Ted Lasso: So Long, Farewell
May 30, 2023 10:38 PM - Season 3, Episode 12 - Subscribe
AFC Richmond play their final match of the season.
I’m too sad to make a big post. You guys will have to generate the content!
I’m too sad to make a big post. You guys will have to generate the content!
I'm too tired to write much, but for a finale that had to work with this season along with the first two, I'm actually very pleased.
posted by tzikeh at 10:40 PM on May 30, 2023 [5 favorites]
posted by tzikeh at 10:40 PM on May 30, 2023 [5 favorites]
I'm still processing, but FYI "the guy at Beard's wedding with the baby and the redhead" was from the nutty Beard episode -- the lady was the one sewing his pants, the guy was jealous, she was pregnant, and then the guy ultimately rescued Beard later. Guess she had the baby!
posted by BlahLaLa at 10:48 PM on May 30, 2023 [21 favorites]
posted by BlahLaLa at 10:48 PM on May 30, 2023 [21 favorites]
"the guy at Beard's wedding with the baby and the redhead" was from the nutty Beard episode -- the lady was the one sewing his pants, the guy was jealous, she was pregnant, and then the guy ultimately rescued Beard later. Guess she had the baby!
OMG! Also Beard is wearing the the ridiculous pants the redhead gave him in Beard After Hours at the wedding.
Other random thoughts:
I was mostly tense during the match because I wanted Colin to get his kiss. I figured we probably would, since we saw Michael was there, but it was still tense for me.
I loved seeing Dr. Sharon getting very excited about the match, something we never got to see from her before. I missed her this season. I'm glad that Roy is going to see her.
Dani Rojas' continued polyamory made me smile. I also liked his apology gift to Van Damme, which led to the Zorro joke.
I was delighted with Rebecca's ending. I wanted her to keep her AFC Richmond family, and the Boat Hottie showing up again made me happier than anything else in this episode by a country mile.
I'm not thrilled with the Roy & Jamie jealousy flare-up, their friendship has been one of the best ongoing storylines this season for me, and I don't know what the point of it was.
I was amused that to discover George Cartrick might be an sexist creep and blowhard, but he does have enough of a moral compass to be disgusted by the idea of deliberately injuring a player. I did not have that on my Ted Lasso bingo card.
Loved the contrast between Ted's and Beard's feedback on Trent's book.
I have to say, I'd be interested in a Richmond women's team spinoff as long as someone other than Sudeikis is the showrunner. I'd want someone who runs a tighter ship, both in terms of episode length and execution of arcs.
posted by creepygirl at 11:12 PM on May 30, 2023 [10 favorites]
OMG! Also Beard is wearing the the ridiculous pants the redhead gave him in Beard After Hours at the wedding.
Other random thoughts:
I was mostly tense during the match because I wanted Colin to get his kiss. I figured we probably would, since we saw Michael was there, but it was still tense for me.
I loved seeing Dr. Sharon getting very excited about the match, something we never got to see from her before. I missed her this season. I'm glad that Roy is going to see her.
Dani Rojas' continued polyamory made me smile. I also liked his apology gift to Van Damme, which led to the Zorro joke.
I was delighted with Rebecca's ending. I wanted her to keep her AFC Richmond family, and the Boat Hottie showing up again made me happier than anything else in this episode by a country mile.
I'm not thrilled with the Roy & Jamie jealousy flare-up, their friendship has been one of the best ongoing storylines this season for me, and I don't know what the point of it was.
I was amused that to discover George Cartrick might be an sexist creep and blowhard, but he does have enough of a moral compass to be disgusted by the idea of deliberately injuring a player. I did not have that on my Ted Lasso bingo card.
Loved the contrast between Ted's and Beard's feedback on Trent's book.
I have to say, I'd be interested in a Richmond women's team spinoff as long as someone other than Sudeikis is the showrunner. I'd want someone who runs a tighter ship, both in terms of episode length and execution of arcs.
posted by creepygirl at 11:12 PM on May 30, 2023 [10 favorites]
I'll put commentary later but apparently there's a "Richmond Till We Die" video on the show page, which I will have to watch later because it's late even here. Okay, never mind, it's like 5 minutes long, it's interviews on the last day of filming.
posted by jenfullmoon at 11:16 PM on May 30, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by jenfullmoon at 11:16 PM on May 30, 2023 [1 favorite]
I loved the nod to the final episode of Cheers, and with Mae straightening the photo of "Coach" (Geronimo).
And we did get a last shot of Phoebe; she was on Keeley's lap at the Higgins barbecue as Rebecca's Dutch pilot dude's daughter came up to talk to her. (I loved every bit of the barbecue shot, especially with the fubol players running around with their Nerf rifles like at the Christmas part.)
Romcommunism, indeed.
Gentlemen, believing in rom-communism is all about believing that everything's gonna work out in the end. Now these next few months might be tricky, but that's just 'cause we're going through our dark forest. Fairy tales do not start, nor do they end in the dark forest. That son of a gun always shows up smack-dab in the middle of a story. But it will all work out. Now, it may not work out how you think it will or how you hope it does, but believe me, it will all work out. Exactly as it's supposed to. Our job is to have zero expectations and just let go.
posted by The Wrong Kind of Cheese at 12:01 AM on May 31, 2023 [18 favorites]
And we did get a last shot of Phoebe; she was on Keeley's lap at the Higgins barbecue as Rebecca's Dutch pilot dude's daughter came up to talk to her. (I loved every bit of the barbecue shot, especially with the fubol players running around with their Nerf rifles like at the Christmas part.)
Romcommunism, indeed.
Gentlemen, believing in rom-communism is all about believing that everything's gonna work out in the end. Now these next few months might be tricky, but that's just 'cause we're going through our dark forest. Fairy tales do not start, nor do they end in the dark forest. That son of a gun always shows up smack-dab in the middle of a story. But it will all work out. Now, it may not work out how you think it will or how you hope it does, but believe me, it will all work out. Exactly as it's supposed to. Our job is to have zero expectations and just let go.
posted by The Wrong Kind of Cheese at 12:01 AM on May 31, 2023 [18 favorites]
Phoebe was at the Higgins family BBQ.
Loved the champions league VS championship discussion :)
Still processing this.
posted by WaterAndPixels at 12:10 AM on May 31, 2023 [1 favorite]
Loved the champions league VS championship discussion :)
Still processing this.
posted by WaterAndPixels at 12:10 AM on May 31, 2023 [1 favorite]
I forgot to mention how much I loved the use of Cat Stevens' "Father and Son" at the end, considering so much of the show (aside from Romcommunism and dismantling toxic masculinity) was about the impact of fathers on their children: Ted's father's death and Ted's fear of abandoning Henry and of being abandoned by him, Rebecca's father's cheating, Nate's father's verbal abuse, Jamie's father's physical abuse, and Sam's father's nurturing love. It was not only beautiful for the motif, but for the final lines of the song, "And I know that I have to go away. I know I have to go."
posted by The Wrong Kind of Cheese at 12:45 AM on May 31, 2023 [18 favorites]
posted by The Wrong Kind of Cheese at 12:45 AM on May 31, 2023 [18 favorites]
I'm not entirely clear why Ted showed up at his ex-wife's house while his driver unloads his luggage like he's staying the night.
posted by pwnguin at 2:01 AM on May 31, 2023 [7 favorites]
posted by pwnguin at 2:01 AM on May 31, 2023 [7 favorites]
I always thought the Flaming Lips song borrowed heavily from Father and Son but I just looked it up and Cat Stevens has a writing credit. The closing montage made that connection explicit, but they both tie Ted’s storyline themes together wonderfully - fathers and sons, and learning not to always play it cool!
I laughed the hardest at “Trenthouse Magazine” and finally we know Beards first name - Willis!!
posted by TwoWordReview at 2:18 AM on May 31, 2023 [5 favorites]
I laughed the hardest at “Trenthouse Magazine” and finally we know Beards first name - Willis!!
posted by TwoWordReview at 2:18 AM on May 31, 2023 [5 favorites]
I feel - considering everything - that it ended as well as it could have, and for that I am grateful.
posted by Faintdreams at 2:25 AM on May 31, 2023 [10 favorites]
posted by Faintdreams at 2:25 AM on May 31, 2023 [10 favorites]
And Colin kisses on the field, audience be damned.
Yay! Congrats to whoever called this! I thought this was a great finale, having Richmond win their last game but lose the Premier League, and all the vignettes of the players etc afterwards.
posted by ellieBOA at 3:19 AM on May 31, 2023 [2 favorites]
Yay! Congrats to whoever called this! I thought this was a great finale, having Richmond win their last game but lose the Premier League, and all the vignettes of the players etc afterwards.
posted by ellieBOA at 3:19 AM on May 31, 2023 [2 favorites]
I loved this.
A few things fell flat for me (Rebecca trying to guilt Ted into staying by threatening to sell the club, and Ted not showing up to beards wedding) but.. This was lovely.
The song made me cry, phoebe’s (censored) drawing on the wall, roy and Jaime surviving the toxic jealousy flared up.. the pilot.
posted by coriolisdave at 4:37 AM on May 31, 2023 [3 favorites]
A few things fell flat for me (Rebecca trying to guilt Ted into staying by threatening to sell the club, and Ted not showing up to beards wedding) but.. This was lovely.
The song made me cry, phoebe’s (censored) drawing on the wall, roy and Jaime surviving the toxic jealousy flared up.. the pilot.
posted by coriolisdave at 4:37 AM on May 31, 2023 [3 favorites]
Well that was...fine. I really do wonder about the decision to go with 60-75 minute episodes all season to make time for so many narratively inert storylines. In the end, we could have done without Jack, Shandy, Zava, or the fucking psychic. My heart was reasonably warmed by the finale, but what a long, dumb trip it was to get there.
posted by merriment at 4:55 AM on May 31, 2023 [21 favorites]
posted by merriment at 4:55 AM on May 31, 2023 [21 favorites]
I'm not entirely clear why Ted showed up at his ex-wife's house while his driver unloads his luggage like he's staying the night.
Some couples (me included) can’t make the marriage work, but do divorce well. I suspect he’s staying there until he secures his own home, or just a couple of nights to acclimate and spend time with Henry before getting a hotel. It’s not uncommon.
posted by Silvery Fish at 5:18 AM on May 31, 2023 [23 favorites]
Some couples (me included) can’t make the marriage work, but do divorce well. I suspect he’s staying there until he secures his own home, or just a couple of nights to acclimate and spend time with Henry before getting a hotel. It’s not uncommon.
posted by Silvery Fish at 5:18 AM on May 31, 2023 [23 favorites]
god the zavacado though
posted by DoctorFedora at 5:31 AM on May 31, 2023 [13 favorites]
posted by DoctorFedora at 5:31 AM on May 31, 2023 [13 favorites]
When Ted is at the airport newsstand, there are lots of Easter Eggs in the headlines.
posted by ColdChef at 6:24 AM on May 31, 2023 [9 favorites]
posted by ColdChef at 6:24 AM on May 31, 2023 [9 favorites]
Fucking mint.
>> I'm not thrilled with the Roy & Jamie jealousy flare-up, their friendship has been one of the best ongoing storylines this season for me, and I don't know what the point of it was.
