Great post with lots of good thoughts. My feeling about Ted and Beard's relationship is they know each other well, they've worked together for a very long time, they complement each other, and it's quite resilient and stable. It can bear some push and pull, and likely they've worked through tensions before, but ultimately they have each other's backs. I think Beard knows a good deal about Ted's background and vice versa.Oof. Nate.
My partner and I are watching with her young adult son. He's caught up on Season 1, and we've watched together Season 2 up through Episode 7. The next episodes coming up are Man City (revelation of the suicide), Coach Beard After Hours, No Weddings and a Funeral (Ted and Rebecca yielding up their horrific childhood memories) and Midnight Train to Royston (The Great Betrayal). I told him, "Buckle up, we are about to truly enter the Dark Forest."
Nate's arc, to me, is the one that has seemed the clearest to dig into. We're all used to TV storytelling, and this is just one place where it's not going that way. Nate has had Ted and Beard as his guides for two seasons, and while it seemed to be fine in the first season, clearly it's not entirely working. I believe that Nate's whole upbringing, both as a man and as a coach, has been under the leadership of toxic men. His father withheld approval for him (and for everything around him) for years. One year with Ted is not going to reverse all of that. Nate had pushed that instinct down, had accepted that role as the put-upon, as the prey instead of the hunter. That can't have been helped (indeed, worsened) by his treatment in the locker room and I would expect from the previous coach and Rupert.
But as Ted and Beard helped Nate get out from under that victim complex, we did get a couple of hints in Season 1 of what lurked underneath, though I admit that's only clear to me in hindsight. He laughs at the anticipated hurt to Jamie in episode 6, and then when he is called out on it he does it again immediately. Later, in episode 7, in his pregame talk to the team at Everton, as he grows in confidence his willingness to say hurtful things comes to the fore.
(It is ironic that he tells Roy that he is afraid of what it will do to him if he keeps his anger all to himself. Well, Nate is getting worse the more he expresses his anger. Perhaps this is what he meant: Nate has had a lifetime of keeping his anger to himself, and this is the result.)
I will be interested to see what comes of all of this. Nate started this season actively bullying Will, and suggesting hurtful things about the players; then he was actively hurtful to Colin in public; and now this. How far will this go? A TV Land outcome somehow has Nate being rehabilitated and brought back into good graces. But his character is such a counterpoint to Ted. Hopefully, Ted's experience with Dr. Sharon gives him the strength he needs to cope when the pressure mounts. But in Nate we already see someone that has all the support he could ask for on the job (and he's not without support at home, either, bless his mom!)...and it hasn't been enough. Just having people who care around you isn't always enough.
Will Nate be rehabilitated? I expect whatever comes in the next episode will be the core setup for Season Three.
I continue to be frustrated sometimes by Rebecca. She is a strong, capable, self-aware woman. She dominates any room she is in, and not in a way like Nate does. That she continues to struggle with relationship issues feels demeaning to me. But, then again, just like Nate, this is not like TV Land. One magical moment won't be enough, I think.
Roy and Keely: I get this fully. I really, really do. We all do things we're not proud of. In Keely's case none of this is her fault. She didn't come on to Nate, she didn't go seeking Jamie. Roy is guilty over how he handled things with Miss Bowen, and over lingering there. But neither of them did anything that in real life should be a cause for concern especially in a relationship that has been characterized by openness and honesty, and has also been a little battle-tested by now.
But here it is: one of those Big Questions. Being honest is good. That is what TV Land teaches us: in no way is it ever a bad thing to come clean and be honest. But this is not always how the world works. I believe that there are times when a hurtful truth should be gently kept. That a white lie is sometimes a better thing for the relationship than the bald truth 100% of the time. Should Roy be this upset over Jamie? Logically, no. But this isn't logic, it's emotion. It's history. Should Keely be that upset over Ms. Bowen? She didn't APPEAR to be to me: she looked distressed that Roy sharing it meant she had to share Jamie's admission. But perhaps she SHOULD be. That's something that struck me about the scene. It built from low-intensity to high-intensity, and I think the part that is most worrisome is the in-between step.
One more thing, one more potential dangling thread heading into Season 3: Coach Beard. I got an impression this year, and that impression has been enhanced with my second viewing, that Beard's patience with Ted is starting to fray. When he blew up at Ted at Mae's pub last season, he didn't just express anger at Ted's decisions with Roy...he suggested he had been stewing over this for a while. "I'm sick of it," he said. This season, I've thought I've noticed that Beard is more exasperated with Ted than last. Watch for his reactions. "I believe in communism. Rom-communism." Watch Beard's face. The whole explanation about Sheffield Wednesday, Beard seemed exasperated. I think I've seen this attitude quite a bit this season, and I didn't notice it at all last season.
