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There is an extremely good chance that this evening's season finale (the decision not to make any more episodes for Season Two has apparently already been made) could be the last episode of FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS forever. Unless fans get involved. There are things we can do to save this, which is still one of the two best series on network television (I have to include PUSHING DAISIES on the best of the best list -- the other greatest shows on TV are on cable, BATTLESTAR GALACTICA, THE WIRE, and MAD MEN). Here on Amazon you can do either of two things. One, you can watch individual episodes of the show on Unbox. Two, you can buy Season One on DVD. Hey, it's only $18.99! That is the cost of a large pizza with three toppings! The other thing you can do is to go to any online FNL websites (either the official board on www.nbc.com or just about anywhere else -- Google it -- and find out about letter writing campaigns. Fans last year saved what is quite frankly a pretty average show, JERICHO, from cancellation. Surely the same can be done of one the most brilliant shows on TV. Although NBC president Ben Silverman seems intent on cancelling the show, there is a legitimate chance that it could reappear on another network (come on CW! it would instantly be your best show by a gigantic margin!). I'll revise this as developments occur.

Warning! Some spoilers are contained in the following review.

So many of my favorite shows seem afflicted with names that make nonviewers dismiss them without actually watching them. Based on the name alone or the most superficial knowledge of the show, they feel they known enough to ignore them. I've had a tremendous time convincing people that BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER is not only not silly, but one of the most intelligent shows in the history of television. Likewise, I've struggled telling people who I know love quality television that BATTLESTAR GALACTICA has nothing in common with the old Lorne Greene/Dirk Benedict cheesefest and instead is a television masterpiece that even someone who hates Sci-fi would love. And so now I have, largely without success, tried my hardest to get my TV-savvy friends to grasp a very simple fact: FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS really isn't about football. Yes, there is some football in it, but like BUFFY and BATTLESTAR GALACTICA, this is a television series that utterly defies expectations. All three shows are more about people and the decisions they make. The vampires, the space ships, and the football are just window dressing.

With the possible exception of LOST (which is fully back on track after a shaky Season Three start), FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS is the best series on network television (though I would add that BATTLESTAR GALACTICA and THE WIRE are at least as good, but BSG is on the Sci-fi Channel and THE WIRE on HBO). It came terribly close to being cancelled due to absolutely horrible ratings but managed to survive for a very simple reason: it is a stunningly great show. FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS represents television at its finest, a show as good as the very best that TV has produced in the past decade. It belongs alongside BUFFY, THE SOPRANOS, THE WEST WING, SIX FEET UNDER, BATTLESTAR GALACTICA, and other shows of that quality. There were other very good shows to debut in 2006-2007 such as UGLY BETTY, HEROES, DEXTER, and MEN IN TREES, but FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS is easily the best of those shows. It received critical acclaim and accolades unusual for a network series with such dismal ratings and perhaps its lone chance of survival past Season Two lies in its performance at the Emmys. I could be wrong, but my gut tells me that this could be one of those shows that finally wins an audience by the awards it will win. I think there is an extremely good chance that FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS will win the Emmy for Best Dramatic Series and that perhaps two or three acting awards will be picked up by its actors. I would lay even money that Kyle Chandler will win Best Actor in a Dramatic Series while Connie Britton will certainly receive a Best Actress nomination and deserves to win. On the supporting actor and actress side, I wouldn't be surprised if three or four additional performers received nominations, especially Zach Gilford for his portrayal of sophomore quarterback Matt Saracen, Adrianne Palicki as sometimes bad girl Tyra Collette, and Minka Kelly for her remarkable, nuanced, and compelling job as Lyla Garrity. And to be fair, there are three or four others who should receive consideration. This is simply the most talented cast on television. There are many, many reasons to watch this show and the quality of the acting is one of those reasons.

