New season of Ted Lasso brings back the mayhem with a side of drama
KUALA LUMPUR, March 14 — Fans of Ted Lasso can rejoice as the show returns for a third season tomorrow.
In the first episode of the season, Jason Sudeikis’ Ted is still reeling from the crumbling of his marriage and upheavals at his workplace.
More than past seasons, there is a strong emotional undercurrent here as again we see Ted learning to grapple with his feelings, but at least he has stopped running away from his therapist.
When his therapist asks how he’s doing, Ted answers: “I’m fine, I think. I don’t know.”
If that isn’t a great summary of most people’s feelings in the third year of the pandemic, I can’t think of a better one.
Keeley (Juno Temple) and Roy (Brett Goldstein), the show’s favourite couple, are struggling with both relationship challenges and getting used to their new careers.
Richmond’s owner Rebecca (Hannah Waddingham) has settled comfortably in her role and no longer sees the club as a means of getting back at her ex-husband.
She is, however, not happy that his team is comfortably placed for a top five finish so expect to see Rebecca’s competitive streak go up a notch or 10.
As for the players: despite clawing their way back from relegation now comes the struggle to not be seen as the club most likely to end the season in last place.
While there is a lot of seriousness and many reminders that Ted’s rather fragile emotionally at the moment, displaying self-doubt and wondering if he’s what Richmond needs right now, there is still plenty of room for comedic hijinks.
What has made the show easy to love is the camaraderie of Richmond’s players, and while the show has relied on a fair bit of “if you get it you get it” sports jokes, Ted Lasso’s cast ensemble remains as endearing as ever.
Now what about Nate (Nick Mohammed), former Richmond water boy, now opposing team manager?
While Nate’s chip on his shoulder has only seemed to get bigger, how much longer can Ted continue to show grace and equanimity to his former friend and colleague?
What is for sure is that there will be a lot of questions that need answering in this final season of the show and let’s hope all the threads will be satisfactorily wrapped up.
Still, if there’s one thing Ted Lasso has encouraged us all to do is believe, and let’s hope that belief wins out for what remains one of Apple TV+’s best shows.
Ted Lasso’s third season starts screening on Apple TV+ from March 15 with a new episode each week.