Ted and Beard have what strikes me as a pretty standard coaching relationship. Ted is the head coach, concerned not so much with knowing tactics as with making sure he has the right people in place, and that those people are put in the best place to succeed, including the best head space. Coach Beard is the assistant, and he handles the practical matters of tactics and all the legwork that requires. This even extends to their personal life, where Beard has done the work of understanding the cultural and linguistic differences between the UK and the US, and he tries to keep Ted up to speed.
Perhaps Beard has grown tired of this? Perhaps there has been a current of resentment about it underneath. Perhaps stress with Jane, and stress with coping with Ted's anxiety issues (even if he didn't know he was) is beginning to erode his self-control. It will be very interesting to see how Ted deals with the revelation of the Great Betrayal, but also Beard's reaction to Ted's handling of it.
I'm extremely nervous for the season finale!
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Spoilers "Ted Lasso" Discussion Thread (May Contain Spoilers)
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Great post with lots of good thoughts. My feeling about Ted and Beard's relationship is they know each other well, they've worked together for a very long time, they complement each other, and it's quite resilient and stable. It can bear some push and pull, and likely they've worked through tensions before, but ultimately they have each other's backs. I think Beard knows a good deal about Ted's background and vice versa.
You're right. Also a counterpoint. We see Nate chafing as an assistant, we can see Beard doing the opposite. At least, coping with whatever trials in a healthier way.
Ted forgave Rebecca, but I don't know that he will forgive Nate, whose betrayal is more serious as well as more personal.
And that reminds me - now that Ted's panic attack is made public, how will that influence his behavior and that of those around him? Bittersweet that Trent Crimm (of The Independent) discloses it, with regret (but discloses it nevertheless).
Finally - did you catch that when Rebecca told Ted about her relationship with Sam Obisanya, there was reference to the yearly 'truth bomb'. Perfect set-up for a season three surprise to wrap it all up!
And that reminds me - now that Ted's panic attack is made public, how will that influence his behavior and that of those around him? Bittersweet that Trent Crimm (of The Independent) discloses it, with regret (but discloses it nevertheless).
Finally - did you catch that when Rebecca told Ted about her relationship with Sam Obisanya, there was reference to the yearly 'truth bomb'. Perfect set-up for a season three surprise to wrap it all up!
I agree Nate is chafing. He's also figuring out his identity and trying on different behaviors (the new suit metaphor) as someone independent (or at least trying to be) from needing his father's approval.
With Nate's issues, it's fairly common to expect him to "show out" somehow. Clearly he has feelings that he has be suppressing for a while (his entire life?). Knowing how to break out of that is critical, but so is knowing how far he can push things. It's classic passive-aggressive bulling 101... as the saying goes, you always hurt the one you love... because the one you love allows room for vulnerability and familiarity.
No doubt Ted will be hurt by Nate's actions, and seeing as how he is already somewhat fragile, I am curious to see how this unfolds. How much of Ted's positivity is real and how much is "dressing for the job you want"? Is it truly who Ted is? Or is it who Ted WANTS to be? He's been abandoned several times - his dad, his marriage, being apart from his son, and now Nate's bombshell.
The writers have done a very good job of evolving the characters and remaining consistent with the back stories that they have told us about each. It many ways, it's sad to know that it all ends after one more season.
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Those are very good points about what’s going on with Ted and the questions that should be asked about him.
I’m going to be unpopularly brutally honest here though and say there’s a part of me that thinks about all these questions about the characters and am bewildered that I care. It’s just a part of me, mind you. The recalcitrant part that wanted a show centered on the drama of sport itself.
The issue with that part of me is, that as fantastic as the story is that they are telling, I guess I thought I was getting a different story and it’s been an adjustment pivoting to appreciate the story I’ve been given. Which is weird because I’m a woman who grew up watching Dallas and Dynasty and Falcon Crest and Beverly Hills 90210 and Melrose Place and so I love me some human drama.
I don’t even like sports themed shows and movies that much!
But I found myself really caught up in the whole team aspect, the struggle of the team to find success and I got caught up in the shock of their loss. I wanted to see them grow game after game.
And then they got reinstated or whatever the term is? At least I think they did. But it was super glossed over so I’m not even sure. I wanted to see that damned game that brought them back!
