Binging On an Award Winning TV Series-Shameless

I started watching this comedy drama last week. I am now in Season 3 and looking forward to be current ( Season 8) in the next few weeks. The show makes me cry and laugh. It has some nudity, vulgar language and a lot of sex scenes both hetero and homo. The lead actor and actress won several acting awards. In case you have not heard of this TV show, here's a summary from Wikipedia.

Shameless is an American comedy-drama television series developed by John Wells that debuted on Showtime on January 9, 2011. It is a remake of the British series of the same name created by Paul Abbott. The series features an ensemble cast, led by William H. Macy and Emmy Rossum. Set in the South Side of Chicago, the series is filmed in Los Angeles, with the exterior scenes shot in Chicago.

The series has been renewed for a ninth season, which will make it the longest-running original scripted series in Showtime's history

The series depicts the dysfunctional family of Frank Gallagher, a single father of six children. While he spends his days drunk or in search of misadventures, his kids learn to take care of themselves.

The show's producers sought to distinguish it from previous American working-class shows by highlighting how Frank's alcoholism affects his family. Paul Abbott, the show's creator, has said, "It's not My Name Is Earl or Roseanne. It's got a much graver level of poverty attached to it. It's not blue collar; it's no collar." When John Wells, the showrunner, began pitching the show, he had to fight efforts to place the show in the South or in a trailer park. He explained, "We have a comedic tradition of making fun of the people in those worlds. The reality is that these people aren't 'the other' – they're people who live four blocks down from you and two blocks over".

Tim Goodman of The Hollywood Reporter said that "Shameless is excellent, compelling television from the first moment. As long as it stays true to the roots of the original, it's going to be essential viewing". The show's first season score on Metacritic is a 66 of 100, which is a generally favorable review.

The second season score on Metacritic is a 76 of 100, indicating increasingly favorable reviews. Tom O'Neill of the Los Angeles Times reported on the Emmy buzz about Shameless, especially with respect to the performance of Emmy Rossum, stating "she didn't have much Emmy buzz after Shameless debuted in January, but that changed after she gave powerhouse turns in such episodes as 'But at Last Came a Knock'".

Buddy TV ranked Shameless #8 on its list of 2011's best new TV shows. Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes gave the first season a 'fresh' rating of 74% based on 31 reviews, with the critical consensus "Shameless is a dark, urban dramedy that overcomes its leaps of logic thanks to fantastic casting, intriguing ambiance, and shock value." Seasons 2-5 each have a 100% rating as of January 27, 2015.

For more details on the widely nominated and award winning TV series read:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shameless_(U.S._TV_series)