Watch This: Shameless

Truth be told, I did not find this series and I will not claim that I did. Instead, it was my great friend Vicki that showed me it while I was visiting San Francisco. I remember it all clearly, I was tired after walking around the city all day and she said she thought this show would be right-up-my-alley of comedy. Now, I'm always a bit skeptical when people tell me that, but I'm always up for trying a new television show (especially when a friend recommends it to me). Let's put it this way, I got two more friends hooked because I wanted them to see how awesome it was!

Shameless [2011]

First thing I have to say is that this is the United States remake of the British television series by the same name. Now, according to my friend the first seasons are identical say for a few differences. And according to the same friend, after the first season they both tend to split into two different directions. So this recommendation is for the United States first two seasons (and third one coming out soon) and not the British series which is on number nine. And yes, what we call a season here in the United States they call a series there (just to clarify).

Anyway, I started watching this with a friend and was instantaneously hooked. It is about a bunch of people that have no class, no color of collar, and are poor beyond reason. The cast is amazing, the episodes are unbelievable, and what you watch is, well, shameless people doing what they have to do. I know, it sounds really weird based off of that line, but it was in the ingenious way that they will do anything and you are never quite sure where things are going that hooked me instantly. I owe Vicki a huge thank-you for this one.

But why I want to recommend this is because while the first season is really a comedy with a bit of drama, the second season is more of a drama with a bit of comedy. So why is that a good thing? Well because I got hooked with trying to understand the characters and what they were doing with the first season, laughing out loud at the actions they did and really trying to understand them. Not to mention because you never know what their limit to what they will do is, and it seems to always be dropping, it just gets better and better. That is what I call a perfect beginning. But then you get to the second season, which has a lot of the same sort of comedy, and suddenly the writers really turned up the drama a notch. They take the characters to the next level and make you fall in love with even the ones you hate. It is in that sophisticated and yet hilariously perfected writing that I honestly want to recommend this television show.

And from what I learned about the difference between the Great Britain version and the United States version, it sounds like you really need to watch the United States version to see how amazing the writers really are. They've changed some things so that it will fit our comedy, they've worked out the kinks that we would not understand because they were British saying, and in the end recreated an amazing product. But then to diverge from the original plot and have an even more incredible show, now that's impressive.

So if you have time to spare, go watch the American version of the television show Shameless.

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