'Shameless' Season 1, Episode 8 Recap

['Shameless' - 'It's Time to Kill the Turtle']

Did you ever think you'd see the day when Frank Gallagher was stone cold sober? (And during the first season, no less!)

I was fairly certain we'd have to wait until at least Season 3 of 'Shameless' for such an abrupt metamorphosis, though I suppose I should've predicted that money would be the motivating factor in Frank's sudden desire to get clean.

But the most unnerving part of Frank's transformation was undoubtedly his heretofore hidden parenting skills -- the man made Debbie and Carl Mickey Mouse-shaped pancakes and read them 'The Hunger Games', for crying out loud; if that isn't a sign of the apocalypse, I don't know what is.



At first, I was sure that Frank would fall off the wagon after about twenty minutes -- $3,000 is a lot of money, especially to the Gallaghers -- but Mr. Gallagher Sr. has been loath to demonstrate any willpower or willingness to sacrifice for the greater good up to this point so I, like Lip, wasn't about to hold my breath over him succeeding in his quest.

But, as the episode went on, and Frank actually began to resemble a normal, cognizant human being, I started allowing myself to dream ... would the series actually permit Frank to sober up for more than one episode? Was 'Shameless' just setting us up for an even greater disappointment somewhere down the line, just as Frank was setting up Debbie and Carl?

In the end, I shouldn't have worried -- in many ways, a sober Frank was far more destructive than a drunken Frank, so Debbie and Lip bravely "killed the turtle" and took the the choice out of Frank's hands by force-feeding him vodka, thereby restoring equilibrium to the universe.

I'm not certain which moment was more heartbreaking: Debbie's decision to "make the most of" Frank's brief sojourn into sobriety and fatherly affection, knowing that as short-lived as it might end up, it was still worth treasuring, or Lip's admission that he had once allowed himself to have faith in Frank as Debbie and Carl still do, only to find himself disappointed once Frank inevitably started drinking again.

Those poignant, understated moments truly give 'Shameless' its heart amidst all the chaos and hilarity, and the show always manages to strike a balance between humor and pathos that few other series can replicate. I find myself valuing the moments when the walls come down far more, precisely because the rest of the show is predicated on the facades that these characters put up to fool the rest of the world.

That was especially true of this week's episode, when it seemed that every character was hiding behind a wall of expectations, trying not to let their vulnerabilities show. Fiona finally broke down in a way we rarely ever see, after being forced to spend the night in a skimpy uniform being treated like a stripper by horny bar patrons just to scrape together a little extra cash.

Of course, Steve was nowhere to be found in the one moment when Fiona needed him and his extravagant gifts the most -- instead, he was hiding behind his own artifice. As I had begun to suspect, Steve's name isn't really Steve at all, it's Jimmy -- he has a rich, preppy family that lives in Chicago too, all of whom believe he's going to school in Michigan and, even better, he has another girlfriend, who is oblivious to the double life he's living with Fiona.

It's all very 'Lone Star,' if 'Lone Star' hadn't gotten canceled, and I'm intrigued to see how Steve's many layers of deceit will begin to unravel. Of course, by the time he got back to "reality," Fiona had brushed aside her weakness and rebuilt her walls, so it will be interesting to see how the pair of them might start to chip away at everything the other is hiding in the weeks to come.

Lip, meanwhile, was introduced to a life beyond the impoverished neighborhood he's trapped in by genetics, with a professor who intends to pull a 'Good Will Hunting' on him and turn the street-smart wunderkind into a focused college student. With a father like Frank, though, it's obvious Lip has gotten used to disappointment, and he seemed wholly unwilling to even contemplate escape -- especially since his family certainly doesn't have the money to pay for college tuition.

After the development that Ian had with Kash and Mickey last week, his storyline unfortunately took a backseat in this episode, but it seemed obvious that he's starting to notice Kash's shortcomings, and he seems drawn to Mickey's bad boy routine. While I don't think that Mickey is quite what Linda meant when she remarked that Ian could do better than Kash, I do think that Kash needs to grow a pair sometime soon, otherwise he really doesn't deserve to have a Gallagher on tap.

Perhaps my favorite storyline of the week, though, centered around Kev and Veronica and their new foster child, Ethel (pretty much the cruelest name in the world). Kev was in full-on father mode from the outset, while V was only in it for the paycheck --but I don't think any of us were anticipating the delivery of a 13-year-old sister-wife fresh from the compound.

I'm fascinated to see how this plot develops; as dubious as I was about Kev in the beginning, he's become one of my favorite characters, and his enthusiasm at the possibility of parenthood was utterly adorable, as were his attempts to find fun things for Ethel to do, like his collection of retro board games.

The prospect of a child being conditioned to do chores to "keep the soul pure" and expect sex from men twice (or apparently five times) her age is nothing short of horrific, but I felt that the writers handled the sensitive subject matter with a surprising amount of care, considering how ... shameless the show is, if you'll pardon the pun. By allowing Kev and V to react to Ethel's revelations with disbelief that was delivered with humor, the episode managed to sidestep any particularly offensive landmines and diffuse some potentially uncomfortable scenes.

Though Kev and V were bickering over the kid like she was a puppy they'd picked up at the pound, I hope that Kev wins this particular round (and I have a feeling he will) because parenthood actually suits the pair of them quite well, and Ethel's fish-out-of-water routine adds a level of innocence to the show that the Gallagher children are sadly lacking.

What did you think of this week's episode? Do you think that Kev and Veronica will make good parents, or should they send Ethel back to the foster system? What was your take on sober Frank and his sugar high? How much more do you think Steve is hiding? Share your thoughts below!

'Shameless' airs Sundays, 10PM ET on Showtime.

Follow Laura on Twitter: @LauinLA