As we catch up with the Gallagher clan, Fiona is dividing her time between caring for the household and working at Worldwide Cup with her boss/boyfriend Mike Pratt. While her job and relationship are going smoothly, life at home is thrown into a state of upheaval with the reappearance of a drug-addled and deathly ill Frank. With Lip off at college and Ian still missing, Fiona attempts to connect with Debbie and Carl, who are dealing with the upheaval of their adolescent hormones (or lack thereof). Season premiere.
Fiona begins to enjoy the perks of living life just above the poverty line – using her newly activated health benefits to take the kids for checkups. Everything's great – until her boss/boyfriend Mike gets mad that she didn't call the night before when she said she would. Fiona chalks it up to a little white lie. However, when a road rage incident damages the company car, Fiona tells a much bigger lie about how it happened. When Mike catches her, they're both forced to confront their relationship issues. Meanwhile, Lip seems to have lost his mojo with the ladies as he struggles in school. Kev inherits the Alibi Room from Stan, but the good news is short-lived when Kev realizes the bar is basically bankrupt and Veronica learns she's actually carrying triplets! When Fiona turns out to be a blood match for Frank's liver, she refuses to help her dad – sending Frank on a mission to find his other oldest daughter.
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. And the situation nearly boils over, when Mike shows up at Robbie's apartment while Fiona's inside. Fiona is able to hide just in time before her infidelity can be exposed. In increasingly dire health straits due to liver disease, Frank attempts to contrive an "accident" that will provide an ample insurance payout to cover the cost of a potential transplant. Too physically weak to injure himself, he enlists the help of an overeager Carl. With the odds stacked against him, he gets more bad news when it is revealed that Sammi isn't a match for a transplant. Lip continues to struggle with the full plate in front of him and shows up at Mandy's out of loneliness, while Debbie's age difference with Matt puts their relationship on the rocks.
Fiona's series of bad decisions involving Robbie finally boil over when he alerts Mike of their affair – leaving Fiona horrified and in employment limbo. Frank and Sammi continue their pursuit of curing his liver trouble, while also catching up on the father-daughter time that Sammi's always craved.
The aftermath of Liam's accident lands Fiona in county jail – unsure of Liam's condition or her future. Meanwhile, the family (minus Frank) waits nervously for any update on Liam's condition at the hospital.
William H. Macy
Frank Gallagher
Emmy Rossum
Fiona Gallagher
Ethan Cutkosky
Carl Gallagher
Shanola Hampton
Veronica Fisher
Steve Howey
Kevin Ball