#shameless meta

[just-b-yourself]

Mickey Milkovich’s walk "Fuck you, fuck you, and especially fuck you !" Shameless ( 2011-2021 )

[oathkeptroxas]

Imagine you're Mickey Milkovich and you've just fought and then fucked your sister's boyfriend. You've just signed your own death warrant. You're riddled with fear and adrenaline and you don't know how to navigate a world that's now entirely tilted.

You think that if you just give him the gun back, it'll be like you never took it. This entire day didn't happen. It's a peace offering, it's a bargaining chip. It's the reason he came and so once he has that he'll go, no questions asked, no reason to stay. You wish you didn't want to give him a reason to stay.

Imagine you realise that your sister's relationship may be entirely lavender. They're soft and affectionate, but they laugh with the ease of friends, and you haven't walked in on a single make out session. You haven't heard crude symphonies through paper thin walls, that's not usually how Mandy's relationships go. But still, Mandy trusts him, and he clearly trusts her. Maybe you can trust him too.

You go back to the place that started it all. You're not gonna steal this time, you want a do-over. You want to imagine Ian noticed you because of you, not because you terrorized his work place and threatened his boss. Maybe what you'd felt was a fluke.

It doesn't mean anything. But it's a reliable fuck with someone who you have a reasonable explanation to be seen with. It wouldn't be too strange if you were caught in conversation with your sister's boyfriend. It's just all too convenient to pass up. The fact he's got one foot in the door of the Milkovich circle and doesn't seem in any way deterred by what he's seen is a bonus. This is the most low-risk you can possibly be while still getting what you want. It doesn't mean anything.

That afternoon he comes to you. For the first time since this started. You know it's not really you he wants. This isn't some grand gesture where he's choosing to spend his time with you over Mandy. He's choosing sex over homework, that's all. That's what any horny teen would do, especially ones that have to be on the DL. You'd both take any chance you can get. A pattern emerges, you do nothing to stop it.

Imagine he's at your door, teary-eyed and blotchy-faced. You've never been good with words, never been allowed to feel things unbridled. You have nothing to offer him. But that's okay, he's probably looking for Mandy anyway. He's in distress and you want to help but you weren't built for kindness, and anyone in need would seek out their best friend, not some guy they fuck in secret.

But he says "I need to see you", and "I don't know where else to go". You realise he came here looking for you. He's clearly rattled, scared, upset and unsure, and he trusts you with that, wants you around when he's vulnerable. It hits you square in the chest.

In that moment you want desperately to be the kind of person he needs.

But he knows you. He knows what you can offer and he came anyway. Perhaps he doesn't need tenderness. Maybe there's no need for soft platitudes. You can be a willing body for him to bury his feelings in. You're a welcome distraction.

But still, he chose you. It doesn't have to mean anything.

Imagine the same man predator that used to tremble at the sight of you, and piss himself in fear, shoots you because he thinks you took his little boy-toy from him.

Ian has your face between his large hands and he's trying to hold your gaze and he's got his back to Kash. It all happened so fast and you're so fucking angry, but you know Kash won't say shit. He knows you know about him and Ian. He knows you know he's a sick fucking perv. And he doesn't know your family, he doesn't realise you may have more to lose than he does.

Kash looks devastated, like he's lost something here in this moment where Ian is trying to hold your attention through the pain and fury. It doesn't mean anything.

Still, you tell the cops Kash shot in self-defense.

Imagine being in juvie because if you told a police officer the real reason Kash shot you, it might get back to your father. At least you have leverage over Kash. Still, you'd rather be inside than out if he does run his mouth. Terry can't get you in here.

Ian comes to visit, and you're happy to see him. You wish you weren't. Your voice is soft in a way that it shouldn't be. He asks "how long?" and a part of you thinks maybe it would be better if you stayed apart forever. What good could come of this? But he's so earnest when he asks, just a little sad. You don't want to be apart from him.

You thank him for the money. It was a thoughtful gesture, but he don't owe you anything. You don't want him to think this is more than it is. What he says then almost floors you: "I told him you might still press charges."

Ian is keeping that fucker in line. He's blackmailing Kash and making sure you're taken care of. You can't think of a single reason why he would do that. You're not available for a convenient lay anymore. You're not around to distract him.

