Ted Lasso: We'll Never Have Paris
May 2, 2023 11:00 PM - Season 3, Episode 8 - Subscribe

Richmond is winning! So instead the show focuses on Ted angsting about whether or not Michelle will get engaged, Henry visits and wants to watch West Ham, Nate officially has Jade as a girlfriend (I know, folks), Keeley gets hacked and a sexy video of hers goes awry, and most of the football team knows to delete their own shit.

Richmond is winning! Nobody's happier than Ted Lasso, right....? Not since Michelle and Jake are visiting. And going to Paris. Ted posits from this that they're getting engaged. And asks Rebecca to get a PI to check on this, which she tries to discourage. She says there's plenty of reasons to go to Paris, like making fun of people at the Louvre. "Where did you and Rupert get engaged?" NO comment... Also, "Oh, please, the Eiffel Tower is just a lamppost with a publicist."
By the end of the episode, Michelle isn't flaunting some French ring bling, that we know of anyway.

OH LORD JADE ACTUALLY SLEPT WITH HIM. I guess it's nice Nate cleans up afterwards. I still don't get this woman. But it's nice to see a nicer side of Nate.

Keeley's sexy video is among many other people's media leaks. "The Sun is calling it The Great A-wankening. What's the opposite of clever?" -Sam. Jack's method of taking care of this is writing an apology (or lawyers did, anyway) for Keeley to post on socials. "Sorry, but it's not a great look when the person I'm seeing, whose company I funded, does a porno online." AWKWARD. And Jack just broke up with Keeley over that (more or less). Oy vey. That was not what I would have predicted to end that relationship, which otherwise was actually getting pretty cute. Other than dis-inviting her from meeting "Uncle Bernie" and an obvious ex (Jack has A Type) turning up at a golf hen party.

Rebecca on this: "Just think of how many young women you're going to teach how to masturbate properly." "One day I bumped into my parents' couch and it felt nice, so I stuck with it. So my mother had to have everything reupholstered. I blamed it on the dog....we didn't have a dog."

Will trains another kit man.
"Is this a game or child labor?' "In late stage capitalism, anything works."

Poor Roy, almost sucks it up to let Ted talk about his feelings, and then there's a Diamond Dogs announcement. Roy stomps out, Trent immediately joins.

OH NO NATE IS TRYING TO HOST HIS OWN DIAMOND DOGS MEETING ("Love Hounds") at his new job. It does not go well. "Okay, this meeting's over and will probably never happen again."

I enjoy the ethical discussion of DELETE ALL THE PHOTOS in the locker room. Less cool: Isaac demanding Colin delete stuff off his phone (he doesn't wanna), presumably seeing something, and handing it back and leaving quietly.

"My one day off from football, you wanna go watch football?" At West Ham, no less. Henry waves a lot at Nate, who definitely sees it but definitely does not feel cool acknowledging this.

Jamie later comes over to Keeley's and says he did delete everything (or most of it... or like half....) off his phone.
"Don't tell me your password was "password," Jamie."
"Yeah. Well, to be fair, I did think I'd fool 'em because I spelled it with two s's."
posted by jenfullmoon (85 comments total) 6 users marked this as a favorite
 
Trent's awkward little "woof" in the Diamond Dogs bit killed me.

OH NO NATE IS TRYING TO HOST HIS OWN DIAMOND DOGS MEETING ("Love Hounds") at his new job. It does not go well. "Okay, this meeting's over and will probably never happen again."

I mean, the one guy tried to start talking about the pressures of caring for his aging parents, and Nate immediately cut him off because he really just wanted to talk about his relationship labeling issue. Nate's coworkers sucked at this, but Nate himself wasn't bringing a Diamond Dogs A-game to the discussion either. I'd love it if this was a sign that Nate needs to do more work than just apologize to Ted, and continue dating Jade, but we have only four episodes to go and the writing has been uneven throughout this season, so I'm not holding my breath.

Jade: seriously, she's sleeping with Nate, calls him her boyfriend, and we still don't get an inkling of personality or what her interests are, or any sense of what drives her. At this point she just functions as a mechanism that doles out rewards for Nate engaging in behavior that the writers consider "Good Nate" behavior. After watching Shrinking this year, I thought Bill Lawrence had gotten better with respect to sexism on his shows, and now I'm not so sure.

Rebecca kicked ass in this episode. I loved her conversation with Keeley, the perfect blend of wholehearted support, affirmation that Keeley had nothing to be ashamed of, and self-deprecating humor. Then she hits Ted over the head with a two by four, to keep him from going down a dark road that she knows all too well. (I still hate the Michelle-dating-her-therapist storyline, but Rebecca's reaction here is the only good thing about it so far.)

Beard was fantastic too, from his inappropriate suggestions for a day out with Henry, to his reaction when he saw what was the only football game of the day, to his conversation with Henry at the end.

I would love it if Isaac's reaction was, "Oh, god, have I ever said anything remotely homophobic around Colin? Have I inadvertently been a total asshole to him about this? And why the fuck did I think it was a good idea to grab Colin's phone and look at it after going through a whole debate about respecting other people's privacy?" but who knows.
posted by creepygirl at 11:53 PM on May 2, 2023 [23 favorites]


Were we supposed to infer that all the leaked photos/videos of the other women were from Jamie's hacked emails, or his emails were just one component in a wider hack?
posted by TwoWordReview at 1:28 AM on May 3, 2023


I really do not like the entire Jade and Nate situation. Not One Bit.

Yes grabbing someone's phone to look at items you know are private - even in context - is Not. Cool. Grabbing anyone's phone at any time is not cool but that was Especially Uncool.

First time I've ever laughed at a Candy Crush joke though.
posted by Faintdreams at 2:09 AM on May 3, 2023 [5 favorites]


I think it’s instructive that there was an aside early on about the leak being of a lot of women and ‘one man with a very big dick’ [Jamie, presumably] and the guy with the dick is not named, shamed or story-mandered in the papers. [The papers make it about wanking, in group chuckles that pander to the male gaze etc]

Jamie from Season 1 would have been chuffed to be the big dick guy, and yet here he is apologising and making the situation rightly about the shaming fallout for Keeley. He doesn’t have to point out how he gained empathy for shoddy media treatment of people in the public eye by being treated awfully when he was on that reality tv show. He learned enough to know he shouldn’t email or text Keeley. He also doesn’t say that ‘hey, they put my stuff out there too!’ That is a good way of showing his character growth.

I noticed that he and Roy were the only men in the change room who did not take out their phones to delete private material. Jamie’s immediate condemnation of the press invasion of privacy, backed up by Isaac, sets the tone and response of the whole team with their text clean ups.

The episode shows how the Season 1 floozy man child has morally grown, not only in what he says and does, but by how two other men in leadership around him don’t follow through morally in the same way as Jamie does. Roy is able to show concern for how leaked private material might make one feel, but asks Keeley an invasive question about the video nevertheless. Him making her suffering something about his feelings is basic bro-jealousy. His stuff. Isaac invades Colin’s privacy and then doesn’t bother to reassure Colin about what he has seen. Again, putting his feelings first. The patriarchal centring of straight guys with power over marginalised others is a habit they can’t quit.
posted by honey-barbara at 3:23 AM on May 3, 2023 [12 favorites]


Me when Isaac takes charge of the room to make sure everyone knows this leak is Not Cool: “I want a spin-off of Isaac.”