Keeley was not a prize, she has become her own woman. Roy and Jamie's friendship will be stronger because of this.
posted by Molesome at 6:37 AM on May 31, 2023 [15 favorites]
>> I'm not thrilled with the Roy & Jamie jealousy flare-up, their friendship has been one of the best ongoing storylines this season for me, and I don't know what the point of it was.
Keeley was not a prize, she has become her own woman. Roy and Jamie's friendship will be stronger because of this.
posted by Molesome at 6:37 AM on May 31, 2023 [15 favorites]
It seemed pretty clear to me that Roy and Jamie got to keep their friendship, which will continue to deepen, and Keeley is going it alone for now. I think it was a weird-ass framing to have so much happen between Ted’s plane taking off and landing. Some kind of magical realism? I mostly liked the ending and was often teary. It seems unclear to me what’s going on with Ted and his ex. It’s possible they will get back together again. I don’t need to know. They are clearly on good terms, and that’s the most important thing for Henry. Agree that a woman’s team is an awesome idea. Still unclear if Ted and Rebecca hooked up that night. Any thoughts? I did love the opening and Beard’s horrifying thong.
Dani is poly??? How do we know and how did I miss that, ouch.
posted by Bella Donna at 7:32 AM on May 31, 2023 [2 favorites]
Dani is poly??? How do we know and how did I miss that, ouch.
posted by Bella Donna at 7:32 AM on May 31, 2023 [2 favorites]
I think it was a weird-ass framing to have so much happen between Ted’s plane taking off and landing.
I think the cut to sleeping Ted implies that Ted is dreaming all of this - but we could interpret it as a kind of flash-forward where Ted (who is not normally gifted with prophetic powers) dreams things that will come true later.
HOWEVER, I kind of hate the choice to end with Beard marrying Jane because she has so consistently been implied to be controlling and abusive, up till and including this episode where she cuts up his passport. So I would much rather think of it as a dream that won't come true later, a wishy-washy sort-of-epilogue where the writers don't actually have to commit to anything firm. (That, or I write 80,000 words of fanfiction about Beard realizing he has to leave his marriage and availing himself of the help of the Diamond Dogs, in the process of which Nate and Beard find surprising points of commonality and a genuine friendship.)
The book that Ted is reading is Michael Pollan's "How to Change Your Mind," which is about "What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence." I can't help but feel like we're supposed to get something from the title, but I have no clue what it might be.
posted by Jeanne at 7:47 AM on May 31, 2023 [5 favorites]
I think the cut to sleeping Ted implies that Ted is dreaming all of this - but we could interpret it as a kind of flash-forward where Ted (who is not normally gifted with prophetic powers) dreams things that will come true later.
HOWEVER, I kind of hate the choice to end with Beard marrying Jane because she has so consistently been implied to be controlling and abusive, up till and including this episode where she cuts up his passport. So I would much rather think of it as a dream that won't come true later, a wishy-washy sort-of-epilogue where the writers don't actually have to commit to anything firm. (That, or I write 80,000 words of fanfiction about Beard realizing he has to leave his marriage and availing himself of the help of the Diamond Dogs, in the process of which Nate and Beard find surprising points of commonality and a genuine friendship.)
The book that Ted is reading is Michael Pollan's "How to Change Your Mind," which is about "What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence." I can't help but feel like we're supposed to get something from the title, but I have no clue what it might be.
posted by Jeanne at 7:47 AM on May 31, 2023 [5 favorites]
Ted not showing up to beards wedding
That really annoyed me.
Still unclear if Ted and Rebecca hooked up that night. Any thoughts?
Absolutely not. That would be way too off the map, even for this season. I did think it was kind of cruel to the TedBecca fans, almost, to make the audience think that happened, and then to clarify what actually happened. I know if I had been deeply devoted to the idea of TedBecca I would have been absolutely furious right off the bat and the rest of the episode would have been soured for me. Thankfully, I'm not, but I did spare a thought for those fans when Beard and Jane showed up and Ted revealed the gas leak being the reason they all stayed at Rebecca's that evening.
posted by tzikeh at 7:50 AM on May 31, 2023 [6 favorites]
That really annoyed me.
Still unclear if Ted and Rebecca hooked up that night. Any thoughts?
Absolutely not. That would be way too off the map, even for this season. I did think it was kind of cruel to the TedBecca fans, almost, to make the audience think that happened, and then to clarify what actually happened. I know if I had been deeply devoted to the idea of TedBecca I would have been absolutely furious right off the bat and the rest of the episode would have been soured for me. Thankfully, I'm not, but I did spare a thought for those fans when Beard and Jane showed up and Ted revealed the gas leak being the reason they all stayed at Rebecca's that evening.
posted by tzikeh at 7:50 AM on May 31, 2023 [6 favorites]
Good point. Jane is a fucking nightmare for sure and having a child with her, never mind staying with her, would be the opposite of heathy.
posted by Bella Donna at 7:51 AM on May 31, 2023 [5 favorites]
posted by Bella Donna at 7:51 AM on May 31, 2023 [5 favorites]
"... and Beard’s horrifying thong"
When he jumps up on the counter there's this little 'flesh on marble' squeak, and Rebecca looks extra horrified. Such a subtle add to a very not subtle costume.
posted by Gorgik at 7:51 AM on May 31, 2023 [17 favorites]
When he jumps up on the counter there's this little 'flesh on marble' squeak, and Rebecca looks extra horrified. Such a subtle add to a very not subtle costume.
posted by Gorgik at 7:51 AM on May 31, 2023 [17 favorites]
Dani is poly??? How do we know and how did I miss that, ouch.
At the beginning of Season 2, right after Dani accidentally kills the mascot, he wakes up in distress, while in bed with two women.
At Beard's wedding, Dani kisses two women. I don't remember the S2 episode well enough to say if they were the same two women as in the S2 episode.
It's sort of a blink and you'll miss it kind of thing in both cases.
posted by creepygirl at 7:59 AM on May 31, 2023 [5 favorites]
At the beginning of Season 2, right after Dani accidentally kills the mascot, he wakes up in distress, while in bed with two women.
At Beard's wedding, Dani kisses two women. I don't remember the S2 episode well enough to say if they were the same two women as in the S2 episode.
It's sort of a blink and you'll miss it kind of thing in both cases.
posted by creepygirl at 7:59 AM on May 31, 2023 [5 favorites]
From Hollywood Reporter:
* There were previous hints, particularly in “We’ll Never Have Paris,” that Dr. Jacob (Mike O’Gorman) was kind of a tool, and that Michelle was beginning to see that. His utter dismissiveness of Ted’s last match at Richmond (and football in general) gave the final verdict on that (if a little bit heavy-handedly): He is.
posted by Bella Donna at 7:59 AM on May 31, 2023 [7 favorites]
* There were previous hints, particularly in “We’ll Never Have Paris,” that Dr. Jacob (Mike O’Gorman) was kind of a tool, and that Michelle was beginning to see that. His utter dismissiveness of Ted’s last match at Richmond (and football in general) gave the final verdict on that (if a little bit heavy-handedly): He is.
posted by Bella Donna at 7:59 AM on May 31, 2023 [7 favorites]
Oh, and for the "why is Ted going to his ex-wife's house" -- again I'm kind of annoyed but not enough to really complain too much that they do seem to be projecting a re-marriage or at least a re-relationship between Ted and Michelle - her using the Ghost gif in her message to Ted (Patrick Swayze saying "ditto", which in the movie Ghost is his way of saying "I love you") was a bit heavy-handed.
At least we're clearly free of Doctor No. Which, again, handled badly from beginning to end.
(I wish I didn't know so much about Sudeikis' issues with his ex-partner and children's custody)
posted by tzikeh at 8:04 AM on May 31, 2023 [6 favorites]
At least we're clearly free of Doctor No. Which, again, handled badly from beginning to end.
(I wish I didn't know so much about Sudeikis' issues with his ex-partner and children's custody)
posted by tzikeh at 8:04 AM on May 31, 2023 [6 favorites]
Satire: LOS ANGELES — Feelgood sleeper hit Ted Lasso will end its third and final season tonight, and leaked scripts reveal the series finale will depict a graphic mass suicide in the style of the Peoples Temple cult at Jonestown in 1978.
posted by Bella Donna at 8:06 AM on May 31, 2023 [6 favorites]
posted by Bella Donna at 8:06 AM on May 31, 2023 [6 favorites]
I'm glad I've been a fan, and I'm glad I hung with it up to the the end. Mr. Blah never watched, so I might do a rewatch along with him as he starts it up. So maybe that'll provide me with food for thought. However, since that hasn't started yet, I'm left with the primary thoughts currently coursing through my brain: I think the thing that has confused me so much about this season is that they've made the storytelling choice of having so much important action and information happen offscreen. It happened with all the characters, with all the storylines. It's clearly an active choice they made...and yet I can't help feeling that through this entire season I missed seeing scenes I'd really liked to have seen, and was instead served up a lot of scenes I didn't actually want to see. Unfortunately that meant a lot of the season felt like a slog.
posted by BlahLaLa at 8:21 AM on May 31, 2023 [11 favorites]
posted by BlahLaLa at 8:21 AM on May 31, 2023 [11 favorites]
From Bella Donna’s THR link, confirmed what I half heard, Coach Beard’s first name is Willis!
posted by ellieBOA at 8:31 AM on May 31, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by ellieBOA at 8:31 AM on May 31, 2023 [1 favorite]
Keeley was not a prize, she has become her own woman. Roy and Jamie's friendship will be stronger because of this.
I agree the intent was that Roy and Jamie's friendship will be fine in the long, when they had them immediately go to dinner after Keeley kicked them both to the curb.
I just feel like there had to be a better way to get Roy in therapy than "Richmond's head coach-to-be gets into a fistfight that risked injuring Richmond's best player right before the most important game in Richmond's history" and "Jamie, who felt deeply guilty about Keeley's leaked sex tape, decides to taunt Roy with the fact that Keeley made the sex tape for Jamie." It felt like they temporarily reverted a whole lot of growth in both of them for not-particularly-good reasons.
posted by creepygirl at 8:49 AM on May 31, 2023 [11 favorites]
I agree the intent was that Roy and Jamie's friendship will be fine in the long, when they had them immediately go to dinner after Keeley kicked them both to the curb.
I just feel like there had to be a better way to get Roy in therapy than "Richmond's head coach-to-be gets into a fistfight that risked injuring Richmond's best player right before the most important game in Richmond's history" and "Jamie, who felt deeply guilty about Keeley's leaked sex tape, decides to taunt Roy with the fact that Keeley made the sex tape for Jamie." It felt like they temporarily reverted a whole lot of growth in both of them for not-particularly-good reasons.
posted by creepygirl at 8:49 AM on May 31, 2023 [11 favorites]
This landed well for me. The apology from Nate, the half-time pep talk, and the farewell at the airport were all fantastic. And Ted reading Pollan's book about psychedelics is cute.
I still think that Roy's character this season was given some weird regression compared to Season 2, so they could get the plot resolution they wanted without having Juno Temple as frequently available as before. But I'm so glad to see him getting therapy. And at least Keeley wasn't treated like a prize to be won, even if she didn't get enough development of her own.
