S08.E06: Icarus Fell and Rusty Ate Him

[ElectricBoogaloo]

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Fiona reflects on her life after the death of a tenant; Debbie has a pregnancy scare; Lip seeks Carl's help to search for his sponsor; Frank has a credit card.

Promo:

Clip:

[preeya]

Even by Shameless standards that clip was gross (especially while I'm eating a meatball hero).

Edited December 11, 2017 by preeya

[pieinmyeye]

I'm glad I saw the trailer with the scene of Fiona finding her tenant. At least Iwas prepared for it. Poor puppy. I'm so glad Fiona went and got him.

[Dee]

I LOATHE Ian.

[pieinmyeye]

12 minutes ago, Dee said:

I LOATHE Ian.

I'm beginning to, and based on the previews after next week it will probably be full blown loathing.

Edited December 11, 2017 by pieinmyeye

[Emily Thrace]

Lip was amazing in this episode (and so was JAW) and so raw and open and dogged. I think he may have found something of a calling here. Perhaps not an substance abuse counselor I have a feeling he has too many triggers for that to really work but helping people in a general. He might make a good teacher himself or a more general type of counseling (God knows the Gallghers could use one).  Hell he's smart enough for med school if he could get his shit together long enough.

Its funny all the Gallaghers were fixating on some type of quest this week, Fiona with the old lady, Ian with the shelter,Debbie with her morning after pill and even Carl with paying for school.

[Armchair Critic]

I thought Frank was going to use his credit card to pay for Carl's schooling. Guess Frank will go back to his old ways now that he lost his job.

Edited December 11, 2017 by Armchair Critic

[Chaos Theory]

The episode was largely boring.  I did get a kick out of two things though.

 

1.  Frank actually getting layed off and not fired from his job due to incompetence or intentional injury.

2.  Debbie doesn’t want to be pregnant by the hot guy she bangs....that is a change.

Edited December 11, 2017 by Chaos Theory

[whiporee]

I was pissed at Ian, then I realized he's got a manic episode starting to settle in. Unless I'm mistaken, he started to fixate on something last time, too. Since Trevor is into saving people, this might be his ticket in. If it's not a manic episode, then he's just an asshole who's okay with hurting his sister to score points with someone who dumped him. I'm going to hope for the former. 

Until we saw them going at it again, I'd forgotten how much I loved the throuple dynamics. And I'm back to loving Svetlana again -- "you do as youre told, you get reward," spoken with just the right amount of Natasha Badinov. And her holding up four fingers as she drank her coffee. That said,  Kevin and Vee used to play domination games for her webcam business, so I don't think an of this should be as new to them as they seem. Vee's laughing at Kev's willingness to dom her was pretty funny, as was him asking her to tell him how to dominate her. Actually pretty common dynamic from what I've heard. 

Lip really needed Yeoun to push himself to be more than he is. The old drunk just can't do it. But otherwise I didn't dislike his storyline, except for the MJ arm. That was too much. I do like Carl's can-do, take charge attitude, and I didn't care much for Debbie's plotline other than to make her pal a stat-rapist, too. So yay! Not that it matters to me, but now the conversation could/should become about that rather than the morning after pill.I mean, the older guy got her drunk/high and they fucked. Can't give consent when drunk, and Debbie's underage. 

Fiona's other stuff was sweet. I've seen that kind of thing about a million times before, but still sweet. 

[Gulftastic]

Kev's quest for some man lovin' was funny. I lol'ed at him asking 'is that code?'. 

Really glad that Fiona kept the dog. I was more upset about the dog maybe dying than I was about the dead woman's lonely death.

[snarts]

Why did Debbie drive to Missouri for the morning after pill? Wouldn't it have been easier to have her over 18 boyfriend buy it for her?  In any case, Debbie obviously has some anger issues she needs to work out. 

Ian is a selfish dick.

[preeya]

Debbie is morphing into a female Frank.

[yourmomiseasy]

4 hours ago, snarts said:

Why did Debbie drive to Missouri for the morning after pill? Wouldn't it have been easier to have her over 18 boyfriend buy it for her?  In any case, Debbie obviously has some anger issues she needs to work out. 

Ian is a selfish dick.

She didn't drive to MO for the morning after pill, they were on a road trip to Joplin to celebrate finishing some big test.  I have no idea why that seemed like a cool idea though.