Me when Isaac reaches for Colin’s phone: matrix-not-like-this.gif
posted by Etrigan at 3:59 AM on May 3, 2023 [8 favorites]


the first two seasons were tightly plotted, right? not loose rambly threads everywhere and they only barely connect?

four episodes to go and i resent having to spend like three more hours or whatever watching this to find out how richmond finishes the season.

like yes yes this is not a show about football — but the parts that have been fun and interesting have been the ones that are at least a little bit about football. i’m thinking here especially of everything connected to the revelation that total football is the solution to the “okay what formation, huh?” question that’s been dogging them. i get the impression that the genesis of the show as a whole involved the showrunners finding out how total football works (possibly from inverting the pyramid?) and imagining a long arc building up to an originally dysfunctional team implementing a strategy that requires deep trust from everyone to everyone. trent just straight-up said the thesis statement of the show last episode with his ending-of-middlemarch-flavored discussion of how tiny acts of goodness from first ted to everyone and then over time from everyone to everyone resulted in the team becoming able to pivot to total football and have it work. but then this episode kills all of the momentum.

and yes yes the show isn’t about football, i know, but football matches used to provide crises that came at a regular tempo, with each crisis/match bringing together all the show’s threads, at least thematically. the goofball analogy that i keep thinking of is to the 2000s-era battlestar galactica, which wasn’t about space battles, at least not exactly, but wherein the ever-present episode-by-episode need for the characters to have space battles and not die in them both set the stakes for figuring out the interpersonal stuff and also put on pressure that forced them to figure out the interpersonal stuff fast.

though maybe i’m just thinking about bsg because it was a show that started out very promising indeed but then went all the way off the rails later on.

ech. i wonder if anyone out there is putting together a fan edit of this season that ditches as much of the material from tangential plotlines as possible (keeley/jack, everything with wossername, keeley’s super crass friend, and of course fucking nate and fucking jade omg my soul dies a little every time they’re on screen i hate them so much i probably won’t even be able to take satisfaction in the scene where she inevitably dumps him) in order to boil it down to a tight little 22-minute-an-episode workplace dramedy about a football team with a fish out of water coach.
posted by bombastic lowercase pronouncements at 4:25 AM on May 3, 2023 [7 favorites]


I haven't been as down on this season as some people have, and I didn't hate this one, but we sure didn't need another episode that focused so heavily on

1. Nate, who isn't even at Richmond anymore, and his love interest who the writers haven't bothered to develop a personality for beyond whatever is most convenient for the plot at any given time

2. Keeley, who isn't even at Richmond anymore, and her love interest who the writers haven't bothered to develop a personality for beyond whatever is most convenient for the plot at any given time

3. Jason Sudeikis's Divorce Feelings

I think Keeley's storyline could have worked if Jack was a character who I understood better - I don't think you'd have to do much to make it work, but I don't even feel like I understood whether the apology was about preserving the PR firm's bottom line or about Jack being judgmental of Keeley.

Because, in 2023, I don't even believe that it's good PR or good business to grovel about having made a sex tape. How is that going to come across as anything but really disingenuous? Isn't the obvious move to say "Look, that was a private, intimate moment, it shouldn't have gotten out, but the only person who did something wrong was the one who leaked it"? But on the other hand, if I'm supposed to believe that this is just Jack being jealous or judgmental, I feel like we should've seen that before (beyond Jack saying "I am jealous" in the previous episode).
posted by Jeanne at 6:38 AM on May 3, 2023 [7 favorites]


I kept waiting for Keeley to issue a statement that said: “I’m not ashamed, I’m not embarrassed, I am angry. The people who stole this data are the scum of the earth, as are the people who now seek to profit off it. Your focus should be on their wrongdoing, not the private messages of my relationships”.

But it never came.

You’re worried about how this reflects on your PR enterprise? Do some PR about it!

I mean, they did this with Ted’s anxiety and Sam’s protests, but now she forgets how to do her job?
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 6:45 AM on May 3, 2023 [31 favorites]


This episode just felt messy. I usually dive into Ted Lasso on Tuesday nights looking for a nice way to unwind from the day, and it just didn't happen. The good parts got messed up with the less good parts. For me, the good parts were anything with Henry and Beard in them and then it really was a sliding scale.

Even though the opening montage about the team winning indicated at least a couple weeks had passed, I'd have liked to see the Nate and Jade relationship much better laid out before immediately going from first date to waking up in bed together (we could've gotten that personality we're missing). We can assume Nate has continued to be a "better Nate" based on this continuing progress in the relationship, but it's kind of a lousy way to show it. The struggle over "Good Nate" and "Bad Nate" nevertheless continues when we see him affirm Rupert's awful text about barring Ted from any future West Ham games. Gawd, imagine Rupert showing up and then finding out it was a "Love Hounds" meeting. I think that would have been too cataclysmic a moment of disdain for the show to handle at this stage, hence his skipping. Seconding the above written thoughts on how the Love Hounds were really only about Nate, and not about supporting the other members of the group. He's still very much in the red, so to speak, in terms of becoming a better person.

I really wish Keeley would have called out Jack at the miniature golf course for not identifying Keeley as a girlfriend. Was Jack even ever going to take Keeley to the polo match? I think this was a case of Keeley's character responding to how the story needed it, not to how her character would've needed it. Imagine if she'd been on a date with Jaimie or Roy and they had referenced her as just a friend, she would've corrected them instantly. The relationship with Jack is at the moment feeling like one of those "we're taking a step back so we can take two steps forward" type of process, when they could've simply taken one step forward from the get go.

Additionally, I appreciated that Keeley addressed the release as more of an invasion of her privacy in that the topless photos of her on the internet were her choice, this wasn't. Perhaps it's just 2023 affecting me, but I don't think this happening now would carry the same level of impact as the actual event it's imitating did several years ago. The team moving from an honest discussion about respecting others with photographs to this weird blanket ban on personal photos was weird, and clearly intended entirely to force Colin into being outed to Isaac. That really sucked. This being Ted Lasso, Colin's team will embrace him, but geez. It would've been nice if Colin, being reassured by Trent about who he is, could've just come out on his own terms instead of this soapy contrived drama.

Roy asking Keeley who the video was for...was weird. It really seems they're setting Keeley and Jaimie to pair up again, and in doing so, giving Keeley a horrible partner at the moment and showing us viewers that Roy, who dumped Keeley for (???? reasons) is also no longer a suitable partner.

Doctor Jacob is going bye bye. The lack of a ring. The awkwardness at the taxi. The joking sparring between Ted and Michelle at the pub, it just feels like the show is going to push Ted into returning to Kansas to try again with Michelle. Ted has changed, that change is recognizable by Michelle, it cures what the problem in their relationship was in the past. Which is all to say, this show is at its best when it's not focusing on relationships. Argh.
posted by Atreides at 7:22 AM on May 3, 2023 [7 favorites]


At 1st I thought the leak was only Keeley and was Shandy's revenge somehow, but turns out not.

Rebecca was great this episode, supporting Keeley & giving good advice to Ted. It was good for them to have scenes together, so much of this season had the characters split.

Absolutely ENJOYED Higgins running like his life depended on it to go to the diamond dogs meeting, not enough Higgins in the last few episodes.

Anybody noticed Ted had a green matchbook in his pockets (also proably from Ola's)? Is that a sign of that storyline converging there? Or just the show having some fun, with obsessive viewers.
posted by WaterAndPixels at 7:42 AM on May 3, 2023 [8 favorites]


Anybody noticed Ted had a green matchbook in his pockets (also proably from Ola's)? Is that a sign of that storyline converging there? Or just the show having some fun, with obsessive viewers.

I did and I think it was just some fun with Ola's being a common denominator. Maybe even intended to underplay Rebecca having a green matchbook earlier this season?
posted by Atreides at 8:04 AM on May 3, 2023 [1 favorite]


Shout out to the costumers for putting Keeley in a brown polka dot dress that is obviously an homage to Julia Roberts's polo outfit from "Pretty Woman."
posted by ColdChef at 8:09 AM on May 3, 2023 [29 favorites]


ColdChef, I clocked that Pretty Woman reference instantly and loved it!
posted by BlahLaLa at 8:21 AM on May 3, 2023 [3 favorites]


Agree with all of the above, especially the unfortunate turn in the writing this season where, more and more often, story is driving character rather than character driving story (Keeley is the most egregious example, who even is she this season?). Paradoxically, the longer episodes have allowed them to tell more story but with the result that there is less character development and the larger themes are less developed.

The Beard/Henry interactions were wonderful. I am losing some respect for Ted, for continuing to worry about how his ex-wife feels about him, because she's dating their former marriage counselor, who was her personal therapist too, which is a profoundly shitty thing to do to your spouse. She does not deserve his respect let alone his affection, and the show is now clearly trying to half-assedly rehabilitate two terrible people--Nate and Michelle--and I'm not on board, unfortunately.

