The Two Lisas

"The Two Lisas" is the third episode of the fifth season of the American television comedy drama Shameless, an adaptation of the British series of the same name.

The series is set on the South Side of Chicago, Illinois, and depicts the poor, dysfunctional family of Frank Gallagher, a neglectful single father of six: Fiona, Phillip, Ian, Debbie, Carl, and Liam.

According to Nielsen Media Research, the episode was seen by an estimated 1.96 million household viewers and gained a 0.9 ratings share among adults aged 18–49.

Mickey (Noel Fisher) and Ian (Cameron Monaghan) are shocked to discover that Mandy (Emma Greenwell) plans to leave with Kenyatta (Shen Bailey) for Indiana.

In exchange for new brewery equipment, Frank sets the owner of a junkyard up with Sammi (Emily Bergl) under the pretense that she'll sleep with him.

He also gets Carl (Ethan Cutkosky) to threaten the lesbian land developers, both named Lisa, by intimidating them into believing the neighborhood does not want them.

Wanting to impress Matty (James Allen McCune), Debbie (Emma Kenney) decides to throw a party at her house, taking a case of Frank's beer.

Frank finally gets her to slow down by claiming he can accompany her on a little vacation and then renew his wedding vows; a relieved Sheila decides to not sell the house.

Reaching his breaking point, Frank scolds both women, criticizing Sammi for her clingy attitude and lashing out at Sheila for her lifestyle and mentality.

Alston was polarized over Debbie's storyline in the episode, stating "It was a story I think I'll be processing for a few weeks before I have a firm grasp on how I feel about it.

With all that said, Shameless did just turn rape—with the knotty addition of self-statutory rape, as the show helpfully points out—into one hell of an intended joke.

"[5] Allyson Johnson of The Young Folks was also critical of the writers' handling of the subject matter, writing "Plot lines that involve sexual assault aren’t inherently bad as long as the creative team behind it knows how to handle it with a deft hand and it would seem that Shameless has followed suit of so many other shows that just shouldn’t have taken on the storyline in the first place.