[iMonrey]

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they were on a road trip to Joplin to celebrate finishing some big test. 

Oh I must have missed that. I was wondering what the hell they were doing in Missouri too.

I really liked the ending where it turned out Fiona saved the dog and framed the photo of the tenant. But I was largely bored with this episode aside from some humorous Kevin moments and the running gag of how obsessed Chicagoans are with whoever it was - I've already forgotten the athlete. And the cardboard sign in the windshield that reads "Ubber."

I started to like Svetlana last year, until she stole Kev and Vee's bar. I can't with her anymore. She's this weird left-over appendage of Mickey and doesn't really belong anywhere anymore. 

I keep waiting for Fiona (or anyone) to point out that Ian can literally find any other place to put a shelter. It doesn't have to be that church. I'm sure there are lots of depressed areas with cheap buildings and houses. Whereas that specific church can either be a detriment or a boon to Fiona's apartment building. It's more important for her than it is for Ian/Trevor or the homeless kids. Hell Frank set up a homeless shelter a block down from where they live last season. It doesn't have to be that church. Ugh.

Lip's obsession with helping this guy doesn't really interest me. I don't know if it's because Lip is just trying to pay it forward or if it's because he's projecting. Hopefully it's over now.

[40Love]

5 hours ago, whiporee said:

Unless I'm mistaken, he started to fixate on something last time, too. Since Trevor is into saving people, this might be his ticket in. If it's not a manic episode, then he's just an asshole who's okay with hurting his sister to score points with someone who dumped him. I'm going to hope for the former. 

My vote is that he's just being an asshole. He would have been a hero in Trevor's eyes FOREVER if he had pulled off securing that building. I mean he resorted to blackmail, then ended up pleasuring BOTH the husband AND the wife to be Trevor's shining knight. Fiona is in the way in his quest for the holy grail (Trevor). That's all Ian cares about right now (IMHO). Plus, the writers seem to have forgotten Ian's bi-polar struggles. 

[sheetmoss]

I did enjoy the shouting out  of 'Allahu Akbar'  to clear out the drugstore.

[HoboClayton]

I missed the Missouri thing too. I was like, the hell is she in Missouri!?! Am soooo glad she got the pill. Was really worried she was going to get knocked up again. Veeee! What is happening with you girl!? Her and Kevin have to make it. They just have to. Fuck Ian. Fiona had sweet intentions, but, I do get the side of the family too, they didn't know her. I was surprised that got wrapped up so quickly. I thought it was going to be another plot to find her child and being Fiona, the daughter would fall in love with her or some weird shit. I am liking this season. Was a huuuuge fan of Mickey because it was just damn good television, and the actor knocked the role out of the park. But, I'm not missing him anymore. I would like to see Sheila again soon though. 

[sazzat]

I get tired of Fiona's endless refrain about how no one recognizes how hard she works when she seems to readily forget who has helped her along the way and how. That said, Ian's stubbornness about the shelter seems like a throwback to his reaction in season 2 when Lip tried to help him get into West Point: weird indignation and digging in his heels beyond what actually makes sense. I don't even see them setting it up to blame his bipolar (which would be lazy but at least would give Ian a motivation). I think they're just casting around to give him something to do. Hint, writers: you had Ian improbably land a truly interesting job. Use it. Or use his backstory: if you're having him invest in the teens from the shelter, maybe this is a good way to show how he reflects on his own past as he gets older. If one of those teenagers told Ian about being in a sexual relationship with a much older adult, would Ian still see his own teenage relationships with older men as healthy?

Liking Lip's path so far this season, and incredibly enough, liked Frank's arc this episode. I was loathing the "hot school moms want to get it on with the old alcoholic" last episode, so this is a turn - I appreciate that Frank learns that taking pride in your work is not always enough, and that life can be capricious even when you do things the right way. 

Debbie, ugh. The actress doesn't have the chops to make anything of that material except a whinefest. The speech about her taking responsibility to try to avoid another mistake but also really loving Franny came across as really unnatural. 

[planet17]

When a dog is the most emotional part of the episode, there is something wrong. Especially when episodes six are usually heavy on drama in Shameless. I'm officially not digging this season.

[sunflower]

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Plus, the writers seem to have forgotten Ian's bi-polar struggles. 

