Series of misadventure for the dysfunctional Gallagher clan following the reemergence of Frank who is trying to hit a big insurance payment for a kidney transplant.
It's an excellent, appropriately effed-up beginning and suggests the creative team has found a way to evolve without having to radically change what the show is.
Shameless has many moments of triumph-and it also manages to find humor in what anyone else would see as horrible tragedy-but this fourth season, in which the characters begin to interact with the wider world, is its darkest yet.
Yes, this season certainly had its fair share of heartbreak, but by pushing these much-loved characters to their very limits, we got some of the very best storytelling on television.
William H. Macy has often stolen the show as Frank while ranting nonsensically, but he got to show off his acting skills more here, as we see Frank like we've never seen him before.
