even though Gus is on his way back home you know she's gonna cheat on him again with Shawn. It's just coming. And her "raising 5 kids"....really? Since when. She hasn't been there to take care of any of them basically all season long (which I am guessing is at least a couple months in *realtime*), plus most of last season while she was fucking cup dude's brother and in prison....and now that Sammi is being put out (and good riddance!!) no one else is gonna pick up the slack. Lip's not there, Ian is a mess with his bipolar and now being arrested by the damn military (thanks, Sammi, you vindictive bitch....she's just out for blood now and doesn't care whose, as long as it's from the other Gallaghers since she only knows how to hit below the belt) and all the other Gallagher kids are in school and too young/irresponsible to run a household. I also knew Ian sharing any type of personal info Sammi her would bite him in the ass. And now she's pissed off Mickey. Shit ain't gonna go well for her, not at all. And whoever said if Mandy were still in town bitch would've been run over by now. So true! You don't fuck with the Milkovitch clan. Just don't do it. They're the shadiest family that ever shadied, and I don't think any of them give a fuck about repercussions or any type of punishment. They will deal with her South Side style, and with the connections they seem to have I am sure they're capable of simply making someone disappear without even trying very hard.

 

Lip needs to keep this whole banging the professor thing to himself. Especially around Amanda, because you don't bite the hand that feeds. She's still helping him out, even in small ways, and that bit of info could be the noose around Lip's neck if she goes to the dean or whoever you go to at college to rat somebody out. Good for him for telling Kev to go home though, he doesn't belong in a college dorm and he really needs to work shit out with Vee. Or file for divorce. Something. Just end all this wishy-washy shit already. Why can no one make an adult decision anymore this season? FFS.

 

Debbie, oh no. Don't listen to that girl you met in the park who got knocked up by the brother. Just....no. Babies are for life, and the Debs we've seen recently is definitely not mommy material. Listen to your man. Use the damn condom!!!!

 

Guess we'll be seeing limited clips of Carl (and ugh...Chuckie) in juvie. I have a feeling Chuckie's gonna be outed as a rat and a snitch and have a really rough stay, while Carl will more or less run the place. Carl's tough enough to take kiddie prison...Chuckie, not so much. No wonder Sammi was advising him to jerk off guards and shit. She's a creep. I'm surprised that lawyer didn't call CPS cos there has to be something illegal about advising a borderline r******* child to perform sexual favors on adults.

 

I think I covered pretty much all of it. Oh wait, Frank and the cancer doctor. I get it, but I don't see it lasting. Either she dies or he finds some other scam and just abandons her like she never existed. Either way.. it'll be shortlived I am sure.

Oh and where was Svetlana? Isn't she still holing up at Kev and Vee's? Or did I miss something?

Edited March 23, 2015 by fliptopbox

[backhometome]

I dont get why Fiona would still live in her husbands house when he isnt even there. It made no sense. I thought after last season she would get better but no, she just got worse. And piling on love interest after love interest is really not helping things.

[Blue Castle]

I dont get why Fiona would still live in her husbands house when he isnt even there. It made no sense. I thought after last season she would get better but no, she just got worse. And piling on love interest after love interest is really not helping things.

Yeah, the writers have completely forgotten who Fiona is. I think they need to take a retreat to a cabin where they do nothing but watch the first three seasons of Shameless on DVD and journal about how they can make season six more real and interesting.

[tennisgurl]

Maybe this can just be our gas leak year!

 

If this season ends with either: 

 

Mickey or someone, offing Sammi, and burying her in the hipster lesbians community garden, then everyone gardens together happy (shes finally useful!)

  OR

Sammi runs away from the mob of angry townsfolk, and it looks like she is about to escape, then,out of nowhere, Mandy runs her over with a truck, back home from Indiana! 

 

I will forgive SO MUCH of what I have hated about this season if you can give me this! Come on, writers. Get it together. 

[LuciaMia]

Ugh, annoying when the show has a character do a complete 180 degree turn from how they've behaved thru the entire program.  I.e. Frank, the ultimate user/manipulator somehow head-over-heels in infatuation over his sick doctor. God, he even left a whole glass of beer untouched in his confusion.

