The final episode of 'Friday Night Lights' aired on DirecTV Wednesday night. So as not to spoil anything for those who'll be watching the fifth and final season on NBC or on DVD, I'm not going to put anything about the series finale on this part of the post.

Warning Spoilers Ahead...

Read on only if you've seen the last episode of 'Friday Night Lights.'

"Look how far we've come." Vince Howard
"It's gonna be perfect." Matt Saracen
"We've got a long way to go, gentlemen. A long way to go. You know what, I'm looking forward to it." Coach Eric Taylor

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Read more: 'Friday Night Lights' Season 5, Episode 13 'Always' Series Finale

Friday Night Lights: 'Small Town'

This was it: the penultimate episode of 'Friday Night Lights,' the build-up to the inevitable finale that will determine the fates of these characters.

If you're like me, this show flew by. So much happened and so much is still to come ... and I can't wait to see the resolution.

For Eric and Tami Taylor, there's never been a more tenuous time. There's no question that they love each other and have a strong union, but they are in a situation that's fraught with consequences. Have they ever been in such a good/bad dilemma like this before?

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Read more: 'Friday Night Lights' Season 5, Episode 12 'Small Town' Breakdown

['Friday Night Lights' - 'The March'] Watching tonight's episode of 'Friday Night Lights' brought to mind the expression, 'Be careful what you wish for.' Just as so many good things are happening for characters like Tami and Vince and Jess, there's also trouble bubbling right below the surface.

Nothing is black or white, nothing is crystal clear, and as the last two episodes of the show loom, it's still uncertain how 'Friday Night Lights' will conclude. ... And that's a good thing because this show is consistently one of the best dramas on the air.

The East Dillon Lions are on the brink of going to State. This is the ultimate goal for Eric; it's why he turned down the chance to take a university job. His love for his team, for this group of young men, is powerful. But Eric's emotional connection may be his undoing because the economic reality is that the Lions may cease to exist after the season. Has Eric sacrificed his future for a false promise? Isn't that how he wound up in East Dillon in the first place?

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Read more: 'Friday Night Lights' Season 5, Episode 11 'The March' Breakdown

['Friday Night Lights' - 'Don't Go']
So, who deserves what on 'Friday Night Lights'? That was the question poised for a bunch of characters as the probable last season of the show headed into the final three episodes.

Does Eric deserve the chance to move up in ranks to a coaching position that would be prestigious and rewarding? Does Vince deserve the starting quarterback role after putting himself ahead of the team? Does Tim Riggins deserve early release from prison?

That was all on the table and while we could celebrate that at least one character earned redemption, will he ever be the same man he used to be? Add a comment

Read more: 'Friday Night Lights' Season 5, Episode 10 'Don't Go' Breakdown

['Friday Night Lights' - 'Gut Check'] As Season 5 heads to a close, some hard truths are coming out on 'Friday Night Lights.' No truth was more evident than the one that has slapped Eric and Tami in the face more often than not.

In their careers, they work with teenagers. As Eric said tonight, "They are exhausting." Have the Taylors reached teenage overload? You have to wonder.

Lurking beneath the surface for the couple was an offer from Shane State University in Florida, which would be a major reward for Eric.

What coach wouldn't want to move up to the next level, especially considering the perks? And after the Vince and Epic battles of the night, Eric and Tami had to have doubts about how much they have left to give in Dillon, Texas. Has Eric reached the point of no return? Is he ready to work with adults?
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Read more: 'Friday Night Lights' Season 5, Episode 9 'Gut Check' Breakdown

['Friday Night Lights' - 'Fracture'] You might think that with the East Dillon Lions undefeated and possibly on the way to state, all would be harmonious among the team. You'd be wrong. Instead of unity and solidarity, dissension has filtered into the team and the direct cause is Vince's star complex.

But that's not the only turmoil on 'Friday Night Lights'. Julie's situation remains a sore subject, especially for Eric, who's more disappointed in his child than he can say.

