State

Mark here...Laurel and I have just watched the season one finale of Friday Night Lights, called "State."  Laurel made us some Texas-appropriate Armadillo eggs, king ranch casserole and steamed artichokes, all of which were delicious!

This episode was great, a really nice cap off to the season.  The premise is that the Panthers are playing the state playoffs.  At the same time, Coach Taylor has accepted a job in Austin next year, which is understandably disheartening to the team.  Saracen takes it pretty hard considering his father-figure is abandoning him and taking his girlfriend. Tami has decided to stay in Dillon with Julie but they haven't told Julie yet. Also, Tami finds out she's pregnant and Coach's reaction is great. At first you are afraid he will have a negative reaction, but his response is pitch perfect.  I attribute it to great actors but also great writing.

Separately Lyla and Tyra have a blow out and come to realize they are not so different.  It's nice to see their relationship grow beyond catfight territory.  While that's fine for 90210, here it's more entertaining to see the characters grow beyond just hating each other. Landry is still carrying a torch for Tyra that kind of blows up on him in a funny way.  He thinks he and Tyra will have a private drive to state when Tyra asks him to come because she has tickets.  Unfortunately, her mom and sister show up and then Saracen's grandmother...leading to a very girl-centric trip that's nothing like he imagined.

I'll let Laurel go into the rest, but all in all a very good episode that triggered emotions in the best way!

Totally, Mark is right.  Spoiler alert...Panthers win state!  So the cliff hangers for season 2 are...Panthers win state, what's gonna happen next year?  The episode ends with Jason Street giving the guys a talk about how football is a 365 a year job, so they can enjoy the day but the next day they are back to work.  Are they setting us up for Jason being the new head coach next year?!?

The next cliffhanger is Tami is fucking pregnant!!!  The last talk we see her and Coach Taylor having, Eric is ready to give up his dreams to stay in Dillon to tend to his new family.  You would think that Tami would be ecstatic about this but she is like fuck no, you need to follow your dreams in Austin and I need to follow mine in Dillon!  I'm dying to know what happens because I don't remember...

The others are less cliffhangery and just interesting to think about...will Lyla and Tyra become friends? Will Lyla make up with her dad?  Will smash transfer to another school to get more visibility?  Will Landry and Tyra actually against all odds start dating?  Will Matt and Julie stay together?  I can't wait to find out!

Best Laid Plans

Hi Laurel here...So this episode there is so much fighting!

First the Taylor's are fighting because Eric accepted a job at TMU in Austin, but neither Julie or Tami wants to go until Juli graduates.  Eric is saying no way but as we've seen Tami is not one to be steamrolled.

Tyra and Landry are fighting because Landry told Tami about Tyra's assault.  I sympathize with Tyra about wanting to keep it a secret, but I think Landry did the right thing.  Tyra clearly needed help and Tami was exactly the right person to tell.  She made her go to the police which Tyra was sort of humiliated by but of course it's totally the right thing.

Lyla's parents have been unable to reconcile and are getting a divorce.  Jason and Lyla continue to be distant, which comes to a head at the end of the episode, I'll let Mark tell you about that...

Mark here...I agree with everything Laurel said.  All the fighting, for me, contributed to a feeling of tension that built until the end of the episode.  The big roast dinner had so many tense relationships!  The Taylors upset with each other about Eric's new job, Tyra and Landry, Jason and Lyla, Lyla and Buddy (who she's still not forgiven, and now her parents are getting divorced), and a few more I may be missing.

The part between Lyla and  has to do with Jason making a "date" with the blonde tattoo artist from a few episodes back.  She's in town and Jason runs into her and makes plans without telling Lyla.  This ends up with Jason and the blonde kissing and totally getting caught by Lyla.  By the end of the episode, she's had enough and tells Jason not to come by her house again.

Tyra and Landry also make up by the end and though I like both characters, I hope they aren't trying to set up some kind of beauty and the geek storyline.  It just doesn't work for me that she'd date someone who's clearly emotionally younger.  I think she'd definitely be flattered and maybe a few years later...I don't know, we'll see what happens...