I don't think so, watch Ian (barely in the episode though) from his first scene in the kitchen.  His body language is stiff with crossed arms.  When they first show his face when saying he'll pay Carl 5k to kill Fiona?  His eyes looked all kinds of fucked-up.  He is fixating, IMO., which could lead to major mania for him.  I also heard there was a cut Ian scene from 8.04 with Geneva when his motivation gets explained better.  But, I didn't have to guess.  Ian sees himself in these kids.  Getting back with Trevor may have been initial motivation, but he cares about the kids now (whether too much or not)  

Ian screwing that couple for 30k was a means to an end for him, but that's not healthy for him.  I just wish Ian, whether asshole, bipolar rabbit hole, or caring or all combined, was in the episode more. But, next one appears to be the big one for the Fiona/Ian fight.  Ian was harsh on Fiona, but her attitude, which I found annoying, was like let's just get past this and move on.  IT might have been more helpful if Fiona suggested helping Ian and the kids find another place for the shelter. Ian probably would have shot her down because he seems so fixated and pissed, but it would've been a better look for Fiona.  She knows her brother is bipolar, maybe a little softer?  Not give in, but remember he has his issues.  Instead, she had the ultimate human reaction of getting defensive.  I'm looking forward to next week.  

Edited December 12, 2017 by sunflower

[Dee]

The problem is a softer approach doesn't work with Ian.

Fiona, like many others in Ian's life, has repeatedly tried that road with Ian and he's always coldly disregarded her/them.

Also, there's no real comparison between Ian and the center kids. The center kids are at real risk because of their respective situations. Ian, not so much.

[Emily Thrace]

1 hour ago, Dee said:

The problem is a softer approach doesn't work with Ian.

Fiona, like many others in Ian's life, has repeatedly tried that road with Ian and he's always coldly disregarded her/them.

Also, there's no real comparison between Ian and the center kids. The center kids are at real risk because of their respective situations. Ian, not so much.

I also wish someone would point out to Ian that he would have been one of those shelter kids without Fiona. Maybe Lip will next week, since it was Ian who has usually played mediator when it was Lip and Fi butting heads.

[sheetmoss]

The guy that played the reporter covering Michael Jordan's statue severed arm, was  Ryan Chiaverini,,  a co-host on Windy City Live, a live local(Chicago) afternoon TV  talk show

Today, he as recapping for the audience what his  storyline was. -  On Fri he said he'd be on Shameless this Sun, but was sworn to secrecy about why

. When he said it was about him covering the story about Michael Jordan's statue's arm being cut off,,,,there was a loud audible gasp from the audience. LOL

Edited December 12, 2017 by sheetmoss

[ahpny]

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I did enjoy the shouting out  of 'Allahu Akbar'  to clear out the drugstore.

I didn't. It wasn't funny, original or amusing. It was offensive and lazy. Even withinin the spectrum of "Shameless," where, offense and rule-breaking are supposed to be fun and entertaining, this was neither. If the writers want to wade into this type of commentary, the need to do so more deftly to succeed. That certainly can be done. Larry David, in both Seinfeld decades ago, and Curb now, has handled similar themes with humor that works and insight. Sadly this had neither.

[Chaos Theory]

Well if you think about it for better or worse Fiona has been a mother to most of the Gallagher brood and in one way or another all the younger have rebelled against her like most kids do against their mothers.  Only the Gallagher kids did it at an older age.  Lip because he is smart but also has deep insecurities.  Debbie because she is lonely.  Carl because he is well....Carl.   Ian has avoided it in large part because he has had pressing things going on.  Now however he is rebelling against the only mother he ever had who is telling him he can’t have something he wants just because it will make him happy.

[Tatum]

21 hours ago, iMonrey said:

 

I really liked the ending where it turned out Fiona saved the dog and framed the photo of the tenant.

That really surprised me, her sentimentality over the pictures and her obvious disappointment that the niece didn't care. But in a good way. I thought framing the picture and hanging it was very sweet.

While no one could accuse the niece of sentimentality, cleaning out that apartment was actually more than she had to do. The apartment was still a mess when she hopefully asked Fiona if there was a cleaning deposit she could get, which means at that point she had done all that work for a (potential) couple hundred bucks, which didn't materialize and she finished the job anyways.

