'Friday Night' Fever

That's what I'm calling my "condition." You see, this "fever" began last season with the pilot episode of Friday Night Lights, but it has swelled immensely with the advent of the second season. I'll admit, I griped when I heard that Coach Taylor had taken the TMU job, but I did make a point to reserve final judgment until I had actually seen the story play out. Now that I have, I can say that I didn't like Coach Taylor taking the TMU job, BUT (and this is a huge but) the story was VERY well done and it created intriguing dynamics for the rest of the season (please god let there be a rest of the season). As soon as Buddy hinted that he could get Eric his job back, I started cheering. I began yelling, "Good riddance, Tennessee Hillbilly!" But when it came down to it tonight, I thought Coach McGregor got a raw deal. I don't feel right about the whole thing, even though I'm pleased with the outcome. And just in case I was feeling totally fine about it, he was sure to include the bit about his family. Coach Taylor is a good guy, and he may not have been directly responsible for McGregor's ouster, but he's responsible enough to feel guilty about the way it went down. It was sooo nice to see him back in the blue polo, though! Back in charge of the Dillon Panthers and back where he belongs with his family.

Speaking of his family, Julie is slowly going back to being likable. I've despised her for most of this season thus far, but she's beginning to get it. And it's not like I don't feel Julie. It's tough going from being an only child (for 15 years!) to being a big sister overnight, but her jealous routine was wearing thin. And I get her thing with the Swede, but her mom is right (which, I've found, tends to be the case 95% of the time) and she may not have wanted to listen to her, but she heard what she needed to hear. Meanwhile, Jason is banking his $10,000 on a pipe dream miracle cure in Mexico (injecting shark stem cells into his spine) that has scam/danger written all over it. He's desperate to walk again and desperate people can make all sorts of horrible decisions. Hopefully, Riggins was able to get that point through to Lyla. And then there's this season's most intriguing story line -- Tyra and Landry and their secret. Like the Coach Taylor story line (and all other amazing story lines on this show), I'm split on what they should do right along with Landry. Obviously, turning themselves in is the right thing to do and it's what they should have done the moment the guy died. On the other hand, I'm not sure they deserve to rot in jail for it and I KNOW I don't want them to. My heart skipped a few beats every time someone brought up the body from the river tonight.

To quote one of my faves Kathryn Morris, "You can't make people watch." But if I could, I would make them watch Friday Night Lights. It's one of those rare shows that transports you to another place, inside another character's story, and makes you feel the real emotions they are feeling. When I'm watching, I lose track of time because I'm completely lost inside the world of Dillon, Texas and all of the wonderful folks who live there. It's the closest thing to curling up with a good book and discovering a different world. I only wish everyone would curl up and get lost with the people of Dillon every Friday night.

Catch up with Friday Night Lights for free! Episodes now streaming at nbc.com.