Survival of the Fittest

The Shameless season finale was both sweet and sad and has left me just wanting more.

Frank is knocking on death’s door if he doesn’t stop drinking soon, like yesterday.  After passing out in jail, they let him out on the streets so they didn’t have to treat him.  He immediately went to The Alibi to get his drink on and ran into Lip just after he picked up his diploma.
*Sidebar* Yes, Lip graduated!!!  You could tell that even though he was pretending that it didn’t matter, it really did and he was quite proud of himself.
Now back to Frank and Lip…
Frank, even though drunk off his butt, is extremely proud of Lip for being the first Gallagher to graduate high school.  He bets a group of people at the bar that he can do more push ups than they can, and actually wins the bet!  With the winnings he takes Lip out for Scotch and Lobster and some Father and Son ice skating.  Both of them are completely in the bag when they get to the ice rink and Lip gets sick, Frank thinks he’s about to get sick and vomits up blood, A LOT of blood.  He’s rushed to the hospital where they find out that he will, in fact, die soon if he doesn’t change his life.
Fiona, Debs and Carl rush up to the hospital to find out what is going on and in a heartfelt moment between Frank and Fiona, she begs him to change so that he can live for the kids.
Ian has decided to enlist in the army, and is leaving on the morning’s bus. He’s spending his time going around and saying goodbye to everyone, but the only people who know where he’s going is Mickey and Mandy.  When he stops by the Milkovich house to say goodbye to Mandy, he runs into the newly married Mickey, who is telling him to come over tomorrow night because his wife is working and they can hook up.  When Ian tells him that he’s leaving in the morning Mickey actually shows some emotion, though all he can get out of his mouth is “don’t.”  When Ian walks away Mickey just sits down and starts crying.  So see people, he really does love him!  He just doesn’t know how to show it.  And I know you’re all wondering how Ian can enlist in the army at 16, well, he kind of stole Lip’s ID and had his photo put over it.  So he is now technically Phillip Gallagher.  I’m wondering what kind of problems that might cause in the future.
Beto shows up at the house to give Fiona some money that Jimmy left for her (we all know it really isn’t from Jimmy though.)  He tells her that Jimmy has moved on, but just wanted to leave her something.  I guess he really is dead.  I was actually hoping that he would have found a way out of it, maybe jump off the boat or something, but it looks like he’s really gone now.  Fiona will never know, and will forever think that he just took off.  With the money that he left her she has Kevin call up to the company she’s temping for to have him order a bunch of cups so that she can get credit for the sale and be hired in full time.  It works!  Fiona is now a full time office working gal.  If I’m not mistaken it’s the first real job she’s ever had, that comes fully equipped with insurance and 401K!  Go Fiona!
Jody, Karen and Hymie leave for Arizona, which leaves Sheila with empty nest syndrome.  She ends up at The Gallagher’s house to help get everything ready for Lip’s surprise party (that he knows about) and when she asks Debs what she’s doing the next day, Deb’s tells her that she needs to hang out with people her own age, and maybe find a hobby, which she now does.  Sheila is now the neighborhood sex toy sales person!  What a perfect job for her!
While everyone is at Lip’s graduation party, Carl takes off and doesn’t tell anyone where he’s going.  In the most touching, sweet moment of the episode, Carl sneaks into Frank’s hospital room to shave his head.  Just like Frank did to him when he had fake cancer.  He told him that it was to let the sun rays in so they would heal him.  Frank just lays there sleeping while he does it, when it’s done, Carl kisses him and leaves.  Through this whole scene I was a mess.  It was so sweet, and seeing Carl that vulnerable and caring really got to me.  And it seemed like Frank was touched by it too, until he woke up and decided to leave the hospital.  The last we see of him is when he is walking down the street in his hospital gown and a pair of boots walking down the snowy streets of Chicago.
On a good note, Lip was accepted to MIT!!!  Full ride!  He did go over to thank Mandy and it looks like he might actually go.  Good for him, he really needs to get out of there. I was beginning to worry that he would stay behind and not realize his full potential, but it looks like he has!
I’m not sure what next season will bring, but I’m sure it will be just as great as this season was.  Is Frank going to quit drinking and live?  Will Lip go to MIT?  What will happen when everyone finds out that Ian is in the Army?  I don’t know about you guys, but I really can’t wait to find out!