[Tatum]

14 hours ago, sunflower said:

 Ian was harsh on Fiona, but her attitude, which I found annoying, was like let's just get past this and move on.  IT might have been more helpful if Fiona suggested helping Ian and the kids find another place for the shelter. Ian probably would have shot her down because he seems so fixated and pissed, but it would've been a better look for Fiona.  She knows her brother is bipolar, maybe a little softer?  Not give in, but remember he has his issues.  Instead, she had the ultimate human reaction of getting defensive.  I'm looking forward to next week.  

I don't know at Fiona offering to help him find an alternate place would have made a difference, and not just, as you said, because he was determined to be mad, but because the actual use of the building was only part of Ian's beef. The younger Gallaghers do seem to have a history of getting angry when someone they consider one of "them" (ie, Southside), gets uppity. It wasn't just that Fiona "stole" his building, it was the fact that she, someone who came from poverty, now worried about things like homeless shelters affecting the property values where her investment is located. The Gallaghers seem to view that as a betrayal. It's like the Gallaghers want to see each other succeed, but get angry when anyone's perspective changes. So, in the regard, even if Fiona stumbled upon the most perfect alternate place for the kids, and offered to help Ian procure it, the fact that she doesn't want the kids in her backyard offends Ian.

Edited December 12, 2017 by Tatum

[Miles]

When all that bear-bar stuff happened I asked myself if these writers didn't know any gay male. Now I'm asking myself if they know any sexually functioning human male at all.

Last week (or the one before, don't remember, won't go back), they acted like Lip having morning wood was a sign of him not getting it enough. When that's really just a sign of you being healthy, as your body flooding the penis with blood regularly is important for it not to get damaged.

Now they act like as soon as a man sees something hot he instantly gets an erection. If that was really the case we'd be running around with boners 24/7. Usually that kind of stuff stops at the end of puberty. Sure sometimes you'll get an erection from just being aroused, but often some physical stimulation is required, probably because we trained through our whole puberty not to get erections at the drop of a hat. So treating no erection from looking at a naked guy as proof that somebody isn't gay seems weird, no matter how much like a greek god that dude looks like (which isn't even everybodies type, a fact the shameless writers are probably also unaware off).

8 hours ago, Chaos Theory said:

Well if you think about it for better or worse Fiona has been a mother to most of the Gallagher brood and in one way or another all the younger have rebelled against her like most kids do against their mothers.  Only the Gallagher kids did it at an older age.  Lip because he is smart but also has deep insecurities.  Debbie because she is lonely.  Carl because he is well....Carl.   Ian has avoided it in large part because he has had pressing things going on.  Now however he is rebelling against the only mother he ever had who is telling him he can’t have something he wants just because it will make him happy.

You put a lot more thought into this than the writers did.

[Philip]

I've learned to accept the unrealistic-ness of Shameless but giving Frank a credit card is going too far. He will never be able to pay for any of the stuff he's bought and especially now since he's fired and he'll most likely get to his old ways again.

 

By the way, Cameron M. (Ian) was on this week's Gotham episode for a few seconds and OH MY EFFIN GOD! I loved seeing him back on it! That's more like it! :)

[iMonrey]

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 Ian sees himself in these kids. 

Why? He was never homeless, living on the streets, turning to prostitution. Was never a crack addict, never got abandoned by his own family for his sexuality. Was never sexually abused himself. I really think he's trying to convince himself that his motivations are more than just winning back Trevor but I don't think they are. Fiona is standing in his way of being a hero in Trevor's eyes and that's why he's really mad. If his main concern was the kids he'd turn his attention to finding another location for the shelter, not focus on Fiona as Enemy #1. What if someone else had bought the shelter and Fiona had nothing to do with it? Would he still be throwing a shit fit like he had a God-given right to it? 

Edited December 13, 2017 by iMonrey

[Miles]

4 hours ago, iMonrey said:

turning to prostitution

Didn't he prostitute himself for a while there when he got kicked out of the army and his bipolar disorder was untreated?

Other than that I agree with you though.

[Dee]

He was turning tricks when he worked at The Fairy Tale.

[heatherchandler]

I think he was using drugs then too.  Coke maybe?

[Dee]

Indeed. He was doing pretty much anything he could get his hands on.

[Chaos Theory]

17 hours ago, iMonrey said:

Why? He was never homeless, living on the streets, turning to prostitution. Was never a crack addict, never got abandoned by his own family for his sexuality. Was never sexually abused himself. I really think he's trying to convince himself that his motivations are more than just winning back Trevor but I don't think they are. Fiona is standing in his way of being a hero in Trevor's eyes and that's why he's really mad. If his main concern was the kids he'd turn his attention to finding another location for the shelter, not focus on Fiona as Enemy #1. What if someone else had bought the shelter and Fiona had nothing to do with it? Would he still be throwing a shit fit like he had a God-given right to it? 

