Shameless gay
- Abigail Reiter, The University of North Carolina at Pembroke
- Tyler Flockhart, Viterbo University
Abstract
On the pilot of Shameless, in 2011, one of the primary characters, Phillip (“Lip”) Gallagher, finds a magazine full of naked men behind his brother, Ian’s, dresser. What follows is a brief period of resistance from Lip, who is not ready to accept that his brother is lgbtq+. By the conclude of the episode, however, Lip has accepted his brother’s sexuality. The repose of the family follows suit. In fact, Ian’s sexuality is portrayed as a non-issue with his siblings and most every other character in the Shameless universe.
This does not mean, however, that representations of gayness in Shameless, nor being a gay character in the show, is without issue. Representations of queer1 people in popular television and film often align with what sexualities scholars cite to as a “post-gay” narrative (see Coleman-Fountain 2014; Russell et al. 2009). Here, social, political, and legal advances over the last decade are used as evidence that homophobia is a thing of the past, and that the United States has achieved what Gay Liberationists establish out to perform decad
Queer Representations in Shameless
Alexa Michaels
The American remake of the British sitcom “Shameless,” was first aired in 2011 and continues to top International Production Database’s “Most Accepted TV Series” list at number seven as fans await an eighth season to air. The Showtime series, created by Paul Abbot, is about the Gallagher family—six siblings who work together to take tend of each other, all-the-while dealing their destructive, alcoholic father. First produced by Michael Hissrich, followed by Terri Murphy, the series includes characters that openly identify, or are portrayed, as gender non-conforming. Although there is no public data regarding Murphy’s personal life, I accept that due to the creator’s and original producers’ positionalities as heterosexual males, the show’s minority characters are portrayed in a negative or stereotypical beam (“Shameless,” n.d.).
Gay Males
According to Larry Gross’ model of sexual minority production, representation, and distribution, I assume that “Shameless” is an adequate example of what it means to own a
Mickey Milkovich: A Character Study of Shameless’ Best Piece of Southside Trash
Spoiler Warning: This article discusses events in Shameless principal up to the Season 7 finale.
“Kiss me and I’ll cut your fucking tongue out,” is what Mickey Milkovich (Noel Fisher) says to Ian Gallagher (Cameron Monaghan) after their first sexual encounter in season 1, episode 7 of Shameless, which reveals that Mickey is lgbtq+. It is this line that he says after Ian tries to kiss him that epitomizes who Mickey is, at least in the beginning of the series.
Mickey lives on the coarse streets of southside Chicago and is first depicted as a hardened thug with a vile mouth who likes to pirate from the store where Ian works. He seems to own no qualms about using his fists, as he is frequently shown fighting various different people throughout the series. So of course, I automatically assumed he would be the typical bully character, meant to be a thorn in the sweet Ian Gallagher’s side. Imagine my surprise when he was revealed to be, in fact, gay and attracted to Ian.
In a lot of shows I’ve watched, male characters who are in the closet tend to be tough bullies because they are self co
The audience really has a lot of affection for these two characters. What kinds of interactions own you had with "Gallavich" fans?
NF: Some really fresh moments I've had acquire been just walking around on the street and having people run into me and recognize me from the show.
EF: Are they scared of you?
NF: They think I'm a lot tougher than I am. But I've had several people talk to me about how this kind of a story, being told in this way, is kind of a first and how that's very important to a lot of people. As an actor, that's like the pinnacle of what you want to be doing, and Shameless is amazing for letting us be a part of this kind of a story. It's been pretty awesome.
CM: Yeah, right from the start there was really positive reaction, both online and in person. Especially online. That component has really exploded over the last five years. You can't notice every single message, but you try to stare whenever you can, and it's amazing to observe the excitement and the passion people have for it. It's good to know we're not alone in the passion for this work that we're doing. It's the finest feeling an artist can have.
EF: We all hope that this isn't a tree in the fore