Friday Night Lights, Season 2

I get what you're saying, but isn't that exactly how it works in real life?

I knew a Riggins. I knew a Julie. A lot of us do. Every now and then they look like they've learned their lessons. But more often than not, they revert to form and start all over again.

If anything, it's more realistic that way. Not many people live their lives on wide, swooping character arcs. Most of the time the line kind of goes back and forth, if it moves much at all. Especially in small towns in Texas...

 

I would have to agree with Dedo on this one. One of the things I enjoy about Tim Riggins character is that he does NOT experience any epiphanies that last longer than an episode. The sad beauty of Bissinger's book was that Boobie, ultimately, was not redeemed. It is what made the movie disingenuous, having him show up at the end to cheer on the Panthers in the playoffs. Tim Riggins and Julie Taylor are very much echos of people I knew and played with in high school. (Julie, in fact, reminds me too much of every smart-but-timid, sexy-but-virginal indecisive, emotional girl I managed to fall for in HS.) Real teenagers get drunk and stumble through life and make immature decisions and have inappropriate crushes and do not tend to learn from their mistakes, especially not at 16 or 17. We've come to expect certain things about television characters, wanting them to find closure or maturity or be at peace with their fate. I think you can make the argument that FNL is trying to do something different with some of its main characters along those lines. Does that make for good television? That's up for debate.

All that said, I was pretty disappointed with this episode. I find it particularly offensive that we finally learned that Lyla is, in fact, still in high school. I can buy that Riggins and Tyra were/are perhaps the same age as Jason but a year behind in school since they're both lazy/dumb enough to be held back, even though this seems to be a blatant rewriting of things established in the first few episodes of Season 1. But to pretend that Lyla was a junior all along, even though we had an entire episode where Tami Taylor tried to get her to come to grips with the fact that she needed to have college plans that didn't involve Jason, just doesn't work for me. For a show that so often gets the emotional details of life right (the best example this week being Coach Taylor's wordless glance at his wife while his team stripped to their boxers in front of the school) it continues to rewrite history for narrative purposes.

This has been pointed out elsewhere, but it's worth mentioning here: It's interesting how we're sort of titillated by the younger guy/older gal storyline, yet most people (perhaps even the writers!) don't make the connection (or contrast) when we're kind of grossed out by the younger girl/older guy storyline. If you think it's cool for Tim to hump the single mom next door, shouldn't you also be fine with Julie hooking up with John From Cincinnati or Swede Levov?

I wish Santiago was a linebacker or a free safety. It seems absurd that NBC seems to think we can't understand, or care about, someone who plays defense.

 

Yeah you two make good points. I guess I just don't think it's done subtly enough. I know it's unfair to compare anything to The Wire, but I think that show is the best at showing the different shades of characters, and not making anyone be viewed good or bad, just human. Like just when you think you like Herc he fucks over Bubs and you hate him, but at the same time you can understand his motives.

With FNL, I just feel like nothing carries over. Like that trip to Mexico was a pretty big deal, and yet hardly a mention upon returning. Tyra told Landry to get lost and that he was a loser last episode, and then this week they were casually chatting (granted about a non-casual topic). So it's not like I'm saying that I want to see Riggins turn everything around because that would be unrealistic and less entertaining. I just would like to see some acknowlegement of past events.

As I'm writing this I'm thinking that the reason The Wire is able to pull this off better is because of how much slower the story arcs progress. Simon has always said it's a character-driven show, while FNL, like almost every other show, is plot-driven. There's just so many dramatic things that happen, and my problem is that there never seems to be any carry-over.

 

Bingo. Nice observation. That is a big difference. The problem is FNL has been teetering on the edge of cancellation since inception so its writers feel like they have to rush these story arcs that should evolve more realistically over several episodes into just 1 or maybe 2. The result is more shallow writing and a loss of believability and credibility.

 

True. And while you might expect that out of, say, One Tree Hill or the O.C. or some other teen-soap-fantasy, Friday Night Lights hangs its hat on realism. So when that realism fails its almost doubly disappointing.

 

I know I started this thread, so that means I should have been watching the show all along. But work got in the way and what not ... but I woke up sick this morning and have hardly left my hotel room all day, so it seemed like a perfect day for a marathon of the show on NBC.com., so I'm caught up now. I echo many of the sentiments here, especially regarding Landry and the murder. Unnecessary to begin with, and seemingly cleaned up a little too tidily by dear ol' dad.

I really love Julie's character, and how complex and unpredictable she can be ... at once wanting independence from her mother while bemoaning why the family doesn't pay attention to her. I think that's all she craves, which is why the Swede was in the picture and why she's now gravitating toward this teacher. To me, she's the best character on the show.

And how they brought Taylor back, again, way too easy. I'm glad they complicated it a bit by Buddy screwing up the money.

But whatever. I still love this show, even though it may have a wart or two.

 

Watching it online I assume you couldn't see previews for the next episode. If you had, you would have seen that the Landry thing is not cleaned up at all. He (at least it appears) walks into the police station and confesses.

 

In high school, I knew a Julie, I knew a Saracen, I knew a Smash, I knew a Riggins...

I did not know a kid who murdered his girlfriend's stalker and then had his cop dad cover it up for him...

 

Or maybe you did and never suspected a thing. ;D

 

Huh. Interesting. No, they don't show the previews online.

 

Thoughts on the latest:

Meh.

Hate the Landry thing, hate the Saracen thing, love the Julie thing, Connie Britton is a goddess, Coach looked perfect when describing his feelings, hate hate hate hate Tyra, loved Riggins, thought Smash was hilarious...

 

Interesting.

A "Meh," followed by at least six "hates" a "Goddess" a "perfect" two "loves" and a "hilarious".