Another half-and-half episode, where one portion of it was entertaining and human, and the other half was corny and strained. Why don't we start with the good.
Julie and Matt are just the most adorable teenage couple to ever be on screen. The solace that Matt finds in Julie after his demotion to QB1 is very sweet, and on top of the pair's already great chemistry, it shows a more relaxed Matt who's frustrated by losing his shot, but also freed by not having that responsibility. And there's a nice balance to Matt and Julie consumating their relationship here. On their prior attempt, it was something Julie felt like she had to do in order to keep the big time quarterback. Here, it's something they both choose to do, because the moment feels right, without the distraction of football to make it feel like some sort of obligation. The scene where Julie comes home and looks at herself in the mirror, still glowing from the experience is a wonderful little moment of truth, that feels well-observed in the way you just buzz after something so wonderful.
The other quarterback, however, is not quite so lucky. It's as much a cliche as anything, but I like the idea of J.D.'s dad as an influence on the one hand, putting all the pressure taken off Matt's shoulders and more onto J.D., and keeping him from living the life of the average teenager, with Tim Riggins as an influence on the other, trying to let J.D. live a little, with Coach trying to keep a respectable distance but keenly aware of J.D. struggling with his Dad's demands. J.D. and Tim have a solid chumminess to them, and it's as likable as stray dog Tim Riggins gets. Something tells me that J.D. will crack at some point, requiring Matt to come back and lead the team to victory, but I appreciate the way the show is at least building to that story.
On to the less-than-great stuff. Just let Landry and Tyra get together already. I mean, really. The whole incident with Cash and his babymama and the money he gave that clearly came from drugs and the encouragement from bad influence Mom just feels like one giant red herring so that Tyra can, yet again, realize how great Landry is. The same goes for Landry, who's paired up with yet another semi-adorable, much more his speed love interest, who encourages him to get over Tyra for the good of the band, and whom he too will no doubt decide is great, but just not the girl for him. Why do we have to do this big song and dance with characters who are not as nuanced or interesting as the couple the show is straining to keep apart. I'm not a shipper--it'd be fine if they legitimately broke up and went their separate ways--but even if that's what was happening here (which I don't believe), these dull replacement love interests do not do the trick.
And of course, Jason Street's stupid plan to flip Buddy Garrity's house is blowing up in his face. Of course Billy Riggins can't handle being told what to do and Herc and Tim blow off work. It's hard to feel too much sympathy for Jason since this was such a dumb idea from the start. There's supposed to be pathos in him talking to his kid on the phone, trying to make a go of this, but Jason just makes bad decision after bad decision, and the actor isn't good enough to make him sympathetic in it. Coach backing him up is nice, but it's just more of the usual Jason Street crud that I wish would go away.
So that leads to a half-good/half-bad episode that evens out to being solidly middling.
Review by Andrew BloomVIP 9BlockedParent2016-07-27T02:12:19Z
Another half-and-half episode, where one portion of it was entertaining and human, and the other half was corny and strained. Why don't we start with the good.
Julie and Matt are just the most adorable teenage couple to ever be on screen. The solace that Matt finds in Julie after his demotion to QB1 is very sweet, and on top of the pair's already great chemistry, it shows a more relaxed Matt who's frustrated by losing his shot, but also freed by not having that responsibility. And there's a nice balance to Matt and Julie consumating their relationship here. On their prior attempt, it was something Julie felt like she had to do in order to keep the big time quarterback. Here, it's something they both choose to do, because the moment feels right, without the distraction of football to make it feel like some sort of obligation. The scene where Julie comes home and looks at herself in the mirror, still glowing from the experience is a wonderful little moment of truth, that feels well-observed in the way you just buzz after something so wonderful.
The other quarterback, however, is not quite so lucky. It's as much a cliche as anything, but I like the idea of J.D.'s dad as an influence on the one hand, putting all the pressure taken off Matt's shoulders and more onto J.D., and keeping him from living the life of the average teenager, with Tim Riggins as an influence on the other, trying to let J.D. live a little, with Coach trying to keep a respectable distance but keenly aware of J.D. struggling with his Dad's demands. J.D. and Tim have a solid chumminess to them, and it's as likable as stray dog Tim Riggins gets. Something tells me that J.D. will crack at some point, requiring Matt to come back and lead the team to victory, but I appreciate the way the show is at least building to that story.
On to the less-than-great stuff. Just let Landry and Tyra get together already. I mean, really. The whole incident with Cash and his babymama and the money he gave that clearly came from drugs and the encouragement from bad influence Mom just feels like one giant red herring so that Tyra can, yet again, realize how great Landry is. The same goes for Landry, who's paired up with yet another semi-adorable, much more his speed love interest, who encourages him to get over Tyra for the good of the band, and whom he too will no doubt decide is great, but just not the girl for him. Why do we have to do this big song and dance with characters who are not as nuanced or interesting as the couple the show is straining to keep apart. I'm not a shipper--it'd be fine if they legitimately broke up and went their separate ways--but even if that's what was happening here (which I don't believe), these dull replacement love interests do not do the trick.
And of course, Jason Street's stupid plan to flip Buddy Garrity's house is blowing up in his face. Of course Billy Riggins can't handle being told what to do and Herc and Tim blow off work. It's hard to feel too much sympathy for Jason since this was such a dumb idea from the start. There's supposed to be pathos in him talking to his kid on the phone, trying to make a go of this, but Jason just makes bad decision after bad decision, and the actor isn't good enough to make him sympathetic in it. Coach backing him up is nice, but it's just more of the usual Jason Street crud that I wish would go away.
So that leads to a half-good/half-bad episode that evens out to being solidly middling.