If you have not seen FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS repeat the following mantra over and over until you come to believe it: "This show is not about football. This show is not about football. This show is not about football." To be honest, if this show was about football I wouldn't watch it. It is about people struggling to live their lives. Take Matt Saracen. As the sophomore backup to the team's star quarterback he didn't go into the season to play much if at all. But after Jason Street, the team's greatest star, goes down with a crippling injury, he has to assume a job he is not prepared to take on. Meanwhile, he has to continue to care for his grandmother who is suffering from mild dementia and requires a great deal of care. His father, who is serving in the army in Iraq, is able to provide little direct assistance. And if his life isn't complicated enough, he is deeply attracted to the coach's daughter Julie (with yet another marvelous acting job handed in by Aimee Teegarden). Meanwhile, Matt struggles to keep friendships alive as he finds football success, which creates tensions with his musically astute Christian nerd friend (and member of a Christian hardcore rock band). Yet another mark of the show's brilliance is that Landry Clarke, his friend, is not presented as in any way a simplistic character (and again, he is wonderfully played by Jesse Plemons). He isn't one of your stock nerds nor is he in any way a stereotyped Christian. He is literate, intelligent, socially awkward, and a really caring, compassionate friend. His awkward attempted courtship of the party girl Tyra is one of many wonderful wrinkles in the season.

There are so many things to praise about this show that one could almost not come to an end. But clearly at the heart of the show is the Taylor family. I find this the most believable and compelling television family that I have ever seen. Coach Taylor is not a perfect person, but he is a wise one, fully capable of admitting his mistakes. His wife Tami (I did mention how extraordinary Connie Britton is in this role, didn't I?) is fully his equal on every level. She is smart, insightful, empathetic, caring, and implacable. With their daughter Julie they form a family that feels so real that at times you truly don't feel that you are watching actors performing but magically eavesdropping on a real life family. There are many scenes between Coach Taylor, his wife, and Julie that left me agog and asking myself, "Was that really acting?"

Another pole around which the show is constructed concerns attempt of Jason Street and his girlfriend Lyla to come to terms with his serious spinal injury, which leaves him without the use of his legs. If there is one bit of unreality to the show it is the speed with which Jason adjusts to having suffered such a serious injury. I understand why they did this. It would have been tedious to stretch Jason's adjusting to being a paraplegic over a couple of seasons. Instead, they took a process that should have taken over a year and shrank it for dramatic purposes to two or three months. But the emotions and dilemmas that his injury creates for both Jason and Lyla make wonderful television.

I simply don't have room to mention all the wonderful characters on the show. Even mentioning only briefly characters like Lyla's father (and president of the booster club), Jason's best friend Tim Riggins, star running back Brian 'Smash' Williams, or the minister's intelligent but bipolar daughter Noannie Williams doesn't do justice to all the wonderful performers on this show.

Nor do I have time to do justice to how intelligently this show is written. Even though it takes up themes that a host of other shows have dealt with, it always manages to do so freshly and innovatively. The finest example is the episode that deals with the fallout from some crudely racist remarks made by an assistant coach. The controversy builds to the point where it appears that all the black players will quit the team unless the coach is fired. I won't spoil the resolution, but the episode ends with one of my favorite moments in the entire 2006-2007 season.

If there are two series currently running that I could make anyone and everyone watch, simply because they are so extraordinarily good, they are FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS and BATTLESTAR GALACTICA. There are so many similarities between the two shows. Both have huge and talented ensemble casts. Both are brilliantly written. Both are filmed using handheld cameras and have a gritty, documentary feel to them. And both defy all the expectations people have formed in thinking that they don't want to see them. Both these series represent television at its very best. Please do both yourself and this show a favor: watch it.

In closing, I have to point out that one of the problems the show had in its first season was that no one knew when it was on. The problem is the title. NBC didn't want to put it on Fridays because that night is considered the kiss of death. But the fact is that it is probably the only night they could ever schedule it. No matter what they do everyone is going to assume it broadcasts on a Friday. So, NBC surrendered to the inevitable and placed it on their Friday schedule. Tune in and watch it! And kudos to NBC! Without any serious competition NBC has emerged as the leading purveyor of quality entertainment on television. The irony is that they rank fourth in viewership. CBS, with absolutely no critically acclaimed shows, ranks first. With other networks willing to pull the plug on a show regardless of their critical acclaim (such as the CW killing their only critically acclaimed series, VERONICA MARS), I tremendously admire NBC for sticking with this and other excellent shows that may not get the greatest ratings. Let's just all pray that the outstanding series gets the viewership it so richly deserves.

NBC Universal seems to be doing their part to increase the popularity of the series. Many series retail for as much as $89.99 before discounting down to a lower figure, while the standard retail price for most series is around $59.95. But they are offering FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS initially at $29.99 and only $19.99 after Amazon's discount. No other show that I have ever heard of starts off at a price this low. It truly is unprecedented. To my mind they are making us an offer that we can't refuse.