They did show us Rebecca's family pretty clearly this episode, she was fully in mom mode. Higgins running is the highlight of my week so far, all the Diamond Dogs scenes remain terrific. I'm disappointed that I'm so mixed on the show now, because the funny lines and bits in this episode were really funny, several actual LOLs were had. It remains a really well-made thing, so I guess we'll see how they land things this season.
posted by LooseFilter at 8:22 AM on May 3, 2023 [2 favorites]


Roy: Is this a game or child labor?
Trent: In late-stage capitalism, what's the difference?


As a person who falls squarely in the 'hates the gamification of everything' camp, I laughed out loud.

I haven't felt a ton of hate for this season; more frustration at the lack of integrated story elements that was done so well in the first season, and this ep continued to hit enjoyable notes and clunkers for me, like the rest of the season.

I liked the comment above. I liked the "find out before you flip out" message. I LOVED the calling-out of Alpha Male Training nonsense of "I read that if you like a girl, insult her." I was warmed by the pub interaction between Michelle and Ted, where she gets Ted's jokes and joins in, when everyone else is confused.

I was ok with Jade dating Nate, in theory -- people go on first dates with other people for a variety of reasons, and sometimes that's just curiosity or boredom. But she really has been written as what my film group derogatorily refer to as a "warm prop" -- a person whose sole purpose is to show a characteristic of ANOTHER character. I would have felt so much easier with the Nate stuff if it was maybe a kit man he took under wing?

I can see Keeley's reaction to Jack's insult of not referring to her as her "girlfriend". Kelley was already reeling by the video disclosure, and Rebecca, earlier, had talked about how Rupert's money-backed love bombing had the effect of knocking her off of her moral center. That's part of the utility for narcissists.

I hate to say this about an 8-year-old, but I don't feel like Junior Lasso earned Beard's "you're still loved" speech. That kid has shown zero indication of distress.

I'm still loving the wonderful normalization of women's bodily experiences. In an earlier episode, it was the tampon. This ep, had the sound of Jade peeing in the next room, and the easy and honest discussion of discovering masturbation. In between that and the discussion of images on phones, the show is takes a firm position on women owning and retaining ownership of their bodies and experiences.
posted by Silvery Fish at 8:24 AM on May 3, 2023 [6 favorites]


That kid has shown zero indication of distress.

The bullying thing from earlier was probably meant to mean "Henry is acting up a little bit", and Beard is wise enough to see it early and try to nip it in the bud.
posted by Etrigan at 8:32 AM on May 3, 2023 [4 favorites]


That kid has shown zero indication of distress.

Seems like the longer episodes have obfuscated their storytelling style: in previous seasons, it was typical for the show to mostly imply aspects of characters' experience, or leave it to the viewer to infer from the way a character behaved how they've been affected by something. Now, they still do that, but they also explicitly show well-developed character scenes that tell us directly what's going on with some--but not all--characters. Which is confusing, I think, e.g., Henry as a character.
posted by LooseFilter at 8:41 AM on May 3, 2023 [5 favorites]


The bullying thing from earlier was probably meant to mean "Henry is acting up a little bit", and Beard is wise enough to see it early and try to nip it in the bud.

Ah. I can see that. Thanks for pointing that out.
posted by Silvery Fish at 8:41 AM on May 3, 2023 [2 favorites]


- I am now taking the green matchbook as a symbol of an old flame being present. I really don't want it to be a Tedecca hint.
- I want Nate to be redeemed but it's not happening yet. Jade is a personality-free reward for him not being a complete doormat or arsehole. But he's still faking for Rupert's approval. And trying to force his current colleagues into the warm relationship style he had at Richmond without realising how friendships must be built and earned.
- wtf Roy? At least he realised quickly, I suppose.
- it was good to see Keeley turn to Rebecca and eventually stand up to Jack. I don't think Jack's attitude came out of nowhere, if you re-visit earlier episodes you can see how her behaviour towards Keeley has always had a double-standard in it. A bad relationship can make you lose sight of your values, but I hope we get a return of the previously fiercely independent Keeley.
- I was very involved in Ted's situation here. He still doesn't seem to have processed his anger at Michelle and Dr Jacob, but I'm glad Rebecca is looking out for him. I genuinely don't think the show is pushing for him to try again with her, not the way it's pushing for a Nate/Ted reconciliation. It's keeping his relationship with her as a barrier to him being genuinely happy.
- aw, Jamie, my favourite himbo
- Colin's plot had better be front and centre next week
posted by harriet vane at 8:44 AM on May 3, 2023 [5 favorites]


Reading this comments thread, I wanted to share two thoughts:
- It's not clear to me that Ted can currently react to the Michelle-DrJacob relationship in any other way if he wants to have any time with his kid. We all want DrJacob to lose his license (or whatever) but if Ted rats him out (and Michelle finds out), I'm pretty sure Michelle would reduce Ted's access to Henry. Furthermore, if he still has feelings for Michelle (I agree that's not great but it's clearly there), again, he can't rat DrJacob out because, if she finds out, any chance he has with Michelle goes away.
- I don't like Nate's speedy redemption either. But, I don't find Jade's recent actions as problematic as some other MeFites. I feel that she has a fairly self-assured character. When we had good Nate, we found that self-assured character frustrating as it put up roadblocks against a likeable character. When we have bad Nate, we want her to put up roadblocks again but that's more about our feelings towards Nate than about her.
posted by gofordays at 9:19 AM on May 3, 2023 [4 favorites]


Atreides: Roy asking Keeley who the video was for...was weird. It really seems they're setting Keeley and Jaimie to pair up again, and in doing so, giving Keeley a horrible partner at the moment and showing us viewers that Roy, who dumped Keeley for (???? reasons) is also no longer a suitable partner.

Yeah, none of this is anything I like.

harriet vane: wtf Roy? At least he realised quickly, I suppose.

I guess.

The whole thing is starting to feel like The Worst Timeline (okay maybe not the Worst but JFC, what has happened to this show?).
posted by tzikeh at 11:13 AM on May 3, 2023 [2 favorites]


I don't think this show has gone all that bad, but a few improvements could be made. I can sure think of a lot worse downhills, though.

If you're going to make Jade into a girlfriend, she needs some personality beyond "enigmatic cipher." It was a comedy bit before, but if you're going to make her into a thing, she needs more to her.

Was Jack even ever going to take Keeley to the polo match?

I don't think so. The "friend" thing was also pretty shady. But Jack has been given some weird traits.

I am cracking up at the idea of Michelle and Dr. Jacob going downhill instead of getting engaged.

It's not clear to me that Ted can currently react to the Michelle-DrJacob relationship in any other way if he wants to have any time with his kid. We all want DrJacob to lose his license (or whatever) but if Ted rats him out (and Michelle finds out), I'm pretty sure Michelle would reduce Ted's access to Henry.


Hmmm, yeah, good point.
posted by jenfullmoon at 11:19 AM on May 3, 2023 [3 favorites]


Was Jack even ever going to take Keeley to the polo match?

I don't think so. The "friend" thing was also pretty shady. But Jack has been given some weird traits.


I think she had intended to take her to the polo match, but was abruptly reminded that Keeley is a former glamour model and is reassessing the relationship generally.
posted by Etrigan at 11:23 AM on May 3, 2023 [2 favorites]


I thought Bill Lawrence had gotten better with respect to sexism on his shows, and now I'm not so sure.

Bill Lawrence is not involved in the writing of the third season of Ted Lasso.
posted by seawallrunner at 12:00 PM on May 3, 2023 [7 favorites]


I think it’s pretty clear Rebecca is going to hire a personal investigator to find her man in Amsterdam? The way her eyes lit up when Ted asked her to send one to Paris…
posted by jeweled accumulation at 1:35 PM on May 3, 2023 [2 favorites]


I've been somewhat sympathetic towards the Nate-and-Jade arc, for reasons I've gone on about too much in other threads, but even so, this episode opening with them in bed together felt... rushed? I know that Nate is a grown man and is probably past "momentous first kiss" territory, but it does feel like the show had hypothetical ideas of what plot beats it wanted to hit, then barely took the time to earn them.

