Showtime’s ‘Shameless’ Plays Truth or Dare with the Audience

Showtime is turning to YouTube in anticipation of the January 8 Season 2 debut of its hit, more funny than heavy dramatic series about a work workers’ compensation family living below the welfare line in Chicago’s South Side with Lip’s Truth or Dare, an online companion series to Shameless that depends heavily on audience input.

The series features Shameless elder brother and the Gallagher family’s socially adept savant Lip (played by Jeremy Allen White), who challenges viewers to help craft the series’ future episodes.

“Yo losers, wanna play a little truth or dare with Lip Gallagher?” Lip asks in the first episode as he’s breaking into a car. “Ask me somethin’ about myself or dare me to do something. Yeah come on, gimme your best shot!”

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the show will put out as many as 10 episodes in which Lip will perform the dares or answer the truths submitted from the audience.

Fans can submit ideas at the Shameless Facebook Page, by posting in the comments on YouTube, or by tweeting #liptruth or #lipdare. So far the most popular comment is “I dare you to release the 12 Episodes of Shameless Season 2 immediately,” following a comment that points out a break in continuity of the reality-documentary style vid.

Most of the other comments are not worth repeating, but one did catch my eye: “i dare you to have your bare feet tickled for three minites.” Sounds fun, though, given Lip’s intellectual prowess and urban street skills, I think Shameless fans can come up with something a little more challenging.