There's this show on the TV. It's called Friday Night Lights. Maybe you've heard of it. I'm not going to lie, last season I was way too busy silently crying during Grey's Anatomy and working on my Lost flowchart to take notice of this superb show. It's truly a great show. Perhaps the best on TV right now. Bold, yes (but do remember, Sopranos, Six Feet Under and co. are all of the air). Now, in the words of Coach Taylor, "let me tell you" why this show is so great. Hailing from the great state of Oklahoma means a few things: 1) an undying love for Garth Brooks, even after the Chris Gaines debacle, 2) that mandatory elementary school trip to the Cowboy Hall of Fame and 3) the omnipresence of football, including high school ball. I am not from small town Oklahoma. I'm from third largest city Oklahoma (Norman, clocking in with 100k folks when OU's in session), but my extended family comes from towns scattered across the western half of the state just like Dillon, TX (in fact, one half is from Hollis, which is practically Texas). My pageant winning, cheerleader cousin married the quarterback, that sort of thing. I have an idea of what football culture in the south is like. Also, my dad was a band director for over 20 years, so I had my hearing damaged by marching bands by the time I was in elementary school. Blah blah blah, my point is FNL brilliantly captures the unreasonable expectations placed on high school football programs, the players and their leadership by struggling communities facing changing values. Taylor is constantly navigating the grey area between right and winning at home and on the field. His wife is hot. Riggens is sullen and dreamy. Saracen's adorable. Landry's the hilarious poor man's Matt Damon. It's not a glossy couture fest like Desperate Housewives, or sapalong like Grey's, a tard convention like Boston Legal or a solve an insanely ridiculous crime in one hour show. It's people acting like people. Refreshing. Everyone's too goo looking to be realistic, of course, but chicks are pretty hot in Texas. It's true. The moral of this post is that if you're not already, Netflix the first season, TiVo a season pass for the second and get busy. You can thank me later.
7 comments:
I can relate to southern high school football since I grew up in the south. In one area of the south I lived in, the high school football coach was paid more than many D1 college coaches were at that time. This was an area where players like Leon Lett and Emmitt Smith came out of.
I have a relative that was Skiatook homecoming royalty. I'm not sure that really counts as small town OK since it is pretty close to Tulsa.
i am there with you on the fnl love. it is one of the few shows mainly about teenagers that actually deals with issues of race, class, and sexuality in a meaningful way. is it bad that i am attracted to both Coach Taylor and Matt Saracen?
Trail of Tears, represent.
sru - i think that's the thing about the show. if you're from the HS football culture, it makes sense. if you're not, it's probably interesting as the other. yay skiatook!
s-bhan - i know, right? is it wrong that i'm attracted to tammy and riggens? if only they'd have a dirty affair. no, not really. such a great show!
ryan - word.
sru - i think that's the thing about the show. if you're from the HS football culture, it makes sense. if you're not, it's probably interesting as the other. yay skiatook!
s-bhan - i know, right? is it wrong that i'm attracted to tammy and riggens? if only they'd have a dirty affair. no, not really. such a great show!
ryan - word.
i was so sad last year when they were going to cancel it because it seriously is one of the best shows on right now. now i'm just pissed because its on on fridays now and i'm so busy and important i don't get to watch it.
This is a great show. But someone who posts on the Wilco message board claims he works on the show and that he doesn't like the direction the show is going. For what it's worth ...
http://forums.viachicago.org/index.php?showtopic=24673&st=120&p=963819&#entry963819
Post a Comment