Blog project #1
Topic #2
T.V. Show: Shameless
Show Website: http://www.sho.com/shameless
DESCRIBE the program:
1. I watched “Shameless” on 07/19/17, at 6pm, on Netflix.
2. The genre of “Shameless” is drama, it is an episodic series, but the type of episodic series is chapter show, where they have the same characters throughout the season. Chapter shows are also “self-contained stories that feature a problem, a series of conflicts, and a resolution” (Media Essentials). In the show “Shameless” the characters are continuous and they normally have a problem that is solved within the episode.
3. The storyline of the particular episode,”Pilot” season one,episode one is the episode I watched. The storyline is about a family called the Gallaghers, it is a family of basically six, the mom left, and Frank has other children, but I will talk about the main members. The father, Frank (William H. Macy), is a drunk that is very selfish and does nothing but bad things to his family. And then there are Frank’s five kids, Fiona (Emmy Rossum), Phillip, “Lip” (Jeremy Allen White), Ian (Cameron Monaghan), Debbie (Emma Kenney), Carl (Ethan Cutkosky), and Liam (Brandon Sims). In this episode Fiona meets a stranger, Steve (Justin Chatwin) who saves her purse from being robbed and they begin to date. Phillip begins to think his brother, Ian, is gay, so he takes his brother to the neighborhood slut, Karen Jackson (Laura Slade Wiggins) to see if he is really a homosexual. The show also introduces Fiona’s best friend and neighbor Veronica Fisher (Shanola Hampton) and her boyfriend Kevin Ball (Steve Howey). The plot is a poverty stricken family located in Southside Chicago that have a very difficult and exciting life. They have opportunities to change their current situation, but have a tendency to mess it up, whether it is a job opportunity, or kicking their alcoholic father out of their lives.
4. The critic, David Wiegand, from the San Francisco Chronicle, critiques “Shameless” season one saying “In its own, yes, quirky way, Shameless is irresistibly heartwarming. It's also great television” (Rotten Tomatoes). The New York Times wrote an article on the show, saying “David Nevins, president of Showtime, said that what appeals to him about the series isn’t how it deals with the Gallaghers’ finances but the turmoil created by Frank’s drinking” (New York Times). link for article: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/02/arts/television/02shameless.html?pagewanted=all. The Show does not focus on the financial state of the Gallaghers, but as said in the quote, Frank's drinking. Fiona, the eldest daughter, tries her best to keep their family together, even when Frank does things that can tear them apart. It is really cool to see a show that focuses on keeping family together through the tough parts of life. A fun fact is that the show “Shameless” relies on subscribers for money rather than advertisements.
ANALYZE the cultural images reflected by the program:
1. The attitude portrayed in this show is between big city, ghetto, and street smart. The Gallagher’s can come off as rude because of their background and how they were raised to fend for themselves. They know how to work people, but are not all academically smart, and do not have to be, besides Phillip, who is a genius. The boys and younger girls dress normally, not too fancy, but Fiona and Veronica will show more skin and wear leopard print and neon colors sometimes, a little trashy. It is filmed on locations in Chicago and Los Angeles.
2. The show is similar to other shows on T.V. but is definitely not like any show I have ever seen. The show, Shameless, is similar to the show “The Real O’Neals” because of the gay brother. “The Real O’Neals” is definitely more light hearted than “Shameless”, but it does introduce homosexuality into a “normal” family. Another show that “Shameless” is similar to is the show “Weeds”. They are similar because “Weeds” is about a mom who gets into drug dealing and in “Shameless” Carl gets into selling cocaine for awhile. So, both shows have drug dealing introduced within the storyline.
3. What makes “Shameless” unique is that it straddles a line between reality and craziness. This show always has the viewer on their toes because ANYTHING can happen, it is a shock and awe show. It is also unique because it tries to hit anything that tests someone's morals, but can bring the situation back at the end so whatever is happening is resolved.
INTERPRET what's going on:
1. In the show “Shameless” they include a couple stereotypes, the first one being poor people. In the show the main characters live in Chicago’s ghetto and turn to selling drugs to get money, not getting an education, and pick up bad habits such as drinking and smoking. For example, Carl starts selling cocaine and guns in middle school to scrape money together for his family. Fiona works low end jobs as a waitress, escort, and bar keep, but does not try to further her education until she needs to. And Phillip starts the habit of drinking in high school and then becomes a true alcoholic in college. The other stereotype that I have have seen is single motherhood. Debbie becomes a teen parent and become irresponsible and tries to leave her baby at the firestation. The other stereotyping is minimal throughout the show, they add little things like, black people being drug king pins, and men that are not circumcised are less desirable.
