MovieChat Forums > Friday Night Lights (2006) Discussion > After rewatching for the third time.. I ...

After rewatching for the third time.. I have some questions/concerns


So, hands down FNL is my favorite show. I've watched the whole series twice and I'm on season 4 for the third time on Netflix as I'm typing this. It's crazy how when you rewatch a show, you notice different things and notice other stuff. So I have a few comments, questions, opinions I'd like, etc. on these following topics: (please tell me what you think! thanks)

1. So the mailbox and East/West Dillon thing. If I understand correctly, East Dillon didn't have a current football program. I mean I assumed not even a school, but I guess it did. So what significance in the years past would the mailbox have played? I get maybe in the '80s and stuff there was a program. But, why threaten the 2006 state champ thing? That was like two years previous and it's clear there wasn't a program then.

2. Becky does not suck as much as I hated her the first two watches.

3. I love Billy & Mindy more than ever.

4. I used to LOVE Tyra, she was my favorite character. Rewatching, what she did to Landry regarding Cash, was not cool. So I like her less than I used too.

5. Lyla should have stayed on the show. She brought so many storylines.

6. Jess is the worst character on the whole show.

7. I know the age thing is always addressed/grades. And I know everyone is like "oh in the beginning stuff does changes that's how Street and Riggins we're best friends since they were little but in different grades and they just went with it." Okay. But after Matt's dad dies, Landry says "we've been best friends since we we're five".. so that just annoys me. Clearly in different grades, so not the same age.

8. I hated Julie with a passion the first two times I watched it; but now watching it again, not that I don't love Matt, I kind of get her brooding bad life teenager choices.

9. Eric/Kyle Chandler is an amazing actor and if you like him you should watch "Bloodline" on Netflix. It's a new show and he's one of the main characters.

10. I wish Santiago stayed on longer.. and less of Buddy's annoying family minus Lyla. That's all!!

Still my favorite show.. and I clearly have too much time on my hands!

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It took you three times to realize what Tyra did to Landry was pretty bad? Tyra is one of my favorite characters because of her mistakes and growth, and she's probably the most interesting female character after Tami, but that was a pretty obvious jerky move.

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I meant people on this board have acted like she was terrible.. I never understood the hate. I get it with that move now.. That's all.

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She was terrible. She knew it. Then she grew up.

Also, I'm confused about how anyone could like Lyla. I think Minka Kelly is widely recognized as a horrible actress. She ruined the first 3 seasons of this show for me. Some actors can be so bad they ruin scenes. Minka was so bad her appearance would ruin entire epidodes.

Jess was easily my favorite character in season 5.

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Dillon, Texas has (at least) two schools the entire time. East Dillon just didn't have a football/sports program. District boundaries are in place to separate the attendance, but (West) Dillon were stealing athletic students from East Dillon by giving them a home address that resided in (West) Dillon district throughout the years.

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Jimenez I swear you are the ONLY one I've ever come across that interpreted this exactly as I do. I'm not sure why everyone assumes that East Dillon was closed all those years. I don't think any character on the show ever says that. It just didn't have a football team for several years. Presumably the overcrowding in (West) Dillon caused them to look at the district maps and to re-district so that they could send more kids to East Dillon (which presumably had capacity to take on more students). It's the only way ANY of what we see in Seasons 3 through 5 make sense. That is why there weren't many "bad part of town" kids in West Dillon. That's why Vince or Jess or any of the other East Dillon characters weren't part of the show before - they always went to East Dillon.

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I'm not sure why everyone assumes that East Dillon was closed all those years. I don't think any character on the show ever says that.


It was mentioned during the press conference that East Dillon was closed for a reason, and the school would be brought up to code before any student steps foot inside.

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You're totally right!

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Exactly. The school was closed and apparently had been for awhile. The problem is, that makes no sense.

If the school had been closed, then ALL the kids in the city would have been going to Dillon high. But, they weren't; that much was obvious. I think they just messed that part of the story up. What they should have done was simple. All they had to do was say that Dillon high was over-crowded, and that the county redrew the districts to move students over to East Dillon to compensate. Boom. Problem solved from a story perspective.

Whores will have their trinkets.

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jimenez1005 "Dillon, Texas has (at least) two schools the entire time. East Dillon just didn't have a football/sports program. District boundaries are in place to separate the attendance, but (West) Dillon were stealing athletic students from East Dillon by giving them a home address that resided in (West) Dillon district throughout the years."

WRONG! They go into this deeply at the end of Season 3 with an entire storyline about it.

You need to watch it again. If you watch PIVOT it's about a month away. They're just now starting S/2.

K/H D

If there's a way to screw something up, the "O'Commie regime" will find it EVERY SINGLE TIME!!.... Only 269 more days!