Right after his psychotic break he lived on the street for awhile and he was a bit of a prostitute for awhile.    Maybe his family didn’t turn him out but at one point Mickey had to rein him in and throw him in a hospital.  There is a thin line and a few different decisions and Ian would b where these kids are.

[iMonrey]

Except Ian always had a home to go to. I don't think that's the case with these shelter kids. At any rate, I don't believe for one minute the reason he's so passionate about this shelter has anything to do with how he relates to these kids. It's all about Trevor. I can't believe the show is asking me to choose sides here, like Ian has more right to that church than Fiona has to looking out for her financial self interests. She's just supposed to take a bath on her investment in this building because Ian wants back into Trevor's good graces? Even if Ian's motives were entirely altruistic there are tons of other places to buy. That's the crucial point here in the debate - for Fiona, that location is potentially make or break. For Ian and Trevor, it's just one of many places they could buy and renovate. It's not the last stop on the shelter train. If they're trying to say Fiona is being selfish I call bullshit. 

[msrachelj]

On 12/12/2017 at 0:00 PM, Tatum said:

That really surprised me, her sentimentality over the pictures and her obvious disappointment that the niece didn't care. But in a good way. I thought framing the picture and hanging it was very sweet.

While no one could accuse the niece of sentimentality, cleaning out that apartment was actually more than she had to do. The apartment was still a mess when she hopefully asked Fiona if there was a cleaning deposit she could get, which means at that point she had done all that work for a (potential) couple hundred bucks, which didn't materialize and she finished the job anyways.

i hate seeing people chuck everything out into a dumpster when some it could be donated to a charity thrift shop. not all of it was garbage. 

[aemom]

On 12/12/2017 at 0:00 PM, Tatum said:

That really surprised me, her sentimentality over the pictures and her obvious disappointment that the niece didn't care. But in a good way. I thought framing the picture and hanging it was very sweet.

While no one could accuse the niece of sentimentality, cleaning out that apartment was actually more than she had to do. The apartment was still a mess when she hopefully asked Fiona if there was a cleaning deposit she could get, which means at that point she had done all that work for a (potential) couple hundred bucks, which didn't materialize and she finished the job anyways.

I've actually watched enough of The People's Court to know that the tenant (in this case her niece) were responsible for cleaning out the apartment. If they hadn't,  Fiona could have sued in small claims court for a reasonable amount to cover her having to clean it herself. 

[Tatum]

15 minutes ago, AEMom said:

I've actually watched enough of The People's Court to know that the tenant (in this case her niece) were responsible for cleaning out the apartment. If they hadn't,  Fiona could have sued in small claims court for a reasonable amount to cover her having to clean it herself. 

I don't think that's true, actually. Fiona could sue the estate of her tenant, if there was such an estate, and if the niece had inherited anything she would be responsible for paying Fiona out of her inheritance, but you cannot require someone to clean up a mess based solely on the fact that they share DNA with the person who made the mess.

[aemom]

55 minutes ago, Tatum said:

I don't think that's true, actually. Fiona could sue the estate of her tenant, if there was such an estate, and if the niece had inherited anything she would be responsible for paying Fiona out of her inheritance, but you cannot require someone to clean up a mess based solely on the fact that they share DNA with the person who made the mess.

What you typed is exactly what I meant to say, but failed at doing. I blame recovering from being sick for my lack of clarity.  :-)

[Nerd]

I have two questions...

1. When her boyfriend reminded her they had sex on Thursday too, the clock counter fast forwarded from 67 hours to 39 hours and she cursed. But, when they had done it on Thursday, why didn't she try to get the morning after pill back then?

2. Did she manage to swallow the pill in time? It is never made clear.

[toolazy]

On 12/24/2017 at 6:01 AM, AEMom said:

I've actually watched enough of The People's Court to know that the tenant (in this case her niece) were responsible for cleaning out the apartment. If they hadn't,  Fiona could have sued in small claims court for a reasonable amount to cover her having to clean it herself. 

Never mind.  This was covered.

Edited November 8, 2018 by toolazy