Casey Casden

Last updated

"Casey Casden"
Shameless episode
Episode no.Season 1
Episode 4
Directed by Todd Holland
Written byCindy Caponera
Produced by
Cinematography byRodney Charters
Editing byThomas Bolger
Production code2J5404
Original release dateJanuary 30, 2011 (2011-01-30)
Running time44 minutes
Guest appearances
Episode chronology
← Previous
"Aunt Ginger"		Next →
"Three Boys"
Shameless season 1
List of episodes

"Casey Casden" is the fourth episode of the first season of the American television comedy drama Shameless , an adaptation of the British series of the same name. The episode was written by producer Cindy Caponera, and directed by Todd Holland. It originally aired on Showtime on January 30, 2011.

Contents

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. He spends his days drunk, high, or in search of money, while his children need to learn to take care of themselves. In the episode, Debbie kidnaps a toddler from the neighborhood and the Gallaghers have to find a way to return him.

According to Nielsen Media Research, the episode was seen by an estimated 1.11 million household viewers and gained a 0.6/1 ratings share among adults aged 18–49. The episode received highly positive reviews from critics, who praised its dark humor, storylines and ending.

Plot

At the Jackson residence, Frank (William H. Macy) discovers that the neighbors, the Casdens, are throwing a birthday party but loses interest when he realizes there will not be alcohol. Eddie Jackson (Joel Murray) unexpectedly moves back in with his family, citing financial issues, much to the dismay of his estranged wife Sheila (Joan Cusack) and their daughter Karen (Laura Slade Wiggins). Angered by her father's return, Karen tries to seduce Frank to get back at her father, but Frank rebuffs her.

Hearing a noise at the house, Fiona (Emmy Rossum) and Steve (Justin Chatwin) investigate and are shocked to find that Debbie (Emma Kenney), still saddened over having to say goodbye to the woman from the nursing home, has kidnapped the birthday party's toddler, Casey. This leads to a local search for Casey, and the Gallaghers are alarmed that they might be arrested for kidnapping him. Lip (Jeremy Allen White) concocts a plan to return Casey to his family without drawing attention from the public and the police. He enlists Carl (Ethan Cutkosky), Kevin (Steve Howey) and Veronica (Shanola Hampton) to call the police and report separate instances of a little boy walking around Chicago, and they fabricate a story in which Debbie finds Casey on the street and decides to walk him home. Lip's plan is successful, and Fiona takes Debbie to the police station with Tony (Tyler Jacob Moore) to make a statement. She gets over $700 in rewards, and Steve decides to buy her a baby doll.

While working at the Alibi Room, Kevin tries to get rid of a flirty girl by falsely claiming he is going to marry Veronica. Frank overhears this and loudly celebrates while Veronica's mother Carol (Vanessa Bell Calloway) is present. Kevin is forced to accept the statement, although he asks Carol not to call Veronica yet. Later, he arrives home and drunkenly proposes to Veronica, which she accepts. After returning home from the police station, Fiona tells Steve that she wonders if she is properly raising her family. They are interrupted when Veronica and Kevin arrive, announcing their engagement. With her money, Debbie buys a new gas tank for the house. When Fiona comments over Kevin's indifference to getting engaged, Kevin reveals to her that he is already married.

Production

Development

The episode was written by producer Cindy Caponera, and directed by Todd Holland. It was Caponera's first writing credit, and Holland's first directing credit. [1] The episode is a loose adaptation of the fourth episode of the British version.

Reception

Viewers

In its original American broadcast, "Casey Casden" was seen by an estimated 1.11 million household viewers with a 0.6/1 in the 18–49 demographics. This means that 0.6 percent of all households with televisions watched the episode, while 1 percent of all of those watching television at the time of the broadcast watched it. [2] This was a 23% increase in viewership from the previous episode, which was seen by an estimated 0.90 million household viewers with a 0.4/1 in the 18–49 demographics. [3]

Critical reviews

"Casey Casden" received highly positive reviews from critics. Eric Goldman of IGN gave the episode a "great" 8.5 out of 10 and wrote, "It was another strong episode for this series, which I continue to find entertaining week after week. I mentioned in my last review how I really liked the odd bond Debbie formed with the fake "Aunt Ginger," which made me glad to see that not dropped this week as it was Debbie's upset feelings over that loss (on top of her usual screwed up family life) that set the plotline into motion." Goldman also spoke highly of the episode's cinematography, positively comparing the Gallagher's plan to return the baby to "a big heist movie scenario, with everyone playing a part and working out exactly where what would occur." [4]

