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Friday Night Lights Rundown: Episode 13, "Tomorrow Blues"

BuzzSugar — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 09:30:55 -0700

This season's final episode of Friday Night Lights is all about the seniors. It's five months after the football season, and college decisions are in, setting many of our Panthers and Panther faithful on new paths. Meanwhile, Coach's contract comes up for renewal, which means he's once again staring down Joe McCoy and his merry band of moneyed followers. To talk about the end of this season - and what it means for seasons four and five - just read more.

Eric Taylor, coach of the East Dillon ~~Giraffes~~ Lions? With no boosters, no money, no JumboTron, no players, no Buddy Garrity, no state ring? Especially knowing that there are two more seasons coming our way, I think it's brilliant. Coach and Buddy have apparently spent the off-season convincing them to come to Dillon High; little did Coach know he was digging himself a hole. Without the assurance that Wade calls all the plays and JD throws all the balls, Joe's not interested in keeping Eric around. And politics has never been Eric's strong suit; it takes Tami's urging for him to even come to the board meeting, and while his defense of his job is heartfelt, any fan of the show could have done better. I love that final image of Coach and Tami looking out on the run-down East Dillon field, full of dreams dashed and potential yet to be explored.

Eric isn't the only character taking on some scary new territory in this episode: Lyla finds a way to Vanderbilt after all, which doesn't shock me, especially once we learn there's a rich uncle involved. Lyla's hesitant at first - she doesn't want to leave Tim - but Tim's decided college isn't for him anyway. He doesn't want to read those big books; he likes the idea of life at Riggins' Rigs, drinking some beers and fixing some cars and taking care of a steer he and Billy bought at auction. I appreciate that it's Billy - who's really been the one pushing for Tim to play college ball from the start - who tells Tim that's ridiculous; like it or not, a Riggins needs to go to college so future generations know there's something more out there.

If there's a moment of true joy in this episode, it's Tyra opening her letter from UT, squealing and crying and throwing herself into Landry's arms. Just before she got that envelope, things were looking bleak; she'd driven all the way to UT with Landry only to find out her chances were even worse than she'd suspected, and it took one of Landry's patented pep talks just to make her believe she's worthy of a chance. And if there's a moment of sorrow, it's Matt going to the assisted living facility and telling Grandma he's taking her home for good. I wanted Matt in Chicago, and even Julie had accepted that he would probably be gone (even if he did reject her attempt at a breakup). But it's a realistic move: the guy who fears everyone leaves him isn't going to leave someone he loves.

Some other thoughts:

I smiled when Buddy said Smash was doing good things over at A&M. Glad to know he's doing well over there.
I guess the show's partnership with Chevy means Julie never gets that Celica.
I loved seeing Mindy's wedding, complete with the dress with wings that shows a tasteful amount of crack.
Buddy dancing with Tyra's mom at the wedding was a nice touch.

So! Season four! Eric coaching the Bad News Bears of Texas high school football, Matt sticking around, Julie and Landry as seniors . . . I have a feeling we have some good things coming our way. What about you?

Photos courtesy of NBC

Friday Night Lights Rundown: Episode Seven, "Keeping Up Appearances"

BuzzSugar — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 11:32:00 -0800

On this week's Friday Night Lights, Landry starts to fear that he repels all of womankind, Tami and Coach fight over how to deal with a player whose parents didn't know he was a Panther, and Jason and Herc get into a no-holds-barred fight at their open house that just shows me you don't ever want to mess with a quad rugby player. Put on some Flaming Lips tunes and chat about this episode with me - just read more.

This was one of the episodes I saw earlier this season during the DirecTV run, and it was my least-favorite of the batch. In a season with only 13 episodes to tell a story, "Keeping Up Appearances" sure focuses a lot on characters we've either never seen before or may never see again. That said: Poor Landry. Devin really gets him; she's sweet and awkward and not afraid to embarrass herself singing a Flaming Lips song at the top of her lungs. And when he kisses her in the car, yeah, she kisses back - but then she confesses that she likes girls (and - ouch - kissing Landry was the thing that made her sure of her sexuality). Don't you just want to hug him when he tells Tami he's afraid he's repelling women? Tami's response is fantastic: She tells him that, unlike so many of the people she sees every day, Landry's life is just beginning.

