As Hollywood expands, more and more shows make their appearances on the big screens. For the majority of the time, we find shows entertaining due the fictional plot it provides. Often it’s about a archer in a green suit who fights crime, or about a old suburban white guy who cooks meth, maybe about a post apocalyptic world that 100 people were so lucky to be alive on. These shows are all super entertaining and fun to watch when you are trying to find ways to pass time, but these plots are out of the ordinary; things that we as humans would never witness or be a part of in our lifetimes. Of all these high ranking and critically acclaimed shows, one stands out in particular: Shameless. The vital difference is that this show exemplifies the true reality of people who live in the poverty stricken areas of big cities. In this case, Chicago.

As the show was originally filed and based out of the UK, Shameless quickly transitioned and made its first debut in the U.S. in 2011. The show dives deeply into the lives of the Gallaghers. Although the show features many supporting roles who play a large part in the lives of the main characters, the majority of the story lies within the seven family members: Frank, Fiona, Lip, Ian, Carl, Debbie, and Liam.

This story sets a morbid image of what a low income and dysfunctional family might go through on a day to day basis. The majority of the story sits behind the life of Fiona (Emma Rossum). Being the eldest child, she is forced to take care of the rest of her siblings due to the fact that she has an incompetent alcoholic father, Frank (William H. Macy). Frank is a close second when we look at character impact and importance. Being an alcoholic and an overall scumbag, the audience is given the opportunity to witness the true nature of alcoholism and its effects on the person and those around them.

The fascinating nature that this show so strongly provides is that even though each character is similar in the fact that they all have to get by with little to nothing, they all embody complete and utterly different morals. This establishes ground for conflict which is what ultimately drives the show.

As one can assume, many difficulties tag along in the life of someone who lives without money, but this show so expertly expands on the problems and side effects of this living condition eloquently without having to shove the idea of poverty down your throat. These tactics used by the directors and producers play a major role in the overall impact that this show has on its viewers. It makes us empathize with people who we may have deemed filthy and corrupt beforehand. This goes back to my main point of this show’s worth. This TV series, unlike any other, captures the true motivation of each character without having to deliberately state what it is they may be thinking or feeling. We, the audience, get to understand these characters just as well as the characters may understand themselves.

All of these separate aspects team together to create a show that isn’t fun to watch because of the overwhelming violence and crazy adventures that these characters go on, but is entertaining because of its ability to grab the audience’s empathy and interest in what might happen next.

Most shows have have very blatant cliff hangers with scenes cutting off when someone is mid jump or someone just died, but Shameless leaves the audience wondering what a character might do next in support of their goal.

The inner battles that each character has within them is what keeps eyes peeled. People want to know what they might do.

Overall, I would 100% recommend this show to anyone looking for a  entertaining story line that will keep you engaged at all times.