So I guess I feel guilty and confused that until Sam came along I didn’t care if Rebecca got her love life sorted and I also found her best friend kind of not very interesting.
I DO like Rebecca and I do like her and Sam together, but I want to see Rebecca as boss lady. Her dates with interchangeable guys who are not Sam were not something I necessarily wanted to spend time on. Even though I understood they were necessary for character development. I just frankly don’t see how her love life or lack thereof is more interesting than the team and her running of the team.
I feel like I sort of wandered into a soap opera for sports fans.
At the same time I’m well aware that getting to know these characters as people will make them much more interesting as a team when we inevitably get back to the drama of the sport. It’s just that I missed the way the show was in season 1.
Lol it’s like getting treated to a wonderful expensive surf and turf dinner when your stomach was set on cheap spaghetti at home. You know you’re getting better than you wanted and expected but you still miss the marinara sauce you were thinking of all day!
My husband does get invested in the gossip about players off the field of the sports he follows. He knows all about their divorces and stuff like that and how it impacts their game. So he’s absolutely fine with everything being so dramatic on Ted Lasso.
Me? I just watch the games and don’t care what players are doing in their personal lives. I enjoy the condensed version of the behind-the-scenes drama that my husband tells me about.
Having said all that, I was absolutely riveted to watching Ted read the letter from Doc in front of her. They didn’t say much but their faces said so much. She better come back! I’m feeling abandoned! 😭
Rebecca’s bff’s niece might actually be my favorite character on the show!!
As far as the rest the show has to be about Ted. It’s Ted Lasso! Oh which reminds me that they made a Ted Lasso pun last episode and I don’t remember it but I remember thinking how did we go all these episodes without one!?
Interesting that you bring up Doctor Sharon. I was thinking about that. There's an incongruence with her. Typically sports franchises bring in sports psychologists to help sort out odd mental blocks with players. In this case, she was brought in to help the team work through the string of (I think it was seven) draws. But she left before the (football) season ended. That seemed really strange to me. It might have been lost in the season finale episode, and the writers wanted some "mileage" out of it, but it just seemed wrong that she left the team before their season ended.
Also, the Rebecca thing... I see her as "damaged goods" in many ways. Rupert crushed her with the divorce. She was bemt on ruining his beloved Richmond FC - that was the reason that she hired Ted in the first place. She has struggled to show strength and courage in her personal life. It was evident in the first appearance of Deborah and their interaction. She and Deborah seemed to make a connection at her father's funeral, and perhaps some good will come from that. Clearly Deborah was not devastated by her husbands cheating, as "he always came back". Maybe that will somehow speak to Rebecca's heart, as well, and she will be able to come to terms with the losses relating to Rupert. At least I hope she does. Otherwise, I see her relationship with Sam doomed. She can't be in a good, healthy relationship if she is damaged.
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Great post, really thought provoking.
You also reminded me of the letter Doc Sharon wrote, and I have been wondering what all she said in that letter that was so impactful to Ted. Another mystery there that I hope we will see more illuminated.
I'm already bemoaning that the series will end after Season 3, and we haven't even reached the end of Season 2 (well, not quite)!!
Yes the contents of that letter are indeed a mystery. It’s kind of driving me a little crazy, to be honest. They both did such an amazing job of conveying that peculiar discomfort of having to watch a person read your sentiments about them. I know I get Doc Sharon’s awkward and pained look on my face when I have to sit through my husband reading all the mushy things I write to him and about him on his birthday or our anniversary cards.
Jason may be ready to move on. Hopefully he won't make the mistake made by some....get too full of himself with the success and think it is guaranteed that he will be successful in any project he takes on. The public is filckle and has a short memory.
I’m not sure if i want more seasons just for the sake of it. If 3 was the original plan, leave it at that.
At first I thought the letter's contents might have been about Ted, like developing feelings for him, which might cross professional boundaries and she wanted to nip it in the bud. But then it wouldn't be like him not to say something because he's a verbal guy. His subdued reaction made me think maybe she told him something else deeply personal, maybe about another relationship or some crisis in her life that needed attention, something elsewhere. Didn't she relocate to be near the team? I might be remembering that wrong.
Exactly. Another mistake some make is overstaying their welcome.
I totally get what you're saying about pivoting. Had Ted Lasso remained as it had in Season 1, a comedy somewhat deeper than most that centered around a relentlessly positive main character and how others around him reacted, I think that would have been fine, assuming the delight didn't drop off. It took little effort to watch, really, which is fine.
