What Do You Want To Believe?— The Culmination of The Richmond Way
Who would’ve thought? Here we are accepting the fact that Ted Lasso just finished the third, and probably, the last season. I’ve started Ted Lasso back in the middle of pandemic. As it was for most people, the first season truly felt like a warm hug that people needed in the middle of uncertainty. The notion that kindness will prevail feel strange and yet believable while watching Ted Lasso. During my unemployment, the shows brought me laugh, yet there is a subtle message that it’s not hope that kills me. And then in the second season, it felt like Ted Lasso invites me into getting more mental. To be at peace with what makes me sad. What’s also memorable for me from the second season is about our choices.
I think that message is still important for me. After this third season, there is absolutely mixed feelings. And I have been busier with work, with life. The choices are actually on me. Will I watched the show for granted? Or I can distill it into something that I can revisit from time to time. Especially, there is a certain after effect of Ted Lasso that make you feel something. So yeah, it’s not a bad idea to jot it down.
As this is the third season, and probably the last, I’d like to highlight my personal top three points from this season. I know, not every work of art has to be meaningful with deep messages. It’s just that somehow Ted Lasso resonates to me in that way. If you are looking for a lot of laughs, this season might not be the right one for you. And that’s okay. And yes, beware of the spoilers in this post.
1. Deeper understanding about belief.
We start the season with media predictions that AFC Richmond will be relegated again from the prestigious Premier League. In general, team morale was at the lowest. With the extra spice that Nate moves to West Ham (that was bought by Rupert) to be the manager. Despite the low morale, AFC Richmond is still trying their best to stand a fight. They are looking for a new player to bring more threats and to win more results on the field. It’s awesome that Rebecca works her charm (or sour-yell as Keeley described it) to get Zava to move to Richmond instead of West Ham. It’s also a sign that she was started to get away of mental-block from the trauma she had from the abusive relationship with Rupert. She still has a fear that Rupert always get what he wants. I think most of Ted Lasso fans would agree that Zava (with a huge resemblance to the star Ibrahimović) was just a temporary fix. It was fun when he arrived. Richmond started to win more games. The dressing room was quite okay but we know Zava will become the primadona everywhere he goes. However, in hindsight, his arrival sparks an important factor of Jamie — Roy friendship which I would address later.
Zava, being pre-madonna that he is, suddenly left the club after few months at Richmond. Well, technically he quit football to focus on his avocado farm. Being too good, or probably too rich, makes you weirder after all. The mood in the dressing room got worse with the ripped “Believe” sign that has been the symbol of hope for the team.
The next speech from Ted is what’s truly important.
You know what I wanna mess with? The belief that I matter, you know? Regardless of what I do or don’t achieve.
Or the belief that we all deserve to be loved, whether we’ve been hurt or maybe we’ve hurt someone else.
Or what about the belief of hope? Yeah? That’s what I wanna mess with.Believing that things can get better. That I can get better. That we will get better. To believe in yourself. To believe in one another. That’s fundamental to being alive. If you can do that, if each of you can truly do that, can’t nobody rip that apart.
- Ted Lasso
The iconic “Believe” sign, it’s just a sign after all. Episode one to episode five in season three felt like the first arc of the season. It seems that the team was clouded that there will always be a miracle like Zava to save the day, just because they “believe”. But then Zava left the team, they lost against Nate’s team, the “Believe” sign was ripped, and they think they are doomed. Which truly ask, what do we really believe?
2. Get closer to yourself.
The end of this season somehow brings me back to the Indian restaurant episode in the first season. If I remember correctly, Ted said to Trent that he loves coaching. Probably the same kind of love that Trent has for writing. Ted said he knows it’s not easy, but neither is growing up without someone believing in you. In this third season, we get deeper into other characters on and off the field. And for me it’s a beautiful exploration of getting closer to one self. There are multiple characters development that we see in this season.
I think the most striking is Jamie. For Jamie, we kind of know that something will change for him especially after his confrontation with his father on the previous season. We see he is growing to be more mature. He is not frustratingly looking for validations anymore. And it feels reciprocate on how the team sees him. Jamie’s poopeh speech is one of my favorite in this season. Let it flow, el ringo.