2. The general demographic that this show aims for is people in their twenties to thirties and aiming towards more middle to lower class citizens. Everyone has problems and this show allows the viewer to escape from theirs for fifty minutes and watch a family struggle even worse than them. The advertisements do the same as well by targets low to middle class, male and female, adults. Hopefully whomever is watching this show is 18 or older. The best example of this is through the use of sex, violence, and drug use.I believe these commercials are spot on for the audience they are wanting to attract.
3. If I were visiting the United States from another country and the picture I would get of American culture would be that the U.S. has no boundaries. I would think the U.S. had more crime, are unhealthy, smoke a lot, drink for no reason, are okay with prostitution/escorting, and are not very religious. Altogether, I would probably think American culture is not wholesome.
EVALUATE the quality:
1. The show shameless is a very difficult beast to tackle. Putting myself in a critics shoes, the main strengths that come out within this show are the bond of the Gallagher family even with all of the chaos that tend to fall upon their family. Even though the family seems to hit rock bottom. They seem to manage to pull themselves together in order to function. Another strength that I see is how Fiona takes the role of both parents for her four siblings. Even though she has her own faults, she always manages to keep the family tight knit. This show really speaks to people who have have been dealt the hand of having a difficult home life and allows inspiration and hope within its viewers. All though I do enjoy this show, it has it’s faults. The weakness that can be spotted within this show is the agonizing responsibility of the alcoholic father, Frank, and the cycle of him making mistakes and the children taking him back. This show is definitely for a more mature audience and should not be watched by children. As stated previously, the shock and awe value of this show is immense but their are plenty of times where it can be seen as going too far. While I enjoy the show I can see how pushing the absolute limits of a viewer's moral compass can be compromising to the show. Too some this show maybe something that is completely outlandish but, for others this can depict and speak to those who have had to suffer through families riddled with addiction and dysfunction. The actions of Frank Gallagher are absolutely sub par for that of a father. The main example that pulls at the heartstrings of their viewers are even when Frank manages to completely turn the house into turmoil he is able to win the heart of one of the kids and manipulate them to allow him back in the home. While Fiona tends to be a stone wall to Frank he uses the kids to nullify her ability to bring about order in the house. The most upsetting and heart wrenching time is when Frank stole the families “squirrel fund” that they had hidden to eventually get out of their current living situation to buy alcohol and drugs and when the family shunned him he coaxed Debbie into allowing him to stay in the house and provide him with whatever he needed. This example portrays real life because it allows a mirror effect to form to allow someone who has never had a complete mess up as a parent to see how someone who has lived with that their whole life still care for that person even though they bring nothing to the table. Even though a parent is absolutely neglectful and non parental, the child still wants to care for that person because that is their parent.
2. The thing I love most about this show is the fact that it allows the audience to identify with the characters in the show even though the viewer may live a totally different life. This in a sense creates empathy for the characters in the show which is one of the main ingredients to create something that draws a viewer in and has them sitting on the edge of their seat. Allowing the viewer to step in the shoes of the characters draws the question of, “What would I do?”. To me this is the most compelling component of any show. This aspect is a double edge sword though. Allowing us to be in the shoes of the character can leave a viewer upset and angry when they see a favorite character go on a “bender” or chase after a guy we all know is no good for them. Many times throughout this show I have had to take a break from the show because I have been left so upset by the actions or problems that come about. The best example for why I love this show is when Fiona finally stood up to her father Frank and told him that he no longer had a place within the household. Although it did not work out as she planned, the fact the she finally decided to put distance between her siblings and him was a huge leap for her. Now for what I hate, the thing that drives me mad is when Lip or Fiona go off the deep end because life is getting too difficult and they throw great opportunities away. This was most apparent when Lip gained his full ride scholarship to MIT and then threw it away by succumbing to alcoholism and destroying a professor's car. This was difficult because as a viewer we can look at Frank and see that we do not want our beloved characters to fall in the same footsteps as their father.
3. The first critic that I found was by David Hinckley from the New York Daily Times discuss the most critical character of the show, Fiona Gallagher, and the important actions that makes her so essential to the Gallaghers. The person that holds a family together that was left in shambles is Fiona Gallagher. “Fiona quickly emerges as the real star of the show, and Rossum earns that stature. She plays Fiona beautifully, with a combination of toughness, vulnerability and need,” (Hinckley) through her ability to become the head pulls viewers in and cheer her on through all of her struggles and faults. I completely agree with the direction the Hinckley is going in his critique. Fiona adds drama and heart in her role and allows the show to not just be some dark comedy and allow it to be a heartwarming struggle that can speak to so many.
