Having her handbag stolen proves to be a blessing for Fiona when a handsome stranger named Steve comes to her rescue. Lip is shocked to discover Ian could be gay and decides his brother should pay a visit to the ever-accommodating Karen Jackson down the block. But the sudden arrival of her furious father Eddie ensures Ian's already-slim chances of happiness with Karen take a severe blow. Meanwhile, Steve buys Fiona a romantic gift, but for some reason she's less than impressed with it.

Drunk as a skunk, Frank has a run-in with Karen's father and returns home to take it out on Ian. The next day is Friday, and Frank is nowhere to be found, which is a bit odd since he never misses disability check day. The family starts a manhunt. .

Fiona turns her attentions to Tony, a cop who has had a crush on her since childhood, but Steve isn't willing to give up without a fight; Ian is targeted by the brothers of a girl he spurned; the whole family searches for elderly Aunt Ginger, who owns their house.

Debbie, sad and lonely after Aunt Ginger leaves, steals a little boy from a birthday party. In classic Gallagher style, the family hatches a plan to return the toddler safe and sound without attracting attention from the Chicago Police Department, who has made the kidnapping a top priority. Karen, in complete defiance of Eddie, starts to tease Frank sexually. Frank not knowing what to make of it keeps himself busy with booze, picking up Sheila'­s meds from the pharmacy and concentrating on finding the missing boy. What began as an innocent lie for Kevin to protect himself from a hot girl ultimately becomes a proposal of marriage for Veronica.

When the Gallagher's find out Veronica comes from a wealthy family, they try to scheme a fake wedding for the dowry. Meanwhile, Frank gets some bad news about his health.

Fiona tries to prove the Gallagher home is suitable for rehabilitating a delinquent after receiving a letter from Carl's teacher; Lip gets busted taking the SAT for fellow students in exchange for cash; Kash and Ian are ashamed at their failure to stop a string of robberies at the Kash and Grab; Frank's poor business acumen continues to have negative consequences.

Frank gets into trouble with two goons he owes money. Fiona asks Sheila to take care of Liam while she spends a night with Steve, and Ian tries to stop Mickey from bullying Kash.

Sheila fears to lose Frank when he gives up drinking. While Lip suspects their dad hasn't changed, Debbie and Carl enjoy having Frank back in their life. Meanwhile, Fiona tries to find a better paid job.

Monica comes back when Frank needs her to sign documents and decides to take Liam with her. Meanwhile, Steve and Fiona move together.

The children's paternity is put into question and Frank needs Carl's help.

Tony comes closer to discovering what Steve is doing, while Fiona makes a new friend. In the meantime, Lip helps Ian look for his father.

Steve tries to convince Fiona to skip town with him now that his true livelihood as been discovered; Frank and Karen's secret is revealed, forcing Frank to go into hiding; Fiona tries to figure out how to get Lip and Ian out of jail after their arrest for car theft.

Fiona spends her summer with a new guy and bartending, while Debbie runs a daycare at their home. Meanwhile, Kevin realizes his extended weed-growing left him with a huge electrical bill and Frank borrows his youngest son Liam to help him pay a debt.

As Sheila conquers her agoraphobia, a worried Frank finds a new financial plan in fellow bar patron Dottie, whose declining health and city pension make her an ideal match; Fiona juggles her job, the kids and her burgeoning love life, and Jasmine tries to help by setting up Fiona with a sugar daddy; Veronica takes some old folks from the home on an excursion; Lip worries about Karen's growing relationship with Jody; Ian tries to land a recently released Mickey a job at the Kash and Grab; Debbie wants her own room; Carl moves into the van.

Fiona hopes her moral compass isn't leading her astray when she reconnects with her married high school crush, but when she finds an abandoned purse with over five hundred dollars inside, she assumes her luck is finally changing; Frank is willing to do just about anything to stay in Dottie's good graces, even marry her; after Harry's passing, Debbie becomes obsessed with death; Kevin thinks about buying the Alibi; Lip meets with a colonel to glean information for Ian about West Point; Jody asks Frank for Karen's hand in marriage.

Fiona deals with the consequences of sleeping with Craig when his angry wife shows up at the door; Debbie develops a stress-rash and Fiona wonders if she's putting too much responsibility on the kids; Sheila has made it all the way to the hair salon and Frank realizes his days in the Jackson household are numbered; no longer having sex with Karen, Lip tries to dig up dirt on Jody; Ian continues on the path to West Point; Carl house-sits with his friend, Little Hank; Ethel meets Malik, a boy on Kevin's youth basketball team.