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Though I disagree with a decent amount of stuff you listed the Lyla comment completely confounds me. Even people that defend Lyla and Minka Kelly's acting don't think she brought a great deal to the series beyond a pretty face. Post season one she became fairly useless with only the drama between her and Tim offering anything interesting, and that mainly because of what it meant for Tim. I definitely don't see how she fits into the world of FNL as a main character post season three. Her brief return in "Stay" was enough.

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i also wish santiago stayed a bit longer. he gave buddy a focus

'it never occurred to me that skin could determine identity'

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I love Eric and Tami.

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I have two questions off the top of my head.
I might think of others later, but for now......


How come NO ONE ever seemed to notice, care that all those kids were for years drinking underage?
In Season 1, I don't think one of the originals (Jason, Lila, Tim, Tyra, Crash, etc.) were even Seniors which would make them as young as 15 to 16 yrs old.

I never understood for the entire run of the series why the actor who played Buddy was billed as a "guest star". They filmed 76 episodes and he was in all but THREE. Hardly a guest star at least to me.

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Yeah, those two things came to my mind as well. I remember in either S1 or S2, some of the adult characters kept making these offhand comments about Tim being hungover or drunk to practice. Even Matt came drunk to practice once, but I don't recall Coach or Buddy or anybody ever telling these guys NOT to drink, but rather, don't show up to practice drunk. It was so bizarre watching it, but it makes me wonder if that's just the culture of this town or the Texas town that the show was based on. Because everybody knows Tim is a heavy drinking but I don't think anybody ever made a big deal out of it. The only time I remember them really frowning upon it was when Julie did it, but even then, you didn't hear a big lecture about not drinking. It was more or less shrugged off when it came to all the HS students. They just didn't really care that much.

Also, one minor thing that kinda bothers me, is that when Matt and Tim graduated, there were no final scenes between them and Coach. I mean, Coach addresses the whole team after they lose States and tells them to be proud of themselves because he is, but I wish he kinda had am individual moment with those guys to the side, especially Matt because of all the conflict they shared in that season. It would have been a good way to end their high school years.

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The show showed that in a few bars and the strip club. I thought it was implied whoever served them knew their ages just looked over it cause of football.

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While I didn't drink as much as Tim Riggins in high school, myself and certainly a majority of high school students were drinking, getting drunk quite a bit throughout high school. Most of my friends had fake IDs, went to bars, bought beer, etc.

It's high school.

But yeah Tim's entire storyline was a bit unrealistic. A high school living with his brother, skips school, drinks every day and oh by the way a nice looking single female is going to move in right next door.

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ncarrab


That seemed to be a very small town, and everyone knew everyone.

I guess they just overlooked it because Friday Night Football was the only thing that bound the town together.

So whoever was serving them, did so knowing they were underage, and had no problem with them because they were part of the team.
But then again the girls who were cheerleaders were also served.

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I thought the Santiago thing would be really dumb, but the character had a lot of depth, the actor was believable, and it was actually a great storyline for Buddy. Really unfortunate.

And then they bring on the useless background character - forget his name - the one who used to play basketball. He was in the opening credits and I kept thinking, "What a non-entity!"

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From the OP:

6. Jess is the worst character on the whole show.

I agree with most of these, however,

This one I have to disagree with. IMVHO Waverly was the worst. First of all she was a nut job and should have kept taking her medication. Secondly, her crap with Smash and the race baiting took a bit of a bad guy for me.

Jesse was way easier on the eyes as well. She's not exactly "my type" but you just can't dismiss that stunning caboose.

K/H D

If there's a way to screw something up, the "O'Commie regime" will find it EVERY SINGLE TIME!!

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1.) If you remember the Reggie Bush USC incident or the Joe Paterno incident they do strip wins and championships from years past if they were caught cheating or doing something morally wrong.
2.) I wish the producers did a better job at developing Becky's character.
3.) Eh,IMO Billy and Mindy is ok. Nothing special
4.) That wasn't cool of her but I didn't expect her to stay with him. It didn't make sense and I had a feeling that she would go for someone who had looks and not heart.
5.) Yes! Lyla was awesome!
6.)IMO I thought J.D. McCoy and his father were the worst characters even though they brought storylines to the show.
7.) Maybe Landry was late born? Idk the age thing is also confusing but i guess in a small town friends are hard to come by.
8.) IMO Julie was ok.
9.) Yes he is an amazing actor! Having played football he acted the part well.
10.) Yes, I wish Santiago stayed on longer. He disappeared completely after season 2.

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5. Sorry Lyla wasn't that great and neither were her story lines.

7. Sorry but 2 people can be the same age and in different grades. It all depends on when the person's birthday falls. If my birthday is in July and my friends birthday is in September we could both be 5, but because her birthday is after the cut off date for kindergarten, I'd be in school and she'd have to wait a year.

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