So was somewhat reassured when it seemed Fiona, queen of the mercy fuck, was about to drop 'em with Sean. But, surprise!

But, let's not kid ourselves. They'll make Sean more and more pathetically morose till he and Fiona finally connect. And of course, the scene will end with Gus walking in on them.

*************

Not sure, but after Ian's extensive stay at the hospital, wouldn't his military record have come up somehow?

*************

Would have loved this episode ending with at least Fiona and Lip advancing on Sammi, with murder in their eyes.

Edited March 23, 2015 by LuciaMia

[iMonrey]

 

But if Ian was AWOL this whole time, didn't the army already look to see if he was hiding at his house?  Not sure how that works.

 

Up until now the MPs didn't know who Ian was. They went and found Lip in college (because Ian used Lip's name) and of course Lip played dumb and pretended he'd never seen the kid whose picture they showed him and pretended some stranger must have stolen his identity.

 

That said, if they'd really followed up on it, and looked into the entire Gallagher family, they might have found Ian's picture somewhere in the records. But I'm not sure how much time the military would spend trying to track down some kid who enlisted, then deserted, under a false name. Also, like ladle, I'm not really sure what the military can do to Ian if he was never "technically" enlisted in the first place. If he was too young to enlist and used a false name, can they still court martial him? I guess just the attempt at stealing the helicopter is enough to bring charges against him regardless of the validity of his enlistment.

 

Man, I so wanted someone to beat the crap out of Sammi. Is that wrong? I don't normally advocate violence against anyone, but I've never been so pissed off at a character. I felt a little sorry for Chuckie, because none of that was his fault, and by extension felt some sympathy for Sammi over that whole thing, but this? Now she needs to die.

[Blue Castle]

 

Maybe this can just be our gas leak year!

 

Yes!  Next year they just have to say that there was a slow carbon monoxide leak in the Gallagher house or something (and in Kev and Veronica's).  I wouldn't mind pretending that most of this season didn't happen.

[bluebonnet]

I'm still reeling from the Sammit thing.  She might have just made herself the most despicable character to ever grace our TV's, outdoing even the likes of Ramsay and Joffrey from Game of Thrones.  It made me feel sick to my stomach to watch what she did.  No joke.  

[Blue Castle]

As much as I dislike Sammi, I find the writing so contrived that I can't care much about what she did.  Why is she even around in this episode?  Why is she in the house?  The Gallaghers of seasons 1-4 would've kicked her to the curb the moment she called the cops on Carl.  There is no way they'd allow a woman who they feel betrayed one of their own to stay in their house.  So, of course the answer is: she's still there in the house because the writers needed her to be there.  So she could listen to Ian talk about the army and then betray him (and that was so contrived too--Ian keeps almost everything very close to his chest but suddenly he's telling this untrustworthy woman about his upsetting experiences?)

 

It all feels more like writer machinations than an organic plot so I have a hard time getting mad at Sammi.  She's become a plot device more than a character.

[Christina]

I dont get why Fiona would still live in her husbands house when he isnt even there. It made no sense. I thought after last season she would get better but no, she just got worse. And piling on love interest after love interest is really not helping things.

When he was leaving, he asked her to water his plants and that is what she said she was doing when she called him. I don't think she is still staying there, just stopped by to water the plants and smell his clothes.

[Christina]

ETA: Nope, actually, I do have another comment. Is Deb still 14? Or is it 16 by now? I've lost track of her age. In any case, I feel really sketchy about a girl that young being on the pill. Not because she shouldn't be having sex, but because those hormones can wreak HAVOC on your body, and they are so costly and inconvenient. Someone still in the throes of puberty should be exploring other options, like a copper IUD for example. [sNIP]

 

I thought she said she was 14, and that is why she needed Fiona to go with her. Regarding other options, there are actually laws and medical opinions that limit what options young adults can get. Just 2 years ago, my niece could not get an IUD at 16 because she didn't have any children, and there is a small risk of perforation. I paid for her to see a private practice doc after PP would only give her pills or the shot, who explained the guidelines and the trouble with finding a doc who would give her one. After that, I became aware of many similar cases.

 

I do wish they would have shown a more thorough discussion between Fiona and her about waiting, even though she had Fiona's number, and I liked that the doc wasn't judgmental, but it was all a set-up for her trying to get pregnant anyway.

