User reviews

Friday Night Lights is one of all-time favorite shows. It's is so criminally underrated it's ridiculous! It is just an absolute amazing show! The show is based off the book and the film but is so much better than even those two. It takes place in the small Texas town of Dillon, Texas and takes place at one of the best football high schools...the Dillon Panthers. Coach Taylor (Kyle Chandler) leads the team through pressure filled seasons full of expectations and helps his players both on and off the field. He also has to deal with the everyday struggles of his own family. Even though the football story line is great, it is so much more than that. If you read the reviews you'll see 90% of them are 9's & 10's and most have one thing in common and that's that they didn't give it a chance until years after it went off the air. Once you start watching you can't stop.

I know people say this all the time about shows but Friday Night Lights really is one of the most underrated shows in the history of television. It's such a great show and should be talked about even more than it is. It's on just about every "bests shows of all-time" list that you'll find and for good reason. It shows the everyday lives about popular high school athletes and others members of the community in a small Texas town where football is everything. It takes a realistic, gritty look inside their lives. The writing and acting is what makes this show so special. The cast (Kyle Chandler, Taylor Kitsch, Connie Britton, Aimee Teegarden, Minka Kelly, Michael B JordanZach Gilford, Jesse Plemons, Adrianne Palicki, etc) is just about perfect for this show too. This really is a must watch show!

I can't find a strong enough word in my vocabulary to describe how spectacular and engrossing this show is. I remember when I first heard about it eight or so years ago when the show premiered. To be honest, after seeing the movie, I thought it would be cheesy and not all that good. After Breaking Bad ended, I needed a new show to watch and while searching for the best shows available on Netflix streaming, this was near the top of the list. And I can truly say even after watching something as incredible as Breaking Bad, I think this show is almost more special in its own way. It doesn't need violence and drugs to be entertaining. I remember right after watching the pilot, I couldn't stop and stayed up till 7 am watching. It will pull you in that quickly, especially if you are a football fan. Not that you cant watch it if you don't like football or don't know much about it. I absolutely love football. Love watching it and played it in high school. But football is absolutely the least interesting aspect of this show. The first episode of the series goes through each day leading up to the first game of the season. After watching it I thought every episode would be that way. But after seeing the end of the pilot I realized the show is about much much more than just football. Football is just a backdrop.

The most important part of the show are the lives of the characters off the field, focusing on the head coach and his wife and their daughter, as well as the players. He is more of a father figure to these players before he is a coach. The main theme of the show is that people have dreams. It shows everyday problems that people face, which we can all relate to in one way or another. Then it shows these dreams can come true if you have someone who believes in you and is willing to help you until you reach these dreams. The show creates these characters in a pretty cliché fashion. But what makes the show so great is these characters are brought to life, making the viewer able to literally feel the emotions of these characters, even without words being spoken. For the most part, the acting is incredible by most of the cast. The way the show is shot makes you feel like you are in the room with these people. This show will move your emotions and make you laugh,cry, smile and cheer. There's not many other shows out there that can hit you with so many ranges of emotions. You really feel like you are a part of these peoples lives, and you really become connected to them. You are able to watch them change with your own eyes. You will think differently about life and football after watching it, I can guarantee that.

Probably one of the best all around shows Ive ever watched. I grew up in Dallas so this really brings back some great memories of high school football. This show captures everything Texas and is such a good show. Don't worry It's not just about high school football and it touches on so many subjects I won't try and list them out. One thing is for sure though, I guarantee you will experience every emotion a human being can go through during the course of this series. If high school football is not your thing it won't matter. The writing, the directing, the music and above all the acting, will take you places no other show will take you. Yeah it's that good. Just Give it 3 episodes before you make any decisions. It takes that long to get to know the characters and get familiar with the show. When it's all over and you finish the last episode, you will sit back and say to yourself, "crap that just might be the best series I've ever watched"... You will have Clear Eyes and Full Hearts... watch the show and you will never forget that phrase... Peter Berg well done on this one and last but not least.... Texas Forever...

Simply put, this is reality. If someone had affixed a camera to my head, 24 hours a day, when I was in high school, you couldn't have gotten a better picture of life. I know someone like every single character in this show. The story lines, the acting, the cast, couldn't be any better in this show. For those who haven't made it to high school yet, in Texas, this is your future. Wonderful, wonderful drama. I didn't even hear about this show (don't have time for much TV) until season 4. Watched one episode and I was hooked. Went out and bought every episode and sat down and watched every one in about two days. Didn't want to turn it off. I had always thought that The Shield was the best show ever on TV....until I was introduced to this tremendous story about life.