On the other hand, while I've had mixed feelings about Jack, I feel like this episode clarified both why she's been introduced and what the show is trying to do with her. Jack is solidly a #girlboss, and it's neat that the show is depicting the less-savory side of that movement. In my experience, quite a few women who are very smart type-A go-getter sorts of the entrepreneurial/corporate/hustle variety also have this puritanical bent to them: they're outspoken feminists, they're aware that feminine-coded work gets less respect than it deserves, they're generally of the opinion that sex work should be legal... and at the same time, they not-so-subtly think that women who do anything remotely image-based or sex-adjacent have failed, in some way. If you model for a living, you've taken the easy way out, leaned into society's oppression of women for your own advantage, and maybe quietly admitted that you couldn't succeed on "fairer" terms. (Sometimes, they're a lot less polite in their phrasings.)

Yet Ted Lasso has been clear from the start that Keeley's entrepreneurial know-how and her PR familiarity stem directly from her previous line of work. Now she's on the so-called "respectable" end of it, but she has the skillset that she has because her other line of work was actual work. Jack comes from money, seemingly leapt right into doing what she does because she had money to invest, and is maybe good at what she does, but she sees Keeley's transition into small-business ownership as Keeley "breaking free" from her disreputable former life. Keeley pulled herself up by her own bootstraps, and her reward is that she gets to be a respectable businesswoman who never has to wear an animal outfit for a photoshoot again. Keeley is Jack's equal because Keeley showed her worth because Keeley "advanced" to doing something "legitimate," and Keeley's past life—sexting included—is just some shameful little secret, a nebulous sob-story background that exists just so Keeley can prove that she's moved past it.

Keeley, on the other hand, has a genuine joie de vivre, up to and including a fairly bawdy love of sex and flirtation and what-have-you. Her horror at the video leaking has nothing to do with the fact that the video exists, and everything to do with the fact that it was a burglary, a theft of private property, a personal moment put on lewd and lascivious display. Interpersonal connection reduced to pornography. And the disgust she feels when Jack calls the video pornographic is that, to Jack, that's all that something like that could be. It's not the theft and the violation that reduce it to that: it's the fact that a grown woman decided to make something like that in the first place.

I had a somewhat-surreal experience, a few years ago, when life circumstances led to my leaving one predominantly-LGBT social circle to another one in the same city. The community I used to be adjacent to was fiercely in favor of individuals pursuing their own quirks and weirdnesses; it was an incredibly inclusive community, had tremendous empathy for the kinds of people who'd struggle to fit into "polite society," and brought an absolutely wonderful degree of consideration and nuance to the question of what "appropriate behavior" ought to be defined by, and how different people come to different conclusions about that appropriateness.

Early on during COVID, I moved about in the city, lost contact with the people I'd most connected to that community through, and found myself in a much more affluent and "proper" crowd. And while, on paper, they were similarly pro-gay-and-trans-rights, talked a big game about respecting identity, would hold parlor-room discussions about the struggles of people in the lower class, it was all filtered through a lens of... cisheteronormativity? Patriarchy? Money? There was a weird sort of doublethink to it, in that everyone was ardently progressive on paper, but also took it for granted that slight faux pas were worth looking down at others for, that people should fit in, and that neurodivergence was fine if you kept a cute Insta where you drew comics about it, but neurodivergence that made you vaguely awkward at parties meant you were probably a bad person. Which was why, perhaps predictably, it felt like a far less diverse group of people, and a far less welcoming group at that.

The latter group was very much the kind of place where I'd expect to meet a Jack. And Keeley's caught in the awkward place where, on the one hand, she wants to be like Jack and she wants to get her business hustle on; this season even gave us Shandy, as the foil who doesn't really give a shit about this line of work, and just thinks the company sounds like a great new place to party. But, on the other hand, Keeley doesn't think this life is a trade-off where she has to sell off the rest of who she is. And what she's realizing is that Jack is putting her on just as much of a pedestal as season 1 Jamie did: no, it's not a sexualized one, and yes, it's one where her brains are respected, but Jack still wants her to be the idea of a person rather than a person—and Keeley is much more than just that idea.

(Jamie's apology, on the other hand, was perfect. No notes. Perfect character all around, excellent arc, just quality TV all around. His password was "password" with two s's, just to throw everybody off!)
posted by Tom Hanks Cannot Be Trusted at 1:44 PM on May 3, 2023 [25 favorites]


Please tell me this show didn't just hire Katy Wix to deliver two lines of dialogue an episode and look awkward.
posted by Jeanne at 2:28 PM on May 3, 2023 [8 favorites]


These scripts needed to go through a few more drafts. It hasn't worked to sideline characters who once were the center of the show, make them mere supporting players to other plots I don't care about.

And in the stories the producers chose to tell, a lot of characters are acting out of character, and plotlines are skipping chunks of development. Scenes and dialog often ring false to me.

I'm glad I got into a habit of watching Schmigadoon after TL, as most weeks it's been a better way to top off the evening.
posted by NorthernLite at 3:17 PM on May 3, 2023 [3 favorites]


Someone posted a link to this Advocate article in the last episode thread, and I just don't think the show does believe in its queer characters. Well, it's not judging Colin or Keeley but it is putting them in terrible positions that are nowhere near as enlightening as some other character stories.

"Let's finally make Keeley explicitly bisexual and then we'll have her new girlfriend be toxic."

"Let's make Colin gay and make him feel bad about the photos on his phone." Like, seriously, the gay equivalent of this is not the same as dudes keeping old girlfriends photos. Besides, they'll all be in DMs on Grindr probably.

That article also reminded me that Rebecca had a nudes leak story in the past and Keeley couldn't stop staring at the photos. And this show entirely forgot to mention that this week? That's just lazy.

Jamie's growth is the only really interesting arc to me this season. Everyone else is treading water. Ted refuses to learn about football, which is truly ridiculous even for this show. Roy broke up with Keeley but continues to obsess about her. Rebecca is doing nothing but advise Keeley about her life.

And somehow Nate getting a girlfriend is supposed to redeem him in our eyes? Fuck all the way off with that shit.
posted by crossoverman at 4:07 PM on May 3, 2023 [22 favorites]


I had theories about how Jack's red flags were going to manifest themselves, and I have to give the show credit for subverting my expectations. I honestly think it's good writing that every single possible red flag had a reasonable explanation… until they suddenly didn't. This is how toxic relationships work — wearing you down inch by inch.

honey-barbara: "I think it’s instructive that there was an aside early on about the leak being of a lot of women and ‘one man with a very big dick’ [Jamie, presumably] and the guy with the dick is not named, shamed or story-mandered in the papers. [The papers make it about wanking, in group chuckles that pander to the male gaze etc] "

So, just for some background: all of this was a reference to a thing that happened about ten years back called “the Fappening” — and I take no pleasure in typing that. Those leaked nudes were of lots of celebrities and clearly couldn't have been gotten from a single source unless the single source was, like, iCloud or something, so we're not meant to think that such a trove of nudes all came from Jamie Tartt's own emails, or that Jamie himself is necessarily the guy with the big dick.

The locker-room discussion was pretty clearly only intended to set up Isaac finding out Colin's secret, and it was pretty clumsy, I agree. The whole scene is getting dragged on Twitter — rightly, I think, because this show wants all of Richmond's players to be likable, and not to have any problematic thoughts or feelings, and knows that that wouldn't happen if this were a real life soccer team. So they tend to just be very shallow opportunities for each player to demonstrate quirkiness one way or another.

Roy asking who Keeley made the video for… well, I didn't like it, but I understood why it was there. The point of this episode was to set up Jamie to be the only guy who made Keeley feel safe in the wake of this thing. If the goal is to get Keeley and Roy back together after Roy's had some time to grow and understand himself better, then we're a few episodes too early to set all that in motion. It's manipulative, but at least it struck at one of Roy's already established insecurities — he suspects that she made the video for Jamie, so even though he claims he's gotten over that whole thing, he still doesn't like that that relationship ever existed.