Edited March 23, 2015 by Christina

[NorthstarATL]

Ian is sick and his illness is documented. No way they will hold him. He commited identity theft, but, again, the illness, and the fact that he was underage. Add to that that that he was underage and gay (he signed up before DADT was repealed IIRC), and he's not going to pay any penalty.

  I liked the baseball field scene. We can use the "f" word with each other just as blacks can use the "n" word with each other. They both were/are frustrated, and they will be this way for the rest of Ian's life, so getting some of that out was worth doing.

   Debbie has had no goal other than sex and taking care of kids, so it's not a leap to have her take this route. Early Fiona would have cautioned her against it, and given her the same goal talk she would have given Lip or Ian, but current Fiona doesn't have much more going on in her head than Debbie.

     Glad Lip kicked Kev out. I was certian he'd make amends with Vee after last week.

    Don't care about Frank. Never will.

[redlaces]

 

We can use the "f" word with each other just as blacks can use the "n" word with each other.

 

No you can't! People sit and wait for those words so they can be butt hurt and complain. 

 

Ian being carted off made me sad, hopefully Monica will take care of her ass so no main characters will be seriously affected by murdering her. Still not at all giving any shit about Lip, at all. Fiona is not the Fiona we used to know. I find her story line boring but not totally out of character. The show is Shameless. I am unsure as to what people honestly expect and I find it funny when they bring in the offensive luggage. I do agree with those that aren't really able to grasp on to a character this season. Mickey (Noel) is still MVP though. I would love to see him win an Emmy as a Milkovich. 

[tennisgurl]

I still cant comprehend why the writers thought the fans would be more interested in watching Fiona and her boring romances with her boring guys, than watching Kev and Vee (together since season 1, separated most of this season) and Ian and Mickey (basically in some kind of relationship since season 1, most popular couple on the show, barely see them interact all season). It does not make ANY SENSE. Actually...

 

It kind of hit me, I get one of the big reasons why Gus and Sean don't really work as love interests, like a lot of past characters have. Theyre just typical, bland love interests. They have no purpose here beyond Fiona. I mean, they're alright, but they clearly don't have any real staying power. Look at the characters you could consider love interest to the Gallagher's, at least ones who have lasted more than one season. You basically have Jimmie-Steve, Karen, Mandy, and Mickey. Say what you will about any of those characters, they at least had their own subplots, personalities, scenes, and relationships with the main cast beyond their designated Gallagher. They got more to do on the show than be "attractive guy/gal a main character gets to screw". Gus and Sean? Just have scenes with Fiona, pretty much. Don`t really know the rest of the main cast, don't really have any development. God knows, I don't want them to get even MORE screen time, but it just proves that their relationships with Fiona are nothing more than typical boring love filler. How can we actually root for them, when we don't know them? Its all so boring and wasteful. 

 

Plus, you know, all of Fiona`s kids are clearly in crisis. Lip almost got kicked out of school, Ian is having serious mental health issues, and would be a million times worse without Mickey, Carl is in jail, Debs is trying to get knocked up, and does she even remember Liam? But what does she spend most of her time focusing on? Boys of course! Who is this person, and what has she done with the old Fiona?  

[backhometome]

 

It kind of hit me, I get one of the big reasons why Gus and Sean don't really work as love interests, like a lot of past characters have. Theyre just typical, bland love interests. They have no purpose here beyond Fiona.

I agree with this so much. Its why I don't give a fuck about either of them. As much as JimmySteve annoyed me at least he was integrated with the rest of her family. He had scenes and plots with them. Plus I feel like she slacks on looking after her kids in favor of her bland love interests this season. 

 

Though tbh Mickey only really started interacting with the rest of the family in S4. He was mostly with Ian in their own bubble the first 3 seasons. And I'm grateful they had him integrated with the Gallagher's because I love him interacting with them. Plus Noel is great and I love when him and Emmy have scenes, since I think they are the strongest actors on the show. 

[Blue Castle]

What's weird about how boring the guys are is that this season most of the female love interests have been interesting to me.  Amanda, Helene, and Angela have all interested me (although they are underdeveloped and their plotlines are often sloppy).  But Gus, Sean, that other Australian guy in the band, and Derek are super boring.  I don't know why they can't write better male characters this season.