He's going out of his way to see you, to provide for you. He's cemented himself firmly on your side. He's chosen you and fought for you in a way that nobody else ever fucking has. You don't get it.

And if only to yourself you realise that yeah, maybe this does mean something. You just wish it didn't.

[firecrxtch]

If I was more eloquent I would say something about how Ian always seems fade into the wall when he’s hurting. It’s probably a bi-product of being a middle child but there are so many instances where he’s upset or hurting emotionally and no one notices. The little ones will run to Fiona or maybe even Lip but Ian is always by himself

In s1 when Fiona and Monica have a fight at Sheila’s Ian is just quietly crying in a corner by all by himself

In s2 after Monica’s attempt he’s just quietly leaning on the door

In s3 he’s in his room by himself after being beat up by the love of his life while his family is having a party down stairs

In s4 his family don’t really care that he hasn’t been home for weeks

I could go on

It might be a middle child thing or it might just be an Ian thing but for some reason he just seems to turn invisible when he’s hurting

[dershoimvik]

this has been floating around my head for a hot second so yay shameless history and also some meta breakdown (shameless history source me i was watching live since s5 and involved heavily in the fandom on a different blog and other social medias)

its kind of important to me that people know that the writers were fully thinking about bringing mickey back when they created trevor. like, because of the way they wrote and shot before the season even premiered, and the amount of planning it takes to shoot not just a series like this but in two locations: chicago and la, they need to know (even loosely) where the story is going before everyone gets their hands in.

and also season seven was kinda different from past seasons, if i remember correctly they were potentially going to end the series there-- they hadn't yet been confirmed for season eight at the time of production and contracts were due to be renegotiated (which famously led to the emmy rossum pay dispute and delayed season 8. #IStoodWithHer).

but that milestone is why the end of the season feels like such an ending. everyone's kinda reached a resting place after monica's death (who, as we know, is the ghost haunting the entire series. she's just as looming when she's not around as she is chaotic when she is. killing her would be a very impactful ending)

but let's go back to season six.

ian has just broken up with mickey because he is afraid his bipolar disorder will rot their relationship over time, especially since he does not want to get on meds. when we start the season, ian is now on meds (but clearly over-sedated and depressed). it is not outlandish to assume that seeing monica with walter/mickey being arrested because of something he did for ian/fiona or lip talking to him had influence on him agreeing to try again.

mickey is sentenced to eight years in prison and everyone kinda shits on him, including ian. i dont think this would have been out of character for ian, i think he's spinning out and hating himself so much throughout the entirety of season six that he convinces himself that mickey was bad for him. because how else can he cope with losing him for eight years? there's also crazy dynamics in ian's support system (fiona and lip) because of the way they have experienced "love" and how that translates to their understanding of ian and mickey's relationship that i would have to write a totally separate post on.

in the real world at the time, fans were loudly infuriated by this plot line and did not hesitate to make their voices heard. every single post on cast's accounts, writer's accounts and the official shameless accounts-- whether shameless related or not-- were calling for his return. the writers and cast maintained that they love mickey and that it was noel's choice to leave, but fans did not believe this to be true. i am not sure what was going on behind the scenes compensation or schedule-wise, so i won't comment on that but just in looking at what happens in text:

i do think some of those frustrations with noel's unavailability were taken out on mickey in text (my last boyfriend wasn't much of a talker, piece of shit i divorced, etc). which isn't a crime, nor is it totally ooc.

however, the writers were not actually trying to replace him or create an endgame for ian that wasn't mickey. caleb is a study of what happens when ian, post-diagnosis, tries to date someone who does not understand or relate to his upbringing. and in fact, caleb is only a step down from guys like ned. he is marginally older than ian (he brings this up to him a few times) and well-involved in the gay scene, even if he presumably doesn't club. ian, who has always been in love with the idea of getting out of the neighborhood culturally and physically, is happy being with him because it makes him feel like he is finally in a "healthy" relationship and "normal" after having a prolonged mental breakdown and new life-long diagnosis. being with caleb also leads him to a para-military occupation that fulfills his need for structure and service: being an emt. caleb, a firefighter, prioritizes those attributes too and insinuates that he "finds the treasure in the trash--" which tells ian that despite all his shit, he is wanted. so ian throws himself completely into this relationship, spending more time at caleb's studio than he does at home, to the point where when he does come home, carl says, "i thought you were living at caleb's."

