Thursday, February 10, 2011

My Top Five Matt Saracen Moments on 'Friday Night Lights'


The series finale to one of the least appreciated, if not the greatest, television show came to an end last night. Along with the conclusion of 'Friday Night Lights' came the end of the story of one Matt Saracen, my favorite character on FNL, as we know it. "Seven" as his friends (save for Landry) would call him is a character you can easily root for simply because there's so much good in him. Through the course of the show's five year run, there were plenty of moments where the character and his portrayer, Zach Gilford, shined and tugged at our heartstrings. Here's just five of them, spoilers ahead:

5.
Season 1 Episode 9: "Full Hearts"
Screen shot 2011-02-10 at 11.04.35 PM
While on his first date with Julie, Matt receives a phone call from best friend
Landry that Grandma Saracen locked herself in the bathroom. Cutting his
date short, Matt rushes home and had to pretend to be his grandfather to
his dementia grandmother and sing her her favorite song.

4.
Season 1 Episode 1: "Pilot"
Screen shot 2011-02-10 at 11.19.49 PM
After Panther star quarterback Jason Street goes down with a injury,
Coach Taylor, his teammates and the rest of Panther nation calls on Matt
to fill in with the once promising season on the line. Never even thrown a
football in a game, "Seven"'s hail mary was caught and the Panther's
path to glory is temporarily restored.

3.
Season 2 Episode 14: "Jumping The Gun"
Screen shot 2011-02-10 at 11.30.55 PM
Good guy Matt spirals out of control after he realized his girlfriend
left him for a better life, his ex-girlfriend left him for a better guy,
his teammates abandoned him for a better quarterback and his father
left him to fight a war. After Coach Taylor throws him in a cold shower
to cool him down, Matt asks desperately "What is wrong with me?
Why does everybody leave me?".

2.
Season 5 Episode 13: "Always"
Screen shot 2011-02-10 at 11.40.58 PM
Courting Julie Taylor for five years led to the ultimate proposal. In true
Matt Saracen fashion, he brought his girl to the Alamo Freeze, a local
hangout where he first told her he liked her, Matt got on one knee
with his grandmother's ring and propose to the girl of his dreams.

1.
Season 4 Episode 5: "The Son"
Hearing his father had died in Iraq, Matt arrives at the Taylor household
in full composure after visiting the morgue to see his father before
crumbling into pieces. This scene perhaps sums up why Matt, and
in extension his portrayer Zach Gilford, is such a easy character to root for.

Thanks FNL, thanks for the memories.


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