The Televangelist: ‘Friday Night Lights’ episode 10

One thing that “Friday Night Lights” does well is offer parallel storylines that adhere to strong themes.  Friday’s episode was about girl trouble, daddy issues and temper problems, all of which mirrored one another nicely. Though the previews from last week suggested a lighthearted episode with some wacky Matt-and-Julie moments, the truth of this week’s story was anything but.

Before digging deeper into the nuances of “The Giving Tree,” I want to briefly comment on the season so far and where it seems to be going as we head into the stretch of final episodes. As I mentioned a few weeks ago, with the definitive departure of staple characters such as Jason Street and Smash Williams, it’s starting to feel natural that this season might be “FNL’s” last. It seems that each episode has dealt with an issue specific to and resolved within it’s hourlong time frame, leaving viewers without a larger, season-long arc. I’ve realized that each week I’ve sat down to watch and pen my thoughts hasn’t exactly been a chore, but I haven’t felt any tangible excitement, whereas this season of “Big Love” has had me religiously watching, ravenous for the next episode. In fact, I’ve felt more compelled to watch a slew of old “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” episodes or the over-the-top and uneven “The L Word” more so than “Friday Night Lights.”  What gives? Is it just a lack of urgency and cliff-hangers that would usually bring viewers back? Instead of being hungry for big resolutions, we get some little ones every week that don’t seem to build to much.