The fractures and tears of the last episode immediately reemerge in “Gut Check” as we see the impact of all the East Dillon tensions. Cleaning up along the sidelines we hear Slammin’ Sammy announce that the dream of a Lion undefeated season is over. In an attempt to heal the fractures, caused mainly by Vince, Coach Taylor benches his QB1 in favor of Luke Cafferty. Quickly on the heals of his demotion, Vince gets into a heated argument with girlfriend Jess that end with her breaking up with him. After missing a meeting where he was supposed to help Luke learn the Lion offense, Vince is benched. As he attempts to challenge Coach Taylor’s decision, Eric threatens Vince with a second week on the bench. Against all odds, Vince appears to use some small bit of logic and cools down before finding himself on the bench for the remainder of the season. Although Coach Taylor tries to heal the team’s divisions, it is Vince that must do the real work to heal the team.
Vince’s father Ornette is the driving force behind his own inflated ego In an attempt to regain some kind of control in his own life, Vince intercedes and stops Ornette at the Friday night game when his father shows signs of confronting Coach Taylor on the field after Luke leads the team to victory. It’s a small step, but an important one for Vince’s well-being in life, not just on the football field.
Another fracture that undergoes a healing process of sorts is that between Julie Taylor and Matt Saracen. Julie has arrived in Chicago, attempting to further evade the debacle she’s made of her first semester in college. At the beginning of her visit, Matt and Julie appear to be functioning as old friends, rather than former boyfriend and girlfriend. Pointing out this tension Matt finally kisses Julie, rekindling their romance. Despite their ability to quickly fall back in sync with one another, Julie’s confession about her affair causes Matt hesitation. As he tells Julie, he doesn’t want to be her safety net, we fear that perhaps healing Julie’s fractures will take longer. As Julie finally leaves for Texas, Matt chases her car until she stops. As he holds her, he confirms to her that they’ll “figure it out.” Leave it to Matt Saracen to fix any situation. As the alleyway’s steam and smoke swirl around Matt, we’re reminded that ‘Seven’ may be the most solid and resolute Dillon resident we’ve met in our five year stay. Wise beyond his years, Matt Saracen is why the phrase ‘salt of the earth’ exists.
As Tami’s newest student project Epyck results in Tami being assaulted in her office, the attempts to heal fractures within the Taylor household appear to rest in Eric’s ongoing talks with Shane State in Florida. Will he or won’t he? The last time Eric Taylor took a college job (Season Two’s TMU) it didn’t work out so well. Has the situation gotten so bad at East Dillon, have the teenagers gotten so exhausting that Eric and Tami move on? The following episode entitled “Don’t Go” seems to signal some sort of change on the Taylor’s horizon. Or will a gut check get them to stay?
We shall see. And soon.
Grade: B-
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Cast & Credits
Friday Night Lights, Wednesdays 9 p.m./8 p.m. Central, DirecTV
Eric Taylor: Kyle Chandler
Tami Taylor: Connie Britton
Julie Taylor: Aimee Teegarden
Matt Saracen: Zach Gilford
Vince Howard: Michael B. Jordan
Jess Merriweather: Jurnee Smollett
Official website: http://www.directv.com/DTVAPP/content/friday_night_lights/overview