The last plotline to note was with Smash and his girlfriend, who lets him know he can have a "hiatus" period during the Roast Dinner, which she has decided not to go to.  Fortunately, he doesn't do anything, but the idea is weird and makes me think she's still unstable.

Mud Bowl

Mark here... Laurel and I just watched the next episode of Friday Night Lights, called "Mud Bowl".  Laurel made us a delicious Lasagna with a side of garlic bread and I made us a caesar salad to accompany it.

This episode was a bit slow to start with, picking up some of what's been going on.  To start with, there's an accident or fuel explosion near the field so the coach is forced to find a different location for the team to play the next game.  They chose a nearby cow field to play on and it ends up raining the night of the game, which is where the title of the episode, Mud Bowl, comes from.  Smash is still dealing with his bipolar girlfriend, who has struck up a friendship with Lyla Garrity.  So far not a lot comes from this except his girlfriend is upset when Smash discloses her condition to Lyla.

Landry convinces Tyra to let him tutor her and promptly misreads their relationship.  Then unexpectedly at the end of the episode, he is late in meeting her and she is assaulted by a guy in the diner parking lot.  She manages to fight him off just before Landry shows up and turns to him for support.  It will be interesting to see how this plays out and if Landry further misinterprets things.  Clearly Tyra is shocked and in need of a friend.

Tim Riggins has also continued his relationship with his older neighbor and it still feels like this won't end well...

Laurel here...I just wanted to elaborate on Tyra a little...she fights off her attacker in the most bad ass way!  He pushes her into HER truck to try and rape her, she pushes in the cigarette lighter and he doesn't notice during the struggle.  then she BURNS HIM IN THE FACE!!!  so awesome.  It gives her enough time to get out of the cab, when he tries to follow her out she slams his wrist in the door repeatedly.  such a bad ass.  Hopefully she will see it that way and not see herself as a victim.

Also Lyla is so awesome this episode.  Jason is feeling sorry for himself about not making the rugby team, and bummed about the lawsuit with the Taylors.  He ends up kind of taking it out on her, not returning her phonecalls and being super mean to her when she comes over to check in.  She throws a glass of water in his face and basically tells him to quit being a fucking baby and do something about it.  At the next law suit meeting he steps up and puts an end to it by making a compromise deal that both sides can live with.  Which seems to resolve things in a way where the Taylor's are off the hook financially.

Also Jason works a lot with Matt Seracen on his QB skills to help him get ready for the big game, and Matt kills it.  Panthers are going to state!  At the very end of the episode Coach Taylor asks Jason if he has ever thought about coaching...is there a job in Jason's near future?  I hope so, I know I am sick of seeing him mope around.

Ch-Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes

Mark here... we have just watched the next episode of Friday Night Lights, called, "Ch-Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes" (boy that's a pain in the ass to type!)...Laurel has made us meatball subs with a kale salad, perfect for the heat we're experiencing right now!  This episode is more a continuation of the last few episodes, in a good way.  Tami has followed through with her desire to help Tyra succeed with school and move on to better things.  Unfortunately this involves reaching out to Tyra's mom, who is so self absorbed she can't deal with the revelation that her daughter may be destined for better things.  She immediately freaks out.  For one she doesn't think they can afford college for Tyra, but the subtext is that she's afraid Tyra will leave her Tyra who has been her rock to depend on.  She finally comes around at the end of the episode but even this is all about the mom.  She chooses to bring Tyra to a father-daughter dance as a way of supporting her.  Meanwhile, Tyra isn't missing a dad, the mom is!

Separately, we see Lyla's family is breaking down.  Buddy attempts to bond with Lyla to bring the family back together, claiming he screwed up once.  Lyla, reflecting on her own one time screw up with Jason, naturally supports her dad.  So when he shows up at her moms door she defends him, leading the mom to bring up past indiscretions by Buddy.  Lyla loses it at this point, telling her dad to go.  She put her faith in him and saw it to be a lie.  Next we see her crashing cars at Buddy's dealership!

The only bad storyline is the continuation of Tim Riggins with the next door neighbor.  I have to say this is the first storyline where the writers of the show have let me down!  The neighbor is of course this sexy 30-something who looks 20-something.  Of course Tim wants to hook up with her, but their interactions are ridiculous.  He's clearly the adult and the writing of their interactions is not realistic, given that he's a teenager.