I think Jamie’s growing maturity led Roy to be more open to him. It feels like Roy also see his younger self in Jamie, where he was the star, but then he was not. Things are very dynamic in football, and life. Their 4 am training relationship turnouts to be a bonding sessions that get them closer to each other, and probably to their own self. Their time in Amsterdam is so memorable, and meme-able. Haha.
Let’s continue a bit to the dark side that Nate went to. I really like how the show depict Nate’s transformation into the dark side. It feels like in Richmond he was actually starting to be comfortable with himself. But, he was clouded with poopeh that he didn’t realize yet, or probably he didn’t accept yet. So he thought that moving to West Ham will make him more comfortable. To be seen as a wunderkind, to be seen as someone great. I feel like we can feel the pain of being fake from his day to day at West Ham. G.T wrote in her review that the only positive in his short West Ham moment is truly only Jade. Which I agree. For me, Nate’s story also makes thing more interesting. I think in the first season we know Ted being who he is, Nate in Richmond actually was more than just a kitman. Ted sees him as a team member who also loves the club. And in some ways, deep inside Ted also can sense that Nate is in pain for doing what he likes at West Ham but not being true to himself. The way he responses to Nate’s rubbish comments for Richmond in the beginning of this season is a subtle example of how Ted’s actually still care about Nate.
And then throughout the season we learned more about Nate and his family, especially his father. Growing as an Asian son, I know at some points it feel so far from home that your father apologize sincerely to you. But, it’s still touching story and a self reminder for me to be less serious about my parent. Most likely, they just don’t know how to talk. And it’s not entirely their fault, and also not entirely my fault.
The most interesting part of Nate’s story is actually related to Coach Beard that I will touch later. Because, another important part is we probably should prepare ourselves for Nate’s 60 pages apology! I still adore the detail and love that poured into this show!
I do also like that in this season we kind of get to know more about Keeley. Especially how she is more than just celebrity that likes football player. Her story with her PR firm and Jack felt a little bit stretched, but it still feels right. She might need to step away from that celebrity and WAG (Wife and Girlfriend) life for awhile to know herself better. Yes, she is still heavily involve in football but now is by her choice. Her choice to build a business and to stay single for awhile afterward. It feels like she has the ultimate right to say Collin’s mantra: I’m a strong and a capable woman. She really is. I really like how in Coach Beard’s reddit AMA, he mentioned about Keeley’s choice to be not pick between Jamie or Roy. Keeley can choose for herself. Because she is Keeley fucking Jones.
Another things I like on Keeley’s story are about hiring your friend and about women support women. I think the show briefly showed that it can be right or it can go wrong. So whatever we got should not be taken for granted. Anyway, happy for Shandy to be on the cover of Entrepreneur mag! Haha.
Seeing some callbacks after the end of this season makes me realize one more important character in Richmond story. The one and only Rebecca Welton. I think it’s a must to write also about her. It’s actually her story that makes me thinking of this part of getting closer to our selves. Some internet people has pointed out that Rebecca’s first word on this show is actually “Rupert”. She said “Rupert and I bought this on our fifth anniversary.” She was seeing the David Hockney painting. And guess what’s Rebecca’s last word: I. She introduced herself to that gezellig Dutchman!
I got back to Season 1 Ep. 9 to see again how Rebecca said herself: “I don’t care who I used, or who I hurt…” when she drop the truth-bomb. It was clear that before Ted, Rebecca was clouded by Rupert, and her anger toward Rupert. But Ted understands. He knew himself that divorce is not easy. Ted forgives her, and his response was thank her for the coaching job right at the time he needed to take some distance from his own family to see what’s really going on. In many ways, the three seasons was about people getting to know themselves better. Throughout the seasons, we learned that Rebecca is more than Rupert’s ex-wife. She got more comfortable with herself, as a human, as a daughter, and as a leader. We see how Rebecca is truly a boss ass bitch, with heart. As we should learn on my next highlight.
Most people said that this season truly foreshadowing Ted’s leaving Richmond with limited Ted’s screen time, and I got to agree with that. But in returns, the stories of other characters are still heartfelt and important.
