Survivors

Turns out the writers decided to take the shortcut. After building up that Brad is likely going to crack under pressure with the police, they just jump ahead with Brad and Lip going to Born Free to sign off on the final paperwork for the sale of the shop. They close the problem they wrote by simply saying that the police did their investigation and didn’t find anything so they’re in the clear. That’s really disappointing (and lazy) but time is of the essence as they have to wrap everything up in 4 episodes.

So, the new wrinkle is that Born Free was bought by a Chicago crime family and they’re pulling some insurance fraud, claiming that what was stolen is worth double what it actually is. Stealing from the mob tends to be dangerous. Things get sketchy when they notice they are being followed. Things work out for the best as the mob boss was told that Lip and Brad can fix anything and he needs a birthday present for his kid to be assembled correctly. They manage to put it together and with the scam going on the parts, Lip figures they’re completely in the clear now. I wonder if this is going to turn into a job offer for Lip. Why go out of the way to introduce mob boss Baggio like this if you aren’t going to do anything with it? Baggio probably owns a ton of cars or owns a few garages where he could use another mechanic. Helping him with his kid in a pinch is a good first impression.

The big problem is the battle for the house. Lip has a timer over his head for his home being taken out from under him and moving back to the Gallagher house or Tami’s parents isn’t a solution. With his share of the sale, he has a down payment. Liam and Deb are convinced if the house is sold, the family is basically done. So Deb digs in further, Lip is furious, and Liam runs around looking for a place for him to live in case the house is sold. His journey takes him all over the place. This and Frank’s day highlight how the Gallagher’s rarely talk to each other anymore. Talking at someone rarely does anything.

There’s basically nothing they can do about Frank, he’s drunk himself into pickling his brain so everyone goes on with their lives ignoring him like they always do. Frank, reminded that the house may be up for sale, pulls at an old heist plan that he’s kept in case of emergency. He’ll get the money to buy the house by stealing some expensive art. He goes around town looking for his old partners and crime to find that everyone is either too old to do some crazy theft or dead. It’s a bad day for Frank (which has some really funny lines).

V goes to Kentucky to help her mother unpack convince her mother to move back to Chicago. This leaves Kevin with the twins and that turns into not a good idea, which many people predict. V’s trip does have a surprise turn: while sightseeing with her mom, it ends up showing her a lot of reasons to leave Chicago with her family. Her mom never says anything about it, so there’s no annoyance or outside pressure for V to get mad at. On her own, she starts thinking about the upgrades they could afford just by moving to another state. This may mean the character I never thought would leave Southside, could.

Since Carl piledrived another department into a ditch, he gets reassigned once more and he gets his first partner back, Officer Tipping. He’s in great spirits which is shocking considering where we last left him. His spirituality has really opened up and he’s not irritatingly positive. His desire to make work as easy as possible and go eat hasn’t changed.

Mickey and Ian spend their day finalizing Terry’s burial plans. In his stuff, they find a box that’s labeled for a mysterious woman named Rachel. This is the best story of the episode as Mickey is torn in every direction. He’s hilarious and the moments they go through are super awkward. Terry’s background is something else and we find out why he was such a miserable person. This thread has come to an end.

When Lip swings by the house at the end of the day, progress actually happens. After he and Deb fight again they do something long overdue. They talk. She tells him she wants to keep the house because she wants to keep the family together. Family is everything to Deb. They might have had a brutal childhood but she had her siblings through all of it. She wants Franny to be close to her family like she was and she’s terrified that this will break them up for good. She tells him Liam basically thinks the same thing. Lip assures her that they are all going to live nearby. It’ll take more effort to see each other (real talk: they barely see each other as it is) but they’ll put the work in. Having a weekly family dinner is his first solution. I would have liked to see them talk more about this (Deb should have brought up Fiona, for example) but it’s a good start. Lip then talks to Liam and Liam admits his fears too. Lip apologizes for making him feel like he’d be abandoned and offers for him to move in with him and Tami. Liam is so happy he gives Lip the biggest and greatest hug. It was really touching to see.

The stinger for the episode is a good one: Frank managed to steal a painting on his own.