#Frank Shaw

[jolteonmchale]

Animal Control 2x06 | 30 Rock 3x04

[livelovecaliforniadreams]

[arielmh]

Joel McHale as Frank Shaw in Animal Control

Professional photos that were used in the show (first one is from Frank’s dating app profile 👨‍🌾 )

Originals from craigminiellystills on Instagram

[scottishaccentsareawesome]

Look, I'm just saying...

Frank and Victoria are adorable together

and Frank does not want to date, he just wants to skip to the relationship

and Victoria needs a Green Card, so one of her options would definitely be marring a US citizen

...Just get them married so that Templeton can try to sabotage the wedding and Frank will get him back savagely as a wedding gift to Victoria (because this is a pairing that loves pranking)

[tunnelduck]

Ik a lot of people like to compare Frank and Jeff but I think Frank is way sweeter than Jeff ever was. Bro is a slightly cranky guy who goofs off w his coworkers and puts a lot into his friendships w them even if he likes to pretend he doesn't. Dude is a silly billy who just wants to be married.

Jeff was never even a silly goose. Sorry.

[regular-theodore]

I've seen a few posts about the similarities between Frank and Jeff, and on the whole I think they are pretty similar, but one thing I haven't seen explored (probably because there's a total of three people in this fandom) is that Jeff is a young Frank.

I think obviously most actors have a certain vibe, or a certain character type they play often or particularly well, and Jeff and Frank are both the sarcastic straight man of their group, but there's also some traits that definitely read to me as "he still has issues but he's getting better."

(essay below the cut)

I think one of the first things people could notice is that Frank is a silly little guy! Jeff overall (light heartedly) makes fun of the rest of the study group's shenanigans, before sometimes eventually relenting (this happens often in the end credits with Troy and Abed, when he at first rolls his eyes at them before reluctantly joining in and actually having fun). on the other hand, despite Frank's gruff exterior at first, he doesn't hesitate to have fun with his coworkers, and is seen getting very enthusiastic about it- for example, the licence plate game or the animal metaphor game.

obviously both characters' sarcasm and tendencies to use it as a coping mechanism/way of pushing people away. with Jeff it's addressed at times how he's distant, afraid of commitment, afraid of having friends, and other things. however, probably because Animal Control is much shorter, or has a more light-hearted tone, but it's never really addressed seriously by the characters other than in jokes how he's cold or distant.

adding to that, one noticeable difference is how open Frank is about craving intimacy. in the episode with the cats, Victoria makes fun of him for being old and alone, and in the episode with the gardening girl, he mentions that all he wants is to skip to a relationship, and to have someone to sit at home and be domestic with (paraphrasing because I can't be arsed). while Jeff on the other hand is very closed off, putting up a facade of not caring, going on a lot of dates, and generally doing all the parts that Frank hates; casual sex, dating, and shying away the moment it becomes something more serious. to me, this definitely screams character development- Frank gets over his issues with intimacy, probably through therapy or experience or age, and is burnt out from a twenties and thirties full of casual dating, which at heart, was never what he really wanted. this allows him to become far more open about how he truly just wants his person.

another thing on the topic of healing relationships is Jeff and Frank's daddy issues. in Community, it's far more obvious, as there's several episodes centred around Jeff's father and his relationship with him, and it's mentioned enough that it's obvious he still struggles with his dad's leaving as a kid. as opposed to Frank, who never mentions it apart from when actually sees his dad. when Jeff visits his dad, it's an entire episode thing, but when Frank sees his dad, it's at most a five minutes at the end of an episode. this shows Frank's moving on, and managing to focus less of his life around a father that doesn't care.

throughout Community, Jeff struggles with alcohol issues, which are somewhat addressed in the GI Joe episode. he drinks a fair amount and is even referred to as an alcoholic by other characters. in Animal Control, this is again far less severe, and while he is shown drinking several times, and it is joked about by Victoria, it comes across as far more teasing and less concerned. this honestly seems to be a general theme (he says as if this is based off anything at all and not just a coincidence) and it shows with Frank's relationship with food as well. obviously Jeff has some pretty fucked up self hatred and most likely an eating disorder, whereas Frank is shown eating pretty much whatever he wants, to the point where things like him eating Amit's ice cream sandwich or talking about the panini maker become pretty regular.

but also the part in the episode with the gardening girl, when he says he wants to skip to the part where they are "binging shows and gaining weight together" (so real of him) I think summarises his entire arc pretty perfectly, as since Greendale he's not only healed his relationship with food and his body, but he's accepted that what he wants in a partner is pretty much the opposite of what he thought he did before- almost "overcorrecting" to the point where characters no longer make fun of him for his commitment issues and casual dating, but now tease him for his domesticity and pathetic lonely yearning for someone to be his.

so yeah, this was a lot of rambling and projecting and making completely baseless assumptions but it was fun to write :3 I should do more character essays, especially about Jeff because he's so me. hopefully I get my Frank healing arc before I'm in my fifties <3

[atouchofireland]

Prediction for this season of Animal Control: Shred and Victoria get green card married, which makes Emily and Frank jealous (even though the two aren’t into each other) and all the applying for a green card/proving you’re in love hijinks ensue. All while Frank tries to ignore it by going on app dates and Emily pretends to be all in on Rick.

[fiona-fififi]

I love watching Frank interact with the animals on Animal Control. Like, currently on my screen, Joel McHale is wandering around gently cradling a tiny chihuahua that I don't believe has anything to do with the plot, and he keeps just randomly nuzzling its little head. It's very cute.

[harryspaceshipmchale]

[wingamy24]

is joel mchale like fine wine?

[castalyne]

For anyone who needed some Joel Kinnaman as Stephen Holder and Frank Shaw. Characters played 10 years apart.

[jolteonmchale]

Animal Control 2x02 - Cats and Monkeys

[livelovecaliforniadreams]

[fujobritta]

finally . the primary reason i started watching this show

[scottishaccentsareawesome]

Frank and Victoria hand touches <3

(1x07 and 1x12)

[villainous-queen]

He's so sexy

I especially like when he throws out his back. SHhhhhh no no the uniform stays on during...