Product Description
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When they struggled, we held our breath. When they lost, we felt
their pain. And when they won, we cheered them on again and
again. Through five extraordinary seasons, the residents of
Dillon, Texas, kept viewers captivated with the small-town
struggles, victories, and heartbreaks that resonated across
America with breathtaking realness, and made Friday Night Lights,
a Primetime Emmy® award-winning drama, one of the best dramas
ever to air on TV. Now, relive the spirit of this small town with
a big heart: from the pride and pitfalls of high school football
to the relationships between lovers, parents and
friends. Every moment of this critically accled dramatic
series is featured in this incredible collection that includes 19
discs packaged in a beautiful book filled with striking
photography from the series. Kyle Chandler, Connie Britton and an
all-star ensemble shine in this American drama series that will
never be forgotten. Texas forever
Review
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Season 1:
The first season of Friday Night Lights accomplishes something
that few television dramas are able to do: It betters the 2004
film (starring Billy Bob Thornton) on which the series is based.
Set in Dillon, Texas, where football--even on the high school
level--is everything, Friday Night Lights is a compelling drama
with a football subplot. Poignantly and effectively touching on
racism, rape, steroids, jealousy, infidelity, and life-changing
injuries, the series presents the inhabitants of Dillon as real
people who are flawed, but remarkable in their ordinariness.
Though the series struggled to find an audience during its
inaugural year, it was a critical favorite thanks to some fine
acting by leads Kyle Chandler (as Coach Eric Taylor) and Connie
Britton (who portrays his wife, Tami). Coach Taylor's career
depends on his ability to get the Dillon Panthers to the state
championship. If the team suffers a losing streak, he knows his
family, which includes daughter Julie (ee Teegarden), will no
longer be welcome in Dillon. Britton, who also played the coach's
wife in the film version, is a phenomenal actress who shares
simmering chemistry with Chandler. Not content at just being the
coach's wife, she lands a job as a counselor at the local high
school. That position plays a pivotal role in the season finale,
which leaves viewers wondering whether Eric will leave Dillon to
accept a coveted coaching job with a university. Though the
majority of the twentysomething actors appear too mature to
portray high school students, they have the mannerisms of teens
down pat. Gaius Charles is perfect as cocky running back Brian
"Smash" Williams, who'll risk his to make sure he gets a
football scholarship to college. Local sweethearts Jason Street
(Scott Porter) and Lyla Garrity (Minka Kelly) are the high
school's golden couple. When a football injury leaves him
paralyzed, he finds strength in what the future holds for him,
but Lyla finds herself in a short-lived affair with Jason's best
friend Tim Riggins (Taylor Kitsch). Once the relationship comes
out in the open, their classmates' reactions to the "traitors"
show that sexual inequality is rampant even in the teen set.
Tim's teammates briefly ostracize him, but just as quickly
forgive him, especially since he's so valuable on the football
field. But Lyla becomes persona non grata to the girls at school
who take too much glee in calling the head cheerleader a slut.
The hits she takes verbally are no less lethal than the ones the
boys take on the gridiron. And the tentative relationship between
Julie Taylor and Matt Saracen (Zach Gilford) is the best
depiction of teenage love since Angela Chase fell for Jordan
Catalano on My So-Called Life. The actors do a wonderful job
conveying the sweetness, pain, and hurt of falling in love
without really understanding all of its implications. Peter Berg,
who co-wrote and co-directed the film, has a strong presence as a
writer on the series and evenly distributes the storylines
between the kids and the adults. Friday Night Lights is a drama
with teenage characters at its core. But the stories are
universal. --Jae-Ha Kim
Season 2:
Friday Night Lights is deeply entrenched in the world of football
and teamwork, but the series transcends sports and delves into
rich, human relationships that at times are heartbreakingly real.
A compelling drama, the show also features one of the strongest
(and best looking) ensemble casts. The second season fulfills the
promise of its debut. Full of drama, heart, and superb acting,
the series is set in fictional Dillon, Texas--a town where
everyone lives and breathes football. The first season had Coach
Eric Taylor (Kyle Chandler) accepting a college coaching job,
while his pregnant wife Tami (Connie Britton) and their
16-year-old daughter Julie (ee Teegarden) stayed behind in
Dillon. Unfulfilled by his diminished duties and cognizant of the
fact that he no longer is the head guy who calls all the s,
Eric returns to the Dillon Panthers. Meanwhile, Julie breaks up
with starting quarterback Matt Saracen (Zach Gilford), who ends
up finding love with a young nurse's aide. Paralyzed football
hero Jason Street (Scott Porter) tries to find his place in the
world, moving out of his parents' home and accepting--and then
quitting--an assistant coaching job with the Dillon Panthers. And
bad boy Tim Riggins (Taylor Kitsch) gets thrown off the squad and
ends up squatting in a meth dealer's home before Coach Taylor
temporarily takes him in. But the strongest storyline belongs to
Gaius Charles, who is pitch perfect as cocky star runningback
Brian "Smash" Williams. Ensured a spot on a university with an
elite football program, Williams believes that he is unstoppable.
When a run-in with some racist kids turns into a media frenzy,
the school rescinds its invitation and Smash finds himself
scrambling to get into any school, regardless of its football
program. A powerful actor who is equally adept at portraying a
strutting football hero as he is a humbled teen, Charles conveys
passion as well as numbing reality. Season two also deals with
the aftermath of Tyra Collette (Adrianne Palicki) and Landry
Clarke (Jesse Plemons), who try to cover up a murder. While the
storyline is flawed and implausible, the actors do a stellar job
with the material. It is also sweet to watch the couple's
relationship--initially based on desperation--forge into a strong
friendship and romance. Things don't always end neatly, but that
only adds to the drama of Friday Night Lights. Look for series
writer Peter Berg to guest star as Tami's former high-school
boyfriend and Eric's nemesis. If the finale seems a little
disjointed, it is because of the 2008 writers strike, which
forced the series to truncate its episodes from a planned 22
episodes to just 15. The four-disc set also includes audio
commentary and almost 40 minutes of deleted footage. --Jae-Ha Kim