[Slovenly Muse]

One more thing I can't believe I forgot about (but with all the Ian stuff exploding my brain, who can blame me?), was Sean and Fiona at the bar. Sean accuses her of staying with him because she's upset about being told "no" and wants to catch him vulnerable to try and get a "yes." She calls that ridiculous and insists that she's only worried about him. But later, after the fight, when they're on the sidewalk, he leans in for the kiss and she gets this little smile... this little "finally!" smile, and I knew that he was right. Not entirely, of course. She does care about him and wants to make sure he's alright. And she's undoubtedly still haunted by finding her co-worker OD'd in her apartment when she'd thought that things were ok, and is taking Sean's situation seriously as a result... but part of it is that she wants him. She wants him to lean on her, to get so far under his skin that he can't possibly turn her away. I loved that little moment. It was so very, very Fiona.

[india wilkes]

I am really confused by Sammi. What is her problem? Ian did nothing to her. Carl is the reason Chuckie is in Jail. Not Ian, not Mickey, and not Fiona. 

 

I am also confused as to why Fiona has not kicked her out. What is the holdup? It makes no sense. She is still living there next episode. 

 

This is why the season has been so annoying to me. Fiona use to run the house, and really be on top of things. Now? well, she is hardly ever seen anymore. 

 

 

[Slovenly Muse]

I think that's the point. Ian never wronged her or Chuckie, it was the rest of the Gallaghers that she perceives as responsible. And Ian is kind of like the "Chuckie" of the Gallaghers, in that he's vulnerable, in need of care and protection, innocent of wrongdoing (against her, anyway), in a diminished mental/emotional state due to the meds, and utterly loved and supported by his family. Having him taken away and thrown to the wolves was the closest she could get to making the Gallaghers who she perceives as responsible experience the same pain that she is in, as they go out of their minds with worry about Ian in lockup, the same way she agonizes over Chuckie in prison.

 

Little does Sammi know, Frank was actually the one behind it all, and he wouldn't care about Ian even if Ian WERE his biological son, which Sammi likely doesn't know he isn't. And now that she's involved the Milkovitches in this Gallagher clan war, things are likely about to go spectacularly wrong for her.

[dangwoodchucks]

Frank seems sincere about Bianca, he even put on a tie and went to the gas station to scrub his junk before going to see her. It was rather funny seeing him standing in a dumpster while telling her he wanted to help her. It's always so jarring when Frank shows some intelligence, like his using the word 'indefatigable' while talking to Bianca's sister. Bet she didn't expect that from the 'homeless guy'.

 

So over Fiona and Sean. Screw him already so he can exit the show. Sorry your husband will be coming home early from his tour and screw up your screwing around. Raising five kids Fiona? Lip's away at college (and took care of the kids last season when you didn't), Mickey's taking care of Ian, Carl's in kiddie jail, Debbie wants to get pregnant to get a new family, and Liam's an afterthought. I did enjoy Liam's storyline this episode. He was carried into a bar by Fiona.

 

Why was Kev staying at the dorms as if he had no place to live? Last I remember V was living over the Alibi and Kev was at the house. The bad drugs and screwing your professor storylines, boring.

 

Debbie is in desperate need of more guidance than Fiona is giving her. It makes me angry to see her wearing so damn much makeup at her age. It's sad but she was right when she told her boyfriend she could have sex on the kitchen table and no one would notice. Remember back when Debbie started hanging out with Sheila to get some mothering? Ugh, they never should have gotten rid of Sheila. And if Debbie's old enough for birth control and sex, she could also be given responsibility for some of the household things like grocery shopping. Apparently Fiona only shops for groceries when it suits a plot point, like when she got the job at the store. No one liked Sammi, but they sure were taking advantage of her maid services so much so that Fiona and Debbie were complaining about her not doing things. You can't have it both ways.

 

Noel Fisher is always good, but Mickey and Ian's storyline is just depressing. The plot contrivances are so annoying. Ian opening up to Sammi was so out of character.

[patchwork]

I am really confused by Sammi. What is her problem? Ian did nothing to her. Carl is the reason Chuckie is in Jail. Not Ian, not Mickey, and not Fiona. 

