'Friday Night' Kicks Off With A Great Formation -Tom Shales- washingtonpost.com:
The series could well mark a milestone in the television career of Peter Berg, who directed the motion picture and is the chief creative force behind the series. On the basis of the craftsmanship and showmanship evident in the first two episodes (tonight's premiere is basically a remake of the film), Berg could be the next TV 'auteur' in the tradition of Steven Bochco, Aaron Sorkin, David E. Kelley and others in a select and prestigious group.
An actor himself, Berg lets the brilliant young talents in the cast shine as brightly as they can, especially Zach Gilford as Matt Saracen, who starts the season not knowing that greatness is going to be thrust upon him (whether he likes it or not), and Minka Kelly as Lyla Garrity, the girlfriend of the star quarterback in whose footsteps Saracen may have to follow.
Each of the first two episodes -- and presumably subsequent installments -- is structured around a week in the life of the city, with Friday night the looming climax. About a quarter of the pilot is given over to the actual game, but in the second episode -- well, you'll have to see it to find out. The crescendo in that episode is actually reached on Thursday night: an incredible scene between Chandler and Gilford, alone together on the field in the dark of night, with the coach telling the kid, "It's yours for the taking," but it all "depends on how much you want it."It's hard to recall a more powerful confrontation in a piece of episodic television, at least so far this century. Chandler and Gilford are electrifying.
"Friday Night Lights" shows every sign of being the best new drama series of the season... wow, huh.
big praise fr WashingtonPost and the NyTimes (above). I like this rvw by Shales better than the NYtimes one by VirginiaHeffernan (of the Screens blog, read re lonelygirl)