'Friday Night Lights': Family Matters

First of all, I’d like to apologize for calling the coach of Larabee a jerk last week. How was I to know his wife is terribly sick?

Still, what he did to Riggins at the end of that game, coming out on the field and tackling him like that — it was not only crazy but dangerous. Particularly at Dillon High, where memories of Jason Street’s devastating spinal injury must still be fresh.

Sidebar: Where is the Street character? Does actor Scott Porter have a particularly busy film schedule of late? Incidentally, if you happen to be flipping through your HBOs and see that the Drew Barrymore/Hugh Grant rom-com “Music and Lyrics” is on, check out Street as an effete British pop star. 

Anyway: Wouldn’t the sight of a coach blind-siding Riggins have painful echoes of the Street injury for Coach Taylor?  Maybe, but on “Friday Night Lights” loss of family trumps all; as soon as he heard about the Larabee coach’s wife, Coach Taylor apologized and left the man to his private anguish.

That sort of appropriateness is very FNL. TV seasons tend to have a values candidate, and last night’s episode seemed to go out of its way to re-assert the show’s status as our nation’s prime-time after-school special. Julie came correct to her father about getting drunk at that party; Tami came correct to her sister about loving her but wanting her to move out; Smash canoodled with the two-timing promises of recruiters from big-time schools before choosing the right one—TMU, up the road in Austin.

Why is that better than going to Alabama or Michigan? Because TMU is the known world. It’s close to home. And home is where family is. I got misty there, when Smash and his Mom embraced over his decision to remain close to the nest, but how much more layered would this relationship be if Mom had even a smidgeon of the son’s hunger for big-time stardom, or thought Michigan offered a unique  opportunity for her son?

As it is she’s Coach Taylor -- fearsome, morally correct --a nd Smash is Julie, wide-eyed, bushy-tailed.

Elsewhere: Riggins reunited with his brother, but ended his streak of Job-like forbearance by stealing three grand from that loony, ferret-owning drug dealer with whom he’d once stayed. Hmm, wonder if this will end badly.

Riggins is eye candy, no doubt, but I still feel FNL has over-played the Riggins card this season, at the expense of Saracen or Street or Buddy Garrity.

Come to think of it, why isn’t Riggins being recruited?  Isn’t he a pretty gaudy offensive/defensive talent?  Doesn't he make big plays for the state champion Dillon Panthers? Or do the recruiters just intuit he’s destined to remain in Dillon, a gazer-out at the larger world more than a participant?

-- Paul Brownfield

(Photo courtesy NBC)

Comments

[RJ Wilson]

FNL is still the best drama program on TV. Especially during this strike marred season. Hopefully the strike will be over soon. There are definitely no winners in this situation.

FNL gets better with each episode.....We Love it!

[Katie R.]

That's exactly what I said about Riggins! He deserves it! Thank goodness there is still, like, 5 episodes of this show left. The fact that there is actually going to be new episodes of one of the shows I watch all the way until Lost is on... it's a Strike Miracle.