How do you ENGAGE with this show?
1. I do watch this show on a regular basis with some breaks in between seasons sometimes. I watch this show with my friends, I would not be comfortable watching this show with my family.
2. I do not follow this show on social media. I have glanced over the Instagram page a couple times just because.
3. They are on Instagram and they promote the show on their Instagram page. They promote the show by posting pictures of the main cast looking happy for the most part. I believe it is working because, for me, showing the cast happy together is very different from how they act together on the show. They have 1.3 million followers, so it seems to be working. On one of the most recent pictures posted, fans were very upset that Mickey, Ian’s ex, was not back in the show and that Liam, the littlest Gallagher, was not the same actor. The Instagram link: https://www.instagram.com/shameless/
What CONCLUSIONS have you reached from doing this assignment:
1. I learned that “Shameless” is pretty well rounded show that balances between rocky topics and humor. I have also learned that it is a very inappropriate show for people under the age of 18, or maybe even inappropriate for people over the age of 18 sometimes. I learned that Shameless scored a 94% on people liking the show on the Rotten Tomatoes website.
2. What surprised me about the show upon further examination was that it critics did not slam the show that much. I believe it was not slammed because it was very well written and never became boring because every single episode has a new problem. It also had a sort of “window” effect where others who have never been in poverty or struggling with any issues addressed in the show can see how those problems can be like and how to deal with them. It is like experiencing the issue, without actually being in that situation.
**Shameless Commercial: https://youtu.be/uzznfBbbMVc
References:
Campbell, R., Martin, C. R., Fabos, B., & Harmsen, S. (2016). Media essentials: a brief introduction. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins.
Pilot. (n.d.). Retrieved July 20, 2017, from https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/shameless/s01/e01/
Rochlin, M. (2011, January 01). The Family That Frays Together. Retrieved July 20, 2017, from http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/02/arts/television/02shameless.html?pagewanted=all
Hinckley, D. (2011, January 08). Familiar 'Episodes'; 'Shameless' delight. Retrieved July 20, 2017, from http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/tv/matt-leblanc-emmy-rossum-stand-new-separate-showtime-series-episodes-shameless-article-1.150699
T.V. Show: Shameless
Show Website: http://www.sho.com/shameless
DESCRIBE the program:
1. I watched “Shameless” on 07/19/17, at 6pm, on Netflix.
2. The genre of “Shameless” is drama, it is an episodic series, but the type of episodic series is chapter show, where they have the same characters throughout the season. Chapter shows are also “self-contained stories that feature a problem, a series of conflicts, and a resolution” (Media Essentials). In the show “Shameless” the characters are continuous and they normally have a problem that is solved within the episode.
3. The storyline of the particular episode,”Pilot” season one,episode one is the episode I watched. The storyline is about a family called the Gallaghers, it is a family of basically six, the mom left, and Frank has other children, but I will talk about the main members. The father, Frank (William H. Macy), is a drunk that is very selfish and does nothing but bad things to his family. And then there are Frank’s five kids, Fiona (Emmy Rossum), Phillip, “Lip” (Jeremy Allen White), Ian (Cameron Monaghan), Debbie (Emma Kenney), Carl (Ethan Cutkosky), and Liam (Brandon Sims). In this episode Fiona meets a stranger, Steve (Justin Chatwin) who saves her purse from being robbed and they begin to date. Phillip begins to think his brother, Ian, is gay, so he takes his brother to the neighborhood slut, Karen Jackson (Laura Slade Wiggins) to see if he is really a homosexual. The show also introduces Fiona’s best friend and neighbor Veronica Fisher (Shanola Hampton) and her boyfriend Kevin Ball (Steve Howey). The plot is a poverty stricken family located in Southside Chicago that have a very difficult and exciting life. They have opportunities to change their current situation, but have a tendency to mess it up, whether it is a job opportunity, or kicking their alcoholic father out of their lives.
4. The critic, David Wiegand, from the San Francisco Chronicle, critiques “Shameless” season one saying “In its own, yes, quirky way, Shameless is irresistibly heartwarming. It's also great television” (Rotten Tomatoes). The New York Times wrote an article on the show, saying “David Nevins, president of Showtime, said that what appeals to him about the series isn’t how it deals with the Gallaghers’ finances but the turmoil created by Frank’s drinking” (New York Times). link for article: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/02/arts/television/02shameless.html?pagewanted=all. The Show does not focus on the financial state of the Gallaghers, but as said in the quote, Frank's drinking. Fiona, the eldest daughter, tries her best to keep their family together, even when Frank does things that can tear them apart. It is really cool to see a show that focuses on keeping family together through the tough parts of life. A fun fact is that the show “Shameless” relies on subscribers for money rather than advertisements.
