Alright everyone it’s here.  The Friday Night Lights season 4 finale.  This season certainly started off rough but it had a lot of greatness packed into it and it really went out on a high note.  Between last week‘s episode and this episode, it’s just some of the best TV around right now.  I cannot wait for the 5th and final season.  Let’s get started.

 

 

This episode starts off at a press conference being held basically to promote unity through the town for the big Panthers and Lions faceoff.  It’s being called “The Big Cat Clash”.

 

 

There’s even a trophy.  Anyway the coaches and captains are supposed to act like they get along so they do.  Meanwhile the Riggins brothers are far from being comic relief this week.

 

 

They meet with a lawyer who tells them that if they plead guilty he can get other charges like tax evasion dropped and they could wind up with 1-5 years.  This is pretty bad timing since Billy just had a child.

 

 

Julie drops by Matt’s Grams’ place to tell her she’d be willing to pick her up for Thanksgiving.  Apparently she’s coming over to their place.  But Grams’ has a surprise.  She says she doesn’t need a ride because Matt rented a car.

 

 

Before we even have a chance to register that line, bam, there he is in the doorway.  Awkward.  This is followed by a nice sequence in which we see Coach preparing himself to face the Panthers with a voice over of him making a speech, which we finally settle into.

 

 

It’s a typical Coach speech but it’s still moving.  Especially since it’s set in Carroll Park.

 

At East Dillon itself Landry gives Jess the new Crucifictorious demo which includes a song called “Jess’ Song”.  It’s at this moment that she chooses to tell him she has feelings for Vince.

 

 

It’s heartbreaking that Landry is just this all around good guy and he’s always getting shit on.  Obviously he’s not happy.  But he’s not the only one.

 

 

While doing some Thanksgiving shopping Matt tells Julie all about Chicago and how he bought her a ticket to come visit him.  She is super upset with him still for just leaving without saying anything.

 

At practice Landry confronts Vince about Jess.  There’s really nothing Vince can say.  It’s just the way things happened.

 

 

It’s time for Tami to read her apology, you know for doing the right thing and helping a girl in need.  She can’t go through with it though and says that she did the right thing and walks off.

 

 

Luke stops by Coach’s office to tell him he’s entertaining an offer of a scholarship from a private school.  This is pretty much bullshit just to try and get Coach to let him play.  Coach sees right through it and tells him he’s not playing.  If you hadn’t noticed Coach is not very happy with the world right now.

 

 

Matt visits his old friend Landry.  But you know how Julie is mad at him for just leaving?  Turns out he never said anything to Landry either.  He didn’t even call him from Chicago.  Landry yells at him then slams the door in his face.

 

 

Coach has the Lions do a Thanksgiving practice.  He needs to win this game.  After the practice Vince tells him that he sees how much he really needs to win and beat the Panthers but he’s not sure he’s the man that’s going to be able to do it for him.  Coach says he is confident in him.

 

 

It’s Thanksgiving dinner time at the Taylor household and it’s a full house.  The Riggins, the Collette’s, the Saracen’s, and Buddy Garrity are all in attendance.  Tami is a little upset because Buddy brought a deep fryer and his own turkey to deep fry.  No one is really happy because they’re all going through serious stuff.  Billy makes a toast to everyone but especially Tim who he says he loves.

 

 

Vince is having BBQ from Virgil’s place at the rehab center with his mom for Thanksgiving dinner.  Jess stops by with some pie and things are sort of happy in this little world.

 

 

That night Tim stops by Becky’s and tells her he considers her a part of his family and no matter what she can always turn to the rest of his family even if he’s not there.  He gives her his mother’s snowglobe for safe keeping and tells her eventually he’ll be back for it.

 

 

Meanwhile the Taylors can’t sleep.  Tami is worried about getting fired and Eric is concerned about the game.  Speaking of which, it’s game time.

 

 

All season the show has been pretty light on the football, but this is a big crux of the season.  There’s a lot more than a game on the line.  This is about what the Lions have been building towards in every respect and about revenge for the Panther’s destroying their field, for the McCoy’s getting Eric fired, and so much more.  So this is an important game.

 

It’s a pretty back and forth game.  Both teams want this victory.  The Panthers are doing good but the Lions are keeping up.  Tinker manages to score and Vince is doing great.  The one real bad part is when Landry misses a field goal.  Coach avoids field goals from that point forward.

 

In the second half Coach decides he’s going to put Luke in.  Pretty much just to really ream the Panthers.

 

 

The Lions run crazy on J.D. and things are going well but Luke takes a hard hit and Coach takes him out again.  Time is now running out and The Lions are still just a few points behind.  So Coach calls Landry in for a 45 yard field goal.  Landry tells him he can’t do that.  Coach responds by telling him he’s spent 3 years making him a football player exactly for a moment like this and he wouldn’t have invested his time and energy if he didn’t think he could do it.  I’ll let the next few moments be spoken entirely with pictures.

 

 

Tell me that doesn’t warm your heart.  This whole game sequence is so well done.  And the end had me screaming along with the crowd on the screen.  Because this is Friday Night Lights you really didn’t know what was going to be the outcome.  The good guys don’t always win here.  But not only do the Lions win, but it’s Landry who does it, it’s just icing on the cake.

 

 

The celebration is short lived however as now it’s time to learn Tami’s fate.  They want to put her on administrative leave, which is essentially firing her.  Her lawyer says they’re going to sue and the superintendent says it’ll cost hundreds of thousands of dollars to the district just for court costs.  Tami says she won’t sue.  She just wants to help the kids, which has been her goal from the start.  So she proposes stepping down as Dillon High’s principal and becoming East Dillon’s guidance councilor.  Everyone agrees.

 

 

Matt takes Julie out to the lake where he deflowered her and they have a talk.  She says she won’t go with him to Chicago because she knows she’ll just fall in love and want to stay and she’ll never wind up pursuing her own dreams.  She says she needs to find her own Chicago.  This is the end of Matt and Julie.

 

 

Tim watches Billy playing with his kid and knows what he has to do.  He tells Billy that he’s going to tell the cops that the whole thing was all him and Billy never knew anything about it.  They only have proof for Tim anyway.  Tim’s story ends this season with him surrendering to the police station.  When will we see him again?  Will we see him again?

 

 

Tami arrives home to find her family putting up Christmas lights.  Everything in their world is alright for now and we leave on a good moment for the Taylor family.

 

Matt visits Landry once again and the two make up.  Landry asks what Matt is going to do with that ticket he bought for Julie.

 

 

The episode ends with Landry flying to Chicago with Matt.  It has been a great season.  I can’t wait for the final 13 episodes of this fantastic show.  Be sure to catch these episodes as they air on NBC starting in April.