Friday Night Lights – A Final Look

After binge watching for a few weeks I have finally finished the 5 seasons of critically acclaimed and super freaking awesome TV series Friday Night Lights.

In the middle of season 3 I wrote a review that got into characters and loving the show and why I was hooked at that point. I was loving the show a lot. That didn’t change through seasons 4 and 5.

Today though I’m not going to write another 3000 word review of the show. Instead I’m going to give away some awards and ask some unanswered questions that the show left me with after the Taylors made their big move to the east coast.

*SPOILER ALERT* This show ended 3 years ago, and I just threw 1 spoiler at you, a lot more are coming.

Friday Night Questions

What happened to Santiago?
Remember, the kid that Lyla rescued from juvie and Buddy took in and got on the football team. Well he disappeared when Buddy’s ex-wife took the 2 small kids to Cali and Lyla moved in over the summer between season 2 and 3. With no parents around to take care of him, an uncle who hasn’t been around in almost a year, and friends who don’t know a life other than gang activity, I’m worried that this young man didn’t have a good life after his short stint with the Panthers. Here’s hoping that I’m wrong and he didn’t end up back in jail or worse thanks to the gang life that he was so used to living.

Who caught the damn ball?
I have no beef with how season 5 and the series ended. The transition shot from the final play of the State Championship to the Coach’s new team’s practice in Philly was beautifully done. But I do want to know how that play ended. We know a Lion caught the pass because Jess, the boys and coach Taylor all have new rings. My best guess is that Hastings Ruckle pulled down that 63 yard pass. As a football player he was built for that Hail Mary play. Hell, he called for the jump ball in his first game on the team.
Final Score: East Dillon Lions 28 – Hudgins Hawks 26.

Why not Luke?
Coach Taylor was able to get Tim Riggins a scholarship offer to San Antonio State after a high school career that included a State Championship – and a host of disciplinary action and life mishaps. BUT, clean-cut 2-way stud player Luke Cafferty who has 1 dust-up on his record (that fight with Vince that he took the blame for) and a State Championship of his own, only got 1 division 3 offer. There is a chance that Luke played ball for Army at college, but maybe he needed a highlight reel like Riggins had.

Did Julie Drop Out?
In the final scenes of the series we see Julie and Matt together in the Chicago apartment, engaged and happy shacking up. But Julie promised her parents that she would finish school. So did she transfer? Is this scene a week before classes start and she goes back to school? Did she break another promise to her parents and drop out? I’m leaning to transfer since Matty is pretty much the best guy ever and wouldn’t be okay with her dropping out of school and sacrificing her future. It’s fair to say that Matt Saracen is the best thing that ever happened to Julie… whether she wanted to admit it or not.

Did Tim and Tyra make it work?
I really hope the answer to this question is yes. More on that coming up.

Friday Night Awards

Most Valuable Player
East Dillon Lions: Vince Howard
Dillon Panthers: Matt Saracen
Vince put up the numbers, is a better athlete and ended the series on the fast track to another run at a State Championship and division 1 scholarship… but Matty Saracen was the heart of the Dillon Panthers and showed true leadership and the ability to make the most out of an opportunity that landed at his feet. That boy took lemons and made lemonade when the cards were stacked against him.

Most Likely to Succeed
Tie – Matt Saracen & Landry Clarke
We know that Matty has his job at the art gallery in Chicago and has already received a couple promotions. He’s got a good head on his shoulders, loves Julie with all his heart and has the ability to persevere. The only concern is Julie’s immaturity and the bumps in the road that could come in that relationship. Meanwhile, Landry is smart, articulate, talented and headed to a great education at Rice. He has a supportive family and if he ever finds a girl that loves him as much as he loves her, he’ll be all set.

Most Likely to be drafted to the NFL
Vince Howard
Vince’s physical talents are unparalleled on Friday Night Lights. He sets up really well as the new breed of QB we see in the pro game. He has also started to learn how to be a leader and hard worker which will help him grow through his college career and land him on draft boards across the league when his draft year comes up. Think Cam Newton with the added, “He didn’t even start playing organized football until his sophomore year of high school.” storyline thrown in for TV announcers.

The Joey and Pacey Award for Favourite Couple
Tim Riggins & Tyra Collette
In the 3rd episode of season 1, when Tim skips the pancake supper and Tyra finds him hitting beer cans with a golf club I looked at the 2 of them arguing and her challenging him and thought to myself, “these 2 are my new Pacey and Joey”. And while Tim had Lyla and Tyra had Landry – there was always going to be Tim and Tyra in some way. So when brunette Tyra showed back up in season 5 I was excited. And when he kissed her I was more excited. And when this exchange happened I had the same kind of feeling I had when the camera panned left to right to show Pacey on the couch with Joey.