caleb's cousin's wedding plotline was a little bit of a departure, but planted the seed that caleb is not all goody-goody. this layers when he tells ian to lie about his bipolar disorder on his job applications. ian still keeps caleb from the rest of his family-- there's a deleted scene where caleb chews ian out for being so tight-lipped about the rest of his life. the first time any of the gallaghers really even meet him is at fiona's wedding, which falls apart. caleb helps throw frank into the river, and we are led to believe that he can run with the gallaghers just as much as ian can contort himself to perform "normalcy."

so then we start season seven, and quickly ian and caleb break up. ian breaks up with caleb firstly because of him cheating but he also gets into gender-sexuality binary territory because caleb tries to manipulate ian and encourages him to sleep with a woman. so ian does, and he doesnt like it.

enter trevor, who is a trans man, and ian is attracted to him, which upends everything he thought he knew about the rules of sexuality. ian is still gay, trevor is still a man, but it doesn't live within the binary that ian had insisted on earlier. this served mostly as commentary on the LGBTQ+ community because trevor introduces ian to a world filled with new and complicated vocab and identity. which, in 2016 was spot on.

then, as they get to know each other further (and i'm assuming behind the scenes they were heavily planning out the end of the season and coordinating scheduling and stuff), trevor becomes similar to mickey in some respects- snarky, loves to argue, etc. but ian still does not show his full self to him and crucially, they clash when monica comes around because trevor defends her. trevor didn't even know that ian had a mom at the beginning of the episode. ian is not being open with him.

thus far, ian's believed that trevor's work with the shelter allows him to understand more about him, his identity, and his upbringing, but it doesn't. mickey never met monica on screen so there's no actual data to point to in comparison, but mickey obviously knows a thing or two about having a complicated relationship with parents.

immediately after, mickey is brought back into the story, and all this history rushes back: he takes ian to the bleachers, "our spot," and it reminds ian of the connection they had before he had his first bipolar episode. in ian's words, you can't fake that. loving mickey was never a lapse in judgement, even when he was sick. ian barely hesitates before running off with him down to mexico, and everything's more thrilling, more well-fitting than with trevor.

but ian is practical, and above all, knows that there would be no getting meds in mexico (see iggy in season five: no one gets high off lithium, so there's no market for this shit). he doesn't want to be a liability for mickey staying out of prison, and beyond that, his family needs him around (i mean... based on the way things totally went to shit the last time he took off for longer than a few days...). but he loves mickey. so he drains his own savings and ensures mickey's passage into mexico and then tries to go back to trevor because that's the closest thing he could ever get to having mickey again. trevor doesn't want ian back after finding out he cheated, but offers to come to the funeral. ian really isn't that devastated about their breakup.

this is sooo long already so i wont get into gay jesus and how thats a manifestation of his mickeymonica grief unless u guys want another post :3 but basically my point being that caleb and ian's shit talking of mickey is a direct response to ian's rocky adjustment period post losing literally everything (if ian can't blame himself, maybe he can blame mickey) and that trevor is a psuedo-version of mickey on purpose and was not a representation of how the writers felt about mickey, but a setup for when mickey DID come back for his arc. and the ending of season seven (if it was framed as a series ending) shows ian is not all that interested in getting trevor back, he sees him as his next-best option.

[iansnusualfascination]

Trevor's character lacks complexity and THAT is his biggest sin as a character

I'm relatively a new viewer of Shameless. I haven’t watched it many times, but since I first saw it a year ago, it has become one of my favorite comfort shows to have playing in the background while I work.

What I’m about to say might not be a popular opinion, especially since I've only recently joined the fandom, but some of the characters specifically the side characters are written terribly.

I think one of the main reasons people prefer the earlier seasons (besides the shift from heavy drama to more of a comedy) is that the side characters were exceptionally well-written and complex (even if you hate them, you love to hate them)

The best example is the Milkoviches. In Season 1, they barely had any screen time, yet the writing was strong enough to make me care about them and their impact on the story immediately.

However, looking at it through the lens of storytelling, some writing choices now feel very strange to me. Regarding poor character writing, the first side character that made me realize the show was struggling was TREVOR.

(As a disclaimer, I don't have any bias toward characters based on their looks or romantic appeal or chemistry; I’m strictly analyzing storytelling and character development.)