Joshua Alston of The A.V. Club , who had a mixed assessment of the previous episodes, gave "Casey Casden" an "A–" grade, writing "Tonight's Shameless was a pivotal episode for me. Four episodes is a reasonable number of viewings to give a show that managed to pique your curiosity and squeeze a few laughs out of you. But I still wasn't quite sure what to make of Shameless following "Aunt Ginger," and if I hadn't connected with this episode, I'd obviously still watch, but my heart probably wouldn't have been in it. But "Casey Casden" is an episode of Shameless that makes sense to me." [5]

Alan Sepinwall of HitFix was slightly critical of the episode's central storyline, writing "an episode like this one doesn't make me look at [the Gallaghers] as amusingly eccentric, but damaged and capable of inflicting great harm on others." [6] In contrast, Tim Basham of Paste wrote of the kidnapping plot: "We're learning that the family really isn't as bad as they appear. It's just that they have to break a number of laws in order to survive and stay together." [7] Alexandra Peers of Vulture commented highly on the fleshing out of Kevin and Veronica's characters: "So far, the neighbor couple has pretty much been used for sex scenes, running gags, and bum shots at the corners of the drama, but things are about to get more interesting." [8] Leigh Raines of TV Fanatic gave the episode a 4 star rating out of 5. [9] Jacob Clifton of Television Without Pity gave the episode an "A+" grade, writing "The confident, smart tone [of the episode] continues from last week." [10]

Related Research Articles

"Frank the Plank" is the second episode of the first season of the American television comedy drama Shameless, an adaptation of the British series of the same name. The episode was written by executive producer Paul Abbott and series developer John Wells, and directed by Wells. It originally aired on Showtime on January 16, 2011.

"Pilot" is the series premiere of the American television comedy drama Shameless, an adaptation of the British series of the same name. The episode was written by executive producer Paul Abbott and series developer John Wells, and directed by Mark Mylod. It originally aired on Showtime on January 9, 2011.

<i>Shameless</i> season 1 Season of television series

The first season of Shameless, an American comedy-drama television series based on the British series of the same name by Paul Abbott, premiered on January 9, 2011, at Sunday 10:00 p.m. EST on the Showtime television network. Executive producers are John Wells, Paul Abbott and Andrew Stearn, with producer Michael Hissrich. The season concluded after 12 episodes on March 27, 2011. The show's season premiere was watched by 982,000 viewers, making it the network's biggest turnout for a series premier since Dead Like Me in 2003. The episode airing January 30, "Casey Casden", received 1.45 million total viewers, making Shameless the best performing first-year drama on Showtime. The season finale scored 1.16 million viewers.

"Aunt Ginger" is the third episode of the first season of the American television comedy drama Shameless, an adaptation of the British series of the same name. The episode was written by producer Nancy M. Pimental, and directed by Stephen Hopkins. It originally aired on Showtime on January 23, 2011.

"Three Boys" is the fifth episode of the first season of the American television comedy drama Shameless, an adaptation of the British series of the same name. The episode was written by consulting producer Alex Borstein, and directed by Mimi Leder. It originally aired on Showtime on February 6, 2011.

"Frank Gallagher: Loving Husband, Devoted Father" is the seventh episode of the first season of the American television comedy drama Shameless, an adaptation of the British series of the same name. The episode was written by Etan Frankel, and directed by David Nutter. It originally aired on Showtime on February 20, 2011.

"It's Time to Kill the Turtle" is the eighth episode of the first season of the American television comedy drama Shameless, an adaptation of the British series of the same name. The episode was written by Nathan Jackson and producer Nancy M. Pimental, and directed by Scott Frank. It originally aired on Showtime on February 27, 2011.

"But at Last Came a Knock" is the ninth episode of the first season of the American television comedy drama Shameless, an adaptation of the British series of the same name. The episode was written by consulting producer Alex Borstein, and directed by co-executive producer Mark Mylod. It originally aired on Showtime on March 6, 2011.

"Nana Gallagher Had an Affair" is the tenth episode of the first season of the American television comedy drama Shameless, an adaptation of the British series of the same name. The episode was written by producer Cindy Caponera, and directed by Adam Bernstein. It originally aired on Showtime on March 13, 2011.

"Daddyz Girl" is the eleventh episode of the first season of the American television comedy drama Shameless, an adaptation of the British series of the same name. The episode was written by producer Nancy M. Pimental, and directed by Sanaa Hamri. It originally aired on Showtime on March 20, 2011.

"Father Frank, Full of Grace" is the twelfth episode and season finale of the first season of the American television comedy drama Shameless, an adaptation of the British series of the same name. The episode was written by series developer John Wells, and directed by co-executive producer Mark Mylod. It originally aired on Showtime on March 27, 2011.

