This week is very much about the continuing fallout of last week’s revelations about Lyla and Tim’s affair, Smash’s steroid acquisition, and Julie accepting Matt’s date offer. There’s a lot going on, but first let me answer Sarah’s very important query on if my feelings about Riggins have changed — at this point, slightly. (I will confess I am quite a few weeks ahead in my personal rewatch of the show, so there are some things coming up that have softened me to him more than where he is in this episode.) I’m happy we’re seeing some remorse from him, because it shows that he can grow and change, and while I can hold a grudge like nobody’s business I do value a good redemption arc!
Get a beverage ready for our drinking game, because Buddy is being quite the Bud-hole today.
The Official FYA Friday Night Lights Season 1 Drinking Game
Drink once every time:
You want to give Matt Saracen a hug
Tami Taylor drinks a glass of white wine
Tami Taylor says “y’all”
Landry Clarke goes off on a tangent
You’re Team Tyra Collette
Buddy Garrity makes you roll your eyes
You think, “It’s JUST football, people.”
The quick camera cuts make you reach for the Dramamine
Drink twice every time:
The Panthers score a touchdown
Tim Riggins makes poor choices
There’s a classic Coach Taylor pep talk
Grandma Saracen says something sassy
Take a shot every time you hear:
“Clear eyes, full hearts, can’t lose!”
“Texas Forever.”
Finish your drink when:
Hands slap the Panther “P”
Jason’s incident happens
Book club admits they don’t read the book
On to the episode!
1.09 “Full Hearts”
It’s Matt and Julie’s first date, and Landry gives Matt the worst dating AND fashion advice—“She wants the myth, not the man”, as if they haven’t watched her avoid ALL the football players up until now—but before Matt can royally screw it up, Landry calls in a panic while watching Grandma Saracen. Seeing Matt gently help his grandma prompted Julie to tell Tami the next day that this was the first time she saw “the real Matt”, and she seems intrigued.
Smash is still feeling the flames of Hell licking at his feet as they talk about keeping secrets in this week’s church sermon, but he’s still determined to take the steroids, even though he gets shortness of breath during a workout and has to see a doctor. A DOCTOR, SMASH.
The bigger story for Smash this week, though, is learning his deceased dad wasn’t exactly a stand-up guy. He can’t understand why his mama moved them out of Gatling after he died to the much whiter Dillon and never seems to want to discuss her former husband. When Smash overhears her saying that sometimes she’s happy he’s dead (like—read the room, Mama Smash! Look around before you gossip!), she finally reveals to him that his father wasn’t driving home late alone the night he was hit by a drunk driver, and he certainly wasn’t coming back from work. It’s hard for Smash to hear, as he idolized his father; we even learn his dad gave him his nickname after he crashed his bike into the water heater. He goes to his father’s grave and cries, and I think we all know it’s about more than just his dad at this point.
The shit has hitteth the fanneth with the Jason Lyla Riggins triangle, and NO one is having a good time. Jason throws away all of Lyla’s pictures and coldly asks her how many times she had sex with Tim as she sobs (even I felt bad for her). At school, the rumors are flying, and Lyla is scorned for being the chick who cheated on everyone’s paralyzed football hero. She’s so depressed all episode that even clueless Buddy knows something is wrong. A furious Tyra yells at Riggins, “ANYONE but HER.” and eventually shows up at Jason’s room with a bottle of alcohol as they commiserate about being wronged, and it’s cute. The football team, sans Matt, decides to take vigilante justice into their own hands and wreck Riggins’ truck, but all is forgiven on Friday when he helps Smash score the final points against Gatling and win the game.
How many times do I have to take a drink?
19 (I blame Buddy and Landry for this!)
Did the Panthers win?
Yep! They beat the Gatling Eagles and got back into Dillon’s good graces.
MVP of the Week
Tami Taylor. The mayor strong-arms her into going to a tension-filled meeting with the Gatling football committee to play peacekeeper opposite Buddy Garrity’s “I’m not a racist!” assholery about the “roach motel” Gatling was going to host them in. Of course she navigated the situation with grace and aplomb, and everyone left happy.
