Has Shameless 'jumped the shark'

[Mark Y]

I've been watching Shameless since the first episode but the latest series seems to be a series too far. What was once a potent mix of drama and comedy has now become pretty much just a comedy, and with the departure of a number of major characters it seems to be a pale shadow of its former self. Enjoyable, but not the programme it once was...

[christats]

I also have been watching since series 1.
It does seen to be more of a parody the more I watch.
There are no doubt characters a bit like these,in everyday life.
The shift from grittiness with humour does seem to be leaning towards the latter,with blatant vulgarity.Instead of nicely timed vulgarity.
Then again what was it supposed to be.Comedy,stereotypes,drama comedy.?

Maybe its suffering from 3rd series familiarity.I know its the start of the 4th,but there's been alot of programs that have gone too samey or lost their spark after 2 or 3 series.