Rupert getting booed by his beloved Richmond was fucking perfect. Because it's not about revenge or Rebecca, it's about people seeing him for who he is.
All in all I'm happy with this ending.
posted by harriet vane at 8:55 AM on May 31, 2023 [5 favorites]
I still think that Roy's character this season was given some weird regression compared to Season 2, so they could get the plot resolution they wanted without having Juno Temple as frequently available as before. But I'm so glad to see him getting therapy. And at least Keeley wasn't treated like a prize to be won, even if she didn't get enough development of her own.
Rupert getting booed by his beloved Richmond was fucking perfect. Because it's not about revenge or Rebecca, it's about people seeing him for who he is.
All in all I'm happy with this ending.
posted by harriet vane at 8:55 AM on May 31, 2023 [5 favorites]
From Bella Donna’s THR link, confirmed what I half heard, Coach Beard’s first name is Willis!
From Goodbye Earl (S2, episode 1), when the coaches are discussing Dani's struggles after accidentally killing the mascot:
Beard: I think we already know what it is, don't we, Coach?
Ted (in Diff'rent Strokes cadence) What you talking about, Willis?
Beard holds up a notepad with "The Yips" written on it.
Ted: Hey, you're not supposed to say that out loud.
posted by creepygirl at 9:17 AM on May 31, 2023 [17 favorites]
From Goodbye Earl (S2, episode 1), when the coaches are discussing Dani's struggles after accidentally killing the mascot:
Beard: I think we already know what it is, don't we, Coach?
Ted (in Diff'rent Strokes cadence) What you talking about, Willis?
Beard holds up a notepad with "The Yips" written on it.
Ted: Hey, you're not supposed to say that out loud.
posted by creepygirl at 9:17 AM on May 31, 2023 [17 favorites]
I know I've been one of the loudest detractors here this season. Rather than go into any kind of review, or point-by-point lists of what I thought worked, and what didn't, I have an honest question for everyone else: did anyone get weepy at this ep? Anyone get emotional? I'm just trying to figure out if it was just me that didn't. This is a sports show: we should get that lump in our throat when the team finally wins it all, when the underdog scores, when the hero makes the personal sacrifice for the good of the team. But for me it just felt like they hit all the beats they needed to hit, wrapped up all the storylines that needed wrapping, and then just called it a day. Maybe I'm just out of touch, or my heart is too hardened. But it wasn't in seasons 1-2. I just feel like whatever magic this show had, didn't really have much of it in this final season, and basically none in this episode.
posted by nushustu at 9:59 AM on May 31, 2023 [3 favorites]
posted by nushustu at 9:59 AM on May 31, 2023 [3 favorites]
"..did anyone get weepy at this ep?" Mrs Gorgik got demonstrably emotional twice. Once when Colin got to kiss his fella at the end of the match, and again when Rebecca helped up the child at the airport and then it turns out it's Dutch guy's progeny.
posted by Gorgik at 10:32 AM on May 31, 2023 [8 favorites]
posted by Gorgik at 10:32 AM on May 31, 2023 [8 favorites]
I got weepy several times. At the Colin part for sure, and also when Rebecca was weeping and asking Ted to stay. Perhaps at other times as well.
posted by Bella Donna at 10:35 AM on May 31, 2023 [6 favorites]
posted by Bella Donna at 10:35 AM on May 31, 2023 [6 favorites]
I was loudly cheering for Richmond to win.
OK, I did not expect Ted & Rebecca, and are we certain they didn't have a celebratory/drunken hookup after the win?
Maybe Roy Kent is Jamie's father figure replacement.
Sharon! I missed her and enjoyed seeing her root for the Greyhounds.
Rupert looking like a supervillain, his coat flaring out like a cape, and being a supervillain - Super Wanker - was satisfying.
Rebecca and the Dutch Guy and his daughter! I would have been disappointed if they didn't get together.
After Colin saying he just wanted to kiss his sweetie, it had to happen, and it was perfect.
I noticed the Easter eggs at the airport news stand, fun.
Maybe Ted has grown, resolved some issues, maybe he's still a mess; his key relationship is with his son, and he's showing up.
posted by theora55 at 11:06 AM on May 31, 2023 [5 favorites]
OK, I did not expect Ted & Rebecca, and are we certain they didn't have a celebratory/drunken hookup after the win?
Maybe Roy Kent is Jamie's father figure replacement.
Sharon! I missed her and enjoyed seeing her root for the Greyhounds.
Rupert looking like a supervillain, his coat flaring out like a cape, and being a supervillain - Super Wanker - was satisfying.
Rebecca and the Dutch Guy and his daughter! I would have been disappointed if they didn't get together.
After Colin saying he just wanted to kiss his sweetie, it had to happen, and it was perfect.
I noticed the Easter eggs at the airport news stand, fun.
Maybe Ted has grown, resolved some issues, maybe he's still a mess; his key relationship is with his son, and he's showing up.
posted by theora55 at 11:06 AM on May 31, 2023 [5 favorites]
nushustu, I got weepy several times during this episode. Hit al the right notes for me.
posted by rednikki at 11:12 AM on May 31, 2023 [5 favorites]
posted by rednikki at 11:12 AM on May 31, 2023 [5 favorites]
did anyone get weepy at this ep?
I teared up a little bit, but honestly, that was a foregone conclusion.
Four years ago I took a job managing a community college library in a small town far away from just about anyone I knew. It wasn't a great fit for me culturally, and I had to work really hard to build connections and find positive moments. I participated in the college's first drag show and first cosplay contest.
And six weeks ago, I left. It was the right time and the right decision, but I did feel, in some ways, deeply sad about it. And nobody gave me a synchronized song-and-dance sendoff, but I did feel cared for, and I felt like I had made things better, and... it was a cathartic thing for me, to just hear people say "goodbye, you did good, I'm proud of you, I'll miss you." But it was way more about me and my own issues than any emotion the show itself had generated.
Which I think has been one of my issues with Ted Lasso in general, especially this past season - it's really easy for it to hit the right emotional buttons when they're your emotional buttons, but not always otherwise.
posted by Jeanne at 11:14 AM on May 31, 2023 [17 favorites]
I teared up a little bit, but honestly, that was a foregone conclusion.
Four years ago I took a job managing a community college library in a small town far away from just about anyone I knew. It wasn't a great fit for me culturally, and I had to work really hard to build connections and find positive moments. I participated in the college's first drag show and first cosplay contest.
And six weeks ago, I left. It was the right time and the right decision, but I did feel, in some ways, deeply sad about it. And nobody gave me a synchronized song-and-dance sendoff, but I did feel cared for, and I felt like I had made things better, and... it was a cathartic thing for me, to just hear people say "goodbye, you did good, I'm proud of you, I'll miss you." But it was way more about me and my own issues than any emotion the show itself had generated.
Which I think has been one of my issues with Ted Lasso in general, especially this past season - it's really easy for it to hit the right emotional buttons when they're your emotional buttons, but not always otherwise.
posted by Jeanne at 11:14 AM on May 31, 2023 [17 favorites]
Like Big Chris said in Lock Stock, it's been emotional.
In the end whatever's fault I could have with the show, I loved the characters, what they meant for each other and really appreciated the both the small & big victories and got totally smacked by the bitter sweetness of it all.
I liked so many things in it, Higgins saying Trent's hair is perfect, Barb and the blood!, Roy's little woofs, Colin's kiss, Sassy & Rupert, all the Easter eggs on the magazines/papers, TED DOING THE DANCE!!!!!
I choose to look for the good and let whatever didn't land perfectly pass by and just goldfish it, because it's shame to let perfect be the enemy of good. And there's a lot of good in there.
And I'll say, I'm sad the show is ending, but at least I'm not sad alone. I love reading your comments (all of them).
posted by WaterAndPixels at 11:14 AM on May 31, 2023 [23 favorites]
In the end whatever's fault I could have with the show, I loved the characters, what they meant for each other and really appreciated the both the small & big victories and got totally smacked by the bitter sweetness of it all.
I liked so many things in it, Higgins saying Trent's hair is perfect, Barb and the blood!, Roy's little woofs, Colin's kiss, Sassy & Rupert, all the Easter eggs on the magazines/papers, TED DOING THE DANCE!!!!!
I choose to look for the good and let whatever didn't land perfectly pass by and just goldfish it, because it's shame to let perfect be the enemy of good. And there's a lot of good in there.
And I'll say, I'm sad the show is ending, but at least I'm not sad alone. I love reading your comments (all of them).
posted by WaterAndPixels at 11:14 AM on May 31, 2023 [23 favorites]
Lots of weepiness from me, but it felt pretty darn hollow compared to the first two seasons. Felt sort of like a pure fan-service finale where the writers jotted down everything that the audience wants and then decided to just give them all of it with no real surprises of consequence.
posted by not just everyday big moggies at 11:19 AM on May 31, 2023 [6 favorites]
posted by not just everyday big moggies at 11:19 AM on May 31, 2023 [6 favorites]
Re: Roy and Jamie’s backsliding: I read it as an attempt to illustrate the “people aren’t perfect, just keep trying to be better” message from earlier in the episode.
(This is not an endorsement of the execution, just my reading on the intent.)
posted by FallibleHuman at 11:36 AM on May 31, 2023 [5 favorites]
(This is not an endorsement of the execution, just my reading on the intent.)
posted by FallibleHuman at 11:36 AM on May 31, 2023 [5 favorites]
i got weepy nearly every time Hannah Waddingham was on screen. what a force of an actor.
this felt fine. i was one of the detractors this season, and ultimately i feel that they indulged in fun/cute little moments vs. story exposition. made all the more obvious in this episode with a fun little musical number when they clearly had quite a bit of ground to cover before The End.
a few thoughts:
Barbara - i didn’t find her enjoyment of blood and violence funny, and it actually struck me as weird af and tonally jarring overall?
Jane - was i supposed to find it endearing that Beard was in love with this woman, who was so clearly Not A Healthy Choice?
i too wish i didn’t know so much about Jason Sudeikis and his family drama – it definitely crept up too much and affected some of how i view his family plot line.
ETA: i want a giant avocado.
posted by ener at 11:51 AM on May 31, 2023 [3 favorites]
this felt fine. i was one of the detractors this season, and ultimately i feel that they indulged in fun/cute little moments vs. story exposition. made all the more obvious in this episode with a fun little musical number when they clearly had quite a bit of ground to cover before The End.
a few thoughts:
Barbara - i didn’t find her enjoyment of blood and violence funny, and it actually struck me as weird af and tonally jarring overall?
Jane - was i supposed to find it endearing that Beard was in love with this woman, who was so clearly Not A Healthy Choice?
i too wish i didn’t know so much about Jason Sudeikis and his family drama – it definitely crept up too much and affected some of how i view his family plot line.
ETA: i want a giant avocado.
posted by ener at 11:51 AM on May 31, 2023 [3 favorites]
OK, I did not expect Ted & Rebecca, and are we certain they didn't have a celebratory/drunken hookup after the win?