Tyra: Tim, I’ve been in love with you since I was five years old. And being here with you… is the greatest feeling I’ve had in a really long time.
Tim: Me too.
Tyra: It scares the hell outta me. I have dreams Tim.
Tim: I know you do. I have dreams too. I’m gonna build a house exactly where we’re sittin’. I will get a job. And I’m never gonna do anything illegal for the rest of my life. Guaranteed. Maybe one day our dreams can merge together.

We know that Tim has started building his house when the series ends, and Tyra is at school. And while we don’t know if they end up together for the long haul, I sure hope they do.

It’s fair to say that Friday Night Lights was a great television show. The writing, acting and action were all above average. The football always looked real. The feelings that the show was able to develop with their fans were real. And the stories that they told were able to connect with teens and parents and everyone in between.

Someday I know I’ll go back and watch FNL again. But for now I’m just happy that I didn’t miss it forever just because I missed it the first time around.

Clear Eyes, Full Hearts, Can’t Lose!

Clear Eyes, Full Hearts, Can’t Lose – I Love Friday Night Lights

A little while ago I started watching a show on Netflix that I didn’t watch a single episode of during its original 5 season run. And when people found out that I hadn’t watched it my Twitter stream filled up with messages telling me how much I would love it and how great it was and that they were excited for me and jealous that I got to experience it fresh from the start.

This show has sports and teen drama and small town life and everything that I fall for when it comes to a story.

I didn’t watch Friday Night Lights when it was on the air.

But I sure am glad that I’m watching it now.

Let me admit this, I have an addictive personality and a penchant for being overly empathetic and sensitive when it comes to fictional characters and their stories. I’m a sucker for well written and crafted personalities and the progression that takes them from beginning to end. I fall hard when there’s a reason. I get chills in the big moments of fake football games. I feel sad when characters are in trouble. I get mad when people are assholes and innocents are impacted by their selfishness.

I feel all of these things for a  TV show.

I also need to disclose the fact that I haven’t yet finished the series. I am currently cued up to watch episode 10 of season 3. And while that means I still have 2 and a half seasons to go, I had to start writing.

I was never QB1 when I was a kid. We didn’t even have a football team. But I was a teenager in a town where everyone knew everyone. Every student and teacher and mother and father had access to all the information and gossip they could want. And I lived a pretty visible life in that small town. That was my reality. And Friday Night Light’s Dillon, Texas reminds me of that.

I’m finding that when I feel connected or emotional about the characters or the storyline, that I also feel conflicted. When I step back from the screen I realize that I’m closer in age to Coach Taylor than I am to Matt Saracen or Tim Riggins. I know that I’m past my own childhood and whatever it was that I went through or dealt with. I’m a grown man.

But when I see Matt Saracen dealing with his grandmother as she struggles with dementia I am reminded of my own life and my ex-girlfriend’s grandmother who was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s when we were dating in my early 20s. I watched a strong family agonize over the medications and appointments and best steps for her care. I saw her on good days and on bad days and held my breath in wonder when she remembered to call me on my birthday and held back tears when she forgot her granddaughter’s name. I can not imagine trying to deal with that on my own at the age of 17 or 18.

I lived with my gran and gramp when I was 18 and 19 and I thank God that (while they weren’t the picture of health) they didn’t need me like that and I didn’t have that responsibility.

When Brian “Smash” Williams came back from his knee injury, humbled and scared and unsure of what he was going to do, I wanted to see him succeed. When the dude from the Alamo Freeze offered Smash the regional manager’s position I remembered being at Wendy’s in my early 20s with no plan, no money, and feeling like there was a chance I could just keep working there and moving up the ladder. I knew it wasn’t my future. I knew I had to do something bigger with my life. So did he.

And when that boy told his mother that he got into college and I saw the look on her face I was reminded of the way it felt telling my mom I was going to college and how proud she was of me. To this day one of the best feelings in my world is knowing that my mom is proud of me.

And Landry Clark. Damn. If you tell me that you watched season 1 of Friday Night Lights and said to yourself at any time, “I bet Landry becomes a really important piece of this show and joins the football team and actually gets Tyra Collette.” I would probably tell you that you’re lying. I find myself identifying with different characters at different times in this show. And when I look at Landry and his high school love life, I am reminded of being the guy that always wondered why he didn’t get the girl.

Then there’s Tim Riggins.

The screw-up football player who doesn’t have parents to raise him or guide him, just his less-than-perfect older brother. The teenager who drinks too much beer. Likes too many girls. Skips too many classes. Makes too many mistakes. But loves his friends with all of his heart and shows signs of wanting to be better.