This show really hit home for me. I played high school football at Polk High back in the day. This show really does capture what it was like to play varsity level high school football. There were so many similarities to my life that were in the show, be it the love interest, the drama, the ups and downs, and of course the football.

I took my team to state, and thanks to my four touchdowns in that game, we won. I will remember my coach as one of the best men that I have ever met in my life; a mentor that I looked up to. Although my days of playing football are over, and I'm now a shoe salesman with two kids and a wife named Peggy, I'll always have love and respect for the game, and this series reminded me of just how beautiful the experience of high school football is.

I am from Australia and I could not get enough of this show.

I just loved Kyle Chandler as an actor since when I was a kid from the first time I saw him perform on "Early Edition". I'm really glad that he won an Emmy for his role on "Friday Night Lights" as "Coach Taylor". Recently I started to watch "Friday Night Lights" and I just want to say that this is one of the best drama series that I've seen (and believe me when I say this 'cause I've watched lots of series)! It has every aspects of a real life story and it involves the viewer with the lives of all the characters. I wasn't a fan of American football before I watched this drama, but now I really enjoy watching football games. I recommend watching this drama series to anyone who enjoys sports and loves a very close to real life story.

I only recently became hooked on this show, having obsessed for perhaps too long about a certain metaphysical fantasy set on a desert island and about a certain stylish melodrama about one man's Mafia family. This show has no gangland hits, no sixties nostalgia about Madison Avenue, no housewives( or chemistry teachers) dealing drugs, no musical numbers,no recondite references to Egyptian hieroglyphics or quantum physics. Yet despite all these terrible flaws,( clever sarcasm) it is a masterpiece. I am not anti-Lost. I enjoyed the show immensely, for all its flaws. However, this show is , in some ways, superior. It is, in fact a photo-realistic picture of life in a small town in Texas, beautifully written and wonderfully acted. I rank it with certain other shows that were overlooked and are now sadly forgotten by all but a few people with good taste: The Call To Glory, Homefront, and I'll Fly Away,among others. In some ways, this is a show worthy of the golden age of TV "sooial drama", Naked City, The Defenders, Mr. Novak, Ben Casey, The Fugitive( a social commentary disguised as a thriller), Route 66, Slattery's People and East Side West Side. Like the best episodes of those shows, Friday Night Lights offers more questions than answers. This show is one of the best ever. I pray to a sometimes enigmatic providence that it does not perish from the airwaves.

I'm surprised by the negative comments I've seen, simply because I never noticed or was bothered by shaky camera work on this show. Perhaps I was too busy being drawn in by the fascinating, sympathetic, beautifully drawn characters and their challenges and successes. I cannot think of another show that has such believable characters and story lines. I can't remember when a show has made me care so much about the characters. I think that's because there aren't other shows that have achieved this. Friday Night Lights is very well written and well acted. The music on this show is great. I keep coming back to my love for the characters this show lets us get to know, though. This show is about much more than football, and it certainly isn't about being "arty" and having shaky camera work. It's about people. And darn good storytelling.

The thing I really love about this show is the wardrobe. It's nice to see what lengths a wardrobe department will take to make sure the situation and people are as real as possible, such as using clothing pieces that the actors have already worn previously in episodes. Also, the acting is fantastic! I mean, the entire point of acting is to be truthful under imaginary circumstances and these actors are wonderful at accomplishing that. It's difficult to watch a show when acting is oh so obvious. I have to say though that I admire the men in this series for capturing the true love of football. I've grown up around football and seeing the same love and dedication to the sport come through in the show (and also the same feeling in the movie) is really a ray of sunshine :) Bravo!

This show is amazing! They honestly need to bring back TV shows like these and one tree hill and the o.c. Even if you aren't a football fan, believe me you will be after this show.

Every character is well written and on their own path to growth which allows you to emotionally connect and invest in them.

The only thing I seriously didn't like was the ending. Seriously though, that ending was a huge disappointment. I feel like they could've at least given us another episode or 2 just to make it count. It just felt very rushed towards the end.

If you're into the 2000s shows like One Tree Hill, The O. C, 90210, and those then this show is for you!