Season Three of FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS represents one of the most interesting attempts ever to keep a great, but lightly watched series alive. After Season One the series was renewed primarily based on the huge critical acclaim the show received along with its intensely dedicated, though small (though I would like to think growing) fan base. I honestly thought that after Season One it was going to sweep the Emmys, garnering a host of awards that would propel it to the next tier in public consciousness, much like what happened to another series that debuted in the fall of 2006, 30 ROCK. For some unfathomable reason it did not receive a single major Emmy nomination. It did go on, however, to win what have come to be the three most reliable indicators of quality TV. It won a Peabody award, something that most Emmy winners never receive. It won Salon's annual Buffy award, given to the best show neglected by the Emmys (named after the greatest TV series never to receive Emmy attention). And it was named one of the ten best shows on TV by the American Film Institute. Fans of the show watched in horror as clearly inferior shows like BOSTON LEGAL, GREY'S ANATOMY, HOUSE M.D., and HEROES got recognition that continued to escape.

Still, fans hoped that Season Two would see an increased audience share. NBC hoped that moving it to Friday night (the night that most people assumed it was airing) would help. It didn't and its ratings slipped further. Normally a show with the kind of ratings FNL had would simply have been cancelled. Much to NBC's credit, they decided to take new steps to save the series. They arranged with DirecTV to have that network air the thirteen episodes of Season Three in the fall of 2008 (when many of us were lucky enough to see it), with NBC showing it in the winter and spring of 2009. According to some rumors, DirecTV was happy with the results and is interested in continuing with another season of the show. I've seen no reports on how NBC is thinking (though the head of programming for NBC Universal did, in response to a question about FNL's chances for a Season Four, said that there would continue to be a place on the NBC schedule for quality shows with a smaller audience share). In a recent interview FNL creator and executive producer Peter Berg said that the decision to continue could be as much their decision as the networks. Suffice it to say that at this point it isn't at all clear that there will be a Season Four and possibly just because Berg and show runner Jason Katims may decide not to continue.

The reason for Season Four being in doubt is very easy to see. There is a major creative question about where to take the series in a fourth season. Many of the key characters on the show for the past three seasons have graduated. At the very least, Tyra, Riggins, Lyla, and Matt are out of high school. There is debate about whether or not Landry is a senior or junior. Spoiler alert! At the end of Season Three it appears that those four are going to four different schools, Tyra to University of Texas (where Landry could certainly go if he is a senior), Riggins to the fictitious San Antonio State, and Lyla to Vanderbilt, while Matt's college plans are murky. Coach Taylor's plans were not in granite, though he was clearly confronted with a very different situation if the show continues. Apart from Julie (and possibly Landry, if he is indeed a junior), there are no established high school characters continuing on the show and no high school football players. There are three major possibilities. One is to start from scratch with Coach Taylor at the heart of things and introduce a host of new characters. A second is to introduce new high school players for Coach Taylor while continuing to follow the characters we've come to love over the past three years. This would be especially easy in Tyra's case (and possibly in Landry's if he is a senior) since she is attending UT and the show is actually filmed in Austin. The third possibility is to have Coach Taylor take a coaching job at, say, San Antonio State, where Riggins already is, and perhaps find a way to get Matt, Landry, Tyra, and Lyla all to go there for whatever reason they can think up. A fourth possibility would be for the show to say goodbye to Riggins, Tyra, Matt, Lyla, and possibly Landry in a series of episodes like they did in Season Three with Smash and Jason. One thing is clear: if they have a Season Four, it will be utterly unlike the first three seasons of the show.

