As our Dillon family leaves us, old friends return, in the form of Matt Saracen, Tyra Collette, and recently paroled Tim Riggins. And while Tyra and Riggins seem to be around for nostalgic purposes (at least in these clips), ol’ Matty has a job to do.

That’s Mr. Matt Saracen, down on one knee at the Alamo Freeze with his grandmother’s ring, proposing marriage to Julie Taylor, who until very recently was a wayward college freshman having inappropriate relations with her TA. “Oh my God, my dad must have flipped,” she says after accepting, admiring her new bling. There’s some confusion, and Matt admits he kinda just went for it–he didn’t actually ask Coach Taylor for his daughter’s hand.

Oops.

So Julie instructs him to backtrack and request her dad’s blessing–without telling him the proposal’s already been done.

Heretofore, I thought Jack Bristow held the record for Scariest Dad From Whom to Request His Daughter’s Hand in Marriage.

And, heretofore, I may have been right. But then I saw this scene:

“The answer to your question is no. The answer to your question is gonna be no today. It’s gonna be no tomorrow. And it’ll probably be no until the sun burns out. Is that clear?”

Did you hear that? UNTIL THE SUN BURNS OUT. Here’s the thing. I understand that Matt and Julie are young. But putting aside her transgressions with a married grad student and his dalliances with Carlotta the Live-In Nurse, those two have pretty much been together for five years. (Oh, except for that whole situation with The Swede. Remember him? Me neither.)

So while I can understand Coach being concerned that they are too young, I think “until the sun burns out” is a little harsh. I mean, this is Matt! This is exactly the kind of boy you want your daughter to bring home! He’s never been to jail (Riggins). He’s never killed anyone (Landry). You’ve never had to break his headlights with your plumbing tools (Derek the TA). He respects girls, and doesn’t comment on your alien-looking baby, and he loves his grandmother–I mean, holy crap, Coach Taylor’s standards are higher than mine. Unless in the episodes between now and the finale, Matt goes on a drug-fueled rampage that takes out both East and West Dillon, I really don’t understand the problem.

It’s Matt–you gotta lock that down. Lock it down, Julie Taylor. Lock. It. Down.

With only four (four!) episodes of Friday Night Lights left EVER, it’s time to tie up loose ends and get ready for the end.

As if I could ever be ready.

As I see it, there are a handful of major storylines that need to be tied up before the finale. Some plot points, like Mindy Riggins’s unexpected pregnancy #2, probably won’t be seen to their conclusions, and that’s okay, even if I’m broken-hearted we won’t find out what Steven Hannibal Riggins’s parents name his baby sibling.

So here’s what we can realistically look at for the last four episodes:

Resolution for Matt and/or Julie. We know Matt is in the last two episodes, but don’t yet know the circumstances that bring him back to Dillon. Given his promise to Julie this week that they would figure things out, there’s hope that he’s there to sort through things with her—and to pop in on his grandma, whom we haven’t seen since the season premiere. One rumor that scares the pants off me is that one of the characters will be enlisting in the military by season’s end. My biggest fear in season four was that Matt would enlist in the wake of his father’s death, and I’m still somewhat nervous that he’ll ship out. That said, after this week’s episode, it seems more likely that his love story with Julie Taylor isn’t over, and could possibly have a happy ending.

No matter what, the show needs to put Julie Taylor back on the right track. She’s done plenty of lying, school-skipping, and general sluttery this season—get her back in college, please.

Tim Riggins’s Post-Prison Plans. The promo indicates that beloved mess Tim Riggins is up for parole next week, provided he can get a good character witness to show up. (It’s not even hinted at in the promo, but I have to believe that Eric Taylor, basically the best character witness you could ever get, will suit up for a court appearance, dazzle the judge, and turn me into a big weepy mess.) But post-prison, what will Riggins do? Sure doesn’t seem like he’s going to want to buddy up with Billy again, considering it was his brother’s dumb idea that landed ol’ Timmy in the clink. The good news is that Formerly Trashy Tyra is returning, complete with Lone Star-style brown hair, and will hopefully be able to set Riggins straight.

Coach and Mrs. Coach’s Need for a Pool. Wednesday’s episode—and the promo for next week—suggest that the Taylors may be ready to get out of Dillon for good. Lately, neither of them is feeling particularly effective at work, what with the Lions’s bad collective attitude and mojo, the general doom and gloom around East Dillon, and the on-the-job concussions. Coach is getting job offers (thanks, Jason Street!) from colleges, and Tami’s about ready for a fresh start—the timing could be right.