It's emotional, touching, and so heartfelt. Not to mention they touch on social issues which mad respect.

Apparently, from what I 've read, the producers of Friday Night Lights are under the impression that shaking the camera to and fro is giving their show a sheen of "reality".

Let me be the one who disabuses them of this notion.

Shaking the camera does not add realism to a show. It actually subtracts from it. For you see, realism comes from the writing and the acting, and shaking the camera, well... it's just shaking the camera. It's annoying and detracts from whatever realism exists in the show. It also makes a lot of people reach for the remote.

At this point, there are two mysteries about Friday Night Lights: 1) Why did NBC put this on the air? After all, they must have seen how unwatchable the pilot was. 2) Why is NBC still airing FNL? After all, they must have seen the ratings.

I'm finishing up. Was down with a knee surgery and needed something that wasn't too dark and depressing. This is a damn good show. I hate Lila though. She's is awful. Unlikeable in every single way. Tyra has shown she can act through it all. Mean, sad, scared, funny and tough. She nailed them all. Lila is just a whiny baby, and every situation is acted out the same. That disgusting fake sweet voice and talking through her teeth. Jason Street should've stayed while Lila went. He was for sure one of my favorites. Tim is one of the main reasons to keep watching. He's nice to look at and can actually act! Buddy is fat and greasy and sweaty but plays his role well! Coach and Mrs T are likable and real. Cant imagine anyone playing those roles better. Matt, well we all know a Matt. Reliable, sweet, artsy and without much confidence. Landry (pre psycho Todd from breaking bad, had no clue he was in it)was amazing! Smash redeemed himself and I was happy he was around and I LOVE his momma. Man, she was so believable in her role. Maybe a bit too much drinking and screwing for 15 year olds they could've at least held off until they were a bit older. but a damn good show! Just like in high school EVERYTHING is a cross to die on. And just like in a small town football takes precedent over EVERYTHING! Grades, kids, money you name it. Football is their only reason to wake up each day and only means of survival for many. In my town our football coach gets triple what any teacher does. It's really sad actually. So this show is very real, beautifully shot, produced like none other and just about perfect. Except for that winey ass minka Kelly. I know now why she never made it past this and others did. She was cast for her look and looks alone and they just didn't take her far enough. Not against these heavy hitters! All in all a really good drama, really good show. One that will get you in the feels on almost every episode. Glad I finally decided to watch it. And glad they didn't drag it out 10 years! So many shows drag out and end up sucking as a result...not this one.

When I tuned into Friday Night Lights, I expected to find another mindless football-jock fest with shallow dramatic plots and shallow subject matter. I could not have been more wrong. Football merely frames what is an epic human drama that is raw, authentic, and shows stories that are vulnerable. The show is taking on the greatest challenge we all face universally: The Drama of Real Life. The show filming on location in Texas deepens the reality of being a fully immersive experience. The series takes you somewhere we all desperately long to be: a place with Clear Eyes, Full Hearts, Can't Lose.

What a fantastic show. Yes, football is a huge aspect of this show, but in the way that it's a backdrop rather than the focus for the most part. I like to think of Friday Night Lights as similar to The O.C. and at the same time, completely anti-O.C. The thing about this show is, it deals with some issues that you see all the time on The O.C. - alcoholism, drugs, cheating, high school stuff...and yet, it comes off infinitely ahead of The O.C.

It's in the treatment, the way they execute the story lines where the difference is, and that difference is MASSIVE. It's the difference between a guilty-pleasure borderline soap and a sophisticated and earnestly dramatic piece of film-making. This show takes those elements that could be turned into melodramatic/stereotypical clichés, that could be simplified into the escapist world of The O.C., and it manages to wring out every inch of raw emotion and drama out of them. It doesn't put its moments to waste. I really don't think I ever saw a moment of honest, real emotion in The O.C.. Friday Night Lights easily has three powerful and honest moments an episode, if not more.

Besides the stuff that is similar to The O.C., the series also tackles more issues like racism, mental disorders, rape, and parent/child relationships.

In fact, the two episodes that deal with racism are a great example of how FNL is so great. It showcases a lot of viewpoints from different people inside the show, and while it doesn't solve things completely (just like real life), it certainly shows more insight into the issues than most shows or movies I can think of. If Crash won an Oscar for its simplified and stereotypical view of racists and racism, the complexity in the way FNL deals with the issue should've made it the Best Picture of the century.