Season Three of FNL just might be my favorite so far. I loved Season One, continued to enjoy the show even with some iffy moments (along with several glorious ones) in Season Two, but I was just blown away by Season Three. There were not merely no weak episodes in Season Three, but few weak moments. The way I expressed my love for FNL to a friend is that while BATTLESTAR GALACTICA is my favorite show on TV and probably has 20 episodes that I think are better than the best episode of FNL, BSG also probably has 20 episodes worse than the weakest episode of FNL. FNL is just an absurdly consistent show. It may not have BSG's highpoints, but neither does it have its lowpoints. [There are, btw, several interesting connections between BSG and FNL. The creator of FNL, Peter Berg, directed the pilot of BSG creator Ron Moore's new series VIRTUALITY, while FNL producer and frequent director Jeffrey Reiner directed the movie CAPRICA, which also serves as the pilot for the BSG prequel by the same name. There are also some stylistic similarities. Both are shot with hand held cameras, with the cameras playing to the actors rather than the actors to the cameras. Both feature rich and enormously talented casts. And then there are the convoluted connections. BSG executive producer David Eick worked on HERCULES, which was created by Rob Tappert. FNL producer John Cameron not only went to high school with Tappert and did some work on HERCULES and XENA, but Tappert married a Cylon, none other than D'Anna Biers aka Lucy Lawless.]

Season Three is the senior year of many of the major characters. The football arc centers on these players' last hurrah, the attempt to go to state one last time, and getting prepared to move on. Matt's situation is complicated by the presence of an enormously talented freshman quarterback who is clearly more gifted than he is. Riggins takes on new responsibilities and begins to grow up both on and off the field. And the team manages to overachieve and do things it clearly should not be capable of. The final game the seniors play is easily the football highlight of the series. The last scene is clearly the most poetic.

Off the field the major stories involve the rekindling of Matt and Julie's romance, which becomes one of the most realistic and sweetest relationships one can imagine. Matt struggles not only with his changing role on the football team, but his grandmother's decaying mental state, which indirectly leads to reestablishing a relationship with his mother. Tyra's story is especially interesting in Season Three. If in Season One she only gradually started to do battle with her own low self-expectations and in Season Two she fought hard to be more than the person everyone expected her to be, in Season Three he has to overcome additional obstacles to finding a more fulfilling life. She has to overcome a new guidance counselor who doesn't believe in her like Tami Taylor did, the temptation of an older and dangerous rodeo star boyfriend, and her own low self-esteem. The show's penultimate episode, in which she struggles to write her college application letter, contains one of the very finest moments in the entire series, as she finally finds the words to express what going to college truly represents, namely, "The possibility that things are going to change." And you have to love a show that has as one of the most triumphant moments a girl ecstatic in getting her college acceptance letter.

For the Taylors, life is quite different, as Tami takes on her new position as Dillon High School's new principal. Eric not only has to make difficult decisions regarding his quarterback but has to battle with that quarterback's father, who is overbearing to the point of being abusive (the mother, by the way, is nicely played by Janine Turner, who fans of NORTHERN EXPOSURE will remember affectionately as Maggie O'Connell). Buddy Garrity struggles with a series of bad decisions while Lyla is in a full-blown relationship with Tim Riggins. Meanwhile, Tim's brother Billy and Tyra's sister Mindy get engaged, which leads to the purchase of quite possibly the most hysterically ugly wedding dress in the history of network television.

One thing that is sometimes overlooked is how brilliantly executed the show is. People ignorant of film technique complain about the photography. It is all done with hand held cameras. The actors memorize their scripts and then are allowed to more or less ad lib along the direction of the script. No scenes are blocked, so that the actors are performing their actions in spontaneous fashion. They use a three camera arrangement so that even if they do only one take of a scene, they can edit the final version from different angles (look carefully at the scene in the episode "The Giving Tree" where Matt reluctantly goes to the patio where Coach Taylor is cleaning the grill and pay attention to where the cameras are during their conversation; this degree of technique runs throughout the series).

I hope there is a Season Four. Although I can't quite imagine how the series would continue, I'm fascinated to see how they would do so. For three years this has been a show that has done almost no wrong (except for the unfortunate killing in early Season Two). It has been one of the best series ever focused on the lower middle class. As a product of the lower middle class myself, I love seeing characters that are not privileged or wealthy or where all the parents are lawyers and corporate executives. I like that the closest thing to a rich guy on the show is the owner of a car dealership. I like that Tyra drives the same old ugly truck for all three seasons. Average, everyday folk have never, ever been so well served on television.

But if there is not a Season Four, the final episodes serve as a perfect conclusion to one of the most heartbreakingly gorgeous shows in the history of American television. Even if there is not another season, this show will live on. I've already watched the entire series three times and I fully expect that I'll watch it two or three more times in my lifetime. Shows like this are what quality television is all about.