One good thing about the episode is Smash, Tim, Jason, and Matt getting drunk one night on the field.  I think this is the first time we've seen the 4 of them interacting just with each other and it's a nice scene.

Hi Laurel here...again I agree with Mark on all counts.  The one other story line of this episode is that Coach Taylor gets a job offer from a college in Austin.  It has always been his goal to coach a college team, so of course him and Tami are both on board with moving, but Juli has established roots in Dillon so for her it's a different story.  She has built a life for herself in Dillon including an awesome boyfriend so of course she doesn't want to leave.  At first neither coach or Tami anticipated her objections but by the end of the episode they both get it and it seems they are trying to include her input in the decision whether to stay or go.

The other revelation of this episode is that Jason gets rejected from the Paralympic murderball team, and is devastated.  The girl in Austin who has a crush on him is of course there to comfort him.  She offers him a ride back to Dillon because she has to drop off a fridge for an aunt or whatever near there, and they end up kissing at "stone henge 2"  some kind of stone henge roadside attraction.  He insists to Lyla that "nothing happened", but clearly something in brewing here...

Extended Families

Mark here... Laurel and I have just watched the next episode of Friday Night Lights, "Extended Families".  This was a really good episode.  First of all we deal with the fall out from last episode.  Buddy Garrity fights with his wife and ends up being kicked out.  Where does he end up?  The Taylors!  Tami is none too pleased with Buddy on the couch and neither is Julie.  Next thing we see Tami making Buddy pork chops.  She is pissed about this and Coach Taylor is a bit dumbfounded as to what to do.  At the same time, Coach receives a dinner offer from TMU, a college.  Thinking this may mean a job offer the Taylors take them up on the offer.  This leaves Buddy home alone with Julie, who is not happy about it.  Tami tells her to get over it in a funny moment.  Julie ends up at a party at Tyra's...  Buddy discovers where the Taylors are and, having no boundaries, sees no problem giving the Coach hell about it later.  Coach tells him he should be thinking about his family, not football.  What we see though is that Buddy can't stop thinking about football, it's really the only constant in his life.  He's also oblivious to what's going on in his family, or to the fact that he's imposing on the Taylors.

Meanwhile, at Tyra's, her mom is not handling the break up with Buddy well.  We're see she's taking too many pills.  In the middle of the party she emerges from her room to collapse on a glass table, leading to an ambulance.  Julie of course has to call her parents at their dinner.  Tami rushes to the hospital and takes Tyra and her mom home.  This lead to a bit of a revelation.  Tami has banned Julie from hanging out with Tyra because she's supposedly a "Bad girl".  Seeing Tyra's home life makes Tami realize Tyra is actually the sane one barely holding her fractured home life together.  There's a tender moment between Tami and Tyra where Tami apologizes for not wanting Julie to hang out with her and helps Tyra clean up her house.

There's also a plot line where Lyla runs away to visit Jason and realizes they are growing apart...  And Smash realizes his girlfriend is behaving weirdly.  As the episode progress she shows signs of manic behavior, which seems ok to Smash until the end, when we realize its bipolar behavior and the depression sets in....

Hey Laurel here and again I agree with Mark on all counts.  The only thing I would add is that we see Lyla go through some tough times for a change when she realizes her and Jason are growing apart.  It's obvious that she has lead a charmed life up until the point that Jason hurt his back, but now she is really getting it from all sides.  Her fiance is permanently paralized and is finding a new life without her within the disabled spots community, and now her parents are getting a divorce.  She has 2 younger siblings that she has to take care of while her parents are super vocally fighting in front of all of them.  Tough pill to swallow.  Lyla has had it easy her whole life and now things are finally catching up with her.  poor girl.

Spinach and Prosciutto Lasagna

 This recipe originally came from Cooks Illustrated, though I tweaked it a bit.