Frank tries to claim Eddie's insurance benefits and pension, despite being a prime suspect in his death; Fiona attends a ritzy wedding with Richard and lies about her background; Lip is devastated by Karen's rejection; Carl rents Frank's room to a hooker.

Grammy Gallagher shows up on a medical furlough and tries to track down a former meth lab protege that owes her money; Sheila plans Karen's wedding reception; Fiona double dates with Steve and his Brazilian girlfriend, and discovers that Steve is married; Ethel reacts to Clyde's death; Frank discovers the identity of Eddie's insurance beneficiary.

Lip tries to get back in Karen's good graces by crafting a prenuptial agreement for her and Jody, while Ian continues to give Lip the silent treatment; Frank wants to kick Grammy out but Fiona resists until the basement meth lab explodes; Fiona is invited on a boat trip but doesn't realize Steve and his girlfriend are also attending.

With Grammy near death, Frank exits the house but walks in on Ian and Mickey locked in passion at the Kash and Grab; when Lip drops out of school, Fiona proposes a deal where they both earn their diplomas, but Lip acts out and gets himself expelled when he realizes that Karen plans to sell their baby to the highest bidder.

Monica returns to party and plot scams with Frank, but the rest of the family suspects she hasn't returned to stay; Fiona reconsiders her decision to kick Lip out of the house; Grammy's death affects everyone differently, and leaves Frank determined to make sure he gets every last penny his mother left behind; Sheila and Jody think Eddie's ghost is haunting the house.

Fiona starts to plan for her future now that Monica is back but her reprieve may be short-lived as Monica falls apart, spends the squirrel fund and gets arrested; Steve conspires to reunite Estefania with her true love so that he can be with Fiona; Lip and Ian learn the true identity of Mandy's baby; Sheila takes in a homeless crack addict.

It's a typical Gallagher nontraditional Thanksgiving that includes a suicide attempt by Monica, Carl shooting a bald eagle, and Karen going into labor; Steve agrees to allow Estefania's boyfriend to steal his identity; Ian sleeps with a businessman named Ned; Frank tries to get his share of his mother's money from his brother Clayton.

A lonely Frank schemes to break Monica out of the psychiatric facility. Jimmy earns his way back into Fiona's good graces and she asks to meet his family while Ian runs into Ned again.

Frank wakes up in a place completely foreign to him.

Fiona is stressed about the money she used for her club night; Frank makes his way home.

Frank tells Carl he has cancer to scam a charity foundation; Lip hunts down pedophiles in the neighborhood.

Carl says his goodbyes; Frank is on babysitting duty; Sheila wants to introduce Jody to toy time.

The city of Chicago gives notice that they're doing work on the sewer main. The problem? Aunt Ginger's bones are still buried in the yard and Frank needs to find her before the city does. Meanwhile, Fiona is picked on at work for not satisfying her boss. When Fiona fails to provide the support Jimmy needs, he turns to Este. Molly learns that she's a boy and Ned asks Ian to rob his wife's house.

The Department of Family Services hauls the Gallagher children away, leaving Fiona desperate to get them back. With Monica nowhere to be found, Fiona is forced to find Frank and get him to make a "Father of the Year" appearance in court. It all goes well until Fiona discovers that Frank's not the solution to her problem - he's the cause. Meanwhile, Kev and Veronica recruit V's mother as a surrogate and Terry catches Mickey and Ian in a compromising situation.

Frank and Fiona go to extreme lengths in court to claim custody of the kids.

The family gathers for the real Aunt Ginger's fake funeral.

Fiona starts a new office job but has a hard time fitting in with the corporate culture. In an attempt to get medical coverage, Frank inadvertently becomes involved in the gay rights movement where he meets Abraham Paige, a powerful activist.

Fiona's job has brought structure ito her life, but when Jimmy drops a bomb on her things fall apart. Frank is happy with his newfound celebrity as the face of the gay rights movement.

Fiona takes the kids on a camping trip. Essentially homeless, Frank seeks out Carl who sneaks him into the Gallagher van for the night.

Fiona and the family prepare a surprise high school,graduation party for Lip. Frank wins a bet and uses the winnings to take Lip out for lobster and some quality father/son time.

Frank returns, disrupting life; Lip attends college; Ian is missing; Fiona tries to connect with Debbie and Carl.

Fiona begins to enjoy the perks of living life just above the poverty line. She uses her newly activated health benefits to take the kids for checkups. However, when a road rage incident damages the company car, Fiona tells a much bigger lie about how it happened. Meanwhile, Lip seems to have lost his mojo as he struggles in school and with the ladies.

