Shameless Series 5, starts 01/01/08

[Perry Vale]

Just a heads up to remind you all that Series 5 of Shameless starts on New Year's Day. And unlike previous series, this one is 16 episodes long!!! (instead of 8 in the previous one).

Are PS's Shameless fans looking forward to this, or did S4 not float your boat? Personally I found it a bit weaker than previous ones, although the 'Take That' finale almost made up for all that!

I'm hoping that maybe this has been filmed in HD, as Channel 4 launched their HD channel yesterday. Fingers crossed.

Website to be found here.....

http://www.channel4.com/entertainmen...ess/index.html

Scatter!

[Dave Tudor]

First, Fiona and Steve, then Kev and Veronica, and then Sheila - 'Shameless' has lost a lot (some might say too many) good characters over the past few series, and I'd agree that the last one was the weakest so far. However, it's still one of the funniest dramas on television, and a new series is always to be welcomed, but it remains to be seen if the longer run affects the quality further.

[Alex]

Hmmm, I've got to say that series 4 was a bit too hit and miss for my liking, so I hope they shake it up a bit, and introduce a couple of new characters who are actually likable. I hope to see less of the Maguire family this time around, and maybe a bit more of a realistic feel to the series ala the first season, some episodes last time around stretched credibility a bit too far.

Still, as it's one of the last few C4 comedy drama's around I've vague hopes that it'll turn out well, I hope so just so that it encourages them to make others.

I've just noticed on the Shameless myspace page that the series will be going out at 11pm every Thursday night after the New Year's Day premier, which seems a bit late, I would have thought that would have really affected ratings...

[Dave Tudor]

Did anyone see this last night? I thought it was actually pretty good, and it was nice to see the focus return to the Gallaghers, particularly Frank - David Threlfall was just brilliant (as you might expect), and it was interesting to note that once again he had also directed the episode. The sequences in which Frank was haunted by his younger self did stretch credibility, as Alex had noted regarding the previous series, but did allow Threlfall to lend Frank much pathos, something he often lacks: the scene where he remembers his mother's death was very moving.

My main criticism was that, again, it sometimes made uncomfortable viewing. Despite the desperate situation in which the main characters found themselves, the early series always had something of a 'feelgood' factor about them, and no matter how bad things might be, things were generally upbeat. But, I feel that with the greater emphasis on the likes of the Maguires, an element of downright nastiness has crept into 'Shameless', and this reared its head again last night in the supposedly comedic pub fight, which I just found very unpleasant, and made the characters involved somewhat unlikeable and unsympathetic. We really need to feel for the Galleghers and co. like we used to, and there is a danger that we may lose sympathy for them if they continue to be so unrelentingly bad.

Anyway, it's good to see the series back, and it was, all in all, a good opening episode.



(Oh, and did anyone else think Lip's girlfriend from uni was really cute...? )

[Perry Vale]

I enjoyed it (& the E4 follow-up), but would broadly agree with what you say regards to uncomfortable viewing. The script was great, and Threllfall's performance was excellent. My only criticism was character-wise, I feel we've already covered that Frank, in his own way, does make a difference to the family. I felt it was a bit of re-treading. Still some wonderful laugh out loud moments, and I was also pleased to see Threllfall directing (and he also did the E4 second episode, iirc). Good to have it back.

I did notice some differences with the new purpose-built sets, in the fact that a lot of the shots were from a much lower angle (especially those of The Jockey), as I guess higher long shots are not now possible.

[Alex]

I think this is where I part company with the series, at least as a regular viewer. To be honest I've been struggling a little since Steve and Fiona left, but now with Marty, Kev and Veronica also gone there's very few characters I have any interest in. Even worse, the new ones they've bought in I find I've no interest in, with some (like Monica and most of the Maguires) being really irritating.

As soon as Frank was diagnosed as terminally ill I knew it would only be a matter of time before it would be revealed he's actually okay, and like Steve mentions above, they've covered Frank before and this added nothing new. If it had acted as a catalyst for a character to actually change (god forbid) then I could be more forgiving, but it doesn't seem to suggest this is the case.

But like Dave, the thing I was most disappointed about though was the big fight in the pub and Frank's line "What's more alive than this? Fighting for the Gallagher legacy!" as if it's something we should celebrate rather than deplore. Maybe I read it all wrong but it seems to suggest that the programme makers agree with the sentiment whereas I think the opposite is true.

So it seems to be the same stuff over and over again, but with a nasty "Let's celebrate really shit people with very few redeemable characteristics" tone to some of it now, and I'm just tired of it, which is a real shame because the first series especially was a real gem of a show.

[Pip Madeley]

I don't watch it... but whenever I've seen clips, I've gone "ooh, that Karen's nice".

[Alex]

She is one of the few things that might keep me watching the show...as ever, google image search is your friend.