Yes because that scene opened the episode and did not take place after the win. There is absolutely no romance or sexual anything between those two and it's one of the best choices the show ever made IMO.
posted by tzikeh at 12:00 PM on May 31, 2023 [17 favorites]
Yes because that scene opened the episode and did not take place after the win. There is absolutely no romance or sexual anything between those two and it's one of the best choices the show ever made IMO.
posted by tzikeh at 12:00 PM on May 31, 2023 [17 favorites]
Things I liked:
…yeah, this is pretty much it. Lots of these resolutions deserved more time and attention — which drives home how much they squandered the extra minutes that each episode used this season.
posted by savetheclocktower at 12:03 PM on May 31, 2023 [9 favorites]
- Ultimately I'm on board with the second-place outcome — both as a dodge of hokey sports-movie tropes and as a knowing commentary on the inevitability of Man City stomping on everyone else’s sandcastle. The matter-of-fact way that they deal with it was perfect. No use getting mad about it; might as well yell at stormclouds. (Can you tell I’m an Arsenal fan?)
- They took so long to demonstrate Barbara’s value to the show — as a socially awkward person who seems rude but really just has her own shit going on — but I’m glad she was there, and glad that they ultimately didn’t just fundamentally misuse Katy Wix.
- So glad that Roy ended up as the new head coach, presumably with Nate as an assistant. So glad that Roy understands that working on himself is a journey and not a destination, and that all the growth he’s done over this season is still worth feeling good about even if there’s no implicit prize for it. (Could've done without the Diamond Dogs convening to flat-out recite the Moral of the Story™.)
- Glad they paid off the setup with Dutch Guy instead of having Rebecca give a weird When Harry Met Sally–style speech to Sam and trying to make that weird shit happen again. I know that all the signs were there in retrospect, but they put it off until the very last minute, such that I started wondering whether they’d meant her Amsterdam sequence as more of a how-Rebecca-got-her-groove-back thing. I have no theoretical problem with Sam/Rebecca once she’s no longer signing his paychecks, but I would’ve set my TV on fire if they’d gone back to trying to convince me that it was the greatest love story ever told.
- Fiction can obviously do whatever it wants, but I’ve seen no signs that the Beard/Jane relationship is healthy. It isn’t healthy just because he says it is, or because he delivers an earnest speech in a first-class cabin. If anyone you knew in real life had a relationship with the contours of Beard’s, you’d want them to get out of it.
- If they had it all to do over again, I bet they’d structure the Roy/Keeley arc completely differently. Their relationship made so much sense so early, and they spent all of Season 2 making each other better people, and I wonder if the writers thought that more of that in Season 3 would feel like a rehash. I know that Roy needed to grow, and that Keeley isn’t a prize, but it still doesn’t feel right that they’re not together at the end of Season 3, given everything that the show told us and showed us about them in previous seasons. When they hinted at trouble at the end of last season, it felt like drama for drama’s sake, and I feel basically the same way now.
- I’m pretty disappointed with the Rupert resolution. I don’t mind the wanker getting called out for wankery — and the payoff of the chant itself was good — but it seemed as though they’d at least been trying to give him a bit more depth. But having him ask the coach to pull a Cobra Kai was just farcical. I half-expected the Imperial March to play as he strode down the touchline. And I’d convinced myself that we’d eventually get more background about the exact circumstances of Nate’s departure from West Ham, but we didn’t learn anything in this episode that we couldn’t have simply inferred. I gave the show too much credit.
- The “So Long, Farewell” scene at practice was grade-A cringe. I know some people like that stuff, and that’s fine. Some of those people share a household with me.
- Still not sure what the point of the psychic was, except as a narrative crutch. The only actual effect that scene had, by my estimation, was to cause Rebecca to reinvestigate her infertility and have it confirmed for us, the audience, that she couldn’t have kids of her own. I am pretty sure that they could’ve set up that stuff more economically.
- I never was really sure about the significance of Zava, but here’s what I think his purpose was: (a) to make possible a narrative where Richmond had winning streaks at the beginning and end of the season, along with a slump in the middle; (b) as a catalyst for some character growth from Jamie; (c) to make a bunch of jokes about Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who is nearly a singular figure in professional sports — what you’d get if Paul Bunyan were alive right now and very much in love with himself. I kept expecting Zava to show up again when the team started winning, but I’m not necessarily disappointed that didn’t happen.
- The show did Keeley wrong this season. I’m pretty sure that her character’s namesake is Keeley Hazell; she’s the actress who plays Bex, and years ago she was a topless model for Page 3 and a bunch of British lad mags. I didn’t realize until late in the season that she’d been added to the writing staff for this season, but when I found out, I started to think the show had missed a huge opportunity. We get bits and pieces of Keeley’s WAG-ish history — I think Shandy’s purpose in this season was to offer a contrast and a cautionary tale — but it’s all just kinda tossed out there and we’re just meant to put the pieces together. I know that all the KJPR storylines just felt grafted on, but I think that would’ve been easier to justify if we’d been given a proper arc about what it’s like to be an ex-WAG who actually wants to be taken seriously and thinks that she has more to offer to the world than just her tits.We get some of this stuff when her private video gets leaked, but I think a lot of it got muddled because it also had to fit inside the Jack/Keeley storyline. It feels like Jack’s entire narrative purpose was to be ashamed of Keeley and then fuck off, and I’m pretty sure they could’ve set up that dynamic without having to pay another actor. The fact that Barbara chooses Keeley over Jack is a massive validation to Keeley that she’s actually good at this; if they’d set it up better, it would’ve meant as much to the audience as it did when Roy hugged Jamie in Season 2.Keeley’s right not to be ashamed of her past, and shouldn’t have to feel ashamed of it even if it’s her present. If she wanted to, she could run a successful PR firm and keep getting her tits out for Maxim. She’s the perfect vessel for this idea because the pilot set her up to be just as air-headed as Jamie… and then gradually revealed the multitudes she contains. I would rather have explored this stuff than have had her spend any time at all with Jack.
…yeah, this is pretty much it. Lots of these resolutions deserved more time and attention — which drives home how much they squandered the extra minutes that each episode used this season.
posted by savetheclocktower at 12:03 PM on May 31, 2023 [9 favorites]
I liked the red herring of having Ted wake up in Rebecca's house.
I think the fight that Roy and Jamie had over Keeley would have made more sense if they had both been six or eight beers into the night, rather than half-a-beer apiece. Keeley's response "Oh, *I* get to choose?" was perfect. She and Hannah W. are such good actors and were not served very well by the writing this season. Meanwhile the actor playing Jamie was served pretty well by the writing and he consistently knocked it out of the park.
Meanwhile it felt like Sudeikis just gave up. His character went from too over-the-top folksy to so understated that he might as well have not been in three-quarters of the episodes this year. I blame the writing for this as well. The scene where Rebecca is trying to get him to stay while they sit in the bleachers was painful, because Hannah W. was acting her ass off, and meanwhile, it was clear that Sudeikis was trying to act, but without having any lines to say, it felt like he could have been a blow-up doll there.
Also, let us please not forget that this show was technically almost twice as long as the first season because the eps went from half an hour to an hour plus, and yet we still had to rush to get the stories told. We had insane sidebars (Zava, Jack, the fortune-teller) and also avoided showing many, many of the significant events of the characters' lives. We just skipped them over entirely. You know it's bad because even here, in this thread, we have people wondering if Rebecca and Ted slept together, and having to write in all the bits to explain why all of the characters were acting so out of character. Normally I hate that shit because if they don't show it, then it didn't happen. But here? Man, who knows? They didn't show half the plot, so sure, why not?
So overall, the last ep was fine, but fine isn't a compliment here. It dotted the i's and crossed the t's and ended a show. I just wish it had the magic the first two seasons did.
posted by nushustu at 12:29 PM on May 31, 2023 [5 favorites]
I think the fight that Roy and Jamie had over Keeley would have made more sense if they had both been six or eight beers into the night, rather than half-a-beer apiece. Keeley's response "Oh, *I* get to choose?" was perfect. She and Hannah W. are such good actors and were not served very well by the writing this season. Meanwhile the actor playing Jamie was served pretty well by the writing and he consistently knocked it out of the park.
Meanwhile it felt like Sudeikis just gave up. His character went from too over-the-top folksy to so understated that he might as well have not been in three-quarters of the episodes this year. I blame the writing for this as well. The scene where Rebecca is trying to get him to stay while they sit in the bleachers was painful, because Hannah W. was acting her ass off, and meanwhile, it was clear that Sudeikis was trying to act, but without having any lines to say, it felt like he could have been a blow-up doll there.
Also, let us please not forget that this show was technically almost twice as long as the first season because the eps went from half an hour to an hour plus, and yet we still had to rush to get the stories told. We had insane sidebars (Zava, Jack, the fortune-teller) and also avoided showing many, many of the significant events of the characters' lives. We just skipped them over entirely. You know it's bad because even here, in this thread, we have people wondering if Rebecca and Ted slept together, and having to write in all the bits to explain why all of the characters were acting so out of character. Normally I hate that shit because if they don't show it, then it didn't happen. But here? Man, who knows? They didn't show half the plot, so sure, why not?
So overall, the last ep was fine, but fine isn't a compliment here. It dotted the i's and crossed the t's and ended a show. I just wish it had the magic the first two seasons did.
posted by nushustu at 12:29 PM on May 31, 2023 [5 favorites]
Only ONE MINUTE of stoppage time? For a half that included a PK + net replacement, a foul near the box, and a VAR review? There's fiction and then there's utter fantasy.
posted by komlord at 12:34 PM on May 31, 2023 [25 favorites]
posted by komlord at 12:34 PM on May 31, 2023 [25 favorites]
Barbara - i didn’t find her enjoyment of blood and violence funny, and it actually struck me as weird af and tonally jarring overall?
Yeah, Barbara never seemed to click with me. She struck me as an anodyne version of Jo from Mythic Quest, but with seemingly no awareness from the writers that this is a very different kind of show.
posted by not just everyday big moggies at 12:40 PM on May 31, 2023 [4 favorites]
Yeah, Barbara never seemed to click with me. She struck me as an anodyne version of Jo from Mythic Quest, but with seemingly no awareness from the writers that this is a very different kind of show.
posted by not just everyday big moggies at 12:40 PM on May 31, 2023 [4 favorites]
I don't think anyone likes Beard and Jane together. Beard is a twisted guy, what with all his recreational uh, loaves of bread meth, so I guess it appeals to him, but UGH. Maybe the wedding is a dream sequence, maybe not, maybe they just left it weird.
SO glad Dutch Pilot Dude was brought back. Most of the psychic stuff was just plain weird (don't see what shite in nining/matchbook had to do with ANYTHING AT ALL), but I'm happy Rebecca gets to mom a team and possibly a kid who needs it.
The one thing I'm really unhappy with was not getting Roy and Keeley officially back together and her frankly having not much to say about it, if anything? I would have also been cool with a Roy/Jamie/Keeley threesome, except I don't think Roy would share, alas. That was a waste of a great relationship in S2 to piss it off and not even bring it back for real.
Overall, I think the first two seasons were an A and this one's maybe a B- or so? I mostly say that because it didn't feel all the way baked, had a lot of cutaway-don't-show moments for some reason, kind of crapped up Keeley's plotline and Nate's could have been better, Ted's not around as much. But overall I still really enjoyed it more than most television.
posted by jenfullmoon at 1:15 PM on May 31, 2023 [6 favorites]
SO glad Dutch Pilot Dude was brought back. Most of the psychic stuff was just plain weird (don't see what shite in nining/matchbook had to do with ANYTHING AT ALL), but I'm happy Rebecca gets to mom a team and possibly a kid who needs it.