Trevor is a PROBLEM because he appeared in 18 episodes. In many series, 18 episodes could span two or three seasons. If a character is standing next to one of the leads in almost every scene for that long and we still don't even know their last name, that is a massive failure in character development.

I'm not a writer myself but I work closely with many authors and publishing houses. I read a lot for my job, and from a narrative standpoint, Trevor’s writing is confusing. Usually, when a writer introduces a character, they want the audience to care about them in some way. Some people criticize Trevor by pointing out his flaws (like the situation with Monica) but in a show called Shameless, shameful acts are the whole point. Hating Trevor more than Frank just because of his flaws isn't a strong argument. The real issue is his LACK OF COMPLEXITY.

He feels flat compared to the deeply damaged and complex characters surrounding him. We know nothing of his past other than a story about his prom and the fact that he’s from New Jersey. The writers essentially reduced his entire identity to being a trans character. There is nothing wrong with representation, but it becomes a problem when a character has no other labels, traits, or depth over the course of 18 episodes. It feels like the writers actively sabotaged him. The best example of this is the Season Recaps.

You’d think a character who was in every episode of Season 8 would get a mention in the Season 9 recap, but he was completely erased. Even in the Season 8 recap, his only scene is when Ian tells him he was with Mickey, making the moment more about Mickey than Trevor.

Knowing that the writers weren't sure if Noel Fisher (Mickey) would return and knowing Cameron Monaghan (Ian) wanted to leave, it makes no sense to invest so much screen time in such an insignificant, shallow character.

Why not give Ian a meaningful friend or a more developed partner instead of a character the writers themselves seemed eager to forget?

[iandarling]

the idea that everyone thinks mickey is this dirty feral raccoon to be avoided at all costs because he’s so unstable, but to ian, mickey is the most beautiful, perfect thing he’s ever seen. mickey is ian’s precious little baby

mickey was dirty because he was a neglected and abused child. he used the dirt to sement his public facing image as it helped establish him as the dangerous thug he was (the dirt also kept girls away from his body but that’s a conversation for another day)

ian recognised this because he kinda sorta did the same with rotc (also he found mickey and his dirty bag persona super fucking hot)

but ian definitely was able to see the softy behind the layer of dirt mask and was instrumental in melting the icy layer and let mickey breathe

once mickey felt safer (and terry was behind bars again) ian was absolutely able to baby him the way he deserved <3

[lupeloto]

do you think Ian ever goes back to the psych ward after season 11? what are your headcanons

i love this question. i am, of course open to different perspectives, but i really don’t think he would. ian’s journey to self preservation and accountability for his own mental health was really significant to the story. not to be a tweaker shipper, but i really do think that within the shameless universe, mickey is such a rock for ian in that way. while i am well aware that a partner’s love is not a quick fix to regulating mental health, i do believe that their journey throughout season 5 really shaped how they handle ian’s mental health in their relationship together. mickey is more informed now, he keeps an gentle eye on ian and an easeful approach to addressing it.

i really think that if ian felt he was slipping or struggling, mickey would recognize it immediately and allow there would be resistance on ian’s part, i believe he would allow mickey to support him and allow himself to be taken care of when needed. he has a solid, reliable place to land that he didn’t really have before in the chaos of the gallagher house. i think he would take necessary steps to manage his mental health if he felt it was going downhill again whether that requires regulating his meds or even going to a therapist even tho we all know “gallagher don’t do therapy” (corny booo). and mickey would be there every step of the way of course

[em-harlsnow]

I just wish we had seen Ian be comforting to Mickey more. They had so much opportunity in later seasons, but they didn't take it and it really pissed me off. Posing Ian as more selfish in season 11 than we ever saw him in earlier seasons, with Mickey pointing a gun at Terry and saying he 'tortured him for years' and Ian shrugging it off with 'Frank broke my nose'. Like yes, yes, Ian should also talk about his own abuse. But overshadowing your partner's struggle with your own (when Ian saw first-hand what Terry was like) is just shit and felt OOC for Ian. Bear in mind, Ian also was BFFs with Mandy and knew all the horrors Terry did to her. It seems off for him to be sympathetic to her in season 2 (?) I think when trying to get her an abortion and season 6 (?) when she came back, but not to Mickey.