"Summertime" is the first episode of the second season of the American television comedy drama Shameless, an adaptation of the British series of the same name. It is the 13th overall episode of the series and was written by series developer John Wells, and directed by co-executive producer Mark Mylod. It originally aired on Showtime on January 8, 2012.

"I'll Light a Candle for You Every Day" is the third episode of the second season of the American television comedy drama Shameless, an adaptation of the British series of the same name. It is the 15th overall episode of the series and was written by supervising producer Nancy M. Pimental, and directed by Craig Zisk. It originally aired on Showtime on January 22, 2012.

"A Beautiful Mess" is the fourth episode of the second season of the American television comedy drama Shameless, an adaptation of the British series of the same name. It is the 16th overall episode of the series and was written by consulting producer Alex Borstein, and directed by co-executive producer Mark Mylod. It originally aired on Showtime on January 29, 2012.

"Can I Have a Mother" is the sixth episode of the second season of the American television comedy drama Shameless, an adaptation of the British series of the same name. It is the 18th overall episode of the series and was written by main cast member William H. Macy and Steven Schachter, and directed by John Dahl. It originally aired on Showtime on February 12, 2012.

"A Bottle of Jean Nate" is the seventh episode of the second season of the American television comedy drama Shameless, an adaptation of the British series of the same name. It is the 19th overall episode of the series and was written by supervising producer Nancy M. Pimental, and directed by David Nutter. It originally aired on Showtime on February 19, 2012.

"A Great Cause" is the tenth episode of the second season of the American television comedy drama Shameless, an adaptation of the British series of the same name. It is the 22nd overall episode of the series and was written by co-producer Etan Frankel, and directed by Mimi Leder. It originally aired on Showtime on March 18, 2012.

"Simple Pleasures" is the first episode of the fourth season of the American television comedy drama Shameless, an adaptation of the British series of the same name. It is the 37th overall episode of the series and was written and directed by series developer John Wells. It originally aired on Showtime on January 12, 2014.

"Like Father, Like Daughter" is the third episode of the fourth season of the American television comedy drama Shameless, an adaptation of the British series of the same name. It is the 39th overall episode of the series and was written by producer Sheila Callaghan and directed by Sanaa Hamri. It originally aired on Showtime on January 26, 2014.

"Liver, I Hardly Know Her" is the tenth episode of the fourth season of the American television comedy drama Shameless, an adaptation of the British series of the same name. It is the 46th overall episode of the series and was written by co-executive producer Davey Holmes and directed by Christopher Chulack. It originally aired on Showtime on March 23, 2014.

References

  1. ↑ "Shameless - WGA Directory". Writers Guild of America West . Archived from the original on June 1, 2024. Retrieved June 1, 2024.
  2. ↑ Gorman, Bill (February 1, 2011). "Sunday Cable Ratings: 'Holly's World,' 'Real Housewives' Finale Up; Plus 'Kardashians,' 'Shameless' & Much More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on February 2, 2011. Retrieved June 1, 2024.
  3. ↑ Seidman, Robert (January 25, 2011). "Sunday Cable Ratings: 'Real Housewives,' Kardashians, 'Holly's World' Lead Night + 'Shameless' & Much More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on January 29, 2011. Retrieved June 1, 2024.
  4. ↑ Goldman, Eric (January 31, 2011). "Shameless: "Casey Casden" Review". IGN . Archived from the original on June 2, 2024. Retrieved June 1, 2024.
  5. ↑ Alston, Joshua (January 30, 2011). "Shameless: "Casey Casden"". The A.V. Club . Archived from the original on June 2, 2024. Retrieved June 1, 2024.
  6. ↑ Sepinwall, Alan (January 30, 2011). "'Shameless' – 'Casey Casden': Amber alert". HitFix . Archived from the original on June 2, 2024. Retrieved June 1, 2024.
  7. ↑ Basham, Tim (January 31, 2011). "Shameless (Episode 1.04)". Paste . Archived from the original on June 2, 2024. Retrieved June 1, 2024.
  8. ↑ Peers, Alexandra (January 31, 2011). "Shameless Recap: Stranger With Candy". Vulture . Archived from the original on December 27, 2023. Retrieved June 1, 2024.
  9. ↑ Raines, Leigh (January 31, 2011). "Shameless Review: "Casey Casden"". TV Fanatic. Archived from the original on June 2, 2024. Retrieved June 1, 2024.
  10. ↑ Clifton, Jacob (February 1, 2011). "Shameless: "Casey Casden" – Loser Goes to Gitmo". Television Without Pity . Archived from the original on May 17, 2012. Retrieved June 1, 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.