EXCLUSIVE REVIEW
Showtime has announced it will preview the first 20 minutes of its highly anticipated new drama series "Shameless" following the season 5 finale of "Dexter" -- but Deal Central has seen a rough cut of the pilot that was dated March 8, 2010, and offers this exclusive review.
(It has certainly been altered since, as Joan Cusack has replaced Alison Janney in a supporting role, so keep that in mind.)
I knew nothing about the John Wells-produced show besides that it's based on Paul Abbott's long-running British hit and it stars William H. Macy as the alcoholic patriarch of a dysfunctional, working-class family living in Chicago.
The show more than lived up to its title, as "Shameless" is one of the craziest shows I've ever seen. Imagine a raunchier "Arrested Development" as written by Charles Bukowski.
For starters, the star of the series, at least judging by the pilot, is definitely "Phantom of the Opera" star Emmy Rossum -- not Macy. Rossum plays Fiona, a young woman in her early 20s who is counted on to run her family's household, which includes five other children.
There's Phillip, aka Lip (Jeremy Allen White), a troublemaking yet studious high school junior who tutors a sexually aggressive female classmate (Laura Wiggins). At one point, she performs oral sex on him (and later his gay brother) as her molysomophobic mother (formerly Janney, now Cusack) bakes cookies while pretending not to notice.
There's Ian (Cameron Monaghan), the gay, pot-smoking high school sophomore and ROTC member who works at a local grocery store. Ian is sleeping with his boss Kesh, an older Muslim man who is married and has two children with his white fundamentalist wife.
There's Debbie (Emma Kenney), a jaded 10-year-old who may be the most "normal" of the bunch despite her penchant for stealing from UNICEF. Meanwhile, her 8-year-old brother Carl (Ethan Cutkosky) enjoys torturing animals, stealing bikes and doesn't mind dipping into the collection plate at church in order to contribute to the family's income. He's shown taking a swig of beer during the show's opening voice-over.
Rounding out the family is little Liam, an African-American toddler who is the child of Macy's estranged wife and his Alcoholics Anonymous sponsor. The family can't afford child care so the other kids pass the baby around each day, which means that when it's Debbie's turn, she takes Liam to school for show and tell.
There are two other major characters, Veronica (Shanola Hampton) and her boyfriend Kevin. Veronica is Fiona's best friend and Kevin is a bartender at Frank's favorite watering hole. Of course, they're introduced during a quick scene in which Kevin has a ball gag in his mouth while Veronica uses a strap-on on him.
As for Macy, he plays Frank Gallagher, a teacher of sorts who is first seen fleeing from the police at a community bonfire. Macy is seen sparingly in the pilot, and usually either sleeping or completely drunk.
