Clear eyes, full hearts, can’t lose.
There are certain characters that become so ingrained in pop-culture that they seem to take on a life of their own.
This week, I’m focusing on the running-back of the Dillon Panthers. It could only be the beer-drinking, deep-think and no shit-taking rock that is Tim Riggins.
In three words, he’s: Loyal, strong and independent.
Why he’s a TV great: I’ve already discussed what makes Friday Night Lights such a brilliant show but in my opinion it’s biggest strength is the incredible array of characters that live in Dillon. If coach Taylor embodies the brains, his wife Tammy its’ soul, then Tim is definitely the heart.
To begin with, Riggins is a rogue who does what he wants, whenever he wants. He can get rid of a a beer as quickly as he would a girl but there’s far more depth to him than that.
His quiet and laidback demeanor is just a ruse because when the occasion demands, he’ll absolutely smash his way through any opponent on the field as he’s fiercely protective of those around him.
As a child, the character’s parents abandoned him and his brother Billy. It doesn’t take a psychologist to see that the beers and birds are meaningless to him when measured against any immediate threat to his surrogate family, those people he cares about and his brother.
Riggins doesn’t say much because he subscribes to the principle that actions speak louder than words.
*Spoiler alert* but the true nature of his character is revealed in how he reacts when Smash is racially abused on the field, when Jason has to deal with his life-changing news or the moment when the cops are rounding on Billy and the illegal dealings in Riggins Rigs.
Yes, he is frequently drunk, womanising and pondering about what to do next but he always puts other people’s needs before his own and asks for nothing in return. Texas and Riggins forever.
His best quote: “Too late, play’s over. You waited too long to make a decision. Now we lost the game because of you, now we’re not going to state, and now the whole town of Dillon hates you and you’re never going to get laid. FACT!”.
If we could put him in any other show: Riggins is an ocean of calm with a ‘couldn’t be arsed attitude’ so I’d love to see what his laidback, chilled and softly spoken demeanor would be like on some inane, gibbering and vacuous show. Lets stick him on X-Factor and see how long it takes before he cracks open a beer and hits something.
His best scene: This line always cracks me up.
LISTEN: You Must Be Jokin’ with Aideen McQueen – Faith healers, Coolock craic and Gigging as Gaeilge