My ex-wife used to say, in reference to authors, that most have one-and-a-half good books in them. It turns out that in this case, Jason Sudeikis and Brendan Hunt are only worrying about one book; that book is three seasons long. And that first season, that first act, where we get to know the characters and get a taste of why we could like them, that's a low-stress portion. Some TV shows never really get beyond Act One in that sense. Friends was nine seasons of Act One, for example. We get to bathe in the warmth of just hanging out. The show opted not to switch to existential crises. Friends did that really well, and to its credit they stuck with it and gave us a lot of enjoyment.
This, it turns out, is different, but I think we can all be forgiven if we didn't see it coming.
Some news dropped yesterday regarding Ted Lasso and a likely outcome in the finale.
Reports are that Ted Lasso just reached a contract agreeement with the Premier League. Pretty much confirms that Richmond is getting promoted in the finale. https://9to5mac.com/2021/10/04/ted-lasso-english-premiere-league/
Honestly, I hope they leave it as is. Probably the most impactful scene of the entire series so far, and absolutely top-notch acting to convey SO much without saying a word.
A big part of me wants to know what was said too, but I think a lot of the impact of that scene is we don't know, and have to speculate our conclusions. We know the most important part: that it was profoundly impactful to Ted.
Completely off topic but is coach Beard wearing a series 7 starlight watch?
![4B1A4354-8B83-48E0-98EE-F234D424142D.png]( "4B1A4354-8B83-48E0-98EE-F234D424142D.png")
It took me until episode 3 of Season 1 to get into it, really enjoyed the rest of that series. Season 2 is disappointing, too much psycho-babble, the show doesn't really need characters with depth. In fact, season one was cool in part because all of the main cast were caricatures!
Best episode of the season and back to focus on soccer again for season 3 it seems. Which makes it a little weird that it has only been a background topic and almost ignored through the whole season.
Honestly, I personally feel like the creators when into making season 2 with only the last episode of the season in clear focus, and the 11 others just seem to be filler, soap-dramas, standard tv-show tropes and out of character moments in order to make this happen. However, the characters/storylines now seem to have been flesh-out/outlived their welcome and everything is better drawn for season 3, where in the end of season 1 all the characters were probably to similar and likeable.
Great ending with Nate and now as exited for season 3 as I were for season 2 after season 1 - which is quite remarkable given how much I disliked and was bored by the rest of season 2. Although I most likely won’t stick around for the whole season if it goes back to season 2 formula.
I can’t image all of you who loved season 2 (which seems to be everybody here) isn’t still excited for season 3?
Honestly, I personally feel like the creators when into making season 2 with only the last episode of the season in clear focus, and the 11 others just seem to be filler, soap-dramas, standard tv-show tropes and out of character moments in order to make this happen. However, the characters/storylines now seem to have been flesh-out/outlived their welcome and everything is better drawn for season 3, where in the end of season 1 all the characters were probably to similar and likeable.
Great ending with Nate and now as exited for season 3 as I were for season 2 after season 1 - which is quite remarkable given how much I disliked and was bored by the rest of season 2. Although I most likely won’t stick around for the whole season if it goes back to season 2 formula.
I can’t image all of you who loved season 2 (which seems to be everybody here) isn’t still excited for season 3?
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Nick Mohammad (as Nate) knocked it out of the park.
Poor Roy. He's been nothing but the best he can be -- whether it be a friend, boyfriend, or coach. Just as his best wasn't good enough as a soccer player on the first season, his relationship with Keely is hanging by a thread.
I particularly loved the chemistry between Ted and Beard. Beard truly understands everything around him, maybe everything except his relationship. The way they comfort each other without even saying much says it all.
All in all, the second season may not be the comfort food that the first season was, but the series up the ante significantly by investing in their characters.
The way Nate transforms into a "joker" -- redirecting his insecurities and angers from his dad into Ted Lasso, was just amazing. Not dying his gray hair further reinforces what a failure his life has been up to that point. And that final smug... wow!
Poor Roy. He's been nothing but the best he can be -- whether it be a friend, boyfriend, or coach. Just as his best wasn't good enough as a soccer player on the first season, his relationship with Keely is hanging by a thread.
I particularly loved the chemistry between Ted and Beard. Beard truly understands everything around him, maybe everything except his relationship. The way they comfort each other without even saying much says it all.
All in all, the second season may not be the comfort food that the first season was, but the series up the ante significantly by investing in their characters.