3. But, paradoxically, it’s not about yourself.
This paradox that knowing yourself also leads you to be more selfless hits me the most. Let’s explore more on this point.
Continuing Rebecca’s story, another great scene in this third season is how she destroy the idea of Super League. I think it’s a good writing that inspired by a true story of that failed Super League. Football, is truly the beautiful game.
Rebecca asked the clueless CEO, “…is this a fucking joke? …how much more money that you really need? Football is not just a game.” Rebecca has grown from hating Richmond, to protecting it from being a part of elites’ toy.
That got me back to Ted’s word “…to believe in one another.” Just like Ted believes that deep inside Jamie is a good person. His believe in Jamie helps Jamie, and in the end helps the team. Which in the end also help Ted to talk to his mom as well. Season 3 Eps. 11, “Mom City” is wonderfully written.
Just forgive him. When you choose to do that, you’re giving that to yourself.
- Ted Lasso
The next scene, as I mentioned before that my favorite Nate’s moment was actually with Coach Beard, hits me hard. After the game, Ted’s showed to Coach Beard how Nate was stuck in RIchmond’s Manager Office for hours after ripping the “Believe” sign. And then Ted said:
I hope that either all of us or none of us are judged by the actions of our weakest moments, but rather the strength we show when and if we’re ever given a second chance.
- Ted Lasso
For me, Ted’s watching the full Nate’s CCTV record is a true example of his mantra; be curious, not judgmental.
It then followed with the heartfelt headbutt I have ever seen on television. I would say that “Mom City” is the second best episode after “Sunflower”.
And of course, it’s all coming back to Ted. Again, looking back to season one, success to him is truly not about wins and loses. He clearly emphasizes to Trent that his success is about helping the people be the best version of themselves, on and off the field. It’s an awesome nod directly from the legendary Pep Guardiola to this quote on “Mom City” episode too. In the end of the day, it’s not about ourselves.
In the farewell episode, Ted’s message to Trent’s book title say it all:
Ted disagree that the book title is The Lasso Way.
After all his kindness, his spark, and influence; he still state that it was never about him. And, as Trent wrote back to the first season, you can’t help but root for him.
Another heartfelt part, even though it’s probably really hard in real life, is Rebecca’s decision. In the end, she is paradoxically become more selfless as well. It’s a huge decision after she thought she should just sell the whole club without Ted’s around. But, I guess she realizes that it’s not about Ted and it’s not about her after all. It’s about Richmond, the city and their love for the community through football. The beautiful game.
Yet another subtle reminder, in the era where everyone feels entitled to many thing, this last highlight is so timely. This is for me too. It’s a subtle message not to make everything about us.
Farewell.
Oh wow, I didn’t expect it’s gonna be this long. I think I have written a lot. Especially on things I love about the three seasons of Ted Lasso. Another wonderful part in the last episode is how they portray Ted’s farewell with all the characters involved. The respect truly returns back to him, especially during the last sitting on the stand with Rebecca. In the end they understand and respect each other decision to prioritize what’s important for them. And it’s beautiful how Ted plays a big part in Rebecca’s growing love for Richmond. It seems taking care of this new growing family is a selfless choice for Rebecca rather than Drink, Sleep, Fuck. Ted and Rebecca ends up taking brave decision for themselves. And for Ted, he truly left Richmond in high regard.
I would like to thank all the creators involved in this show. It’s probably not perfect, and as Coach Beard said, perfection is boring. It’s still a rarity for me to write more these days, and this write up is not perfect either. But these past week it helps me to process things happening around me, and to keep trying to be better.
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I think I’m gonna end this with what Sudeikis said to Guardian few weeks ago:
I only did the Boy Scouts for a little bit, but I always loved that notion of: leave the campsite better than you found it.
So if Ted Lasso is the American Mary Poppins, he wants to leave the Banks kids, and probably most importantly Mr Banks, with the appreciation of flying a kite. And what I would wish for anyone involved with the show is: don’t cry that it’s over, but smile that it happened.
…there ain’t a whole lot of places like AFC Richmond either.
One last scream, Richmonddd!