Tami has a few good moments in this episode, actually, another coming when she convinces JaMarcus's parents to let him stay on the Panthers long enough for them see him play. Coach can't help but get confrontational with them (granted, he was dealing with people who were saying his life's work was just a silly game), but Tami takes the right tone, praising Coach and the work he does to make his players be men. Love Coach holding the door for Tami on their way out, a little "thank you for saving my butt" gesture. The JaMarcus story doesn't work for me overall, though, especially because I don't think we've ever seen this kid before. It reminded me more than anything of the Bobby Reyes episode from season one, ultimately just a blip on the radar. I have the same problem with the Garrity kids' story, mostly because I'd nearly forgotten the Garrity kids existed. Sure, it's nice to see Panther football help bring them together, and there's a touching moment with Lyla and Buddy in the car, but it's much more simplistic than what I expect from FNL.

On the other hand, I buy into the Street story completely - even though it also has a few moments of easy resolution. His fight with Herc comes from a very raw place: Of course he wants the money for his family. But more interesting is the hint that Jason might have some hope as a sports agent down the line. Time and again, we've seen him be a great salesman - and putting together the Riggins highlight reel is proof that he might be great at promoting athletes. It's the first time we've seen Jason have anything to hold onto since quad rugby, and it's a relief to see him believing in his future again.

A couple of other thoughts:

Joe McCoy is turning into such a villain. Really, he couldn't find it in himself to ride home from the game with his son - who still won the game? Jerk.
Could anything be more offensive to Buddy than having his son like soccer?
I was surprised to hear Street flat-out tell Billy that Riggins isn't college material. I mean, he's your best friend!

Anyone else less than in love with this episode - or think I'm crazy? Do you think Street has a future as a sports agent? And is Joe McCoy evil, or is he trying to do right by his son?

Photos courtesy of NBC

TV Tonight: Fear Itself

BuzzSugar — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 12:37:48 -0700

Making a horror series to the standards of network television can't be an easy task - but NBC has put some of the genre's best on the case. Fear Itself, the network's horror anthology series, premieres tonight, with the directors of films such as American Psycho and Bride of Chucky taking turns creating spooky one-hour episodes for the next 13 Thursdays.

There's nothing overly gory about these episodes - in part because that kind of thing would never make it past broadcast censors but also because the producers (who also did Showtime's Masters of Horror) thought that those R-rated elements had been pushed as far as they could go in films and on cable. The result is a series that's reaching for a more psychological sort of horror - spooky, not gross.

Tonight's first episode, "The Sacrifice," is a pretty straightforward take on the genre. Four fugitives - including one played by Jesse Plemons, Landry of Friday Night Lights - turn up at a cabin in the middle of nowhere. At first it seems like a safe, comfortable place (stocked with beautiful women, no less), but of course it's anything but. The story isn't terribly complex (it could be a slightly more adult take on something from Are You Afraid of the Dark?), but it's well-directed by Breck Eisner, who's currently remaking The Creature from the Black Lagoon, and the acting is sufficiently creepy. For more on the series and to see a preview, just read more.

Later episodes go heavier on the psychological elements; while I still haven't seen either of the two I'm most highly anticipating, the second episode - in which a bad cop stages a stakeout at what turns out to be a haunted house - has a very different feel from "The Sacrifice." I'm curious to see where the series goes; its format seems perfect for Summer, since viewers can pop in and out without missing plot.