The one thing I'm really unhappy with was not getting Roy and Keeley officially back together and her frankly having not much to say about it, if anything? I would have also been cool with a Roy/Jamie/Keeley threesome, except I don't think Roy would share, alas. That was a waste of a great relationship in S2 to piss it off and not even bring it back for real.
Overall, I think the first two seasons were an A and this one's maybe a B- or so? I mostly say that because it didn't feel all the way baked, had a lot of cutaway-don't-show moments for some reason, kind of crapped up Keeley's plotline and Nate's could have been better, Ted's not around as much. But overall I still really enjoyed it more than most television.
posted by jenfullmoon at 1:15 PM on May 31, 2023 [6 favorites]
I loved that the sign at the end read, "KBPR" instead of "KJPR"- Keeley got a business partner in Barbara, and I really enjoyed that storyline. It felt like we got some pay off there, though I could have done without Jack.
posted by Torosaurus at 1:43 PM on May 31, 2023 [18 favorites]
posted by Torosaurus at 1:43 PM on May 31, 2023 [18 favorites]
I loved it. There were a lot of episodes this season that made me so angry and this redeemed it all for me. Yes, it was fan service, but as a fan I felt pretty serviced, and I'm okay with that.
I loved that Nate became the assistant kit guy, so his redemption really is on an earn-it basis. AND he got to call a game-winning play. I didn't understand the heavy Oscar statue pantomime thing they were doing, but it worked. And I love that they fined him £5000 for his penance. A nice acknowledgment that turning into a waiter or not, he didn't just screw them - he screwed them and made a bundle off of it.
I never understood the Barbara character, and I still don't, but I'm glad other people do. Was the guy who got injured by Isaac's goal a callback from another show? They gave him some pissy dialogue with his partner when he picked up their tickets so I thought maybe I was supposed to remember him, but maybe that was just so we'd recognize him later when they showed him bloodied up? Also even during the replay I couldn't see the ball going through the net in any way. Were we supposed to see it happening, or just take it as true because they showed the hole?
I loved the look that passed between Keeley and Rebecca when she revealed the Richmond women's team proposal. For the whole series, it's been remarkable how beautifully the two of them communicate without words. You almost need to create a subsection of the Bechdel Test to allow for it. Just a master class.
I thought Ted coming home to the house with all his stuff was weird too, but she divorced him while he was in London, so he wouldn't have found another place yet, plus the first person he'd want to see getting off the plane would be Henry. So it was a little weird to me that she was as happy to see him as she was, but otherwise I think it made sense.
I liked Nate's apology. I have to admit I was hoping that he would admit that after he tore down the sign he had to hide under the desk for hours, as a sort of extra self-shaming moment to share, and that Ted would pretend he didn't know, as an extra moment of grace. I don't know why I was expecting that. Maybe I just wanted a tiny bit of actual coming clean from Nate, and not just general remorse.
5 minutes toward the end of the episode,
Rebecca: You're going back to your family, so I'm going back to mine.
Me: Oh wait, the TEAM is her family! That's what the psychic meant!
Also Me: Well, that's cheap. It's supposed to be the Dutch guy. He's even got a kid. Sigh.
Also Also Me: Stop looking around the airport. It's not happening. No one goes from Amsterdam to London on an airplane. Just give up already. (Damn).
Reveal that Dutch guy is a pilot.
Me: (Really?) (Shut up, roll with it) All is forgiven.
posted by Mchelly at 3:11 PM on May 31, 2023 [13 favorites]
I loved that Nate became the assistant kit guy, so his redemption really is on an earn-it basis. AND he got to call a game-winning play. I didn't understand the heavy Oscar statue pantomime thing they were doing, but it worked. And I love that they fined him £5000 for his penance. A nice acknowledgment that turning into a waiter or not, he didn't just screw them - he screwed them and made a bundle off of it.
I never understood the Barbara character, and I still don't, but I'm glad other people do. Was the guy who got injured by Isaac's goal a callback from another show? They gave him some pissy dialogue with his partner when he picked up their tickets so I thought maybe I was supposed to remember him, but maybe that was just so we'd recognize him later when they showed him bloodied up? Also even during the replay I couldn't see the ball going through the net in any way. Were we supposed to see it happening, or just take it as true because they showed the hole?
I loved the look that passed between Keeley and Rebecca when she revealed the Richmond women's team proposal. For the whole series, it's been remarkable how beautifully the two of them communicate without words. You almost need to create a subsection of the Bechdel Test to allow for it. Just a master class.
I thought Ted coming home to the house with all his stuff was weird too, but she divorced him while he was in London, so he wouldn't have found another place yet, plus the first person he'd want to see getting off the plane would be Henry. So it was a little weird to me that she was as happy to see him as she was, but otherwise I think it made sense.
I liked Nate's apology. I have to admit I was hoping that he would admit that after he tore down the sign he had to hide under the desk for hours, as a sort of extra self-shaming moment to share, and that Ted would pretend he didn't know, as an extra moment of grace. I don't know why I was expecting that. Maybe I just wanted a tiny bit of actual coming clean from Nate, and not just general remorse.
5 minutes toward the end of the episode,
Rebecca: You're going back to your family, so I'm going back to mine.
Me: Oh wait, the TEAM is her family! That's what the psychic meant!
Also Me: Well, that's cheap. It's supposed to be the Dutch guy. He's even got a kid. Sigh.
Also Also Me: Stop looking around the airport. It's not happening. No one goes from Amsterdam to London on an airplane. Just give up already. (Damn).
Reveal that Dutch guy is a pilot.
Me: (Really?) (Shut up, roll with it) All is forgiven.
posted by Mchelly at 3:11 PM on May 31, 2023 [13 favorites]
Re: the Roy and Jamie scene at Keeley’s place - the way the two lads looked was absolutely hilarious. Goldstein and Dunster are just so good at nuances of comedy, and every time I saw Roy’s stretched out shirt collar I was laughing so hard. And the the “I get to pick?” followed by both of them being shown the door was great.
I thought there was a good chance they were gonna let the game end in a heartbreaking tie as the last shot caromed off the woodwork, but as soon as Ted looked at it and said “barbecue sauce,” you knew that ball was finding the back of the net. As mentioned upthread, one minute of stoppage time was completely unrealistic, but at the same time the episode captured the feeling of “can’t stop watching, all hell can break loose at any moment” of a soccer game that’s close going into the last minutes. I was hoping they’d get Man City the draw and give Richmond the EPL title, but that mighta been a little too cliche.
I hate that we’re not getting more of these guys. These characters have been so fun.
posted by azpenguin at 3:11 PM on May 31, 2023 [4 favorites]
I thought there was a good chance they were gonna let the game end in a heartbreaking tie as the last shot caromed off the woodwork, but as soon as Ted looked at it and said “barbecue sauce,” you knew that ball was finding the back of the net. As mentioned upthread, one minute of stoppage time was completely unrealistic, but at the same time the episode captured the feeling of “can’t stop watching, all hell can break loose at any moment” of a soccer game that’s close going into the last minutes. I was hoping they’d get Man City the draw and give Richmond the EPL title, but that mighta been a little too cliche.
I hate that we’re not getting more of these guys. These characters have been so fun.
posted by azpenguin at 3:11 PM on May 31, 2023 [4 favorites]
I like the way that the ending echoed the use of “unlucky,” but to actually mean “unlucky”
posted by DoctorFedora at 3:19 PM on May 31, 2023
posted by DoctorFedora at 3:19 PM on May 31, 2023
Was the guy who got injured by Isaac's goal a callback from another show? They gave him some pissy dialogue with his partner when he picked up their tickets so I thought maybe I was supposed to remember him, but maybe that was just so we'd recognize him later when they showed him bloodied up?
TVTropes says it was John Wingsnight, the boring and unpleasant guy who briefly dated Rebecca in S2 before she rightly dumped him. He then showed up with his equally boring and unpleasant fiance this season for the scene where "shite in nining armor" gets repeated three times.
posted by creepygirl at 3:37 PM on May 31, 2023 [9 favorites]
TVTropes says it was John Wingsnight, the boring and unpleasant guy who briefly dated Rebecca in S2 before she rightly dumped him. He then showed up with his equally boring and unpleasant fiance this season for the scene where "shite in nining armor" gets repeated three times.
posted by creepygirl at 3:37 PM on May 31, 2023 [9 favorites]
Okay, I thought it was a great finale and while it did not fix my major problems with the season, I thought it a fitting end to a show I once loved. And I got weepy a lot, but still didn't care about the football match - they won the match but not the championship, which is the perfect resolution for this show. Do your best but keep trying. You're never going to be perfect but trying is the thing.
I have a few little problems but also the episode did some surprising things that delighted me, so I'm going to not complain about things just yet. I'm just glad I've had a place to check in and chat about this show all season. It was a rough one but I was glad to have stuck with it.
(Of all the shows that finished this week, Lasso is the only one I didn't give up on. Sorry Succession, Barry and Mrs Maisel.)
posted by crossoverman at 3:47 PM on May 31, 2023 [4 favorites]
I have a few little problems but also the episode did some surprising things that delighted me, so I'm going to not complain about things just yet. I'm just glad I've had a place to check in and chat about this show all season. It was a rough one but I was glad to have stuck with it.
(Of all the shows that finished this week, Lasso is the only one I didn't give up on. Sorry Succession, Barry and Mrs Maisel.)
posted by crossoverman at 3:47 PM on May 31, 2023 [4 favorites]
But overall I still really enjoyed it more than most television.
This sums it up well for me. The final episode worked and paid off where it needed to, I think. If there's a spinoff, I now expect it will include--or possibly be based around--an AFC Richmond women's team. The whole issue with continuing any version of the show (to me, at least) is what would it be about? This show had Big Themes, and they were well articulated and thoughtfully developed and clearly resolved...so now what? Makes sense to first make it a show less about men and dealing with men's issues, and adding a women's team is a structural way to do that.
I kind of hate the choice to end with Beard marrying Jane because she has so consistently been implied to be controlling and abusive
This has been a common sentiment, but from available evidence, Willis Beard is kind of a nightmare, too. I think the joke is supposed to be that they're broken in ways that fit? Or something? Jane is a weird one, more of a writers' room in-joke gone too far than a real character.
posted by LooseFilter at 3:53 PM on May 31, 2023 [3 favorites]
This sums it up well for me. The final episode worked and paid off where it needed to, I think. If there's a spinoff, I now expect it will include--or possibly be based around--an AFC Richmond women's team. The whole issue with continuing any version of the show (to me, at least) is what would it be about? This show had Big Themes, and they were well articulated and thoughtfully developed and clearly resolved...so now what? Makes sense to first make it a show less about men and dealing with men's issues, and adding a women's team is a structural way to do that.