 

I am also confused as to why Fiona has not kicked her out. What is the holdup? It makes no sense. She is still living there next episode. 

 

This is why the season has been so annoying to me. Fiona use to run the house, and really be on top of things. Now? well, she is hardly ever seen anymore. 

 

When Karl was sent to juvie the Gallaghers basicly shrugged and went on with their lives. Sammi is vindictive, I suspect the lack of food and water was completely engineered by Sammi. She didn't pay the water bill, waited for the company to shut it off and when they did she got rid off anything edible. But it wasn't enough, she wanted them to be in the same sort of pain she is so when Ian told her about his problems with the army she didn't hesitate to tip them off about Ian's location.  

[Advance35]

That was another sad aspect IMO.  Ian is nobody's fool and he can usually see bad news from quite a ways away.  If he were on proper medication and much more himself he NEVER would have openned up to Sammi.

 

I honestly think Mickey's going to be too busy trying to help Ian to deal with Sammi.  But if word got to Carl, I could see HIM willing to initiate a gang war and prison riot to get to Chuckie and take it out on him.

[Chaos Theory]

When Karl was sent to juvie the Gallaghers basicly shrugged and went on with their lives.

What else do you expect them to do? This is actually the correct response. Or do you expect them to sit vigal waiting for Carl to return or sit around the kitchen table discussing their feelings on how Carl's incarceration affects them? Neither is appropriate especially for them. You just shrug and get on with your life it is all you can do.

[patchwork]

What else do you expect them to do? This is actually the correct response. Or do you expect them to sit vigal waiting for Carl to return or sit around the kitchen table discussing their feelings on how Carl's incarceration affects them? Neither is appropriate especially for them. You just shrug and get on with your life it is all you can do.

 

Me? I didn't expect them to do anything. I was simply explaining my take on why Sammi called the army about Ian. 

[iMonrey]

God, this season...its like the writers made a checklist of what people wanted to see this season, and then did the exact opposite.

 

To be fair, it isn't realistic to expect any of these characters to have happily-ever-afters. They are all broken, damaged people who consistently make bad choices. We're never going to see Ian and Mickey walking off into the sunset holding hands or Fiona marrying some great guy who takes care of her or Debbie going to college and getting a degree, etc. That's just not what Shameless is. Even if Ian hadn't been hauled off by the MPs I wouldn't expect a bright future for him based on his diagnosis. 

 

Ian is sick and his illness is documented. No way they will hold him. He commited identity theft, but, again, the illness, and the fact that he was underage. Add to that that that he was underage and gay (he signed up before DADT was repealed IIRC), and he's not going to pay any penalty.

 

Even if he wasn't technically enlisted he still tried to steal government property so they can charge him with that regardless of what kind of identity he was using. I'm just not sure whether he'd be tried in a military court or a civilian one.

 

Plus, you know, all of Fiona`s kids are clearly in crisis. Lip almost got kicked out of school, Ian is having serious mental health issues, and would be a million times worse without Mickey, Carl is in jail, Debs is trying to get knocked up, and does she even remember Liam? But what does she spend most of her time focusing on? Boys of course! Who is this person, and what has she done with the old Fiona?

 

The thing with Fiona is that she's not doing anything different than she ever did before she had joint custody of her siblings. She's not really a "mother" and doesn't know how to be one either. She certainly had no examples in her own life. She still has to go to work and leave the kids to their own devices. That's what she's always done. She volunteered to take on custody just so they wouldn't wind up in foster care. 

[ElectricBoogaloo]

The thing that broke my heart in this episode was Ian looking at Sammi with his sad eyes and simply saying, "Why, Sammi?"

[wovenloaf]

Raising five kids Fiona? Lip's away at college (and took care of the kids last season when you didn't), Mickey's taking care of Ian, Carl's in kiddie jail, Debbie wants to get pregnant to get a new family, and Liam's an afterthought. I did enjoy Liam's storyline this episode. He was carried into a bar by Fiona.

Oh don't forget - he also got to watch Mickey attempt to give his brother a blow job. That poor child... When the show does a storyline about how no one in the house is buying groceries, do they not foresee the viewers wondering how Liam is getting fed??? I guess now we know why he never grows. Eek.