I am of the opinion that Doctor Jacob did propose, but Michelle is trying to protect Ted's feelings — hence downplayed her enjoyment of the trip, and took off her engagement ring so that Ted wouldn't know just yet. I suppose we'll find out soon enough. If the show is really trying to get Ted and Michelle back together… I mean, nothing is off limits in a story. But this show is about mental health. “My ex-wife will see how I've changed and take me back” is not the sort of thought I'd want a piece of fiction to indulge.
posted by savetheclocktower at 5:11 PM on May 3, 2023 [9 favorites]


>Doctor Jacob is going bye bye. The lack of a ring. The awkwardness at the taxi. The joking sparring between Ted and Michelle at the pub, it just feels like the show is going to push Ted into returning to Kansas to try again with Michelle

> (Jamie's apology, on the other hand, was perfect. No notes. Perfect character all around, excellent arc, just quality TV all around. His password was "password" with two s's, just to throw everybody off!)

there's a disturbing number of characters whose arcs could easily become "finish exactly where they started except they like it now," and also that seems like it could easily be the arc of the team (and this show likes that kind of echo). like i don't think "keeley and jamie, ted and michelle, team at the bottom of whichever league they started in" is where they're going, but it's set up to be a potential place they're going.
posted by bombastic lowercase pronouncements at 6:20 PM on May 3, 2023 [1 favorite]


there's a disturbing number of characters whose arcs could easily become "finish exactly where they started except they like it now," and also that seems like it could easily be the arc of the team (and this show likes that kind of echo). like i don't think "keeley and jamie, ted and michelle, team at the bottom of whichever league they started in" is where they're going, but it's set up to be a potential place they're going.

Jamie at least has learned how to make a proper apology, which was an issue right before Keeley broke up with him in Season 1:

Jamie: I'm sorry, babe.
Keeley: Do you even know what you're sorry for, Jamie?
Jamie: [sighs] You always ask me that.

I'm not particularly invested in Keeley and Jamie getting back together, I'm not even sure that's what's going to happen, but clearly he's changed from the shit boyfriend he was in S1.
posted by creepygirl at 7:26 PM on May 3, 2023 [7 favorites]


"Let's make Colin gay and make him feel bad about the photos on his phone."

Right?! A lot of people got some measure of "This got crappy and then there was a little closure" arcs right in this episode (Nate gets a DTR talk that satisfies him with someone he doesn't deserve, Jamie makes a genuine apology and it's appreciated, Keeley is her honest self and learns who Jack's honest self is, Rebecca gets to be helpful and a good friend and be strong) but Colin got... a weird interaction with Isaac and then NO CLOSURE which was just cruel and really not the vibe this show generally has (and yes also agree about Keeley having a relationship with the woman but maybe the woman is toxic) especially since Colin is, by all accounts, supposed to be a sympathetic (and anxious) character generally.

Please tell me this show didn't just hire Katy Wix to deliver two lines of dialogue an episode and look awkward.

I really wonder because her character seems to mostly be a jerk who occasionally seems like she might be regretting being a jerk and I wonder if there's some purpose to it?

Also to add to the convo from last week the Dr. Jacob/Michelle relationship is yet another one (Rebecca/Sam, Keeley/Jack) where there's a clearly inappropriate power dynamic which is barely discussed, which makes a hattrick.

I didn't buy Roy's "Who was it for?" question. No current version of Roy in this show would have asked her that.
posted by jessamyn at 7:52 PM on May 3, 2023 [16 favorites]


My prediction: Michelle cools off on Dr. Jacob, in a "I needed this guy to help me figure out not to be with Ted, which is still correct, I just realize now that he's just not the guy I want to be with either" kind of way. Ted moves back to Kansas and has an awkward but workable coparenting thing with her and they don't bet back together again.
posted by rivenwanderer at 8:04 PM on May 3, 2023 [7 favorites]


The team moving from an honest discussion about respecting others with photographs to this weird blanket ban on personal photos was weird,

What's REALLY weird to me is that Apple is showing a roomful of people with iPhones being told that the best way to keep their data secure is to DELETE EVERYTHING! From an IT industry perspective this is the show's biggest sin.

Colin: I think they're setting up something with him and Isaac for next episode so I'll hold judgment.

Jamie: The one character they can do no wrong with. I hated him in Season 1 episode 1 and now I love him.

Keeley: They've really kneecapped her, I would have liked to see her kick Jack out instead of Jack leaving and her saying "Will you come back?". And she totally should have done a PR statement (or at least a tweet) that said "None of this is my fault" and pissed Jack off.

Nate: I still don't mind his relationship, but Jade could sure use more of a personality. I like how he's started missing Ted and company but that apology is sure a long time coming.

Ted: Really needs to get over Michelle. Let her marry her wildly inappropriate boyfriend, get a good lawyer and make sure custody arrangements are in writing.

Really this just felt like an "in between" episode that is setting up the next few. But we don't have many left...

[I can criticize, but Trent Crimm awkwardly saying "woof" redeemed the entire episode.]
posted by mmoncur at 8:08 PM on May 3, 2023 [4 favorites]


Wow - I’m surprised so many people seemed to like this one - it just felt like an Afterschool Special to me. You get a teachable moment! And you get a teachable moment! And so do you! Ugh. People all standing in the streets singing Hey Jude? Sure, throw that in too. Have the pub owner swing her tray like a tambourine while you’re at it (why yes she did). Just gratuitous.

I did love Keeley’s polo dress, and it was really charming to see the three of them at the West Ham game with Henry happily waving at Nate. And Rebecca is just amazing. I also had the sense that maybe the doctor asked Michelle to marry him in Paris and she said no - there was definitely some weirdness.
posted by Mchelly at 8:26 PM on May 3, 2023 [5 favorites]


There was a little moment at the end where Dr Jacob (who deserves all the professional sanctions) was getting Henry into the car. Doc went in for a fist bump or something and Henry kept it moving. It makes me wonder if it was to show Henry’s lack of interest in Doc (same, kid) or foreshadowing something greater. Either way, felt legit.
posted by MichaelJoelHall at 9:08 PM on May 3, 2023 [4 favorites]


I feel like if the episodes were still 30-ish minutes long there would be a lot less fucking faffing about.
posted by oneirodynia at 9:45 PM on May 3, 2023 [12 favorites]


It's not clear to me that Ted can currently react to the Michelle-DrJacob relationship in any other way if he wants to have any time with his kid.
Oh. I hadn't considered this until now, but yeah, he hasn't got much leeway here since he's overseas. Thankyou.
...she sees Keeley's transition into small-business ownership as Keeley "breaking free" from her disreputable former life
Another thankyou - I was picking this up but couldn't articulate it very well. Spot on. It's that kind of semi-progressive-but-not-really attitude, lots of Lean In and wilful ignorance. Jack also epitomises the unthinking attitude that Keeley complains about, that she's sexualised then punished for being sexual. Jack is turned on by Keeley, but doesn't like any evidence of Keeley having had a prior sex life. She wants a trophy wife/girlfriend, not a full human being.
posted by harriet vane at 10:02 PM on May 3, 2023 [4 favorites]


What's REALLY weird to me is that Apple is showing a roomful of people with iPhones being told that the best way to keep their data secure is to DELETE EVERYTHING! From an IT industry perspective this is the show's biggest sin.

From an information governance perspective, it's 100% correct. You can't lose what you don't have.

Issac's point is that the frisson of looking at nudes from girls you are no longer dating is not worth the risk (to them) of holding that data long-term.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 11:06 PM on May 3, 2023 [8 favorites]


My theory about Barbara: I’m guessing she actually doesn’t hate or dislike Keeley. But she knows Jack, and that’s forcing the awkwardness. Barbara acts like she’s afraid of Jack, and when she finds out Keeley and Jack are together, she’s maybe a little worried for Keeley because she knows how these things go with the boss. Look at how everyone is so buttoned up and quiet at the office. Keeley is a good person, and a warm person, so you would expect that the people working for her would at least feel free enough to not be tensed up all the time. Again, this is just a theory I have, I could be wrong.
posted by azpenguin at 6:21 AM on May 4, 2023 [8 favorites]


Someone earlier pointed out that Barbara = Higgins at the start with Rupert. In a show where most of the characters are extremely well-off, there's still a clear distinction than billionaire-type wealth people who are on a whole other level of wealth and so far are charming and utterly vile.