I kind of hate the choice to end with Beard marrying Jane because she has so consistently been implied to be controlling and abusive
This has been a common sentiment, but from available evidence, Willis Beard is kind of a nightmare, too. I think the joke is supposed to be that they're broken in ways that fit? Or something? Jane is a weird one, more of a writers' room in-joke gone too far than a real character.
posted by LooseFilter at 3:53 PM on May 31, 2023 [3 favorites]
Also I loved Dr. Sharon jumping on the bed.
posted by Mchelly at 3:56 PM on May 31, 2023 [5 favorites]
posted by Mchelly at 3:56 PM on May 31, 2023 [5 favorites]
I’m pretty sure that her character’s namesake is Keeley Hazell; she’s the actress who plays Bex, and years ago she was a topless model for Page 3 and a bunch of British lad mags. I didn’t realize until late in the season that she’d been added to the writing staff for this season
Yes, and IIRC she and Sudeikis were romantically involved a couple of years ago. Interestingly, S3 of Ted Lasso is her only writing credit. Looking at the writing credits for the show, you can see a pretty big shift across the seasons.
posted by LooseFilter at 4:06 PM on May 31, 2023 [2 favorites]
Yes, and IIRC she and Sudeikis were romantically involved a couple of years ago. Interestingly, S3 of Ted Lasso is her only writing credit. Looking at the writing credits for the show, you can see a pretty big shift across the seasons.
posted by LooseFilter at 4:06 PM on May 31, 2023 [2 favorites]
the heavy Oscar statue pantomime thing they were doing
In season 1, episode 3, the team tries a play that was Nathan's idea: using Jamie as a decoy. The way that Jamie executes it in the finale is exactly how Ted demonstrated it for them in season 1. They wanted Jamie to act like he was going to get the ball. Acting... Oscar trophy...
I know they've done a lot to show Jamie's growth, but this felt like another good example.
posted by stuart_s at 4:56 PM on May 31, 2023 [13 favorites]
In season 1, episode 3, the team tries a play that was Nathan's idea: using Jamie as a decoy. The way that Jamie executes it in the finale is exactly how Ted demonstrated it for them in season 1. They wanted Jamie to act like he was going to get the ball. Acting... Oscar trophy...
I know they've done a lot to show Jamie's growth, but this felt like another good example.
posted by stuart_s at 4:56 PM on May 31, 2023 [13 favorites]
Only ONE MINUTE of stoppage time?
The graphics team agrees with you—though only to a point: The score bug on the TV at the pub said +4.
posted by thecaddy at 6:14 PM on May 31, 2023 [3 favorites]
The graphics team agrees with you—though only to a point: The score bug on the TV at the pub said +4.
posted by thecaddy at 6:14 PM on May 31, 2023 [3 favorites]
I believe they say ‘one minute of stoppage time remaining’ not that there’s only one additional minute.
posted by WaterAndPixels at 6:20 PM on May 31, 2023 [8 favorites]
posted by WaterAndPixels at 6:20 PM on May 31, 2023 [8 favorites]
"I threw in a basketball coach from New Zealand just to spice it up a bit."
Spinoff idea: A lucky but inept basketball coach from New Zealand (Rhys Darby) comes to Richmond to coach the new Women's team. Trent Crimm stays to write a book about it.
Now that I thought of that any spinoff they do is going to be disappointing.
first random thoughts:
Roy -- I liked the Diamond Dogs scene but his personal growth (or lack thereof) has mostly happened off screen so I'll have to take their word for it.
Jamie and Roy -- I liked it, although Keeley kicking them out when they walked in and said she should choose one of them was the best part.
Nate -- OK, fine, I'm happy.
Rebecca: I'm glad she kept the team, and although I knew she'd randomly run into Dutch Guy at some point they handled it well and I was surprised. I'm trained to ignore people in pilot's uniforms walking by at airports so it was like he came out of nowhere.
Rupert: I find it a bit annoying that his downfall was caused by pretty much the same thing Rebecca did with Sam did last season, but I'm happy to see him go down, and having the whole Richmond stadium yell "Wanker!" at him was perfect.
Beard: I thought it was a cheap shortcut to have Beard stay in London for "true love" considering Jane is little more than a running gag. He obviously fit very well in London and I would have loved to hear him say it felt like his home. (Just like Rebecca wished Ted would say.)
Ted: I felt like the episode was mostly not about him, which they literally told us with his note on Trent's book. That was a very long payoff for the "You don't know what the offsides rule is" joke but I liked it.
Oh, and I cried through about half of the episode. Cat Stevens alone would have done that.
Very well done and MUCH better than I expected halfway through this meandering season.
posted by mmoncur at 7:21 PM on May 31, 2023 [7 favorites]
Spinoff idea: A lucky but inept basketball coach from New Zealand (Rhys Darby) comes to Richmond to coach the new Women's team. Trent Crimm stays to write a book about it.
Now that I thought of that any spinoff they do is going to be disappointing.
first random thoughts:
Roy -- I liked the Diamond Dogs scene but his personal growth (or lack thereof) has mostly happened off screen so I'll have to take their word for it.
Jamie and Roy -- I liked it, although Keeley kicking them out when they walked in and said she should choose one of them was the best part.
Nate -- OK, fine, I'm happy.
Rebecca: I'm glad she kept the team, and although I knew she'd randomly run into Dutch Guy at some point they handled it well and I was surprised. I'm trained to ignore people in pilot's uniforms walking by at airports so it was like he came out of nowhere.
Rupert: I find it a bit annoying that his downfall was caused by pretty much the same thing Rebecca did with Sam did last season, but I'm happy to see him go down, and having the whole Richmond stadium yell "Wanker!" at him was perfect.
Beard: I thought it was a cheap shortcut to have Beard stay in London for "true love" considering Jane is little more than a running gag. He obviously fit very well in London and I would have loved to hear him say it felt like his home. (Just like Rebecca wished Ted would say.)
Ted: I felt like the episode was mostly not about him, which they literally told us with his note on Trent's book. That was a very long payoff for the "You don't know what the offsides rule is" joke but I liked it.
Oh, and I cried through about half of the episode. Cat Stevens alone would have done that.
Very well done and MUCH better than I expected halfway through this meandering season.
posted by mmoncur at 7:21 PM on May 31, 2023 [7 favorites]
I'm not entirely clear why Ted showed up at his ex-wife's house while his driver unloads his luggage like he's staying the night.
Made perfect sense to me! He comes straight from the airport and wants to visit Henry for more than 15 minutes so he takes his luggage with him, then calls another Uber when he's done and packs his luggage back in. It's not like that was his personal driver who would wait on the curb for 3 hours.
posted by mmoncur at 7:26 PM on May 31, 2023 [5 favorites]
Made perfect sense to me! He comes straight from the airport and wants to visit Henry for more than 15 minutes so he takes his luggage with him, then calls another Uber when he's done and packs his luggage back in. It's not like that was his personal driver who would wait on the curb for 3 hours.
posted by mmoncur at 7:26 PM on May 31, 2023 [5 favorites]
Rupert: I find it a bit annoying that his downfall was caused by pretty much the same thing Rebecca did with Sam did last season
Apart from the infidelity, bit. And - the true downfall - the assaulting the team manager on the pitch bit.
I'm not entirely clear why Ted showed up at his ex-wife's house while his driver unloads his luggage like he's staying the night.
It's been pretty clearly sign-posted this season that she's warming up to Ted again - especially since he started sharing his actual feelings. I suspect this was a low-key indication that they're back on again.
posted by coriolisdave at 7:30 PM on May 31, 2023
My favorite character moment this episode may be Jamie paying his fine to Nate’s silly box with a smile, and then unobtrusively calling him back and adding more money with a conspiratorial shush.
posted by LooseFilter at 7:31 PM on May 31, 2023 [13 favorites]
posted by LooseFilter at 7:31 PM on May 31, 2023 [13 favorites]
for anyone complaining that this finale felt like a great big pile of pandering to the fans: I watched season three of Picard. I am indestructible
posted by DoctorFedora at 7:35 PM on May 31, 2023 [25 favorites]
posted by DoctorFedora at 7:35 PM on May 31, 2023 [25 favorites]
for anyone complaining that this finale felt like a great big pile of pandering to the fans: I watched season three of Picard. I am indestructible
Between this and Picard we have SO MANY PANDAS
posted by coriolisdave at 8:00 PM on May 31, 2023 [4 favorites]
Between this and Picard we have SO MANY PANDAS
posted by coriolisdave at 8:00 PM on May 31, 2023 [4 favorites]
Women's team! Women's team! Women's team!
I like Barbara and hope that if there's a spinoff she's a major character.
posted by The corpse in the library at 8:19 PM on May 31, 2023 [9 favorites]
I like Barbara and hope that if there's a spinoff she's a major character.
posted by The corpse in the library at 8:19 PM on May 31, 2023 [9 favorites]
I would absolutely watch a women's football show. The easter egg for Jack in the newspaper suggests she might make a good villain for that spin-off. Barbara's awkwardness and love of violence makes me feel absolutely SEEN as a very productive work weirdo. The UK's women's team, the Lionesses, is apparently very good and popular too.
Ted called Jane and Beard a pair of matched luggage, and yes, she comes across as very strange and possessive, but Beard gave as much in return and they came across to me as two absolutely messed up people who aren't making two other people miserable, but are off in their own wonderful intense world. Ted's intervened for other terrible relationships, and he knows Beard well enough to find Jane definitely not his cup of tea, but understandable for Beard.
Mostly, for having Roy occasionally seen turning up with either Keeley or Jamie in tow, to bring Phoebe to watch the women training in hopes of inspiring her, only to have her writing up articles for her school blog, much to Trent's delight and Roy's despair.... oh the fanfic for this show will last a long, long time.
posted by dorothyisunderwood at 8:26 PM on May 31, 2023 [8 favorites]
Ted called Jane and Beard a pair of matched luggage, and yes, she comes across as very strange and possessive, but Beard gave as much in return and they came across to me as two absolutely messed up people who aren't making two other people miserable, but are off in their own wonderful intense world. Ted's intervened for other terrible relationships, and he knows Beard well enough to find Jane definitely not his cup of tea, but understandable for Beard.
Mostly, for having Roy occasionally seen turning up with either Keeley or Jamie in tow, to bring Phoebe to watch the women training in hopes of inspiring her, only to have her writing up articles for her school blog, much to Trent's delight and Roy's despair.... oh the fanfic for this show will last a long, long time.
posted by dorothyisunderwood at 8:26 PM on May 31, 2023 [8 favorites]
Does anyone have a link to the magazine/newspaper Easter eggs? I think I mostly missed them.
posted by nat at 11:09 PM on May 31, 2023 [7 favorites]
posted by nat at 11:09 PM on May 31, 2023 [7 favorites]
Barbara - i didn’t find her enjoyment of blood and violence funny, and it actually struck me as weird af and tonally jarring overall?
Weird af and tonally jarring overall is pretty much Barbara's whole thing though, yes?
posted by flabdablet at 4:42 AM on June 1, 2023 [6 favorites]
Weird af and tonally jarring overall is pretty much Barbara's whole thing though, yes?
posted by flabdablet at 4:42 AM on June 1, 2023 [6 favorites]
Does anyone have a link to the magazine/newspaper Easter eggs?