I don’t know why I care that the Taylors stay in Dillon. It’s not like I have to keep watching a Taylor-less Friday Night Lights. And if they’re getting better opportunities, then they should realistically go and be happy somewhere else. But a Dillon without the Taylors is not a place I want to think about, so I think I—not to mention Buddy Garrity—would be pretty sad if they end up leaving Texas.

The returning crew of former players and students (which also includes exonerated murderer Landry) will surely play a role in this decision. If the Taylors leave, who’s going to get the Tyras off the path toward the Landing Strip and onto the path toward the University of Texas? Who’s going to be around when the Riggins brothers need character witnesses? Who’s going to help all those East Dillon students when they need advice or a place to sleep or an abortion?

Eric and Tami may not need Dillon, but Dillon needs them HARD.

Hope for Vince and Luke. Luke will hopefully be headed to college—will he get a good offer? The Caffertys can’t afford to send Luke without a scholarship, so let’s hope this late-season QBing will help earn him a spot at a good school. As for Vince, I just hope he gets out from under his father’s thumb, listens to Coach Taylor, and gets back on track to being a good guy. For his sake, I hope the Taylors stay, because he needs that “clear eyes, full hearts” guidance more than a kick in the face. And he could REALLY use a kick in the face lately.

Sneak peeks for the season premiere of Friday Night Lights are out, and as if they didn’t already know they’d make me cry, this damn show had to bring Girl Scouts into the conversation. See, I’ve been a Girl Scout since I was seven years old. I’ve been a troop leader, I worked at national headquarters, and I sold more cookies than any other twelfth-grader in the Metro Atlanta area. I am a serious Girl Scout.

So, yeah, you bring Julie Taylor’s childhood as a Junior Girl Scout into my life and you’re going to get me all emotional.

Damn you, Jason Katims. Damn. You.

The rest of the sneaks can be seen here.

What’s strange about DirecTV’s promotion of Friday Night Lights is how un-FNL it always is. I mean, look how done-up and sexy they all are! In the history of the show, the dressiest they’ve all been is at Mindy and Billy Riggins’s wedding, and that involved white suits, white cowboy hats, and BUTTERFLY WINGS ON A WEDDING DRESS.

This has me intrigued because of the involvement of known skank Becky Sproles; although she precipitated Connie Britton’s strongest story arc last season (Mrs. Coach counsels Becky on choice), she is also incredibly annoying. It’s also strange to now realize just how much the cast has changed–four of the seven people in that promo were introduced just last season. Several key players from seasons past will be stopping by to make appearances, tie up loose ends, and hopefully get back together with Julie Taylor, so it won’t be a total East Dillon-fest this year. Although with both elder Taylors working over there and those damn McCoys still working their evil at Dillon High, I’m more than okay with another season focusing on Luke, Vince, and Michelle Tanner’s sassy black friend, Jess.

The fifth and final season of Friday Night Lights premieres October 27, and this will not be the last announcement of that fact.

Suck it, Bryan Cranston. Your show is ineligible in 2011, anyway.

Now, I love interviews with Kyle Chandler because they make you realize that, as much as he brings of himself to Eric Taylor, he’s probably way more fun to hang out with. Because he talks candidly and hilariously about Tami Taylor’s drinking problem, Julie Taylor’s slutty behavior, and making fun of the kids on the show. Also, he uses the F word! WHO KNEW!

So, damn you, Diablo Cody, for getting to hang out with Kyle Chandler, who is way more awesome than Jon Hamm, despite what some people might say. Also, why do you have Panthers shirts, when everyone who’s anyone has switched to Lions gear? Headshake. Eyeroll.

In all seriousness, Diablo Cody’s web series, Red Band Trailer, is awesome. She’s a fan, it shows, and that’s a seriously underrated quality in someone with a web series interviewing cool famous people.

Although Riggins has romanticized Dillon–he currently has his eyes and heart set on a big piece of land on the outskirts of town–his choices lately haven’t been so great, and there is growing concern over what this could mean for his departure, which will happen at the end of this season, with the possibility for recurring status next year.  TV Guide Magazine says it best:

He has joined his brother in an illegal chop shop endeavor to raise extra cash to buy land. He has also entered into a romance with an under-aged girl. Either one of these scenarios could conceivably land Tim in jail, possibly taking the fall for his older brother, Billy, who is about to become a first time father. But [showrunner Jason] Katims resisted commenting on the possibility of sending Riggins to the slammer, saying instead, ‘You’ll just have to watch.’