I too wish I knew absolutely nothing about Jason Sudekis' divorce while watching this.
posted by dorothyisunderwood at 7:14 AM on May 4, 2023 [6 favorites]


Typing out my thoughts before reading any of the comments, because I have to get them out. Sadly, I think this was the first Ted Lasso episode I actively disliked.

Ted: Ted was not himself during this episode. He was mean, paranoid, distracted, and generally miserable. Yes, I know he's still struggling with his divorce and the (horribly unethical) behavior of Dr. Jacob, but he basically let it ruin his weekend with his son. (Side note: The kid playing Henry is such a bad actor that it fully takes me out of the action. Sorry if that's mean but it's true.) Hiring a PI is the most non-Ted action I can imagine. It's as if he's forgotten everything Dr. Sharon told him and is just spiraling. (Yes, I know that happens to people, but this is a show about the best of people and I feel they did Ted a disservice this week.)

Nate: NATE HAS LEARNED NOTHING. The "Love Hounds" scene showed that he is just as selfish and thoughtless as ever. If they are headed towards a redemption for him, it's completely unearned at this point. And speaking of unearned, why does he have a relationship with Jade at all? She's a complete cypher with no character of her own. What does she see in him? She likes his smile? It makes no sense at all. He's a horrible man and a weasel. Feh.

Keeley: Keeley has been completely squandered this season. The storyline about Jack's dad's lawyers writing a statement is idiotic because Keeley runs a PR agency. She ostensibly should know how to deal with bad press for a celebrity - it's her f***ing job! Yes, it's good that she stood up to Jack. Jack's reaction was completely out of line (and didn't really make sense for the character). I feel like the whole Keeley/Jack storyline is just an excuse to push her back to Roy or Jamie, rather than being motivated by any real character impulses. (Speaking of which, why did Roy ask "who was it for?" That was dumb, Roy.) (Jamie remains a saint.)

Beard: Beard's monologue about Hey Jude was the best part of the episode, and may be the most we've heard Beard talk all season, if not in the entire show.

Ugh, disappointed. For a show ostensibly about how kindness can change the world, it has gotten mired in meanness. I hope they have a plan.
posted by Ben Trismegistus at 7:35 AM on May 4, 2023 [13 favorites]


Jack is solidly a #girlboss

Is she though? I thought this episode made it clear that she is a dilettante flying around the world and spending Daddy's money. She panicked and called her Dad when she thought her investment was at risk. As far as I can tell, we haven't seen anything to indicate that she does actual work.
posted by Ben Trismegistus at 7:47 AM on May 4, 2023 [12 favorites]


made it clear that she is a dilettante flying around the world and spending Daddy's money

1000%, and I think that's why Barbara is angry about Jack's relationship with Keeley because Barbara was actually starting to like Keeley and this little PR company, but Jack is gonna come in again, play "boss," fuck the help, wreck the start-up, and move on. Jack now reads as a toxic, mega-rich player who doesn't really think about the real lives her fun affects.
posted by LooseFilter at 8:00 AM on May 4, 2023 [15 favorites]


Also, isn't Keeley's dress a direct reference to Pretty Woman's polo match dress?
posted by dorothyisunderwood at 8:27 AM on May 4, 2023 [3 favorites]


The storyline about Jack's dad's lawyers writing a statement is idiotic because Keeley runs a PR agency.

It's a bit weird, but there are firms who specialize with dealing with crisis communication, Keeley's firm seems more about brand image & ads, not that we see much of what they actually do.

Anyway this is a bit moot, aside from a statement saying 'fuck you leakers', there's no communication necessary. This is stolen private material that is 100% ok when done between consenting adults, it's also not like she's built her public image on being an abstinent prude. This is not an image crisis it's a personal crisis. It's hell of a privacy violation for her, and I totally understand why she doesn't want it out and is not feeling good about it.
posted by WaterAndPixels at 8:59 AM on May 4, 2023 [1 favorite]


It's a bit weird, but there are firms who specialize with dealing with crisis communication, Keeley's firm seems more about brand image & ads, not that we see much of what they actually do.

Anyway this is a bit moot, aside from a statement saying 'fuck you leakers', there's no communication necessary.


Agreed on both points. Especially true since it's supposedly tons of celebrities caught up in this. Why would Keeley need to say anything at all?

My point about her running a PR firm is that, yes, it's not necessarily about crisis communication, but I'm surprised she never even mentioned it in the context of Jack's boneheaded statement. I would have liked to see some acknowledgment that Keeley has helped other celebrities deal with bad press or embarrassment in the past, either personally or by bringing in a consultant. It goes back to an observation I made earlier this season that NO ONE (not Ted, not Keeley, not Rebecca, not Nate) appears good at their jobs this season.
posted by Ben Trismegistus at 9:15 AM on May 4, 2023 [6 favorites]


As far as I can tell, we haven't seen anything to indicate that she does actual work.

This is not uncommon among #girlboss types, ime
posted by Tom Hanks Cannot Be Trusted at 9:39 AM on May 4, 2023 [1 favorite]


jessamyn: I didn't buy Roy's "Who was it for?" question. No current version of Roy in this show would have asked her that.

So, so annoying how stupid they've made Roy this season.
posted by tzikeh at 12:33 PM on May 4, 2023 [12 favorites]


There have been some really great Roy moments, but they really seem to be positioning hard for him to not be a good romantic choice, but that's backsliding so hard from all the really, really lovely progress he made last season.
posted by Night_owl at 12:37 PM on May 4, 2023 [7 favorites]


That episode made me feel resentful. I feel like it robbed me of an hour of my life. I am never getting that hour back. I could have spent that hour doing something else or watching something good. You may ask why I didn’t bail. Fair question. I guess because it’s near the end of the series and I thought something might happen at some point. But ironically by sticking with it, I’ve come to the realisation I no longer care about these characters or the team. I don’t think I can muster the enthusiasm to watch the rest of the season.
posted by chill at 1:29 PM on May 4, 2023 [2 favorites]


I'm going to stick out the season. It was always designed as a three season show, at least that's what Bill Lawrence always said. I know he's not involved in the show as much anymore but I am going to assume the shape of the season will go as originally planned - Ted goes back to America?

I am almost certain the show is pivoting to focus on the wider cast and so many story threads to justify a spin-off or some other continuation without Ted as focus.

But this season has been such a let down compared to the other two seasons. If there is a solid finale and a good wrap up this year, it won't feel too much like a waste. But I just am not buying that these are the same characters.
posted by crossoverman at 4:05 PM on May 4, 2023 [1 favorite]


As someone who can't stand Nate, Jack, Henry, or the Beatles: this was a tough episode.
posted by The corpse in the library at 7:15 PM on May 4, 2023 [10 favorites]


you know what this show is now this show is nice but not good
posted by bombastic lowercase pronouncements at 7:33 PM on May 4, 2023 [4 favorites]


The whole thing is starting to feel like The Worst Timeline
Nate, Keeley, Colin, Rebecca, Higgins, Roy, Trent, Sam, Ted - the show has done a great job at developing some compelling characters. The problem for the writers is that you can't just leave characters like this in the finale: you have to tie up their story. And the show does indeed look like it is going to do a terrible job of that in at least several of these cases. The trajectories are so bad looking and numerous at present that it almost feels deliberate.
posted by rongorongo at 6:17 AM on May 5, 2023


The trajectories are so bad looking and numerous at present that it almost feels deliberate.

If they are going to spin off the show in some way, this would make some sense. Well, not their decisions with the characters, but their motivation for not wrapping up the character arcs for many of the characters.

Granted, if there was going to be a show called AFC Richmond or something like that, you'd have thought they would have announced it and got production under way if they wanted to have the first season of that show start sometime within a year of the last season of this show. Who knows. Maybe we're going to end up with some bloated 2 hour finale where everything is finally put in proper order.
posted by Atreides at 6:32 AM on May 5, 2023 [1 favorite]


it almost feels deliberate.

I expected this season to resolve Ted’s arc and probably send him home, and maybe set up more story with the rest of the cast, but I didn’t expect most of the season to be a backdoor pilot for AFC Richmond.

