It has been more than three years since Ted Lasso Season 3 ended and over a year since we found out the show was coming back. There’s a lot riding on this season, given the polarizing views of Season 3. If it fails to stick the landing, Ted Lasso‘s reputation could be tarnished forever. Yet the show is shooting for the stars with a bold shift in direction, hoping fans will appreciate a story about an underserved side of the sporting world: women’s sports. While I’m admittedly not a fan of women’s sports myself (though I’m not really a fan of men’s sports, either!), the theme transcends sports anyway, as did the first three seasons. Ted Lasso has never really been about football, after all, and that rings true once again with another powerful message delivered in a sardonic but impactful way.
Based on the first four episodes of Season 4 provided for screening, Ted’s (Jason Sudeikis) comeback, the returning cast, and compelling new characters are building a narrative with the same humor and heart mixed with social commentary. While it’s largely about a women’s team, the theme of dismantling toxic masculinity still rings true.
It begins with Ted in Kansas, keeping continuity with the end of Season 3. He’s focused on his life there, and mainly his son Henry, now played by Grant Feely (originally played by Gus Turner). The storyline with his old pals visiting from England and successfully recruiting him is not believable at all, but for the sake of how it allows Ted to follow his passion for coaching and being a present father, I’m willing to let that go. Plus, the brief switch in setting lets us see Rebecca (Hannah Waddingham), Keeley (Juno Temple), and Leslie (Jeremy Swift) as the fishes out of water this time around, and that trio in the Midwest is everything you hope it would be.
As the story shapes up, the initial perception might be that this season is veering too far off course, pushing the “rah, rah girl power” movement, though if you look more closely, that’s always been the case. From Rebecca’s rise to power to Keeley building her own PR firm, the show was already planting seeds for this story. In an earlier season, Ted tells Jamie Tartt (Phil Dunster) to “woman up,” advising the confused player that the team has been “manning up” for a while and “look where that’s got you.”
With this season, Ted is back, and that’s enough to get you excited. He’s a local hero this time with a reputation that precedes him, and he’s also now managing a team of women. You will laugh hysterically through various hijinks, your heart touched with feelings of joy at every glimpse of Ted’s infectious smile or observation of his soft yet meaningful approach to getting through to people. Now that we already know the show’s M.O., sneaking thoughtful commentary and exaggerated positivity within the folds of comedy, the subtleties are more easily noticed. It’s also not in-your-face feminism, in the same way the first three seasons didn’t spoon-feed you about mental health.
That said, Ted Lasso doesn’t mince words either. You get a good idea of the tone in a scene from the trailer, when Ted is greeted by a familiar AFC Richmond fan. The older man welcomes him back to England, who adds that it’s “too bad” Ted is coaching a bunch of girls this time. Under his breath as he walks away, the man calls Ted a “wanker.” Please, tell us how you really feel!
The season thoughtfully shines a light on details some people don’t notice or prefer not to, like fans not caring about women’s sports, or women themselves being guilty of biases. It’s not lost, after all, that Ted is a male coach hired by a woman for the female football team. As such, purposeful commentary around such subjects slowly bubbles to the surface right out of the gate in the first four episodes.
That’s in stark contrast to the show’s first season, which slowly progressed to reveal the true nature beneath the surface. When we eventually recognized the mental health challenges Roy, Jamie, and even Ted himself quietly faced, it was a punch to the gut, a wake-up call of what the show was really about. Now that Ted Lasso has established itself as a comedy with a deeper meaning, it gets right to the point.
From a coaching standpoint, Ted’s challenge this time around is twofold. He turned around a flailing men’s football team that already had dedicated fans pulling for them. Creating a women’s dream team that can win, and that fans would even care about, is a whole different can of worms. And that’s what this season explores, focusing not only on Ted’s coaching, but Rebecca and Keeley’s work to draw attention to the team, and the fact that women’s sports can be exciting, too. Their own journeys tell another story: Rebecca is now looking to prove herself as head of the team and temper Keeley’s ambitious (and expensive) ideas, while Keeley is trying to make a name for herself.
Interestingly, while Ted’s coaching style is already soft and feminine, he has unique challenges to consider with the women. There are glaring pay gaps, rampant stereotypes, and media coverage skewed towards appearance versus skill. Imagine a press conference where every media question is about the men’s team, or a locker room that’s an embarrassment compared to the guys’ space. (Not to mention that Ted has to knock now!) With the guys, Ted could offer encouragement by reminding them that the fans are on their side. For the women, the fans are few and far between.
As with the first three seasons, Ted is the heart of the show and the players are what keep it beating. His new assistant coach Alice (Tanya Reynolds) is like a female Roy Kent (Brett Goldstein), and she’s an immediate standout this season among both the returning and new cast members. The real Roy Kent, meanwhile, is, well, still Roy Kent, in the best way possible.
As for the new female players, there’s an eclectic mix of ladies to mirror the men’s team, from feuding sisters to a star player being pulled in another career direction, a fierce goalie who refuses to follow the rules, a single mom, and a new recruit with potential. One woman who tries out for the team is a hilarious homage to a fan-favorite character from the previous seasons. While their personalities and dynamic are only beginning to form in the first four episodes, I suspect we’ll learn a lot more about each player and their individual stories as the season continues.
Along with highlighting the gender differences, Ted Lasso Season 4 also sets out to show how similar men and women are. In both cases, Ted needs to gain the respect and trust of the team, yet this time around, he must also convince them that he cares about their unique needs, and that it’s worth trying when no one else seems to care if they do well. If they don’t care, let’s make them care.
With the intention of many more seasons, not just this one, it’s unclear how far Ted, with the help of Alice, Rebecca, Keeley, Roy, Coach Beard (Brendan Hunt), and Leslie, will get in bringing this team together and convincing the public to “be curious, not judgmental.” Based on the first four episodes, you’ll be invested enough to want to see these ladies kick butt on the field and Ted take on a challenge unlike any other he has faced before.
This story originally appeared on Movieweb