Ingredients
1 1/2 lb spinach leaves
lasagna
salt
5 tablespoons of butter
4 shallots
4 garlic cloves
1/4 cup flour
3 1/2 cups of whole milk
2 bay leaves
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup grated parmesan
Prosciutto
1 cup cottage cheese
1 egg
fontina

First start by blanching about 1 1/2 lb of spinach for a minute in salted boiling water.  Put in ice water then drain and let it cool.  At the same time, fill a bowl with the hottest tap water and add some lasagna noddles, enough for several layers in whatever lasagna pan you will be using.

In a medium sauce pan melt the butter over medium heat.  Finely chop the shallots and garlic and add.  Stir and let the shallots soften then add 1/4 cup  of flour. Stir about a minute and then slowly whisk in the milk. Bring to a boil and add bay leaves, nutmeg, pepper and 1/2 teaspoon salt.  Reduce heat to low and whisk for 10 minutes.  Remove the bay leaves and add parmesan.  Reserve half a cup of sauce in a bowl covered in plastic wrap.  Press the plastic wrap to the surface of the sauce to prevent it forming a skin.  Chop the spinach and add it to the main sauce.

I forgot to add prosciutto earlier, so at this point I chopped some prosciutto, fried it til crispy in some butter and added it to the main sauce.

In a food processor mix cottage cheese, egg and 1/2 teaspoon salt.

Spread the reserved sauce on the bottom of the lasagna dish, then layer noodles on top add spinach mixture, sliced fontina then noodles, cheese mixture, some grated parmesan, noodles, basically you get the idea.  To be honest I can't exactly remember how I layered it, but the point is to top it with sauce and cheese (the noodles will burn if on top alone.)

I also didn't cover my lasagna, though the Cooks Illustrated version say to cover with foil.  I like a little browned cheese on top.  Cook at 425 for 20 minutes.

I Think We Should Have Sex

Mark here...we've just watched the next episode of Friday Night Lights, called "I Think We Should Have Sex".  Well, the title says it all...Julie and Matt are thinking of having sex.  Julie is very matter of fact about it, assuming this is the next step of their relationship, without giving it much thought.  Unfortunately, Tami accidentally sees Matt buying condoms at the local drug store.  This leads to an awkward conversation with Julie.  Tami is great, in that she sort of says all the wrong things but conveys an honest parent who's genuinely worried.  In the end Julie and Matt don't go through with it, but end up staying out too late one night, freaking Julie's parents out.  But it's a tender moment as Julie and Matt have both said "I love you" and Julie thanks her mom for their talk.  At the same time, prior to this Coach and Tami at least start to come to terms with the fact that their daughter is growing up, and it's not either of their fault that she wants to have sex.

Separately, Tim is realizing that his absentee dad who has popped up again is not really healthy to be around.  Dad steals video equipment from the team and then lies about it. Tyra sees what's going on and in the end has to come to the rescue with Tim's brother when Tim picks a fight with a guy Tim and Dad have wronged. Tim picked a fight in a bar because he couldn't pick a fight with his dad.

Another plot line shows us that Buddy and Tyra's mom have indeed had an affair.  Buddy tries to push it under the rug and pay off Tyra's mom.  Of course she can't handle it, we've already seen she's unstable and dependent on having a man.  She ends up confronting Buddy after mass at the church, much to Tyra's embarrassment.  We see that Lyla has clued in to what's going on though...

Hi laurel here...I agree with Mark on all points.  Can I talk about how good this show is again?  I'm just remembering when we did 90210 and there were all these filler episodes during season one that had nothing to do with anything, and were terrible!  All of the episodes we've seen so far of FNL have been good and relevant and important.

Also I wanted to point out that Julie fully intended to have sex the night her and Matt stayed out to late..but she wanted to because she felt like she was supposed to.  Matt saw through her fake enthusiasm and to his credit called it off even though he really wanted to go through with it.  I was thinking that Coach Taylor must clearly realize at this point that his daughter is dating an awesome stand-up guy, but Mark was like "well he still wants to kill him"  which of course is totally true.  I'm interested to see what happens next.

I also feel sad for poor Tim Riggins.  He's almost a grown up and needs to take responsibility for his own actions but at the same time he's really still a kid and no one is looking out for him, except Billy who is pretty immature himself.  The dad is so awful I hope he ends up leaving again.