(On preview, jinx!)
posted by LooseFilter at 6:36 AM on May 5, 2023 [1 favorite]


I’ve completely lost faith just watching to see it all play out.

Nate’s redemption arc is SO WEAK. We see him doing no football coaching, making no real choices, exploring no new identity of his position, we’ve seen none of Rupert since the early episodes just why?

The only part I oddly enjoyed and wished they did more of in tv shows in general, was show ambiguous actions and facial expressions and leave it to you as the viewer to figure out what is felt, wanted and meant by a character’s behavior. I had to watch the final few minutes a couple of times to figure out what was going on. Ted holding on to the bag (weird behavior for him, kind of aggressive but also not wanting to let go), what was going on as they got into the taxi, and what did he think and feel about it? It’s still not entirely clear to me.
posted by St. Peepsburg at 4:26 PM on May 5, 2023 [1 favorite]


you'd have thought they would have announced it and got production under way if they wanted to have the first season of that show start sometime within a year of the last season of this show

Writers' strike aside, there was 18 months between the 2nd and 3rd season of this show, so Apple probably doesn't need it to come out so quickly. They probably want this show to play out before the announce the spin-off.
posted by crossoverman at 10:12 PM on May 5, 2023


I presumed Roy asked for the identity of the original video recipient so he could go shout at the guy.

The "Hey Jude" performance reminded me - hey, wasn't it just a little while ago that you couldn't legally digitally stream the Beatles' music at all? It feels like .... yesterday.
posted by brainwane at 6:54 AM on May 7, 2023 [4 favorites]


> I presumed Roy asked for the identity of the original video recipient so he could go shout at the guy.

I wish I had the same reading of the scene, since that's more in character for Roy.
posted by The corpse in the library at 7:33 AM on May 7, 2023 [1 favorite]


Roy's development keeps lurching back and forth this season. I really wish the writers would reintroduce his niece's teacher back into the show so Roy can figure out how to connect with people and sort out exactly what he's looking for in his relationships with people (both personal and romantic). There's been too much of the weird misanthrope in him this season and not enough of the confused misanthrope.

Also, Ted's pulling of the green matchbook from his pocket does not bode well for those of us who are not into the TedBecca shipping. This show loves its Easter Eggs, and that seemed a very ham-fisted way of hiding one.
posted by KingEdRa at 7:44 AM on May 7, 2023 [5 favorites]


A very "falling anvil" sort of easter egg.

Man, the Nate storyline is annoying.
posted by rmd1023 at 9:09 AM on May 7, 2023 [3 favorites]


I had to watch the final few minutes a couple of times to figure out what was going on. Ted holding on to the bag (weird behavior for him, kind of aggressive but also not wanting to let go), what was going on as they got into the taxi, and what did he think and feel about it? It’s still not entirely clear to me.

Holding onto the bag was 100% so he could see whether or not his ex- was wearing an engagement ring. (The scene was shot to hide her left hand from the viewer/camera as well until that point, and they were assuming we'd be asking ourselves the same question.)

And Ted's reaction to the taxi scene was a bit more ambiguous, but I took it as satisfaction in seeing his kid rejecting his ex's boyfriend's gesture toward being a father-figure (and probably also in seeing some distance/coldness between the two adults down there too.)


I didn't buy Roy's "Who was it for?" question. No current version of Roy in this show would have asked her that.

The way I squared that weird moment with his character was by assuming he was asking because he wanted to go confront (threaten?) whoever it was for being so security-lax, not (directly at least) out of jealousy for the photos being sent to them in the first place. But by the end of the scene, it sure seemed like the intention was to show he was actually just being petty/jealous, in which case it sure seems this was written as another very-special-episode teaching-moment for the audience about how not do be a good friend/ex-?
posted by nobody at 12:42 PM on May 7, 2023 [4 favorites]


> I really wish the writers would reintroduce his niece's teacher back into the show

I forgot about her! Huh. I wonder why they set that up.
posted by The corpse in the library at 12:47 PM on May 7, 2023 [3 favorites]


The niece's teacher was sort of to test Roy's wandering eye while Keeley started noticing Jamie again. I thought that it was to be a story of "well, we were both tempted by other people but we ended up back together" but that ended up not being the case. Roy was late for something (a photoshoot?) because he was hanging out with the teacher and that caused a lot of tension between them. It sort of precipitated the break-up.

Remember when this show was subtle about relationships and generous in the way people could act without vilifying them? I miss that version of the show.
posted by crossoverman at 3:57 PM on May 7, 2023 [9 favorites]


I've liked this season a fair bit, but this was a clunky Very Special Episode.

Jamie looked like an angel in his white outfit at Keely's door. Good on him for being the only one in the episode that owned up to his shit.

Perhaps a dark thought, but the "Hey Jude" sing-along made me think that for all the performance of celebration or mourning the Brits do around the Royals, it's going to be real collective grief when Sir Paul moves on from this world.
posted by dry white toast at 10:59 PM on May 7, 2023 [1 favorite]


Also, Ted's pulling of the green matchbook from his pocket does not bode well for those of us who are not into the TedBecca shipping. This show loves its Easter Eggs, and that seemed a very ham-fisted way of hiding one.

Flip side is that the writers are showing that Rebecca having a green matchbook is not prophetic, but something that anyone with a connection to Sam's restaurant would likely have on them.

And Ted's reaction to the taxi scene was a bit more ambiguous, but I took it as satisfaction in seeing his kid rejecting his ex's boyfriend's gesture toward being a father-figure (and probably also in seeing some distance/coldness between the two adults down there too.)

This reminded me that the first act ended with Ted asking his son how he felt about Jake, but Henry passing out before Ted got an answer. So the last act ends with Ted getting his answer. Which, I suppose, would go toward reassuring Ted that he isn't losing his son by being so far away.
posted by Atreides at 7:10 AM on May 8, 2023 [2 favorites]


Also, Ted's pulling of the green matchbook from his pocket does not bode well for those of us who are not into the TedBecca shipping. This show loves its Easter Eggs, and that seemed a very ham-fisted way of hiding one.

I really wouldn't worry about TedBecca becoming canon if that is something that is worrying you -- there are four episodes left and zero indication that they feel anything for one another except great friendship.
posted by tzikeh at 11:59 AM on May 8, 2023 [1 favorite]


there are four episodes left and zero indication that they feel anything for one another except great friendship

True. Ted brought Rebecca biscuits in this episode and it might have been only the second time this season that he has? I miss that friendship.
posted by crossoverman at 3:56 PM on May 8, 2023


tzikeh, I wish I could share your optimism. I feel like the writers were rushing through this season to wrap up (and seemingly straight up abandon) plot points & storylines. I wonder if the WGA strike affected the writing room. I feel like this show needed 4 seasons (or three seasons and a movie) to wrap things up, and the writers saw the prospect of a long strike looming and decided to get to the main points wrapped up in case the show wasn't going be making new episodes for a long time.
posted by KingEdRa at 9:17 PM on May 8, 2023


Ted brought Rebecca biscuits in this episode and it might have been only the second time this season that he has?

Just because we don't see the biscuit delivery doesn't mean the biscuit delivery didn't happen.
posted by cooker girl at 6:51 AM on May 9, 2023 [5 favorites]


I wonder if the WGA strike affected the writing room.

Season 3 began filming March 2 of last year and wrapped some time in November of last year.
posted by cooker girl at 6:54 AM on May 9, 2023 [3 favorites]


Well, maybe indicative of our experience this season, here's one reason there was a delay: "Originally slated to begin filming in September 2021, production on the 12-episode season was delayed until March 2022, with shifting character arcs and script changes pushing into April 2022."

Welp, looking forward to going home tonight and seeing tonight tomorrow's episode!
posted by Atreides at 12:47 PM on May 9, 2023


Just because we don't see the biscuit delivery doesn't mean the biscuit delivery didn't happen.