That's not to say the stories themselves are perfect. When I step back and look back at the season of FNL, yeah, a lot of the story lines can seem at the end of the day overwrought and almost melodramatic. But that's the nature of the story lines. In the moments themselves, they are almost always written believably with perfect dialogue and acting. There are a few moments in the series where a character's turnaround or change of opinion might happen too drastically, but considering the 100 things they do right in every episode, 1 small problem like that per episode is really not much in the long run. There is always a fine line between melodrama and drama when dealing with shows about high school, and FNL hits the dramatic mark more consistently often than nearly anything else on TV or on the silver screen. The other thing is, like I said, FNL has a lot of raw and powerfully emotional moments in it. It wears its heart on its sleeve and some people may mistake that for melodrama.

These are characters you care for, that are intensely real - yes, so the girls in the show may be hotter than most, the cast is good-looking, etc...but the root of the characters feels like real people. The actors feel naturalistic, and the breadth of the show is stunning. You feel like this town actually exists somewhere. It's not just about the high school kids either. This show is equally about the parents. This is a show about an entire town, a town that is in love with football, that lives for football because, well, quite simply, most of them have nothing to look forward to except for football. It really nails the closeness and intensity of living in a small town, of everyone knowing everyone, etc.

If I had to use one word to describe what I think Friday Night Lights is about, it would be - dreams. This comes to the surface towards the end of the season but its always been there since the beginning. This show is about everyone's dreams, how and what everyone wants out of life, where they wanna go, where they seem themselves in the future. There are people who long for an escape from the town where there's not much of a future (Tyra), there are people with crushed dreams who have to rebuild (Jason and Lyla), there are people who are starting to live their dream (Matt), and there are people who are well on their way to their dream (Smash)...the entire show is about the struggle to follow your dreams and what that is worth. It's one of the best shows on TV and the best show that you're not watching.

All these people saying the camera was too shaky? I didn't even notice. Listen, it's not our fault if you can't concentrate on something for longer than ten seconds.

Most of the people who have given this poor ratings are just people who were expecting this to be a live NFL game or something. Don't listen to them. Football is an important part of the show, but it's secondary to the characters, who are deeply explored and easily related to.

Do yourself a favour and watch this from the very first season until the last. You won't regret it. Oh, and NBC, please bring this show back. One of the few shows I've ever really loved.

For me, Friday Night Lights is the best series ever. I just completed watching the entire series and actually felt sad when it ended. You really get to know the characters and the education of these real life situations.

I'm in my 60's and wish every parent could watch this show with their kids and have discussions. Best show. Wish there were many more like it. I would even suggest schools have it viewed by students but I realize some parents would be in an uproar. But, I also believe this wonderful show would open dialog between parents and their kids and prevent so much heartache. And teachers will remember how influential they are and how they can change the direction of a youngsters life.

A football show that isn't about football as much as it is about relationships that surround the game in a small Texas town where there is high school football and, honestly, not much else.

Kyle Chandler is absolutely brilliant as Coach Eric Taylor, who does a lot more in Dillon, Texas than merely coach the football team. His relationship with his wife (brilliantly portrayed by Connie Britton) surely has to have them right near the top of the list as far as best husband-wife combos in TV history goes.

Everything about this show clicks. Even the characters you think at the start are going to be cliched turn out rather pleasantly to be anything but. Some of the issues the show touches on - racism, small town politics, the American high school education system, the concept of your life's peak being in high school on a football field, and the spectre of a loved one affected by dementia amongst others - really elevate it. And the series finale? As perfect as perfect gets. Eleven stars out of ten.

A lot of people look down on television, a view justified in part by the stream of crappy reality shows. However, when done well television is an art form that can be as great as a painting, a poem, a novel, and much much better than a film. Friday Night Lights is one of the few shows that has done just that. While football is a big part of the show, it is so much more than just a sports show. The characters are all real. They feel like someone would meet in real life. This allows us to feel connected to them. Over five seasons we get to fall in love with the small community of Dilon; we get to see teenagers grow up; we see people fall in and out of love; we get to see how much of marriage involves give and take; we get to see people make difficult decisions; and all of it makes for a show that will stay in the hearts and minds of its viewers long after it's over.

