Can Ted Lasso Maintain its Joyful Momentum into Season Three?
Few things pulled this country out of its chaotic mid-pandemic funk like the Apple TV+ series Ted Lasso. Premiering on July 23, 2021, following a changing of the governmental guard and the first wave of COVID-19 vaccine administration, the series could not have arrived at a better time.
During Season One, we came to know Ted Lasso as a beacon of hope, if only for himself, as a newly minted coach of the AFC Richmond soccer team. We came to embrace the abuse he endured, learning to let it roll off our backs the way he so famously could.
Season One’s foil, AFC Richmond’s owner Rebecca Welton (Hannah Waddingham), nursing wounds of betrayal inflicted upon her by her ex-husband, loosed Lasso (creator and SNL alum Jason Sudeikis) and assistant Coach Beard (Brandon Hunt), both green to the world of soccer, into the field to sink the team and exact her revenge.
Lasso’s Jesus-like kindness and forgiveness of repeated assaults, even after learning of plots against him, remained strong. He found the will to fight for the little guy, the underdog, and the villain, all while slowly and carefully cultivating camaraderie and team cohesion.
He held on through the storm as waves pummeled him, to the tune of ‘Wanker!’ until being sunk by the divorce papers served to him by his wife.
This was the first chink in Lasso’s armor. One might see his demeanor as an act, a shell that may contain some sort of beast he’d determined should be hidden. It was hard to believe that Coach Lasso was actually real. Until he had a panic attack triggered by his impending divorce.
By the time Season Two began, the veneer of supporting characters began to visibly wear, namely Coach Beard and Nathan Shelley (Nick Mohammed). In a series of sometimes bizarre and uncomfortable-to-watch scenes, we learned of the demons terrorizing each one — Coach Beard’s vices of reckless and risky behavior, and Nathan’s palpable and damaging self-hatred.
There now lie a few questions for Season Three. Can Lasso keep his head and lead his team on the road to the top? Is he becoming whole and healthy, with the help of his friends and therapy, or will significant struggles remain? And if trouble does come, would it have the power to take him out of the moment and cause irreparable harm?
One thing Lasso has now is friends. Heading over to the UK, learning their ways, and overcoming his loneliness and estrangement from his family proved to be difficult at best. He could not have counted on the support then he now enjoys.
Ted’s kindness became infectious over time, motivating those around him to become more forthright, kind, and gentle. Everyone who essentially left him for dead initially, by the end of Season Two, could be counted on to pick him up and carry him to safety.
Getting real in Season Two in the process of unpacking his trauma, and, again, remaining a beacon for those who unknowingly or reluctantly needed him, might help insulate Lasso from further hurt.
Though we may speculate there will be biscuits and roses all the way through Season Three, it’s probably not something on which we should count. With a new season comes a new adversary (Nathan Shelley as the new coach of West Ham United), new challenges, and the ever-evolving flow of human interaction.
Lasso now appears to be fortified on all sides, but will that love be enough to stave off other monsters that may be lurking under his bed?
Can his team love him for the imperfect person he is, and protect him from the pressures of life, competition, and difficult relationships?
And will love, should he find it, bring peace or hasten his undoing?
Ted Lasso Season Three will begin production in January 2022. No release date has been confirmed by Apple, but it is rumored the season may become available in the Summer of 2022. Ted Lasso is available on Apple TV+.
