What Shameless Fans Hate Most About Kev And V
Showtime's Shameless has made a name for itself in quite a few different ways. It's a beloved show, with a mounting pile of fans from the very first episode in 2011 to the very last in 2021. Shameless tells the story of the loyal but oftentimes dysfunctional Gallagher family living in the South Side of Chicago. The show has provided shocking revelations as well as hilarious and even oddly heartwarming moments for a decade now, thanks to the comical storylines and excellent casting.
We can go on and on about Frank Gallagher's (William H. Macy) inability to be a decent father and friend, but we're here to talk about everyone's favorite bartender and neighbor Kevin "Kev" Ball (Steve Howey) and his wife Veronica, or "V" (Shanola Hampton). This couple has provided limitless laughs, but according to some Reddit fans, things take a turn for them at the end of season 7 and into season 8. Some fans are unhappy with how the couple treated their new love interest, Svetlana, aka "Lana" (Isidora Goreshter), so much so that a Reddit user recently started a thread to express their opinions. Directors can't please everyone, and as for this duo? There are quite a few things Redditors didn't enjoy.
Kev and V's reaction to the bar's new ownership
In season 7, Svetlana decides to buy The Alibi Room without telling Kevin or Veronica, which is kind of a sketchy move to make, but she did it to save her partners from future money issues. When Kev approaches her in the episode "Ride or Die," Redditors think he is completely out of line.
Reddit user u/giraffegeo mentions this moment: "Kev and V's reaction to Svetlana becoming the owner of the bar. Yes, it was sneaky, but the fact is that if it weren't for Svetlana, the two of them would be homeless. No appreciation whatsoever." On the thread, u/FanaticDreamer agrees, adding that "she wasn't hurting Kev / V she was making their lives better and allowing them to afford their lives better." It's true that Kev goes about it the wrong way and uses V's emotions against Lana, and the conversation could've been much more cordial. On the other hand, Lana did con the couple into signing something they thought were adoption papers because they wouldn't have given ownership of the bar over to her if she'd told them straight-up.
V's call to ICE
In the aftermath of the bar betrayal, Veronica and Svetlana's relationship gets extremely heated. In the episode "Ouroboros," V confronts Lana about the bar and demands that she give it back to her and Kevin. After Lana refuses, the fight turns physical. V calls the cops on Lana, and as a result, Lana is nearly deported. V literally decides to add more fuel to the fire by burning Lana's things and calling ICE on her.
Redditors hated that Kev and V didn't really realize the severity of their actions and what would happen to Lana. Once they do realize that their bar could be in jeopardy, V decides to visit Lana to get in her good graces again. In the same thread, u/giraffegeo explains that, "The conditions there [ICE] are so terrible and people are given so little hope to keep going and it's frankly disgusting that V doesn't seem to care at all."
Kev and V's lack of common sense
Common sense is quite the treat in Shameless, and some of the blame falls on Kevin and Veronica. When Svetlana starts working out of The Alibi Room, she quickly notices that her pay isn't as high as Kev and V's. When she voices this, she realizes that the two don't understand what it means to pay their employees fairly.
Whether it's her background or because they are cheapskates, it's evident they don't think Lana deserves it, which is pretty lame. When Lana brings this up, they both scoff at the thought, even though Lana has a point. On the Reddit thread, u/giraffegeo points out that Lana "earns 3x as much, yet Kev and V are for some reason shocked that Svetlana would even suggest getting fair pay checks in accordance to their work." Again, Lana is conniving and "fake stole" Kev's van, but what's with the low pay?
V is for "victim"
When things go sour between Veronica and Svetlana, V thinks that none of what she's gone through is her fault, and it's all Lana's doing. Lana has a background of deceit and outrageousness, but when the going gets tough, V turns the table on her and plays the "victim" card. For quite some time, Kevin tries to warn V of how malicious and cunning Lana can be, but V's love for Lana and the circumstances they were all in overshadowed what was right in front of her.
V, and Kev for that matter, are adults, and around Lana, they seem to forget that. On Reddit, u/giraffegeo highlighted this by saying, "V just makes herself seem like the complete and innocent victim and Svetlana is the evil Russian who has no emotions." Sure, these are all characters on a show, but it's hard not to get invested in a storyline like this and how cruel Kev and V can really be.
Kev's ego was terribe
Another major issue concerns Kevin and Svetlana's personal working and relationship. It's evident that Kev worries that Veronica is taking Lana's side and might have more feelings for her than him, but it's his ego that becomes increasingly frustrating in all of this. Kevin's anger toward Lana has an effect on almost every aspect of the relationship between the three, and while he's making a show of his temper and self-consciousness, it's evident that Lana is right about a lot of business decisions.
Reddit user u/giraffegeo says it perfectly: "The scene where Kev confronts Svetlana about the change in delivery guys is so stupid because, for the third time, Svetlana is right. If Kevin was such good friends with the old delivery guy, he would have noticed he had been gone for over a year." At this point, Kev is just finding things to be mad at Lana about, and the ugly side of his personality is showing itself.