Will you be checking in to see if Fear Itself spooks you? Here's a look:

Photo courtesy of NBC

Friday Night Lights Rundown: Episode 5, "Let's Get It On"

BuzzSugar — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 07:30:03 -0800

Hey, now that's more like it! In my view, the latest episode of Friday Night Lights was easily the best of the season so far, dispatching one controversial plotline, making new headway with another, and - most of all - getting inside the lives and heads of these characters we've come to love. To hear my thoughts on the episode and share yours, just read more

Coach Taylor is home, and he's back with the Panthers, and he's ... totally not getting any. Any other series would make the "new dad wants sex, but new mom just wants to sleep" plot line cheesy or gross, but FNL managed to make it sweet, touching, and totally hilarious. I loved Tami kicking Eric out of the bedroom, Mac asking Coach if he was "back in the saddle," the tulips and the candles. And most of all, I loved Tami doing exactly what her husband advised, leaving the baby for the night, going out with her friends, getting tipsy - and then not only denying him, but letting him know she was on to him. That's the Tami and Eric relationship I've been missing, hectoring each other endlessly but loving each other beneath it all.

Speaking of not giving in: Matt showed a little backbone, refusing to cave when Julie came crawling back. I'm glad he knows he knows he deserves better. Also, Landry's "No. No. No. No. No." as they sat in the cafeteria was one of the most authentic Landry lines we've heard in a while.

And it was just one of many great moments in this episode for Landry. Despite still being "that Lance kid," he got to play in his first football game - and he got to be the hero, albeit by getting creamed in the end zone. He gave the locker room speech that - while veering into cliche - still united the team. He finally thought he'd made his dad proud. And just when it was all going great for him, boom - Tyra dumps him in the harshest possible way. While I don't think I'll ever be 100 percent OK with the murder plot, the payoff has been so, so much better than I expected.

Some other thoughts:

I'm still not convinced Coach's struggles with the team are over. Matt and Smash supposedly kissed and made up, but it was only to get themselves back in the game; Matt's line about Coach using the team as a stepping stone to college ball showed that he, at least, still feels deserted and hurt.
Goodbye, experimental surgery plot! That could have given a whole new meaning to "jump the shark" (... in Jason's spine), but instead, the story played out with grace. Even Jason tumbling into the water - a moment I dreaded from the moment I saw the promo - was surprisingly restrained. (His motivations, though, still confuse me: I thought he was trying to swim away from Tim and Lyla so he could get the surgery.) And I'm hoping that's the end of the rumored "threesome" I've seen so much hinting about; Lyla's "I gotta go pray" cracked me up.
In case you, like me, want to immediately go download the song that played at the end of the episode, it's "If I Could" by Blue Merle. The one from the scene where Jason tumbles off the boat is "To Build a Home" by Cinematic Orchestra.

Do you think Landry would be more upset if he knew why Tyra really dumped him? Is Matt's rejection of Julie just setting him up for a love story with the nurse? (Please, no.) And do you think FNL is, er, back in the saddle?

Photos courtesy of NBC

Friday Night Lights Rundown: Episode 2, "Bad Ideas"

BuzzSugar — Mon, 15 Oct 2007 08:30:05 -0700

Friday Night Lights sure is shaking things up this season. With Coach Taylor in Austin, Tami dealing with a new baby, Julie going after the Swede, and of course that crazy plot twist with Landry and Tyra, Dillon is looking a lot different right now. To talk about this episode, just read more

If I had to pick a theme for this episode, it would be: "What have we just done?" Tami is verging on losing it, Matt is dealing with Grandma's new nurse, and Landry is trying to figure out how to live with himself after killing a guy and dumping his body in the river.

Doesn't that last bit sound a little ridiculous? Even though the Tyra/Landry story was only a small portion of "Bad Things," it's the story line that looms over everything else right now. Executive producer Jason Katims has said that the murder was intended to bring Tyra and Landry together, and that's what we saw this week: Landry's declaration of love; Tyra's surrender to the person who did something courageous (albeit stupid) on her behalf. It's an interesting place to take the two of them, and they're acting the heck out of it, but really - was this the only way to get them there?

More interesting to me is the way the Taylor family has been shaken up. Tami's really on the edge right now, and she knows that she put herself there. Glenn, the replacement counselor, is probably the last person in the world who should be comforting her, but at least he's in town. (Also: Tami doesn't have any girlfriends?) Julie, meanwhile, is inches away from a full-on teenage girl freefall, dumping her nice-guy boyfriend and rushing headlong toward The Swede - who, by the way, is way too old to be flirting with high schoolers at the gas station.

