Let’s Talk About ‘Shameless’ s9e6, “Face It, You’re Gorgeous”

We’re still deep in the feels from last week’s Shameless episode, “Face It, You’re Gorgeous” which was the last episode for series star Cameron Monaghan who plays Ian.

Fans were shocked when he announced (via an Instagram post) that season 9 episode 6 was the swan song for Gay Jesus, one of the most heartbreaking characters of the SHOWTIME / US version of the series, which is an import from the UK.

If you don’t want to know about Ian’s last scene, you may want to catch up on the show now.  Go ahead, the rest of us will wait.

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Okay so imagine our shock and delight when Ian, who went to prison to serve time for his arson conviction, met his new cellmate.

The saga of Mickey (Noel Fisher) and Ian has been one of the best written relationships in cable television in the last several years, and maybe one of the most interesting same-sex relationships portrayed on television ever. Bound by love over several seasons, our heart ached when Ian dropped Mickey at the border in Mexico two seasons ago, and we WISH he would have gone with him.

BUT, the glorious payoff of the door opening and Mickey standing there in the cell with Ian was incredible. [I gasped, and yelled.] Knowing that the writers wanted to give Ian and Mickey this moment, that they’d be together, even in prison, was just beautiful and probably one of the top moments in the series across 9 seasons.

While we’re VERY sad to be losing Cameron Monaghan as part of the Gallagher family, we are very much looking forward to seeing what he does next in his career.

Also, Fiona (Emmy Rossum) is a mess, and it’s like everyone has forgotten how to write for her. This season has seen her continue to grow as a business woman, and yet, she somehow manages to mess that up by trying to do more than she’s able to with business deals she really should NOT be making. The absolute gutpunch of her Irish boyfriend having, you know, a wife and yet ANOTHER kid that he’s been hiding, was a cringeworthy moment. It’ll be interesting to see what her final moments on the series are going to be as Rossum is ALSO leaving the show at the end of this season.

SHOWTIME’s Shameless airs on Sundays.