ANALYZE the cultural images reflected by the program:
1. The attitude portrayed in this show is between big city, ghetto, and street smart. The Gallagher’s can come off as rude because of their background and how they were raised to fend for themselves. They know how to work people, but are not all academically smart, and do not have to be, besides Phillip, who is a genius. The boys and younger girls dress normally, not too fancy, but Fiona and Veronica will show more skin and wear leopard print and neon colors sometimes, a little trashy. It is filmed on locations in Chicago and Los Angeles.
2. The show is similar to other shows on T.V. but is definitely not like any show I have ever seen. The show, Shameless, is similar to the show “The Real O’Neals” because of the gay brother. “The Real O’Neals” is definitely more light hearted than “Shameless”, but it does introduce homosexuality into a “normal” family. Another show that “Shameless” is similar to is the show “Weeds”. They are similar because “Weeds” is about a mom who gets into drug dealing and in “Shameless” Carl gets into selling cocaine for awhile. So, both shows have drug dealing introduced within the storyline.
3. What makes “Shameless” unique is that it straddles a line between reality and craziness. This show always has the viewer on their toes because ANYTHING can happen, it is a shock and awe show. It is also unique because it tries to hit anything that tests someone's morals, but can bring the situation back at the end so whatever is happening is resolved.
INTERPRET what's going on:
1. In the show “Shameless” they include a couple stereotypes, the first one being poor people. In the show the main characters live in Chicago’s ghetto and turn to selling drugs to get money, not getting an education, and pick up bad habits such as drinking and smoking. For example, Carl starts selling cocaine and guns in middle school to scrape money together for his family. Fiona works low end jobs as a waitress, escort, and bar keep, but does not try to further her education until she needs to. And Phillip starts the habit of drinking in high school and then becomes a true alcoholic in college. The other stereotype that I have have seen is single motherhood. Debbie becomes a teen parent and become irresponsible and tries to leave her baby at the firestation. The other stereotyping is minimal throughout the show, they add little things like, black people being drug king pins, and men that are not circumcised are less desirable.
2. The general demographic that this show aims for is people in their twenties to thirties and aiming towards more middle to lower class citizens. Everyone has problems and this show allows the viewer to escape from theirs for fifty minutes and watch a family struggle even worse than them. The advertisements do the same as well by targets low to middle class, male and female, adults. Hopefully whomever is watching this show is 18 or older. The best example of this is through the use of sex, violence, and drug use.I believe these commercials are spot on for the audience they are wanting to attract.
3. If I were visiting the United States from another country and the picture I would get of American culture would be that the U.S. has no boundaries. I would think the U.S. had more crime, are unhealthy, smoke a lot, drink for no reason, are okay with prostitution/escorting, and are not very religious. Altogether, I would probably think American culture is not wholesome.
EVALUATE the quality:
1. The show shameless is a very difficult beast to tackle. Putting myself in a critics shoes, the main strengths that come out within this show are the bond of the Gallagher family even with all of the chaos that tend to fall upon their family. Even though the family seems to hit rock bottom. They seem to manage to pull themselves together in order to function. Another strength that I see is how Fiona takes the role of both parents for her four siblings. Even though she has her own faults, she always manages to keep the family tight knit. This show really speaks to people who have have been dealt the hand of having a difficult home life and allows inspiration and hope within its viewers. All though I do enjoy this show, it has it’s faults. The weakness that can be spotted within this show is the agonizing responsibility of the alcoholic father, Frank, and the cycle of him making mistakes and the children taking him back. This show is definitely for a more mature audience and should not be watched by children. As stated previously, the shock and awe value of this show is immense but their are plenty of times where it can be seen as going too far. While I enjoy the show I can see how pushing the absolute limits of a viewer's moral compass can be compromising to the show. Too some this show maybe something that is completely outlandish but, for others this can depict and speak to those who have had to suffer through families riddled with addiction and dysfunction. The actions of Frank Gallagher are absolutely sub par for that of a father. The main example that pulls at the heartstrings of their viewers are even when Frank manages to completely turn the house into turmoil he is able to win the heart of one of the kids and manipulate them to allow him back in the home. While Fiona tends to be a stone wall to Frank he uses the kids to nullify her ability to bring about order in the house. The most upsetting and heart wrenching time is when Frank stole the families “squirrel fund” that they had hidden to eventually get out of their current living situation to buy alcohol and drugs and when the family shunned him he coaxed Debbie into allowing him to stay in the house and provide him with whatever he needed. This example portrays real life because it allows a mirror effect to form to allow someone who has never had a complete mess up as a parent to see how someone who has lived with that their whole life still care for that person even though they bring nothing to the table. Even though a parent is absolutely neglectful and non parental, the child still wants to care for that person because that is their parent.