Also, after weeks of nothing being addressed about Tami's troubled charge, Epic, she was back with a whopper of a story to play on Tami's emotions. There was also Becky's story and her conflicting feelings for Luke. All in all, it made for one tense, complicated episode.

It was a relief that Julie finally came to her senses about Derek, and he proved himself to be classier than we previously assumed. It took guts for him to show up at the Taylors and face Julie. However, Bishop underestimated the depth of Eric's anger and was fortunate to get only his taillight busted and not his entire face. Add a comment

Read more: 'Friday Night Lights' Season 5, Episode 8 'Fracture' Breakdown

['Friday Night Lights' - 'Perfect Record'] How bad can it be for Coach Taylor (Kyle Chandler) when his team is 5-0 going into a major rivalry game and he's being called 'The Kingmaker' by a national magazine? And then there's the possibility of professional advancement. It's all good, right?

Hmm ... perhaps not. As this 'Friday Night Lights' episode revealed, things are never quite as good as you think, just like they're never quite as bad.

On the home front, Eric is still peeved about Julie (Aimee Teegarden) refusing to return to college. Tami (Connie Britton) has been overly protective of their eldest daughter, desperately trying to keep Julie from sabotaging her first semester at school because of a foolish love affair.
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Read more: 'Friday Night Lights' Season 5, Episode 7 'Perfect Record' Breakdown

['Friday Night Lights' - 'Swerve'] As the season progresses on 'Friday Night Lights,' we've been concentrating on some stories while others have seemed to vanish in the Texas heat. (Remember Epic?)

Has that resulted in an up and down set of episodes? Yes, but when 'FNL' is good, it's very good. This was one of the 'very good.'

Turmoil is filling the Taylor household and there seems to be no easy resolution to the problems they're facing. And while Coach (Kyle Chandler) is struggling to deal with his family issues, so is Vince (Michael B. Jordan) when a nemesis from the past returned to threaten his future.

When Julie (Aimee Teegarden) came home from college after that soap opera moment with Derek's (Gil McKinney) wife last episode, you would have thought that she was definitely going to ask Tami ((Connie Britton) -- more than Eric -- to make it all better. That's what mommies do. Add a comment

Read more: 'Friday Night Lights' Season 5, Episode 6 'Swerve' Breakdown

[' Friday Night Lights' - 'Kingdom'] There's a lot of transition going on in this season of 'Friday Night Lights,' and this episode epitomized just how much. It's more than just new faces at East Dillon, more than the team coming together on the field and off, and more than the families reuniting or growing apart (depending on the situation) and more than the passage of the football season.

Last season, the ignominious start for the East Dillon Lions with the forfeit to South King High had been controversial. That game still haunted some, and no matter how Coach Taylor (Kyle Chandler) tried to keep the focus on today, the past remained a sore point.

There was no way a road trip for another bout with the South King Rangers, was going to be just another game for the Lions. Eric told the team, "Success is not a goal, it's a byproduct," and he believed it. For others, however, the game was all about revenge and redemption. Add a comment

Read more: 'Friday Night Lights' Season 5, Episode 5 'Kingdom' Breakdown

'Friday Night Lights' - 'Keep Looking' - Football certainly is a fun game and can have mirror reflections to real life both on and off the field. And when the lights go off, life still goes on.

When uber-football fan Buddy Garrity's (Brad Leland) troublemaker son arrives in Dillon and proves to be a rebel without a cause, Buddy gets his boy into pads and has him try out for the Lions as a way of straightening him out. If only Tami (Connie Britton) could fix Epic with a helmet and the pigskin ...

Last week, Buddy decided to accept the responsibility of rearing Buddy Jr. (Jeff Rosick). But no sooner did the boy step into the halls of East Dillon High than it was clear that the kid had a really bad attitude. Not only was he surly and disrespectful, he was also a liar, a boozer and a thief. So, will football shake the bad seed out of Budd Jr.? Only time will tell. Add a comment

Read more: 'Friday Night Lights' - Season 5 'Keep Looking' Breakdown