Shameless: Meet The Gallaghers

Shameless is raunchy, gritty, heart breaking, hilarious, charming show. Shameless chronicles the day-to-day struggles of the Gallaghers, a family made up of a deadbeat alcoholic single father (Frank Gallagher), a mother who walked out on her family a year ago (Monica), and 6 kids who barely manage to scrounge enough to make it through the week.

Here is a little background of the Gallagher family without giving too much up about the plot.

Frank is the father. If Father of the Year awards were being handed to deadbeat dads, Frank Gallagher would get the Lifetime Achievement Award, and hold the record for most awards won. The guy contributes absolutely nothing to his family, his community, or whoever is dumb enough to call him a friend.

Fiona is the oldest of the Gallagher kids. She hustles to keep their household afloat, and never seems to have any time to herself. She plays the role of mother and father in the Gallagher household. It's amazing how she manages to keep her sanity.

Philip or "Lip" as he's better known is the second oldest. He's a genius who suffers from a lack of drive. He is an exceptional student, and he tutors for sexual favors. Being the oldest son, he gives off a hard tough exterior, but is really a big softy. It also goes without saying that Lip despises Frank with every cell in his body.

Ian is the third oldest of the Gallagher children. He's enlisted in the ROTC program at his school, and he works part-time at a small grocery store. He's also a homosexual. One of his struggles is to hide his sexuality in a cold, hard part of Chicago.

Debbie is the youngest daughter. Debbie is a kind, sweet-hearted kid, but she has attachment issues. Out of all the kids, she shows the most affection for Frank.

Carl is a ten-year old psycho. He's cruel to animals, and to his own health. He's either going to be a serial killer or an X-Games participant. For society's sake, I'm hoping for the latter.

Liam is black. No one has any clue as to who the father is but Frank thinks its his former AA sponsor. The father's identity is revealed later on in the season. Hilarity and confusion follows.

Below is a promo video for Shameless titled "The Guide to Getting By". It basically sums up how the kids manage to get by from day to day.



[Photos via Shameless Tumblr]