• Network: NBC , The 101
  • Series Premiere Date: Oct 3, 2006
  • Season #: 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 5
Metascore
88 out of 100

Universal acclaim - based on 18 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 18 out of 18
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 18
  3. Negative: 0 out of 18
  1. 100
    Football is the framework for what remains a gritty, family drama with enormous heart.
  2. Reviewed by: Paige Wiser
    100
    Catch up with the series while you can. These are the glory days, my friends.
  3. Reviewed by: Ken Tucker
    100
    By the end of the opening hour, you're already engaged by Coach Taylor's challenge to turn the East Dillon stragglers into guys who can complete the phrase ''Clear eyes, full hearts, can't lose'' without mumbling. And Friday Night Lights is headed for more touchdown episodes than you can count.
  4. 100
    The NBC series certainly has been one of TV's most emotionally honest and stirring works, and it remains so as it enters its fourth season.
  5. Reviewed by: Verne Gay
    100
    Quirky, funny, smart, wonderful acting, surprise cameos by cherished actors (Steve Harris, "The Practice"), and a one-two punch by Chandler and Britton that is unbeatable. What's not to love?
  6. This new-to-you season of "Friday Night Lights" is more than worth the wait.
  7. Reviewed by: Matt Roush
    90
    This show delivers the dramatic goods with painstaking authenticity each week, and even when it isn't trying to make you cry, you can't help but get emotionally involved in the lives of these instantly recognizable and compelling characters.
  8. Reviewed by: Kris King
    88
    On a whole, the new season of Friday Night Lights manages to retain its depth and heart-wrenching warmth despite a sea change in its structure and characters.
  9. 88
    This year, the challenge is to create fresh, interesting story lines for new and returning high school characters, integrate the post-high school crowd into the show and mix the stories of the East Dillon team with those of the Panther players. It's a tall order, but in the early going, the show seems up to it.
  10. The characters carry themselves with the kind of decency, maturity and occasional playfulness that is virtually unseen on prime time.
  11. It's a brand new ballgame. It looks to be a winner.
  12. Reviewed by: Stuart Levine
    80
    The show's minscule budget has turned into one of its greatest assets, using real-life Austin locales and citizens to bring an authenticity that only adds to the drama.
  13. The fourth season of Friday Night Lights (which already aired last fall on DirecTV) is as rich and dramatic and satisfying as ever.
  14. 80
    In its fourth season, Friday Night Lights is just as thoughtful and restrained as it's ever been, with its focus firmly planted on the small-town disappointments of ordinary people.
  15. There's definitely a joy to this series, no matter how dire things get for its characters.
  16. These are fantastic characters with socio-economic backgrounds we rarely see in TV dramas, and that's one of the many things that makes FNL unique. Whether you can watch the show now or won't have access to it until 2010, FNL continues to be TV worth watching.
  17. New characters, new rivalry, same old high quality.
  18. 75
    Is Lights the show it was when it began? No. But it's still better than most anything else on the TV field.
User Score

Universal acclaim- based on 53 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 9 out of 9
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 9
  3. Negative: 0 out of 9
  1. BAM
    10
    This is one of the consistently outstanding series on TV. Peter Berg is a master and the cast is perfect.
  2. I'd never seen the show before, but I was hooked from the first episode of season 4. The characters are all realistic and varied. When they're going through hardships, you stick with them, and when they succeed, you can't help but cheer. Great acting, too. Glad to see Connie Britton and Kyle Chandler get some love at the Emmy's, even if it's kinda late already! Full Review »
  3. 10
    Without a doubt, Friday Night Lights is one of the best TV shows I have ever seen. The story is so well done and realistic that it makes you feel as if all these characters are real people who you could actually visit if you went to this small town in Texas. I highly recommend Friday Night Lights for anybody who is a fan of good TV. Season 4 adds a few new characters since many of are old favorites have moved on but manages to make these new characters just as interesting to watch as the oldies. Full Review »