Late to the Bandwagon: Friday Night Lights

Posted by Maggie July 5th, 2007 at 01:33pm In Friday Night Lights

So I’ve finally started watching the most critically-acclaimed new show of last year, Friday Night Lights. I’m only seven episodes in, but I have to say I’m charmed. I’m not crazed with joy or anything (those type of obsessive thoughts don’t usually show up until episode 10 or 12 of a new series), but I can certainly see why everyone’s so gosh-darned excited about this one. It’s good.

They’ve pulled together a really sympathetic and well-cast group of characters, especially the alarmingly adorable last-minute quarterback, Matt Saracen. Everyone’s excellent, and I only single out Matt because of the way I want to give him a big hug and cook him some chicken soup and tell him how great he is every time he’s on screen. He’s that painfully in need of mothering. Trust me, your ovaries will explode.

I have concerns, of course. I’m concerned that the whole thing is a giant sports movie, with mini-sports-movies peppered throughout. They’re very well-done and extremely exciting, but we know sports movies. I’m also concerned about the occasionally irritating camera work. I like the way it’s loose and can focus on fun little details we might not have seen otherwise, but sometimes I get the sense it’s jerky and weird just to be jerky and weird. And I’m concerned they’re cycling through hugely dramatic story arcs too fast. So much has happened in these seven short episodes. This might be a result of watching them all in a row (and interspersing episodes of the much slower-paced [and much better than everyone says it is] John from Cincinnati), but I think that slowing down and dealing with the stories already on the table might be good instead of constantly adding new ones.

Long-time fans, you’re probably laughing and shaking your heads at my newbie naivete. I’m sure in a couple episodes I’ll be embarrassed to have complained at all. In the meantime, GO MATT!