Frank stalks his previously unseen daughter, Sammi, and is surprised to find out she has a son, Chuck. Meanwhile, Fiona and Mike are getting serious. Also, Carl begins stealing dogs and holding them for ransom so that he can earn some drug money for Frank. Sheila has her first successful online date with Native American cowboy Roger Running Tree.

Against her better judgment, Fiona continues her secret affair with Robbie. The situation nearly boils over when Mike shows up at Robbie’s apartment while Fiona is inside. Fiona is able to hide just in time before her infidelity can be exposed. Frank, in increasingly dire health straits due to liver disease, attempts to contrive an “accident” that will provide an ample insurance payout to cover the cost of a potential transplant.

Fiona's series of bad decisions involving Robbie finally boil over. Meanwhile, Frank and Sammi pursue a cure for Frank's liver trouble and try to catch up on missed father-daughter time; and Lip gets a surprise visit at college from Army investigators.

Fiona ends up in jail; the family waits for news about Liam; Frank wakes up in the emergency room.

Guardianship duties fall upon Lip - who gets some unexpected assistance.

To prepare for a visit from her probation officer, Fiona must remove all paraphernalia from the house; Ian is kicked out of Mickey's house.

Carl connects with a girl in detention; Lip and Amanda grow closer; Sheila returns with big plans; Fiona searches for a job; Mickey spends time with Ian.

Fiona violates terms of her probation, sending the family into search party mode.

Fiona is hauled off to a correctional facility. Amanda’s parents bribe Lip.

Fiona gets out of jail. Frank is feeling like his old self.

The Gallaghers adjust to life during the pandemic. Frank fears gentrification of South Side. Bar closures force Kev and V to get creative. Lip and Tami work to make their new house a home as Carl finishes his time at the police academy.

Frank helps Kev and V's pot business. Debbie prepares a princess party for Franny while Mickey gets a real job. Lip runs into trouble with his new neighbors. Carl's first day on the force is not what he thought it would be.

Debbie loses track of Franny, while Frank and Franny have a day of weed runs and adventure. Ian and Mickey question who is the "man" in their relationship. Carl gets a new training officer. Lip and Tami help Brad and Cami with their baby.

The Milkoviches move in next door and wreak havoc, leading Frank, Kev and Liam to scheme to get rid of them. Mickey embarks on a security gig for Kev and V and drags Ian along. Gemma and Franny compete in the Little Miss South Side beauty pageant.

Ian and Mickey get creative when the safety of their security gig comes into question. Dynamic duo Frank and Kev make a last-ditch effort to take down the Milkovich’s. V canvasses to get black people to the polls but realizes there’s barely any black people left on the Southside.

A surprising twist of fate has left the Milkovich’s vulnerable, forcing Ian and Mickey to step in to help. Frank’s day takes some unexpected turns and Liam deals with inner turmoil after doing a bad thing. Debbie confronts Sandy on their relationship, while Carl enjoys the spoils of his day off.

The Gallaghers disagree on the fate of their childhood home so a stranded Frank tries to get back to weigh in on the matter. Realizing that they have none, Ian and Mickey embark on a journey to find gay friends. Carl is upset after his night with Tish, and Debbie and Sandy have another visitor from Sandy’s past.

Frank and Liam compete in a renaming contest of the Dennis Hastert Middle School. Debbie has a day of zero responsibilities, while Ian and Mickey take on all the responsibility for Terry. Veronica is depressed about her mom moving so Kevin tries to cheer her up, all while planning a special surprise.

Frank wants to pull one last heist with the old gang. Debbie struggles with the idea of change and blames Lip, while Lip and Brad find out the new owners of BornFree are in the mob. Mickey and Ian learn a surprising truth about Terry’s past, and Liam tries to find a new place to live.

Lip has a million projects going on, and Frank is one of them. Liam is forced to watch Frank, so the two of them embark on a journey to take down Liam’s classmate in an effort to get Liam into STEM school. Carl’s disillusionment with the police force comes to a head.

Kev and V announce their big news. Lip has some promising leads on selling the house, forcing Debbie to reevaluate her future and her history of regrettable love interests. Ian and Mickey try to adjust to a vastly different life on the West Side. Carl’s commitment to the force is challenged when he’s reassigned to an unglamorous police unit. Liam reminds Frank of everything that makes Frank, Frank.

Ian and Mickey shop for furniture for their new place and Kev and V look for a buyer for the Alibi. While Lip settles for a new job, Carl finally finds his calling in a new role on the police force. Debbie plunges into a treacherous world when she meets someone new. Frank comes to terms with his own mortality.