Two images here at this Reddit comment. After the spoiler shade, click the images to see a larger version.
posted by JoeZydeco at 6:30 AM on June 1, 2023 [8 favorites]
Two images here at this Reddit comment. After the spoiler shade, click the images to see a larger version.
posted by JoeZydeco at 6:30 AM on June 1, 2023 [8 favorites]
Two images here at this Reddit comment
ZAVA RETORNO / STRIKER HEADS TO LAFC “They love avocado toast here”
ZOREAUX SUMMER JOB / Keeper To Star In Jean-Claude Van Damme Remake Of “Escape To Victory “
A STARF*KR IS BORN / SHANDY FINE / The Brains Behind The New Datimg App
FINANCE / Jack Danvers Is No Longer Daddy’s Little Girl
[Photo of Rupert Mannion’s ex-PA Ms Kakes] Lust Conquers All Welcomes West Ham Whistleblower
BEST FEEDING: Mannion’s Ex-Bex Inks Book Deal On Placenta Recipes
posted by ellieBOA at 7:28 AM on June 1, 2023 [9 favorites]
ZAVA RETORNO / STRIKER HEADS TO LAFC “They love avocado toast here”
ZOREAUX SUMMER JOB / Keeper To Star In Jean-Claude Van Damme Remake Of “Escape To Victory “
A STARF*KR IS BORN / SHANDY FINE / The Brains Behind The New Datimg App
FINANCE / Jack Danvers Is No Longer Daddy’s Little Girl
[Photo of Rupert Mannion’s ex-PA Ms Kakes] Lust Conquers All Welcomes West Ham Whistleblower
BEST FEEDING: Mannion’s Ex-Bex Inks Book Deal On Placenta Recipes
posted by ellieBOA at 7:28 AM on June 1, 2023 [9 favorites]
There are two more when Ted moves his arm:
PEP IN YOUR STEP: Guardiola unveils clothing line for men with perfect silhouettes
THE QUIET GENIUS OF LESLIE HIGGINS
posted by JoeZydeco at 7:51 AM on June 1, 2023 [8 favorites]
PEP IN YOUR STEP: Guardiola unveils clothing line for men with perfect silhouettes
THE QUIET GENIUS OF LESLIE HIGGINS
posted by JoeZydeco at 7:51 AM on June 1, 2023 [8 favorites]
THE QUIET GENIUS OF LESLIE HIGGINS
Well, I'm glad someone finally said it.
posted by Etrigan at 7:59 AM on June 1, 2023 [39 favorites]
Well, I'm glad someone finally said it.
posted by Etrigan at 7:59 AM on June 1, 2023 [39 favorites]
I loved many things about the finale. It’s possible that I loved Rupert’s jacket most of all. I’m sure I can’t afford it but I would love to find one like it. I feel an Ask coming up.
Yesterday I watched it a second time, several hours after the first watching. I agree with money of the thoughtful critiques. It did feel like Ted was not offering much in response to Rebecca spilling tasteful tears over the end of their partnership. In real life, people relapse into bad behavior all the time, but I don’t especially want to see real life in my fav TV shows. So the regression by Jamie and by Roy was painful to watch. But it was also funny.
I loved the show very much and it helped me through some shitty years. I am good with the final episode. I would watch the hell out of a show covering women’s soccer and I really liked Jade. If Jade, Kelly, and Rebecca want to do something together in a fantasy universe, I am so here for it. But that’s not gonna happen, so thank goodness for fanfic.
posted by Bella Donna at 8:26 AM on June 1, 2023 [4 favorites]
Yesterday I watched it a second time, several hours after the first watching. I agree with money of the thoughtful critiques. It did feel like Ted was not offering much in response to Rebecca spilling tasteful tears over the end of their partnership. In real life, people relapse into bad behavior all the time, but I don’t especially want to see real life in my fav TV shows. So the regression by Jamie and by Roy was painful to watch. But it was also funny.
I loved the show very much and it helped me through some shitty years. I am good with the final episode. I would watch the hell out of a show covering women’s soccer and I really liked Jade. If Jade, Kelly, and Rebecca want to do something together in a fantasy universe, I am so here for it. But that’s not gonna happen, so thank goodness for fanfic.
posted by Bella Donna at 8:26 AM on June 1, 2023 [4 favorites]
I loved the nod to Cheers, when Mae straightened the photo of Geronimo, and the nod to Karate Kid, when Rupert basically said "sweep the leg." And the segue at the end from Cat Stevens' Father and Son to the Flaming Lips Fight Test was nice.
posted by mcdoublewide at 8:42 AM on June 1, 2023 [3 favorites]
posted by mcdoublewide at 8:42 AM on June 1, 2023 [3 favorites]
It did feel like Ted was not offering much in response to Rebecca spilling tasteful tears over the end of their partnership.
I think this threw me off as well in the latter half of S3. Ted pretty much sat there and watching everything happen around him, the S1 Ted wasn't there anymore. Was it deliberate to show Ted was increasingly sad over missing his son, or did they just run out of wisecracks?
posted by JoeZydeco at 8:51 AM on June 1, 2023 [2 favorites]
I think this threw me off as well in the latter half of S3. Ted pretty much sat there and watching everything happen around him, the S1 Ted wasn't there anymore. Was it deliberate to show Ted was increasingly sad over missing his son, or did they just run out of wisecracks?
posted by JoeZydeco at 8:51 AM on June 1, 2023 [2 favorites]
(Post about finale/show over on the blue)
posted by LooseFilter at 9:39 AM on June 1, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by LooseFilter at 9:39 AM on June 1, 2023 [2 favorites]
This is a rom com you guys, and it’s all about who you do end up with rather than who we thought they should end up with.
Tedbecca — she ends up with Dutch guy
Roy keeley Jamie - Roy and Jamie end up together and Keely noped out of that mess.
Beard Jane - fuck it let those two crazy kids be crazy
I am terribly sad about Roy and Keely because the actors chemistry and flow was pretty magical. But Roy more then enough times kept fucking it up with Keely. In this episode note that his first questions was, how can you tell if a girl likes you but the actual question he posed to the diamond dogs was How can I be a better person?
The last bit, about Ted coaching his son and being the father he didn’t have, beautiful way to end it. The cycle stops with me.
posted by St. Peepsburg at 9:55 AM on June 1, 2023 [6 favorites]
Tedbecca — she ends up with Dutch guy
Roy keeley Jamie - Roy and Jamie end up together and Keely noped out of that mess.
Beard Jane - fuck it let those two crazy kids be crazy
I am terribly sad about Roy and Keely because the actors chemistry and flow was pretty magical. But Roy more then enough times kept fucking it up with Keely. In this episode note that his first questions was, how can you tell if a girl likes you but the actual question he posed to the diamond dogs was How can I be a better person?
The last bit, about Ted coaching his son and being the father he didn’t have, beautiful way to end it. The cycle stops with me.
posted by St. Peepsburg at 9:55 AM on June 1, 2023 [6 favorites]
did anyone get weepy at this ep?
I'm a dad with a kid about the same age as Henry, so when Henry's watching for Ted out the window as he pulls up and yells "He's here! Dad! Dad! Dad! Dad!" and runs out the door to hug him?
Yes, yes I did.
posted by brentajones at 11:23 AM on June 1, 2023 [14 favorites]
I'm a dad with a kid about the same age as Henry, so when Henry's watching for Ted out the window as he pulls up and yells "He's here! Dad! Dad! Dad! Dad!" and runs out the door to hug him?
Yes, yes I did.
posted by brentajones at 11:23 AM on June 1, 2023 [14 favorites]
The show made the landing, not perfect, but made it. So much has been said, so not a lot left for me to say or add.
Notable was the use of space with Jake during the football match, as Henry and his mom got closer and more engaged with the game, he moved farther and farther away until he was in the back of the shot. Then no Jake at Henry's game, where he would have absolutely been if Michelle was still dating him. He's gone. I think Ted and Michelle may be back to restarting a relationship, but there was nothing definitive other than the absence of Jake.
Concerning the Ted and Rebecca scene when she's begging him to stay and he's saying almost nothing at all. Sudekis did a great job here conveying Ted doing everything he could not to break down in some way. He was being torn between Henry/Michelle and his other family during that conversation and to be honest, Rebecca probably shouldn't have tried so hard to get him to stay. As someone who was older than Henry, but still moved to England by his parents for work, it did kinda suck being uprooted like that. I got your back Henry.
The decision to make Nate the assistant kitman is what saved his entire story. We knew he was going to return as part of a comeback/redemption/what have you story, and it seemed unearned for him to come back as a coach. But this, this starts him right at the bottom and represents a humbleness that disappeared on his rise to evil under Rupert. He will be coach again, but I like this. Jade, well. Well. Jade.
I would have liked to see Keeley say no to Jamie and Roy directly, but seeing them to the door wasn't too bad.
I'm really curious if it was a dream sequence versus reality there at the end. I'm not sure if it was 100% clear.
posted by Atreides at 12:17 PM on June 1, 2023 [7 favorites]
Notable was the use of space with Jake during the football match, as Henry and his mom got closer and more engaged with the game, he moved farther and farther away until he was in the back of the shot. Then no Jake at Henry's game, where he would have absolutely been if Michelle was still dating him. He's gone. I think Ted and Michelle may be back to restarting a relationship, but there was nothing definitive other than the absence of Jake.
Concerning the Ted and Rebecca scene when she's begging him to stay and he's saying almost nothing at all. Sudekis did a great job here conveying Ted doing everything he could not to break down in some way. He was being torn between Henry/Michelle and his other family during that conversation and to be honest, Rebecca probably shouldn't have tried so hard to get him to stay. As someone who was older than Henry, but still moved to England by his parents for work, it did kinda suck being uprooted like that. I got your back Henry.
The decision to make Nate the assistant kitman is what saved his entire story. We knew he was going to return as part of a comeback/redemption/what have you story, and it seemed unearned for him to come back as a coach. But this, this starts him right at the bottom and represents a humbleness that disappeared on his rise to evil under Rupert. He will be coach again, but I like this. Jade, well. Well. Jade.
I would have liked to see Keeley say no to Jamie and Roy directly, but seeing them to the door wasn't too bad.
I'm really curious if it was a dream sequence versus reality there at the end. I'm not sure if it was 100% clear.
posted by Atreides at 12:17 PM on June 1, 2023 [7 favorites]
did anyone get weepy at this ep?
Let me count the ways, in no particular order...
-Higgins's contribution to the Diamond Dogs discussion
-Colin kissing his boyfriend on the pitch
-Jamie sitting with his dad, having what looks like a lovely conversation
-Roy being named as coach
-Rebecca selling 49% of Richmond to the fans
-Shannon getting her book signed by Trent (Crimm, of the Independent)
-Keeley showing Rebecca her new plan
-SAM ON THE NIGERIAN TEAM
So, like, nearly start to finish. I loved it. I loved the series as a whole. It spoke to my father issues like no other media I've ever encountered. I loved the focus on dismantling toxic masculinity, the power of redemption and forgiveness, the meaning of chosen family, how important it is to have connections to people in this world.
Was it perfect? No. But I wasn't expecting it to be. It's TV, not heaven. I thought it was wonderful nonetheless.
posted by cooker girl at 1:14 PM on June 1, 2023 [17 favorites]
Let me count the ways, in no particular order...
