in

The Five Stages of Watching Shameless

No matter how messed up they are, or how much of a train-wreck the show is, you find yourself obsessed (and a little envious) with the Gallaghers.

Stage 1: Denial – “What the hell is this and why did I agree to watch it again?”

So, you started watching Shameless. Maybe you found it on the Trending Now category of Netflix, and decided to give it a go, or maybe one of your friends recommended it. Either way, you’re so confused as to why you’re watching it. This show is weird. What is wrong with that family? There’s no way I’m watching another episode.

Stage 2: Confusion – “Well, I have to watch the next episode to see what happens”

You can’t resist. You have to watch the next episode. Even though this Frank guy seems like a total d-bag, you have to see what the Gallaghers will do next. Wait… am I feeling envy over this family?

Stage 3: Hopeless Devotion – “I’m in LOVE with Lip”

From his bad boy persona to his don’t give a f*** attitude, you find yourself hopelessly attracted to Lip. The way he talks smack and can throw a punch makes you feel all the butterflies. You can’t help but love this kid, and you want to move to Chicago and have all of his babies.

Stage 4: Borderline Obsession – “Am I shipping Gallovich?”

The answer is yes. You may have never shipped before, or you may have never imagined you would ship this odd couple, yet here you are. There’s just something about Ian and Mickey that makes sense, even when nothing else does. You can’t help but love them together. Their anger and violence that always sparks their passion is just downright amazing.

Stage 5: Acceptance and Completely Obsessed – “I NEED to be a Gallagher!”

You can’t help it. You want, no, need to be a Gallagher. You want in on their shenanigans. You want to hang out with Fiona, work with her at the club. You want to get caught and take off running after doing something bad with Lip and Ian. You want to blow stuff up with Carl, and freak out over stuff with Debbie while watching Liam. You even want to go to the Alibi with Frank and kick it with Kev and V. As messed up as this family is, you can’t help but want to go to their pop up parties in the living room and kick it with them even when the going gets tough. And let’s face it, the going is always tough for the Gallaghers.