Coach Taylor!
Why do I love this show?
1. Storylines. It's a show about a high school without the typical high school story arcs. Instead of geeks v. jocks, we got Jason Street's struggle with paralysis. The stories told never veered towards cliche, and gave us people instead of characters.
Favorites: I was skeptical of the move from Dillon to East Dillon, but I was amazed. I went to a "Dillon" type high school, where no expense was spared for football, but knew enough kids from "East Dillon" high schools, where booster money was scarce and there was no such thing as going all the way to state.
I love that Matt and Julie found their way back to each other.
The enduring story of the Taylor marriage.
Least favorite: the DJ McCoy + stage dad story arc. Necessary story to tell, and well done since every sport has stage parents dreaming of glory for their kids. But you wish that it didn't have to be that way.
Tara and Landry's "murder".
2. Characters. This was an amazing ensemble of actors that gave us more than one dimension to the person they were portraying. Buddy Garrity, at first a sleazy, cheatin', football obsessed alumni booster evolved into a brave man facing down his town to defend his children and the honor of a man he grew to admire. I actually felt sorry for Buddy as this season opened, and cameras rolled by his empty, failed car lot.
Tim Riggins, not the typical bad boy, but a man-child struggling to do the right thing in a world where he had no parental guidance outside of his football coach. And strippers with more common sense and heart than your PTA mother.
Favorites: I come back to the nuclear family of Eric, Tami and Julie Taylor.
Mindy!
Becky seemed so sweet, confused, rudderless desperate to fall in love. Been there, done that.
Jessie and Vince. Teenagers forced to be adults who retain their youthfulness.
Ornette, Vince's dad. Not your typical villian, and the finale gave you a glimmer of hope that in ficional Dillon, he may have turned things around after all.
Least favorite: Epyck served no purpose other than to break ours and Tami's hearts. I think my dislike of her was the fact that she simply disappeared. Again, with troubled kids, just mimicking real life.
The McCoys were one-dimensional villians that breezed into town to break up our lovely Dillon Panther party.
Julie's English teacher, for steering rudderless Julie in various bad directions. Again, a necessary character in Julie's development and a catalyst for her returning to Matt, which was awesome. But what's annoying is having the stereotypical TA behavior shown, having seen it and experienced it myself some many odd years ago. I guess TA's bedding students has not changed from generation to generation.
Poor Gracie Bell, had nothing to do with the goings on whatsoever.
3. Timing. One of the things I hated about Ugly Betty was the frenetic pacing, stories were introduced and dismissed in a matter of weeks or dropped all together. FNL allowed the pacing of their stories to unfold in real time so the way scenarios unfolded happened naturally.
4. Camerawork. The documentary style has been getting overused on NBC, it's the premise behind why cameras would be in an office on The Office, same goes for Parks and Rec. But it really worked for FNL because it allowed for intimacy between the town of Dillon and the viewer.
5. The Town of Dillon. Dillon was a character just as much as Lyla Garrity. The Landing Strip, Grandma' Scarecen's house, the BBQ place, the schools, the ice cream place, even Buddy's car dealership were central to creating an atomosphere of small town life. You'd recognize this place on a road trip, stopping for gas of a piece of pie.
6. Football! There is something about high school football that universally resonates with Americans. Even though I wasn't in with the in crowd during my high school years, I hardly ever missed a game and recall fondly hanging out with friends in the stands then going out for pizza, a dance or cruising the ave. What is it about high school football? Is it community? Is it a great night out on a crisp fall night? Is it seeing children become heroes before your eyes? The opportunity to reminisce about your own high school days? The actual game itself?
The series finale was on this past Friday, and I mourn the loss of my hour in Dillon with the Taylors.
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