"The Realism of "FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS"" by Red Rocks

March 15, 2011

One of the best and realest shows on television, Friday Night Lights ( http://www.nbc.com/friday-night-lights/ ) will premiere its fifth and final season on Friday, April 15th.

We all adore Breaking Bad, LOST, Mad Men, and The Office, but it's difficult to imagine any of those shows actually happening in real life - in 2011. Well, I suppose somewhere in America there's a high school chemistry teacher who's recovered from lung cancer, cooks crystal meth with a former student, and has both a Mexican cartel and the D.E.A. after him. Somewhere in America.

But Friday Night Lights is happening somewhere in America. Now - in 2011. I can't think of any other television show in history that portrays the realism and conflict of American life as well as Friday Night Lights does. And the acting by both the adults and the teenagers is remarkable. The writing, unparalleled.

The show is one of eight that will be honored in May by The Television Academy for exemplifying “Television with a Conscience.” The fourth annual Television Academy Honors will single out Friday Night Lights‘ “I Can’t” episode for its handling of unwanted pregnancy.

I think everyone can identify with the experience(s) of a character in Friday Night Lights. How close does this show come to reliving that experience for you? As coach Taylor would say, "I'm guessing pretty damn close." Quarterback (now ex-QB because he graduated) Matt Saracen's scenes with his Alzheimer's-stricken grandmother reminds me of when my grandmother, who also had Alzheimer's, lived with my mother, sister, and me in Houston.

Folks, this is one of those great shows that are living quietly. NBC executives saved it a few seasons ago from cancellation because they were such huge fans of the show, which never happens. Since then, NBC and DirecTV have been splitting the cost, with DirecTV customers being lucky enough to see each season first. Who's lucky now?

Oh man, I love this show!!! Could you not tell already? Entertainment Weekly listed it as one of the top 5 shows on television. I'd say top 3.

If you need more assurance, check out a review of Friday Night Lights here: http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20364804,00.html

I also highly recommend the 2004 film ( http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/friday_night_lights/ ) that this glorious show is based on. It's what got me pumped for the show, which is just like the film, but just on a more massive scale. They even have a couple of the same actors.

I can't wait to see what Buddy Garrity will do this final season! That man deserves his own show!

You can catch Friday Night Lights Online and On Demand. Seasons 1-4 are on DVD.

Clear Eyes. Full Hearts. Can't Lose!

The Realism of "FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS"

I'm about halfway through Buzz Bissinger's book that the movie and series were based on, and it's been great so far. I'd definitely recommend that as well.

I haven't seen the television series before, but I'll have to check it out. I just got finished the first season of AMC's The Walking Dead. It was only six episodes, but it was highly entertaining (especially if you like zombie apocalypse movies).

The Realism of "FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS"

I love this show! It really is great, and I think part of what makes it so brilliant is the writers understand what makes reality tv shows so appealing, and applies those devices into a settting that isn't a mind-melting waste of time like most reality tv shows. It's really simple things like how they zoom in really quickly during dialogs, or the realism of the writing in general is great. My girlfriend loves this show and she doesn't care for football at all, so that should tell you that this is a great show in itself.

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