Connie Britton as Tammy Taylor
It’s been a couple of weeks since both Private Practice and Friday Night Lights had their pivotal abortion episodes and I wanted to give an update on the fallout.
Bottom line – Friday Night Lights (FNL) walked into the minefield with the storyline and didn’t shy away like Private Practice did.
The fallout on FNL has not been focused on Becky, the girl who had the abortion, it’s been on Tammy Taylor, the high school principal, who listened and gave Becky her options.
The baby daddy’s mommy got herself into a religious fervor and called the school board and tried to have Principal Taylor fired for encouraging Becky to have an abortion. The school board had a hearing and both sides were heard and Tammy was cleared of any wrong doing.
But the issue did not go away quietly as the school board wanted. Picketers showed up at her school, she started getting nasty phone calls at home, and she was basically told that if she did not release a statement of apology that she will lose her job. She went to see a lawyer who was clear that she would probably win a wrongful termination lawsuit, but he also said that then she would be virtually unemployable. The lawyer said: “there’s the law and there’s life.”
So she’s screwed. She’s screwed for doing the right thing which I know happens to people all the time. And the question the show poses so brilliantly is how is it that doing the right and legal thing can lead to such grave consequences.
The season finale is this week and in the preview it shows her practicing her apology in the bathroom mirror. Can’t wait to see how it winds up.
As for Private Practice…I am embarrassed to say they took a big pass on the issue. After getting all the medical issues so right, they handled it so wrong. Fifteen year old Maya is going to have the baby, and get married to baby daddy Dink. Of course they are going to finish high school and live happily after ever. They have parents with means, haven’t been kicked out of the house, and could probably even get a nanny to raise the kid while they finish high school. I’m sure she will have a miscarriage soon and the whole ugly thing will be over. I just don’t understand why they went to the precipice and then just backed so far off. Makes no sense to me.
Those of you who don’t have Direct TV can see the full season of Friday Night Lights on NBC beginning on April 30. Please watch.
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