WARNING: Possible spoilers for the show "Shameless"
I've been recently watching the show "Shameless" (U.S. version) and literally nothing else. The show is amazing, but even the word amazing here seems like an understatement. It's full of drama, which is probably why it's so good. I totally recommend it to anyone and everyone.
As I'm watching the show, there's been one character that's continuously stands out for me. Phillip aka "Lip" Gallagher. In a show many characters and so many stories, one would assume it would be hard to favor just one character over everyone else. I don't know how to explain it but Lip is just... better.
I think the directors of the show just do a great job of developing his character as a whole. His cynicism and stubbornness blend together so well it's hard not to love him. Even when he does stupid things you can still find a soft spot for him. Despite Frank being a horrible and distant father, Lip has developed the ability to care so deeply for the people he loves. You just know he puts his family above everyone else based on his actions. Even though he's the second oldest child in the family, he tends to act more as the parent when it comes to maturity. He knows what's important, unlike Fiona most of the time. But even though he cares so much, I find it so interesting how he can be distant himself at times. His experiences growing up have definitely shaped him to be the person we see on the show. He has this tough exterior, but inside you learn he's just hurt by his father and mother's treatment of him and his family.
We see this especially in the episode "It's Time to Kill the Turtle" (season 1, episode 8) after Debbie and Carl start to really bond with Frank because he was offered $3000 to be sober for two weeks. Everyone, including Fiona, actually starts to like this "New Frank" but time and time again we see Lip just ready for Frank to go back to his old ways just so he could say "I told you so." He tells Debbie and Carl to not get too attached to this Frank because he himself had seen Frank like this before when he was their age. He told the kids what was eventually going to happen and while he ended up being right in the end, it shows that Lip will never get over his distrust and overall hatred of Frank.
Lip also is incredibly book smart and school smart. Everyone at home is looking to him to go to college and get a job so he can support them, but Lip doesn't want that. He has all this pressure put on him and it's interesting how he's so modest with his intelligence. He likes to underestimate himself and brush aside what he can do.
While he was supposed to be finishing his senior year, Lip quit school to support Karen, who was incredibly toxic and not a good person for him to be hanging around. He constantly sells himself short when he has the opportunity to do so much better.
Overall, I just really love Lip and I can't wait to see him grow up as a character as I continue with the show. Watch "Shameless" on Netflix now!
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