Shameless Fans Are Still Bothered By How Kassidi's Death Was Handled
"Shameless" was filled with shocking moments during its 11-season run; it's hard to pick which stands out the most. For some fans, the Frank (William H. Macy) and Dottie (Molly Price) storyline was the most disgusting, and for others, Frank and Carl (Ethan Cutkosky), the duo trying to sell Carl's children is pretty horrific. The list of "Shameless" wild moments is pretty long, but the disappearance of Carl's girlfriend, Kassidi (Samantha Hanratty), in the Season 9 premiere definitely sits high on fans' lists.
In the episode, "Are You There Shim? It's Me, Ian," Kassidi, who is obsessed with Carl, is camped outside his military school. He casually complains to his cadets that, thanks to her, he'll never get a promotion. The next day, one of the cadets tells Carl that he "took care of the problem" as a way to prove his loyalty, and "don't worry sir, nobody will ever find the body." We see Kassidi's empty campsite, and she's never mentioned again.
"Kassidi is just all [of a] sudden dead," u/steen101984 wrote on a "Shameless" thread about the most bothersome plot holes. "Her parents don't come looking for her. The cops don't ask her fiancé about her being missing, we all just move on." Carl seemingly cares about her, and the pair even got "married," making the handling of her death even more baffling.
Despite being Carl's 'wife,' she was never mentioned again
Kassidi first appeared in Season 8, Episode 7 ("Occupy Fiona") and quickly became infatuated with Carl. While most of the Gallaghers thought she was annoying, she ingratiated herself into the home with food and gifts. After Carl gave her a promise ring that she thought was an engagement ring, he decided to marry her anyway. Their marriage wasn't legal since they lied about their ages, but it still happened, which made Kassidi's demise even more strange.
"I know she was annoying but some dips**t soldier trainee murdered her and Carl did absolutely nothing...lazy writing," wrote u/JShot007. In another subreddit, u/colummbina wrote, "I mean I know what happened to her but why wasn't Carl affected at all? Her dad knew where Carl lived, sooner or later her family would have wondered where she went and would have talked to Carl. Or the police would when they filed a missing persons case. How was she dropped so quickly from the story with no follow up?"
For her part, actress Samantha Hanratty posted on TikTok a deleted scene that shows what happened to Kassidi, saying "It doesn't look promising." For fans, Kassidi's death is chalked up as just one more frustrating "Shameless" storyline that was handled badly.