FirstCuts: Friday Night Lights returns

By Chris Littmann
Sports don’t start and end with a referee’s whistle. FirstCuts, a blog dedicated to sports culture, will cover everything outside the lines, from the games to the gear.
I’m going to be honest, I’m not above begging. If you didn’t know it, NBC has one of only a few shows coming back in 2008 with new episodes: Friday Night Lights. In case you didn’t know, the writers’ strike doesn’t appear to have an end in sight.
(Quick aside: You might not have known the show was coming back tonight. Know why? NBC does the most awful job of promoting this show. In all seriousness, it was out-and-out omitted from a teaser showing all the shows coming in early ‘08 with new episodes. It’s the biggest case of TV self-sabotage since pre-cancellation Family Guy and Sports Night. OK, rant over.)
Anyway, consider this my plea to check out the show. Season 2 hasn’t been quite on the level of Season 1, but it’s not that far off, except for a pretty notable plotline involving Landry Clarke, a pipe and a stalker. I don’t want to ruin the rest if you haven’t seen the show.

But come on! It’s football and some good TV drama. Take a break from Fattest Lie Detector (that one’s not real) and quit counting down to Farmer Needs a Wife on the CW (that one’s real) and check out Friday Night Lights. If my passionate argument isn’t enough, check out this list of 10 reasons why you should watch the Dillon Panthers, courtesy of E! Online. Friday Night Lights returns tonight at 9 p.m. ET on NBC.
But wait, there’s more! Perhaps it’s just the fact that the ads are plastered all over our site, but I’m intrigued to watch some American Gladiators. Granted, it’s a distant second in terms of things I’m looking forward to watching on Sunday night. (The Wire. The Wire. The Wire.) Anyone else with plans to watch Gladiators?
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