Shameless Fans Can't Help But Feel Bad For Franny
There are dozens of characters to feel sorry for in "Shameless," namely the members of the Gallagher family who have grown up neglected and impoverished as a result of their alcoholic father Frank Gallagher (William H. Macy). This includes series lead Fiona Gallagher (Emmy Rossum), who was forced to sacrifice nearly every aspect of her life in order to run the household in Frank's absence, and is miserable as a result.
Although there are plenty of "Shameless" characters deserving of the audience's pity, fans online have singled out Frances "Franny" Gallagher (Paris Newton) as perhaps the saddest character in the entire show, particularly because of how her mother, Debbie Gallagher (Emma Kenney) raises her. "Who else feels bad for Franny?" wrote one user on Reddit. "As I am finishing another rewatch, I noticed how destroyed Franny is going to be under the care of Debbie eventually." "She pawns Franny off on people all the time... she leaves her with Neil every night so she can go out with her school friends," said u/Le_re11. "She also straight up called Franny a mistake to her face when she was like 4, which a child will absolutely comprehend in some capacity," added u/TriGguy215.
Other users agreed that Debbie is an absolutely horrendous mother, and many felt so bad for Franny they said she would be better off being left at a fire station instead of living with her mother. It's clear that plenty of fans feel horrible for Franny — though hilariously, most seem to think she'll still end up one of the better adjusted Gallaghers in the end.
The other Gallaghers might have had it worse, but Franny's upbringing still hurts to watch
Fans online made it abundantly clear that Franny Gallagher is one of the most pitiful characters in all of "Shameless," having to grow up with a mother who constantly puts her own needs before the baby's, though most fans still think that Franny is getting a better childhood than the rest of the Gallaghers ever did.
"I do feel bad for franny, but she's miles ahead of the other gallagher's in terms of being taken care of," said u/bojackhorsefan. "Her mom might be kind of a b**** sometimes, but her mom doesn't full on ditch her, leaving her to fend for herself." While it's true that the Gallagher siblings did have their own mother abandon them (and Frank pops in and out of their lives on a whim), others pointed out that the bar for good parenting in this family is essentially on the floor.
"She may be better than her own parents were, but being better than literally lower than the bare minimum isn't something to brag about," said u/FandomPenguin02. Indeed, it's hard to feel too hopeful about Franny's future prospects knowing all of the horrendous things her mother has said and done to her throughout the series — and perhaps seeing this type of upbringing first hand is part of why so many people still feel sorry for Franny, even if she is seemingly rather well adjusted for her age.