This is pretty existential but actually as a function of drama, if we don't see it and it's not alluded to, it didn't happen. In fact, it felt pretty much like it only happened in this episode because they finally had an excuse to put Ted in Rebecca's office and they remembered that was a thing he used to do. Emblematic of a whole season where the writing feels like they are dropping in "Ted Lasso tropes" only when they remember to.
posted by crossoverman at 4:16 PM on May 9, 2023 [1 favorite]


To be fair, Zava mentioned finding biscuit crumbs on Rebecca's desk.
posted by jenfullmoon at 4:24 PM on May 9, 2023 [3 favorites]


To be fair, Zava mentioned finding biscuit crumbs on Rebecca's desk.
..and I'm pretty certain there's an (open) pink box on the desk as he does so.
posted by coriolisdave at 4:36 PM on May 9, 2023 [2 favorites]


I'm giving the writers more credit than "oh right, we forgot that's what Ted does." YMMV.
posted by cooker girl at 5:06 PM on May 9, 2023


In giving Keeley a leaked video plot, the writers entirely forgot that they also gave Rebecca the same plot previously. My mileage does vary.
posted by crossoverman at 7:43 PM on May 9, 2023 [2 favorites]


Watched this one and the previous one last night, and damn but I'm in disagreement with a lot of y'all, and the season really seems to have hit its stride with the Amsterdam outing.

The Nate stuff has become some of my favorite stuff going on now, and I think a big reason for that is that 1.) I know we're building up to the amends he needs to make with the team, so I'm not holding him to a standard of needing to start with that before anything else can happen, and 2.) I'm not viewing his relationship with Jade as a "reward," but more like something that's happening in his life that wouldn't be happening if he weren't growing in positive ways.

He still has room to grow, of course. We've seen through most of the season how much he wants to talk to Ted and apologize, but like, he knows how to find Ted. He's just scared about it (and as we saw again in this episode, he's got Rupert's devil on his shoulder as regards that.) Him blowing off the dude with the aging parents during the "Love Hounds" meeting was the sort of thing that seems made for a call-back to me (they could have made that something much more uncomfortable and comical otherwise, fitting with the rest of the tone of the scene. Having him dismiss someone's sincere and genuine need because he wanted to talk about his own shit says to me that Nate will revisit that.) He texts Rupert back with what Rupert will want to hear rather than what he actually feels, which hurts to see, etc. But he's making strides! The relationship with Jade is just a part of that journey to the reconciliation with Richmond, and I'm fine with that and find the beats of the relationship pretty sweet to watch.

It hadn't hit me before reading it here but now I absolutely agree that Barbara has seen Jack's M.O. play out numerous times before and is, truly, Higgins to Jack's Rupert. It's interesting to watch Keeley deal with this fucking awful invasion of privacy (and subsequent fallout) and see how the people in her life react to her. Jack doesn't know how to do anything other than big gestures and damage control, because as we're learning more and more she's Rupert the New Generation, and thus everything is ultimately about Jack. Roy wants to be there but can't get his head out of his ass over his own jealousy issues. Rebecca is a wonderful friend who can help Keeley laugh about it all, and Jamie, in stark contrast to Jack, wants to take accountability for what happened and apologize. (It is, of course, not Jamie's fault either, but it's notable that Jack blames Keeley for the video existing at all, while Jamie only blames himself for not deleting it sooner.

I don't yet know how to read Isaac's reaction to seeing Colin's phone. I doubt Isaac is gonna be a jackass about it, and it wouldn't surprise me if Isaac is even thinking "ok, that was none of my business and I should have known better than to look at his phone at all after all that high-horsing about privacy." But he didn't express that, Colin doesn't know that, and now Colin might feel forced to come out on less-than-his-own-terms so that Isaac doesn't do it for him. Thinking back to earlier in the season where Isaac knew about the Keeley-Roy breakup because of what an expert in body language he apparently is, and honestly Isaac's reaction might be partially him being pissed at himself for not realizing Colin is gay before this point. (Which would also be silly but people are silly.)

I thought Henry was leagues better in this episode than earlier in the season, because they stopped writing him as precocious (a trait Phoebe can play beautifully but which never seemed natural from Henry.) The "Hey Jude" scene worked for us over here (though since we moved across the country last year, and used to live in Harlem right by the Royal Tenenbaums house, I realized that my greatest association with that song is to our old neighborhood.) Beard stepping up into the Paul role of counseling Henry's Jude was on-the-nose for sure, but it worked, and Brendan Hunt can play the hell out of that scene, and the "na na na na"s are just such an effective emotional shortcut that it could feel cheap but it didn't.

And of course there's Ted, Henry and Beard at the West Ham game. Fucking adored Beard's needing to get in his AFC Richmond coaching gear before they could go. I like how we are just left to imagine the scene where Henry asked for Ted to buy him a West Ham jersey (and Beard's contained rage at this.) Henry not knowing the story with Nate and just remembering that he likes Nate feels very real and clearly was touching to Nate as well. Pissed at Rupert for poisoning that moment, but Nate smiling at the picture of it later, and Jade encouraging him to celebrate his victories, was a very sweet pay-off.

So yeah. Jade, to my mind, isn't a "reward." Rather, she's a person in Nate's life who likes him at his best. Nate's season 2 degeneration made it very difficult for him to do what he needs to do to make amends, and he's out in the woods a bit without the support he got from Ted in season 1. What we're seeing here is growth, however, and I like that Jade is someone who makes Nate want to be the best version of himself and encourages him in doing so. Like the Angel on his shoulder to Rupert's Devil. I'd of course like to know more about her than we do at this point, but I'm willing to wait for some of that.
posted by Navelgazer at 9:44 AM on May 23, 2023 [7 favorites]


This is pretty existential but actually as a function of drama, if we don't see it and it's not alluded to, it didn't happen.

I really don't think this is fair. The show put a lot of energy in earlier episodes into demonstrating that this is literally a daily thing he does, and when it doesn't happen or happens less than perfectly it's a BFD. As long as it already feels like the hour-long format is dragging, it would feel even more so if they felt the need to keep telling us what we already know about their day-to-day. So I'm glad they don't show us this interaction every time a new day breaks in the episode.
posted by solotoro at 1:27 PM on May 24, 2023 [4 favorites]


> This reminded me that the first act ended with Ted asking his son how he felt about Jake, but Henry passing out before Ted got an answer. So the last act ends with Ted getting his answer. Which, I suppose, would go toward reassuring Ted that he isn't losing his son by being so far away.

Perhaps, but I keep flashing back to a specific scene from Son of Zorn between Jason Sudeikis and Mark Proschk:

“ Oh, okay. Well, Todd, if you must know, I'm worried my son's soon-to-be stepdad is replacing me!

Why? You seem like a strong parent!

I guess I'm just scared we'll never be close, and I'm gonna lose him!

Well, maybe by forcing him to be close, you're actually pushing him away!

Yeah? Well, that's very insightful!

If you love your son, you should be happy for him!

Some people don't have a male role model in their life!

Your son could have two!

Damn it, Todd, you're right!”

Juno Temple killed it in this episode. The way Keeley’s face fell after Roy asked her who it was for was impressive.
posted by bq at 7:41 AM on May 29, 2023 [1 favorite]


Her horror at the video leaking has nothing to do with the fact that the video exists, and everything to do with the fact that it was a burglary, a theft of private property, a personal moment put on lewd and lascivious display.

It should be, considering she owns a piece of Bantr. This is what I assumed was the source of the leak, but in retrospect I guess it's an unlikely vector given the "no photos" niche. Seems for the best, because we see Keeley make bad decisions, and we see her suffer for them, but we never see her make good ones. Might as well make her blameless in the plot.

Still a few more episodes for Bantr to blow up someone, but probably they need to pivot to Jaq's funding model being securities fraud of some form, and show Keeley raising a distressed round to keep her firm afloat.
posted by pwnguin at 7:43 PM on May 30, 2023


Yes grabbing someone's phone to look at items you know are private - even in context - is Not. Cool.

I am certain that if Seinfeld had come along a quarter century later, there would have been an episode where Jerry shows someone a photo on his phone and they decide to swipe through other photos on the phone. It’s a grave faux pas in my view.

3. Jason Sudeikis's Divorce Feelings

They say, “Write what you know,” but maybe it’s okay to give what you know a rest now and again.
posted by ricochet biscuit at 5:19 PM on November 22, 2023 [1 favorite]


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