The acting in this show may be good, but the cinematography is a little off. The camera will zoom in on parts that are not necessary. It makes me dizzy to watch and is hard to follow sometimes because the shot will be blurry. I agree completely with Rob Owen from the Pittsburgh Gazette when he says, "Scenes at the football game are rough and violent, filmed in a close-up, visceral style that makes NFL games on TV appear tame by comparison." When there are scenes from a football practice, the camera shots are quick and bounce around everywhere. I feel that David Boyd, the Director of Photography, is trying to create the element of a realistic football practice; football practices are fast-paced and full of activity. While Boyd is trying to create this element, he is making his viewers nauseous.

The story lines in this show need to be rethought and rewritten. There are not many progresses in the story lines. It is like watching a soap opera, where a viewer has to watch a weeks' worth of episodes to get only one important event. For the most part, Friday Night Lights contains one important event per episode. In addition, the "fairy tale ending" of each episode, needs to be rethought. Every episode that I have watched has ended with the Panthers winning the game and everyone is happy. For example, the episode in which Smash (the star running back) plays horrible and Tim steps up his game to lead the team to victory. If the writers want to keep their viewers in suspense and wanting to watch the next week, they need to create a cliffhanger ending for each episode.

Because important events happen in each storyline in every episode, the show needs to be watched in sequence. Like many television dramas, a viewer is likely to be lost if they do not watch each episode in sequence. A viewer will be lost jumping into Friday Night Lights because important information is revealed in each episode. I began to watch this show in the middle of the season, and I am unclear about what is going on in many of the story lines. I jumped in on an episode in which Jason was suing Coach Taylor. I was puzzled by why Jason would sue the coach, but I later found out that there has been a football accident. After watching three more episodes, I still have not figured out what the football accident is or how it involves Coach Taylor. Having a show that is not in sequence will make it hard to gain viewers. A person may start watching the show, be confused about what is going on, get frustrated, and never watch the show again.

Although the show has its low points, I believe it will last for at least one more season. The story lines in the show are not all based on football; therefore, viewers will most likely get hooked on them. For example, Grey's Anatomy is a show based on the medical field, but the millions of viewers that tune in every week are not hooked on the medical element; they are hooked on the story lines and drama. People get hooked on the plots and story lines of the drama, not just the framework. Tim Goodman from the San Francisco Chronicle takes the words right out of my mouth when he says, "If you don't care for football, or high school football in particular, or even the concerns of a bunch of high school kids and their fanatical grown-ups -- which plenty of viewers probably don't -- Berg makes you care. That's why "Friday Night Lights" is more than just a surprise in a crowded field of mostly good dramas."

Goodman, Tim. "Friday Night Lights" defies expectations and has something to offer all comers." San Francisco Chronicle 2 Oct. 2006. 12 Jan. 2007 http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgif=/c/a/ 2006/10/02/DDGPOLFJMH1.DTL&type=tvradio.

Owen, Rob. "Friday Night Lights' isn't just about the gridiron." Pittsburgh Post- Gazette 11 Oct. 2006. 4 Jan. 2007 http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06274/726170- 237.stm.

Saying that Friday Night Lights is badly made, is like saying Cindy Crawford is kinda pretty. It just doesn't do the concept justice.

Some TV shows are bad in spite of the best efforts of the producers, directors, etc... Sometimes it's because they don't have a big enough budget, sometimes, they just fail because they overreach.

Not so Friday Night Lights! Friday Night Lights is incompetently made by design!! The directors, aping the awful work of Peter Berg, are content to shake the camera at everything in sight. They also have fun with the zoom on their lens.

All this awful camera-work is supposed to somehow make us feel that what we're seeing is "real". Of course, it achieves the exact opposite: it reminds you every second that you are watching a badly conceived, badly executed TV show. It also makes you feel nauseous, and not just from motion sickness.

Predictably, audiences have stayed away after the initial onslaught of critics claiming it was the "best of the year". Hopefully, this travesty will be gone from the air by April, never to return.

I don't understand why people have such a problem with the camera work. I find it truly original and I find that it really captures the whole scene- instead of just being pointed at the face of whoever is speaking.

Friday Night Lights is hands down one of the best shows on TV right now. The stories are interesting and the characters are complex- not just a bunch of pretty teenagers bemoaning their dating woes. I think relationships are portrayed about as realistically as they can be on TV. I hope it makes it to another season. I am not really a big fan of network TV shows either- but this one I will not miss.