Considering all of these factors, it sure sounds like the chop shop project will have serious fallout, unlike the infamous copper wire incident of season three.  This could potentially mean jail time or necessitate Riggins skipping town for a while.  Personally, I think it would be good for him to get away from his no-good brother and especially from that hussy Becky.

remember when it was as easy as flag football? // nbc promotional photo

As if having Sawyer’s babymama for a mother isn’t bad enough.

As the minutes waned on last week’s gutwrenching episode of Friday Night Lights, I grew more and more scared for the future of Matt Saracen.  And although my worst fears were not realized by the time the hour was over, I have a lingering feeling I know what’s going to happen to Matt–and it leaves me uneasy both for Matt and for Julie Taylor.

(Note: I’m spoiler-free for FNL, so this is all just speculation.)

Fact: Matt’s having a pretty bad time in Dillon right now, feeling useless delivering pizzas.

Fact: Last week, after Matt’s dad died in Iraq, the Army officer who brought the establishment’s condolences to the Saracens was conveniently introduced as a recruiter.

Fact: Zach Gilford is leaving the show soon, whether I like it or not.

Speculation: Matt Saracen is about to enlist in the United States Army.

For starters, why tell the dead Army dad story so close to his departure if the two aren’t related?  Second, this is definitely an appropriate (if heartbreaking) decision for Matt to make.  He wants to get out of Dillon so badly, but he feels stuck there with all of the women in his life.  And this is a story that the show has yet to tell, one that is common in communities around the country.  It seems perfectly legitimate for the show to write Matt out for a while by sending him on a tour of duty.  (Topical, too, considering the recently announced Afghanistan surge.)  And unlike other military characters (I’m thinking specifically about Gallant on ER), I know that FNL isn’t doing this just because it’s political (screw you, John Wells) or just because it stirs up ridic angsty drama (screw you, John Wells), but rather because it’s real.  As much as I want to keep Matt safe and happy in Dillon forever, taking care of his grandma and having dinner with the Taylors, this is an important story to tell, too.

But it breaks my heart for Julie Taylor.

I’ve watched a lot of television in my day, but I’ve never been as consistently moved by a series as I am by FNL.  Watching the new Lions play, I was trying to figure out the whole time whether they were going to pull it together and find a miracle or crash and burn like they were expected to.

I’m so looking forward to so many big moments that are sure to come this season–the first time the Lions really play like a team, the first time they really earn Coach’s respect, and, of course, the first time they kick some McCoy ass on the field.

Also, I just adore Matt Saracen.

Here’s a video of Peter Berg on directing the season premiere.  (He still really freaks me out ever since he played Sydney Bristow’s double-crossing boyfriend, Noah, on Alias.)

i appreciate that large bottle of alcohol // nbc promotional photo

Yesterday, E! Online’s Watch with Kristin posted an interview with show runner Jason Katims (he of Lauren Graham courting) about the future of Friday Night Lights.  Of course, the headline was “Friday Night Lights Boss Spills About Tension Between Tami and Eric Taylor in Season Four,” which led me to believe that the Best Couple Ever, Coach and Mrs. Coach, was headed toward a serious rough patch.  More after the jump.

But here’s what Katims said, in reference to Coach Taylor moving to East Dillon while Tami remains the West Dillon principal:

The split definitely creates some tense moments between them. The thing that I love so much about Coach and Tami, as they’ve been realized by Kyle and Connie, is what a beautiful relationship they have and how well they overcome obstacles. What’s fun for us as writers is try to throw as many things at them to watch them emerge with their marriage intact. We try to find new things to throw at them. We knew Coach was moving to this new school, so we decided to keep Tami at West Dillon and to have that be a story point throughout the season for these two people who are in these two very different worlds now and at certain times those worlds very directly collide.

Definitely not breaking up material.  In fact, the quote contains the phrase, “how well they overcome obstacles.”  These two are an excellent example of a television couples whose fidelity to each other is unquestioned, whose love for each other is unquestioned, whose commitment to each other is unquestioned–and yet who still face very real, interesting, good-TV challenges.  The difference between them and the typical television romance is that they face these challenges together, whether it’s an unexpected baby daughter, painful layoffs, or the terror of raising Julie Taylor.  It’ll be interesting to watch them at professional odds for a while–because unlike some of their counterparts, we know they’ll never really be in trouble at home.