Matt finally got the help he'd been demanding for Grandma in the form of Carlotta, a live-in nurse who's already managed to unearth his stash of nudie magazines. Things are definitely going to be changing around the Saracen house - no more junk food, way less TV, and this new person telling Matt how things should be done. I seriously hope the two of them don't sleep together.

A few other thoughts:

You know who told Street that he might want to consider experimental surgery in Mexico? Murderball star Mark Zupan! Nice cameo, FNL! But do we really want Jason searching for a miracle cure?
Buddy Garrity sure has fallen from grace, huh? Not that long ago, he was the guy with the ear of the state champion football coach; now, he's being told he's unwholesome and unnecessary. How perfect that his reaction to being snubbed would be to get drunk and tell stories about his glory days as a Panther.
There's so much else going on with Landry right now that this seems like a minor quibble, but: I find it hard to believe that he'd make the varsity squad of a state champion football team. That said, I did love Landry meeting his "sort-of" rally girl, who seems just as awkward and out-of-place as he does.
I'm having trouble getting invested in Coach's TMU storylines, but it was great to see flashes of his brilliance in the way he dealt with Antoine - and I loved how the suggestion that he was "one hell of a high school coach" came off as equal parts compliment and insult.

Other thoughts? Theories on where this show is headed? (If it's headed anywhere - the ratings were bleak this week.) And hey, where's Smash?

Photos courtesy of NBC

"Friday Night Lights" Stars Reveal What's Next

BuzzSugar — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 11:26:45 -0700

Sure, the Panthers have won State, but that doesn't mean things are going to be easy in Dillon when "Friday Night Lights" starts again this fall. During and after their presentation at the TCA press tour, the cast and crew spilled some secrets about the show's upcoming second season premiere, which is scheduled for Oct. 5. If you don't want to know what happens with Coach Taylor's job, Tami's baby, or Matt and Julie's relationship, stop reading now. But if you want some delicious teasers for the stories coming up this season, read more

Tami Taylor gives birth in the first scene of the season premiere. That will bring Coach Taylor back to Dillon from Austin, where he's been coaching at TMU. The two of them will then have a multi-episode arc debating whether they should continue their long-distance relationship or whether being apart is the worst mistake they've ever made. Julie also struggles with the idea of not being an only child any more. "Julie goes through a lot of rebellion," Aimee Teegarden said, trying to get some attention back on her.
If Coach Taylor is in Austin, that means the Panthers must get a new coach. The role is currently being cast, but Scott Porter (Jason Street) described him as a three-time state championship winner from Tennessee.
Speaking of Jason, he's gotten his GED and is now a full-fledged assistant coach. That creates some tension between Jason and the rest of his former teammates as he struggles with whether to be their coach or their friend.
Jason will also regain the use of one of his hands, and that will lead him to think about walking again. He'll investigate experimental treatments and, in the process, he'll reconnect with Lyla and Riggins.
Matt and Julie are still together, but their relationship will become strained when Julie develops a crush on a guy who works at the local pool. Julie loves Matt, Teegarden said, but she also wants to know what else is out there. Zach Gilford, who plays Matt, said he's not surprised Julie will be the first to look elsewhere for romance. "I actually was always hoping that she would cheat on me," he said. "I just thought that was more realistic."
In the first episode, the guy who tried to rape Tyra returns to Dillon, and something will happen to draw her and Landry closer together.
We'll meet Landry's dad in the first episode, and - largely in an effort to impress his father, a former Panther - Landry will try out for the football team. "Landry's always been kind of anti all of that," actor Jesse Plemons said, but he's looking for a way to connect with his dad.
Matt will struggle with the new coach, who has a game plan of always running the ball. He starts to feel underused, Gilford said, and he's also missing Coach Taylor, who was really the reason Matt was able to hold things together last season.
One of the characters will find religion.
Several new characters will be introduced in addition to the new coach, executive producer Jason Katims said, including a Guatemalan woman who comes in to take care of Matt's grandma. In all, there will be "five or six pretty significant new recurring characters that we're going to meet," Katims said.

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