Friday Night Lights is a show worth championing. I didn't care for the movie (I thought it was a tad racist; ask me how!) so I didn't really think I'd care for the show. The promos highlighted it as a whole town who only cared about football and that just seemed sad and pathetic. Of course, after hearing all the critical acclaim and getting to see the pilot for free off of iTunes (you're losing far more than you know by quitting them, NBC), I was hooked and found my way into a show that explored small town life in a way that no other show was really doing. The show wasn't perfect. Only Zach Gilford, Jesse Plemons, and Aimee Teegarden looked like they could really be in high school and any plotlines involving the hot but horrid actress Minka Kelly usually ended in tears. But the show succeeded on so many unexpected levels. Kyle Chandler and Connie Britton gave tremendous performances both as a couple and as individuals. The relationship between Matt Saracen and Julie Taylor was heartwarming and thoughtful. And the football, which should have been the dullest part since we knew they would be going to State and thus would be winning, was absolutely captivating. But despite the show's strengths and critical acclaim, it ended up "on-the-bubble" and only received a repreive at the end of the season. This was a show that needed to step up its audience because critical acclaim and a small-but-devoted fanbase isn't enough to keep the network executioners at bay.

But judging from the first two episodes of the new season, FNL is playing like they not only breezed into a second year but already have a full-order for twenty-two episodes. While I admire the bravado, if they keep the tone of the season where it's at right now, they can start packing their things right now because it won't survive past mid-season.

It's not that season isn't dramatically rewarding, but it's just too brutal. Granted, a tried-and-true dramatic premise (especially in television) is to shake the status quo so that the characters have to work to restore it. The problem is that everything is broken right now in the world of Dillon. Characters we depended on for comic relief last season are practically on the verge of going into a warm bath and opening a few veins. And it's not that I don't appreciate giving these characters weightier material, but the show just isn't strong enough in viewership to open the season with that. If you're a new viewer to FNL and haven't watched any episodes from the first season, you won't understand the dramatic leaps in character from Buddy Garrity and especially in Landry Clarke. And the deterioration of those aforementioned great relationships will have zero effect on your emotions. And the characters that should now be bringing levity to the show, namely Smash and Riggins, aren't getting enough screentime. Oh, and there still hasn't been a game this season. The show isn't all about football but if you want to showcase the aspect of your show that requires no real previous knowledge about the characters, the football would be the card to play. The lack of levity and football makes me upset as fan of the show so I can imagine that if you're giving Friday Night Lights a first shot and you've watched the entire first two episodes without changing the channel, then you have far more perseverance and faith in this show than I'd expect from an non-fan. Or maybe you just don't have anything else to do on a Friday night. Although, in that case, the new season of FNL is probably just adding sadness to your life.

This season needs to break the habit. It needs to find hope and strength. You want to keep the Landry-Trya drama? Fine. You want to keep Buddy Garrity a depressed wreck? If you have to. You want Matt and Julie to find new relationships? I'm not crazy about it but let's give it a shot. But you can't keep Eric and Tami apart. It's the straw that breaks the camel's back. It's not being played well (Tami is seriously and understandably depressed and Eric isn't exactly living his dream down at TMU) and it's hurting the show.

I'm still a fan and I want this show to succeed but the showrunners need to get a better sense of their show's reception or pretty soon, their won't be a show to receive.