Caught the FNL Disease
For years friends have been telling me to watch Friday Night Lights. And I just never did. I'm not a big TV watcher. And I don't say that in a “I'd rather sip Oolong and read Chaucer” tone. TV and I just lost that loving feeling years ago. Probably sometime around the moment Friends went off the air. But this weekend, I finally, FINALLY popped in the Season One dvd.
Oh shoot, y'all.
It's good.
Okay, so episode one breaks all the writing rules and has no point, no story and is just character set-up. Had I not been completely bored, I would've stopped right there. But I didn't want to vacuum pushed through. And I'm glad I did. I really like this show. I was raised in a very small town, so a lot of this is real to me. Prayers before and after football games, town folk who live and die for Friday night, coaches with their jobs on the line due to wins/losses. I've only watched 7 episodes (in 24 hours, thankyouverymuch), but I've heard it only gets better.
Here is what I like about it:
1. Small town life (Sorta. Except this town isn't too small because they have an Applebee's. You cannot get riblets in a true small town.)
2. Coach Whats-his-name and Tammy. They have one of the best TV marriages since Cliff and Clare Huxtable. I took some mental notes watching Coach's wife. He would screw up majorly, like not tell her 100 people were coming over for dinner, and she would not have a total Kardashian meltdown. Then they would talk about it later. She is uber patient and understanding. I don't really understand those qualities, but maybe by the time I get to Season Two, it will have sunk in.
3. Matt Saracen. There are all these football studs in the series, yet Matt, currently QB1 (a new term for me; I plan to throw it around from time to time, whether it's relevant or not), is an awkward nerd. I keep thinking, “I know this kid. I taught this kid. I went to school with this kid.” He's so…normal. The guy who plays him (was Rory's love interest in Grad School) gives it the total Meryl Streep Special, becoming the character and bringing it alive with all these natural nuances and gestures. It's so teen boy. Unsure teen boy. And his BFF is hilarious.
4. Matt's BFF, What's-His-Name II. He looks like a descendant of Matt Damon. They have to be related by no more than three degrees of separation. He is funny in a dry, not really supposed to be funny sort of way. And he is big on advice. Any time Matt takes his advice, it goes bad. REAL bad. And Matt's BFF always gives this sage advice, then just keeps going. And Matt always says, “What does _______ have to do with_______?” And BFF always says, “That's not important!” Worst advice giver ever. But funny.
Things I don't like about FNL:
1. School inaccuracies. Regular joes do not get to make big decisions about recruiting players. Regular joes, even if on the athletic booster club, do not interact with agencies INVESTIGATING the players you recruited.
2. A coach's job is never secure. That is true. But for a coach to worry about losing his job after one game loss? Not realistic. And for town folk to harass the coach and his daughter after one loss? Not realistic. They usually wait a few games in. Actually a coach in a small town usually has about two years before he's kicked out for a high number of losses. This job instability is the only reason I didn't become a coach myself. Because we all know how much I love any excuse to wear my Nike warmups and yoga pants.
3. Boobies. Okay, can we just button up our shirts, ladies? Here's a little tip for scholastic authenticity, schools have something called DRESS CODES, especially Southern schools. Unless you're at like School of Ho Baits. Or School of Boobies. But Coach Whatshisname and his lady? Not at either of those places. Tammy, the coach's wife, magically becomes the school counselor. And she is all about her some cleavage. Which is totally unrealistic. Because everyone knows you cannot counsel children on their ACTs and home problems if there is cleavage. And Tammy wears jeans. Jeans and a spaghetti strap top. TO WORK. Does Tammy ever wear sleeves? Does Tammy ever wear a turtle neck? I have yet to get to a winter episode, but I'm pretty sure Tams will be in a halter top. And the girl students wear the same thing. Like the kind of tops that get you suspended for a week. And what parents let their kids out with those shirts on? These parents are all up in their kids' business, so it wouldn't be THESE parents. I'm just sorry I didn't see this show earlier, because I would've lent my Authentic Educational Advisement Abilities to FNL. Gladly. For not much money. Just six figures. And a pashmina for Tammy.
4. Riggins. I know I'm about to lose a bunch of readers here, but I'm not a fan of Riggins. I've heard about this guy FOREVER. I knew him and didn't even watch the dang show. But seriously, girls? And seriously fifty year old ladies? RIGGINS? I know he's cute in real life. But on this show, as far as episode seven, he has greasy hair that hasn't been washed in a few weeks, he drinks Miller Lite for breakfast, he gets it on with his newly paralyzed best friend's girl (obviously because she has too much cleavage), and has no personality. And we like him WHY? I just keep seeing this character in five years. He'll be a fry cook at the catfish house, he'll have 2 illegitimate children on welfare he can't pay for and never sees, which he will somehow place the blame on the Baby Mamas, and be living in a pay by week hotel where he chain smokes and harasses little kids into buying his booze and Dollar Menu burgers. How is this sexy? Matt is the guy who has the nerd best friend and takes care of his dementia-plagued grandma. And he washes his hair! And says, “Yes, sir.” And drinks milk for breakfast. And washes his hair.That's the one to pick. Not Riggins. And yeah, I get the bad boy attraction theory, but for that theory to hold, the bad boy has to have some redeeming qualities hidden in there. Like hygiene.
Thank you for letting me get this off my appropriate-shirt-covered chest. Do any of you watch FNL? Do I keep watching? Is Riggins gonna grow on me? Is he ever going to shower?