Tami was also a Cool Mom handling Julie’s first date and post-date breakdown, even if she didn’t let Julie wear the heels (who wants to wear heels to the movies anyway, Julie??).
Funniest Play of the Week
The evolution of Landry’s terrible fashion advice leading to Coach’s withering stare and commentary on Matt’s jacket—going so far as to make him take it off—had me rolling. I also loved Coach Taylor’s sarcastic offer of a beer: You could hear the literal panic in Matt’s silence as he struggled to figure out the best response. By the next day, Matt thankfully realized he should NOT be listening to Landry on this particular topic.
Saddest Play of the Week
Matt having to pretend to be his dead grandfather and sing Grandma Saracen out of the closet after she freaked out being alone in the house with Landry. It’s more than a teenager should have to deal with alone, but I also want to hug him (drink!) for being so amazingly sweet and gentle with her.
Best Non-Taylor Couple Moment
Matt plants one on Julie during the high of the win—this must be her first kiss, and maybe his too?!?—and she kinda runs away in shock, so it’s cute and then awkward, but what makes it for me is Tami’s “WELP, that just happened—Did my husband see? He is going to murder this boy.” reaction to watching it. I’m dead.
Tim Riggins’ Finest Moment
The chickens were coming home to roost for Riggins this episode, so once again there weren’t a lot of fiiione moments for me to choose from. While I don’t condone the violence and vandalizing, I did understand why he just sat there and let the football team smash up his car on Jason’s behalf, as he feels horrible and thinks he should be “punished” for his betrayal.
The Taylor Advice of the Week
Buddy asks Tami for advice on how to approach Lyla, which Tami obvs knows about since she found Lyla sobbing last episode. She simply tells him to be supportive no matter what. The only redeemable thing about bumbling idiot Buddy Garrity is that he genuinely loves his kids, and this leads to him chasing after Lyla during the game when some shitty girls on the sidelines taunt her about Riggins. Lyla tells Buddy she lost Jason because she was unfaithful, and he hugs her, telling her everyone makes mistakes. It’s the exact right thing for him to say.
Post-Game Breakdown:
This was a meaty episode! I’m glad the secret affair is now out in the open so we can move on to the next phase of all of this, because everyone was miserable and I can’t handle much more of Lyla’s guilt-praying (she’ll just never be my favorite character). And I know war is like, war and all, but someone needs to explain to Papa Saracen how dire things at home are getting and get him discharged A-SAP.
Ponder the meaning of next week’s episode title, “It’s Different for Girls” while Mandy W. answers my question: My mind WENT THERE during that drunken commiseration, so Tyra and Jason as a couple – smash or pass?
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For me: pass. They’re both hot as hell, but they also both just need a friend rn!
You are absolutely right, this episode was MEATY!!! And you nailed all of the best parts, Stephanie (impressive gif usage, esp. that Members Only moment and Tammy’s face after that kiss, lolzzzzz).
– I honestly do love that scene between Buddy and Lyla; it’s good to see him as a real human with a heart versus a cartoonish buffoon (even though he still is a buffoon).
– Austin shout-out: Landry and Matt go shopping in the old Salvation Army in the Lamar plaza (which was eventually replaced with the first iteration of the Highball), and then Julie and Matt attempt to go to the movies in the same plaza at the Alamo Drafthouse South Lamar!
– I would definitely pass on Tyra and Jason though I adore their commiseration together.
– Haha, thank ya, thank ya. This episode was definitely gif-able!
– Aah, that’s so cool to see places you know well on TV!! For as “popular” as Orlando is, it’s rarely ever featured in much media (or, like Fresh Off The Boat, it was set in the ’90s when I did not live here, lol).
– I don’t necessarily want Jason and Tyra together either, but as two hot people I wouldn’t blame them if they had a one-night, no-strings-attached we-both-hate-our-exes good time, lol.
I’m also a pass on Tyra and Street, but that was a good moment between them.
I did like the kiss between Matt and Julie, it was cute. And Tami’s facial reaction was great, as you noted.
I feel like as a teen I would’ve been deeply mortified if my first kiss was in front of my MOTHER (and a football stadium of people). No wonder she ran away, haha!