I am hooked on this character and wanting him to succeed. I shake my head when he does something absolutely stupid like getting drunk and skipping meetings with college recruiters. I root for him when he tries to do the right thing like talk his best friend out of sketchy stem cell surgery in Mexico. I feel bad for him when he’s dragged down by people he loves like when Billy recruits him to steal a ton of copper wire. I’m scared for him when he’s in a tough spot like when he’s feeding ferrets for a meth dealer. And I cheer for him every single time he steps on to the football field.

Back to Tyra. The writers and producers and everyone involved nailed that one. She is another character who has gone further than I ever would have imagined. Her arc has taken her from white trash girlfriend of a screw-up football player to sexual assault victim to teenager full of potential and everywhere in between. And when she cries, it breaks my heart.

Combining her with Julie Taylor and Lyla Garrity gives this show a great range of female characters that have to deal with their relationships with their parents (3 girls, 3 different family dynamics) and love lives (what a teenage mess) and futures (I still don’t know, don’t spoil it for me) in their small town lives. I probably don’t identify with these 3 characters as much as I do with Saracen, Riggins, Smash, Jason Street or Landry because I’m not a woman. But I do feel for them in their moments of hardship and cheer for them in their moments of triumph.

Side note: I LOVED watching Tyra play volleyball. I love that sport and played it a lot in high school.

I’m over 1000 words into this post and I haven’t even talked about Coach and Mrs. Taylor. So here we go.

The relationship between Eric and Tami Taylor is strong but intense. It has ups and downs. It has arguments and misunderstandings and making up and making each other better. It is fictional and scripted and made for TV, but it’s not all smiles and fake and unbelievable. And I love it for that.

I also love that they are the kind of people and the kind of parents that I would like to think that I can be some day. Whether it’s dealing with their own daughter or helping a kid who is stranded hours away or mentoring young men who are desperate to figure out their future – they do it with dedication and concern and love.

These people love the kids in their lives, regardless of their last name, past, mistakes or parents. But they aren’t soft. I appreciate the way Coach Taylor holds his players responsible through extra work and stiff guidelines and an expectation of commitment, responsibility and team as family.

For years I’ve thought about coaching baseball some day. And while it wouldn’t be the same as high school football in Texas, I do hope that I could be the kind of leader and mentor that Coach Taylor is for his Panthers.

I love all of these characters and they way they have been developed. I love this show and the stories that it has told and how it has handled them.

And as a football fan I have to give some love to the production team in charge of filming the practices and games. It does not look like TV football in a cheesy way. It just looks like football.

It’s safe to say that within the next week or so I am going to finish watching the last 2+ seasons of Friday Night Lights. That’s the pace that I’m on. And I’m sure that when I do I will be sad that it’s over while also looking back at a great job done capturing my imagination and attention telling these stories with the background of football.

If you’ve seen the show and know what I’m talking about with this praise, let me know.

But PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE don’t leave comments or send me tweets talking about the show if there’s a chance you’re talking about something I haven’t seen yet.

I know it’s been a long time since the show ended and spoiler rules shouldn’t apply. But I’m asking nicely.

Thank you.

Clear Eyes, Full Hearts, Can’t Lose!

CW’s The Flash… Coming Soon

This Fall the CW will give us the next in their line of superhero television series with The Flash. Following the success of Arrow, it’s a no-brainer that they bring Barry Allen to the small screen once a week for the world to see.

Arrow fans have already met Barry Allen (Grant Gustin) in his 2 episode arc this season. And we have seen the “accident” that brings The Flash to Central City. We also know that he has a big crush on Felicity, and that she returns those same feelings for the crime scene tech and soon to be speedy hero.

But what we don’t know yet is if Felicity will jump ship to join Barry in his new pursuit of justice in the red suit and lightning bolt.

And even though they would make a cute couple, my gut feeling is no. At least not on a permanent basis. For 2 reasons:

1) Felicity also has some deep-seeded feelings for Oliver (that go way deeper than her crush on Barry) and works too well on that team to leave. 

2) Ira West.

Ira West (Candice Patton) is described as Barry’s childhood friend and lifelong crush, which gives The Flash the awkward romantic storyline that it needs to get season 1 going. If we see Felicity I imagine it will be in the first few episodes only and she’ll go home when she realizes that Barry loves Ira in a way that he doesn’t love her. The Barry/Ira relationship could take a while to play out, and I have a gut feeling that unlike Oliver/Laurel, there will be a reveal of The Flash’s real identity. Whether they get together or not, this is going to be the first relationship that needs to play out long form in the series.

We also know that Barry will have a potential ally (or enemy) on the police force in the form of Ira’s father, Detective West (Jesse L. Martin) who has been as close to a father as Barry has had since his own was accused of and convicted for murdering his mother. But because we know that secret identities can not be revealed to the police right away, there could be some weird friction between these two. We also already know that Martin is good at playing a cop from his days on Law & Order, so this casting could be the most perfect in the whole series.