2. The thing I love most about this show is the fact that it allows the audience to identify with the characters in the show even though the viewer may live a totally different life. This in a sense creates empathy for the characters in the show which is one of the main ingredients to create something that draws a viewer in and has them sitting on the edge of their seat. Allowing the viewer to step in the shoes of the characters draws the question of, “What would I do?”. To me this is the most compelling component of any show. This aspect is a double edge sword though. Allowing us to be in the shoes of the character can leave a viewer upset and angry when they see a favorite character go on a “bender” or chase after a guy we all know is no good for them. Many times throughout this show I have had to take a break from the show because I have been left so upset by the actions or problems that come about. The best example for why I love this show is when Fiona finally stood up to her father Frank and told him that he no longer had a place within the household. Although it did not work out as she planned, the fact the she finally decided to put distance between her siblings and him was a huge leap for her. Now for what I hate, the thing that drives me mad is when Lip or Fiona go off the deep end because life is getting too difficult and they throw great opportunities away. This was most apparent when Lip gained his full ride scholarship to MIT and then threw it away by succumbing to alcoholism and destroying a professor's car. This was difficult because as a viewer we can look at Frank and see that we do not want our beloved characters to fall in the same footsteps as their father.
3. The first critic that I found was by David Hinckley from the New York Daily Times discuss the most critical character of the show, Fiona Gallagher, and the important actions that makes her so essential to the Gallaghers. The person that holds a family together that was left in shambles is Fiona Gallagher. “Fiona quickly emerges as the real star of the show, and Rossum earns that stature. She plays Fiona beautifully, with a combination of toughness, vulnerability and need,” (Hinckley) through her ability to become the head pulls viewers in and cheer her on through all of her struggles and faults. I completely agree with the direction the Hinckley is going in his critique. Fiona adds drama and heart in her role and allows the show to not just be some dark comedy and allow it to be a heartwarming struggle that can speak to so many.
How do you ENGAGE with this show?
1. I do watch this show on a regular basis with some breaks in between seasons sometimes. I watch this show with my friends, I would not be comfortable watching this show with my family.
2. I do not follow this show on social media. I have glanced over the Instagram page a couple times just because.
3. They are on Instagram and they promote the show on their Instagram page. They promote the show by posting pictures of the main cast looking happy for the most part. I believe it is working because, for me, showing the cast happy together is very different from how they act together on the show. They have 1.3 million followers, so it seems to be working. On one of the most recent pictures posted, fans were very upset that Mickey, Ian’s ex, was not back in the show and that Liam, the littlest Gallagher, was not the same actor. The Instagram link: https://www.instagram.com/shameless/
What CONCLUSIONS have you reached from doing this assignment:
1. I learned that “Shameless” is pretty well rounded show that balances between rocky topics and humor. I have also learned that it is a very inappropriate show for people under the age of 18, or maybe even inappropriate for people over the age of 18 sometimes. I learned that Shameless scored a 94% on people liking the show on the Rotten Tomatoes website.
2. What surprised me about the show upon further examination was that it critics did not slam the show that much. I believe it was not slammed because it was very well written and never became boring because every single episode has a new problem. It also had a sort of “window” effect where others who have never been in poverty or struggling with any issues addressed in the show can see how those problems can be like and how to deal with them. It is like experiencing the issue, without actually being in that situation.
**Shameless Commercial: https://youtu.be/uzznfBbbMVc
References:
Campbell, R., Martin, C. R., Fabos, B., & Harmsen, S. (2016). Media essentials: a brief introduction. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins.
Pilot. (n.d.). Retrieved July 20, 2017, from https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/shameless/s01/e01/
Rochlin, M. (2011, January 01). The Family That Frays Together. Retrieved July 20, 2017, from http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/02/arts/television/02shameless.html?pagewanted=all
Hinckley, D. (2011, January 08). Familiar 'Episodes'; 'Shameless' delight. Retrieved July 20, 2017, from http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/tv/matt-leblanc-emmy-rossum-stand-new-separate-showtime-series-episodes-shameless-article-1.150699
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