I'm not hating on Ian here, I love Ian. I'm saying the writers fucked him over, that Ian would have been sympathetic and kind if they hadn't been annoying. If anything, Ian bringing up Frank being abusive is not only out of character from a 'he would comfort Mickey point of veiw' but also from an 'Ian doesn't like to talk about the shit that happened to him' view.

We got the scene of Ian saying 'you are so much better than that', which is good. But it's the best we got. And considering the unbelievable amounts of abuse Mickey suffered, it doesn't feel like enough. Earlier in the show, they were amazing at going over dark themes. With Fiona struggling when she got out of prison and Lip's alcoholism and Ian's bipolar disorder and Debbie's huge mix of things and Carl's illegal proclivities. I do think this all stems from them trying to make it more comedic, but it just WASNT comedic. They tried to make Terry's death funny?? tried to have Mickey crying over it be funny?? It just felt tone-deaf, like the writers didn't watch their own show.

I heard something about the writers being changed in season 10, so maybe that's why.

But in a show that was very dark, for the last two seasons to get like three sad and meaningful scenes (Mickey's 'you don't love me enough now', Frank speaking to Lip about fatherhood and Ian's 'I miss mum') is ridiculous. It felt like they were trying to tie the show up in a neat bow, but they failed. Most of the character's storylines are open-ended and annoying. They also made them all act really middle-class (at least in my opinion) which is odd for people still struggling with poverty.

Everything felt very surface-level. In my mind, what could have been GREAT in season 10/11 would be this:

Mickey struggling with PTSD (idk insomnia, OCD, claustrophobia from prison could all play a part in this, there were so many opportunities they didn't take)

Ian struggling with getting his old job back, proving himself again and trying to find himself (they sort-of covered this, but barely)

I would keep the gallavich wedding, but I don't like Terry's involvement. honestly, it felt sort of weak coming from a bastard like Terry.

Lip and Tami I like together, but I would have liked to see their bond be deeper. It, again, felt very surface-level through the last seasons. Would be interesting to see Lip have the same intensity toward fatherhood as he did when he thought Karen was having his baby. it didn't feel the same

some of the gallavich engagement angst I like, but I think they could have done better than Mickey going off with Byron.

bring in more milkoviches. I mean, come on. where did they all go. Mandy, Iggy, Sandy, just bring them back.

Would have liked to see Ian and Mickey become like the new Kev and V (stable and loving but also crazy)

Kev and V's storyline was decent altho boring. Maybe it was good that it was boring, because it showed them become really stable in their roles as parents and partners and full-on adults (ik they were always adults, but yk what I mean)

Carl's relationship with the Mexican family I felt should have had a deeper impact on him. For someone with such emotional depth, it felt strange for him to just get over it so quickly. he really liked Anna. (plus I liked her so I want more of her)

Debbie could have had a redemption arc, she didn't.

Lip was argumentative and lost a lot of his ingenuity, it becoming sort of tragic that all his intelligence was used for was getting cheaper paint and helping out some arrogant rich guy get more rich. Idk, I would have liked to see him try and start up a business with a little crime on the side, making it really successful.

Liam's character was good. I thought it was cool to see him exploring his heritage and scamming people at school like his siblings used to. It didn't have the same rawness as the kids did in the early seasons, but it wasn't the worst storyline. I like seeing another smart gallagher with opportunities like Lip, but Liam seems less likely to lose the opportunities. He was a beacon of hope, I think. I think he should have had more friends though, because the Gallagher Family became pretty isolated from the rest of the neighbourhood. Where did the sense of community go?

I don't care what Frank does, he's always done his own thing. I like that he died at the end.

Terry should have suffered more. Although, his death being anticlimactic does show that sometimes villains in real life just die, and they don't get what's coming to them. It's unsatisfying.

Better exploration into Mickey's feelings of his death please.

Better exploration into Frank's dementia please. William h Macy did it well, but the other characters moved on from it so fast. I get it, he was a piece of shit, but it had potential as a storyline.

They should have missed Fiona more.

More actually passionate gallavich scenes like in season 4,5 even season 7. But no, we get an argument over 'who's the man in the relationship'. Sorry, straightest bullshit I ever did see.

I don't hate season 10/11. There are some good parts. But where's the fast-paced, comical, dark, chaotic, meaningful and intelligently satirical Shameless that I know?