My best guess for first person to know Barry Allen’s secret is Harison Wells (Tom Cavanagh), the S.T.A.R. Labs physicist responsible for creating the particle accelerator that blew up and gave Barry his speed. I am a big fan of Cavanagh as an actor, and can’t wait to see how this all plays out. It makes sense that Barry will look for someone to try to explain what has happened to him, and who better than a top notch physicist to help him figure it all out. I expect to see a lot of lab time with these 2 characters running tests and discovering just what The Flash is able to do with his new super power.

I will fully admit that I am not as excited for The Flash as I was for Arrow, but I am excited. Any new DC stories that make it to the screen and are done well are alright by me. I know that I’ll be tuning in to watch, and I hope that I am not disappointed when I start to see flashes of red across my screen as Barry Allen starts saving the day and building his rogues gallery. This show could be a whole lot of fun, so be prepared to buckle up and enjoy the ride!

Update: Today (March 11, 2014) a full body image of Barry Allen (Grant Gustin) in the Flash suit has been released online. Have a look and tell us what you think!

The Walking Dead Season 4, What’s Coming Next?

SPOILERS! YOU’VE BEEN WARNED!

It’s sucky and sad that we have to wait until Sunday, February 9, 2014 for the next new episode of The Walking Dead.

However, the mid-season break does give us an opportunity to look back at what has happened and opine about what may happen moving forward.

There certainly are a lot of questions rolling around in my head.

But before we get to that, let’s take a look at some of the crazy shit that we’ve seen already in The Walking Dead Season 4.

☞ A significant percentage of the prison population was wiped out by that mysterious illness that rolled through. It was a plot point that allowed for a smaller number of people to need to flee when the real danger came.

☞ Carol is on the road by herself. She has a car and supplies and weapons. With the separation of the group after the prison incident there’s a chance that Carol meets back up with some of them. There’s also a chance that she doesn’t and stars in a spin-off series on AMC.

☞ That little girl Molly has turned totally bad-ass-apocalypse-survivor. She’s the girl Carl at this point with all the not following the plan and carrying a gun and coldly shooting at walkers and saving lives. She doesn’t have a childhood left. It’s gone. And she doesn’t seem particularly concerned with anything other than being a useful member of the group.

☞ Tyreese has gone through a breakdown that may or may not be over. I have a feeling that the shoot-out has snapped him back into a “do what you’ve got to do to survive” mode. Look for his personality to fit his big body in the new episodes.

☞ We’ve had to say good-bye to Hershel and The Governor. Hershel’s death was by far the most emotional in quite a while. Andrea and Lori both did things resulted in mixed feelings from the fans. T-Dog was loved, but it still wasn’t the same. Dale was a good man and when he died, that was sad. But Hershel, he was the salt of the earth. The father and grandfather. The spiritual and moral compass. His death hit like a ton of bricks.

☞ As for The Gov… well, a lot of people wanted to see that coming. The way it went down worked for me. So many people held grudges against the man that the combo-kill was a worthy ending to his life. Rick gave him all he had, Michonne gave him the katana with the kind of emotion that makes your blood boil and Lilly finished him off with the rage that a grieving mother and pissed off girlfriend can’t deny.

☞ Rick and Carl have been split from the group and believe that they have lost baby Judith to either walkers or enemies. It’s a big difference from the farming life that they were living at the start of the season and sets up an interesting 2nd half of season 4 for the Grimes men.

The next half of this season is going to set up season 5 and beyond. There’s a chance that we lose more group members in the process. There’s a chance that those losses come in the form of deaths and separation from the pack.

☞ I do want to know what happened to Beth. She may not be the most central character on the show but there’s no way that Maggie can go on without her. If they aren’t together now, every move that Maggie makes will be made with 1 motivation, find and save her sister.

☞ How will Rick deal with losing Judith? He and Carl are on their own now in a situation that looks awfully familiar to Morgan and Duane… other than the fact that Carl can handle himself. If Rick doesn’t have his head on straight it will fall on Carl to protect and provide for the pair until they meet up with friends again.

☞ Will Daryl take on even more of a leadership role now? I understand that the council was working as well as possible. But with Hershel’s death, the mess that everyone’s in and the scrambling nature of the group, I think that’s fallen by the wayside.

☞ What’s Michonne’s mood going to be like? She desperately wanted her revenge on The Governor and she got it. She was becoming a stronger member of the group and now things have blown up. Will she be able to focus herself on the people that need her? I think so.

☞ Is Judith really dead? I don’t think so. I think there’s a twist there. As cold as Molly is, I don’t think that she would have abandoned the baby in the middle of the prison courtyard. My gut feeling is that Beth has her. She’s been her babysitter this whole time and takes that responsibility pretty seriously.

We’ve got 62 days to wait to see what happens next… and that’s a long time to wait for people that love this show. I trust that it’s going to be worth it.