-Higgins's contribution to the Diamond Dogs discussion
-Colin kissing his boyfriend on the pitch
-Jamie sitting with his dad, having what looks like a lovely conversation
-Roy being named as coach
-Rebecca selling 49% of Richmond to the fans
-Shannon getting her book signed by Trent (Crimm, of the Independent)
-Keeley showing Rebecca her new plan
-SAM ON THE NIGERIAN TEAM
So, like, nearly start to finish. I loved it. I loved the series as a whole. It spoke to my father issues like no other media I've ever encountered. I loved the focus on dismantling toxic masculinity, the power of redemption and forgiveness, the meaning of chosen family, how important it is to have connections to people in this world.
Was it perfect? No. But I wasn't expecting it to be. It's TV, not heaven. I thought it was wonderful nonetheless.
posted by cooker girl at 1:14 PM on June 1, 2023 [17 favorites]
I started getting weepy at the So Long, Farewell bit, grade A cheeseball over here. I love how much the creators of this show love the things they love. Show tunes have been one of those things from day one so it felt so fitting to have that be the beginning of his sendoff. Every other episode has them running through a list of their favorite Scorsese films or some such, and sometimes I take notes.
It's a beautiful show. Nothing ever rose again to the power of Season 1, I don't think I've ever felt as happy/stunned as when Rebecca confesses and Ted just forgives her. But the show has an arc to it, Ted learning to express negative feelings, realizing that he wants to go home to his son. I think it was incredible that that happened mostly off screen, we all had figured it out with Ted. Not that it was particularly subtle, but just that it was right.
And the Nate arc was also great. Season two was a real tragedy. Ted was losing it so he wasn't there for Nate who needed him and so he lost him. I know people feel like he didn't really suffer enough consequences for his actions but I think this show is much less about external consequences than about internal ones. It's a show about making amends and being welcomed home with open arms. Rebecca and Ted over and over again.
Coach Beard is doing a Reddit AMA this morning. In it he addressed questions about the Beard/Jane relationship. I really loved Beard from beginning to end on this show.
posted by macrael at 2:31 PM on June 1, 2023 [12 favorites]
It's a beautiful show. Nothing ever rose again to the power of Season 1, I don't think I've ever felt as happy/stunned as when Rebecca confesses and Ted just forgives her. But the show has an arc to it, Ted learning to express negative feelings, realizing that he wants to go home to his son. I think it was incredible that that happened mostly off screen, we all had figured it out with Ted. Not that it was particularly subtle, but just that it was right.
And the Nate arc was also great. Season two was a real tragedy. Ted was losing it so he wasn't there for Nate who needed him and so he lost him. I know people feel like he didn't really suffer enough consequences for his actions but I think this show is much less about external consequences than about internal ones. It's a show about making amends and being welcomed home with open arms. Rebecca and Ted over and over again.
Coach Beard is doing a Reddit AMA this morning. In it he addressed questions about the Beard/Jane relationship. I really loved Beard from beginning to end on this show.
posted by macrael at 2:31 PM on June 1, 2023 [12 favorites]
Coach Beard is doing a Reddit AMA this morning. In it he addressed questions about the Beard/Jane relationship. I really loved Beard from beginning to end on this show.
He also gave a lovely answer to the "why wasn't Ted at the wedding" question:
He also gave a lovely answer to the "why wasn't Ted at the wedding" question:
There are a few reasons. The first is narrative: Ted just got on a plane and left the UK, it would be anticlimactic and deflating if we suddenly see him back there before we even see his plane lands. The other is that that’s just the kind of friendship Ted and Beard have. Case in point is me and Joe Kelly, co-creator of Ted Lasso and one of the best friends I’ll ever know. A few years ago I get an email from him and his fantastic girlfriend that they are getting married in LESS THAN A MONTH. The email clearly stated “no worries if it’s too short of notice” which was awfully nice of them; I desperately wanted to be there but I couldn’t. They had scheduled to wedding the same day as a show I was doing in another city, if I recall correctly. So I missed the wedding, and guess what: no one cares! Our relationship is the exact same, our families live down the street from each other and we see each other all the time. So personally I think Beard called Ted and told him he could sit this one out, and Ted said thanks, because the ceremony conflicted with a big game for Henry’s soccer team. The history of their relationship IMO is long periods of seeing each other and long periods not. We have entered one of the latter, but the former will come around again at some point. They love each other, they will see each other again. They love each other, they will see each other again.posted by donatella at 4:42 PM on June 1, 2023 [18 favorites]
I kind of love the readings that the Beard wedding shots are Ted having a dream, because… maybe it is, but also, "maybe it's a dream" is just sort of how Beard's life seems to be, comprehensively.
posted by DoctorFedora at 5:53 PM on June 1, 2023 [7 favorites]
posted by DoctorFedora at 5:53 PM on June 1, 2023 [7 favorites]
The history of their relationship IMO is long periods of seeing each other and long periods not.
This doesn’t strike true for me. I always read Beard as being Ted’s longtime assistant coach, always faithfully following his friend, even across an ocean to coach an entirely different sport. That’s why it tore him apart that he even wanted to stay in the UK with Jane. If his relationship with Ted had been one of long periods apart, he would have just said, “Hey, I’m really glad you’re going back to Kansas. Say hi to Henry for me. I’m gonna stay here.” and Ted would have said “Cool. Here’s my biscuit recipe. Don’t tell Rebecca they’re from you. Just let her freak out a little for a while.”
That’s not to say they can’t make that kind of relationship, just that they didn’t already have it.
posted by Etrigan at 6:10 PM on June 1, 2023 [6 favorites]
This doesn’t strike true for me. I always read Beard as being Ted’s longtime assistant coach, always faithfully following his friend, even across an ocean to coach an entirely different sport. That’s why it tore him apart that he even wanted to stay in the UK with Jane. If his relationship with Ted had been one of long periods apart, he would have just said, “Hey, I’m really glad you’re going back to Kansas. Say hi to Henry for me. I’m gonna stay here.” and Ted would have said “Cool. Here’s my biscuit recipe. Don’t tell Rebecca they’re from you. Just let her freak out a little for a while.”
That’s not to say they can’t make that kind of relationship, just that they didn’t already have it.
posted by Etrigan at 6:10 PM on June 1, 2023 [6 favorites]
Did I get weepy well yes my friends I did indeed get weepy.
Particularly at halftime when the players put together the pieces of the BELIEVE sign that they've been holding onto individually. That was this fundamentally cornball show at its absolute best. And at Colin and Michael. But also at Keeley and Rebecca considering the AFC Richmond Women's Team, Nate jumping on Ted in celebration, and just everything about the "Father & Son" montage.
(Weirdly, earlier today I had an urge to look up a video of the "Father & Son" scene from Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, not having seen this episode yet. That song is like an emotional cheat code and yet I do not care one whit.)
Also, can we stop to appreciate how much better Finales have gotten since Six Feet Under showed folks how it was done? This one more or less ended the same way, but with Ted's flight back to Kansas in place of Claire's drive to NY, and no deaths, but still, that shit works.
Nick Mohammad just killed Nate's apology scene, and I loved loved loved how that played, with Ted trying to brush it off before it began and Nate insisting and them immediately breaking down because he's been needing to say the apology for so long. Just supremely well done.
Since we never got the name of Dutch Pilot Dude I'm just gonna keep calling him "Diesel Paul Scheer" and expect all of you to do likewise, thank you.
Now give us the AFC Richmond Women's Team, dammit. And yes, make some room on that show for Jade as well, please.
posted by Navelgazer at 8:56 PM on June 1, 2023 [11 favorites]
Particularly at halftime when the players put together the pieces of the BELIEVE sign that they've been holding onto individually. That was this fundamentally cornball show at its absolute best. And at Colin and Michael. But also at Keeley and Rebecca considering the AFC Richmond Women's Team, Nate jumping on Ted in celebration, and just everything about the "Father & Son" montage.
(Weirdly, earlier today I had an urge to look up a video of the "Father & Son" scene from Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, not having seen this episode yet. That song is like an emotional cheat code and yet I do not care one whit.)
Also, can we stop to appreciate how much better Finales have gotten since Six Feet Under showed folks how it was done? This one more or less ended the same way, but with Ted's flight back to Kansas in place of Claire's drive to NY, and no deaths, but still, that shit works.
Nick Mohammad just killed Nate's apology scene, and I loved loved loved how that played, with Ted trying to brush it off before it began and Nate insisting and them immediately breaking down because he's been needing to say the apology for so long. Just supremely well done.
Since we never got the name of Dutch Pilot Dude I'm just gonna keep calling him "Diesel Paul Scheer" and expect all of you to do likewise, thank you.
Now give us the AFC Richmond Women's Team, dammit. And yes, make some room on that show for Jade as well, please.
posted by Navelgazer at 8:56 PM on June 1, 2023 [11 favorites]
Dutch Pilot Dude
He's obviously The Flying Dutchman!
posted by crossoverman at 9:33 PM on June 1, 2023 [18 favorites]
He's obviously The Flying Dutchman!
posted by crossoverman at 9:33 PM on June 1, 2023 [18 favorites]
I think I read somewhere that Flying Dutchman's name is something like....Matthjis or something like that? In credits? I didn't see it and I can't recall where I spotted it. I obviously have the spelling wrong, but it was a name like Matthew but with a J...?
I think re: Beard that was referring to how they used to be on a team together, then were separate for years, then reunited when Beard was in distress. They weren't always a pair, albeit they may have been the last few years.
posted by jenfullmoon at 9:36 PM on June 1, 2023 [1 favorite]
I think re: Beard that was referring to how they used to be on a team together, then were separate for years, then reunited when Beard was in distress. They weren't always a pair, albeit they may have been the last few years.
posted by jenfullmoon at 9:36 PM on June 1, 2023 [1 favorite]
I think I read somewhere that Flying Dutchman's name is something like....Matthjis or something like that? In credits?
Imdb full cast & crew for the episode lists his name as Matthijs.
I was losing my mind, (in a good way) during the only scene where he has dialogue, so I don't remember if it was actually spoken on screen or not.
posted by creepygirl at 10:11 PM on June 1, 2023 [1 favorite]
Imdb full cast & crew for the episode lists his name as Matthijs.
I was losing my mind, (in a good way) during the only scene where he has dialogue, so I don't remember if it was actually spoken on screen or not.
posted by creepygirl at 10:11 PM on June 1, 2023 [1 favorite]
Browsing AppleTV tonight, i find it interesting that all the screens refer to this as “Season 3 finale” and not “Series finale”.
posted by FallibleHuman at 10:26 PM on June 1, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by FallibleHuman at 10:26 PM on June 1, 2023 [2 favorites]
I believe there are two ways in which people got introduced to this show by friends:
"I know you're not interested in football, but this is a series which seems to be about it - and isn't really at all, I think you'd love it"
and
"I know you love football and this is a series about a fictional club - it has some other stuff in it too - but - you know ...football!".
I'm in the first group - would be curious to hear about the experiences of people in the second.
posted by rongorongo at 12:47 AM on June 2, 2023 [2 favorites]
"I know you're not interested in football, but this is a series which seems to be about it - and isn't really at all, I think you'd love it"
and
"I know you love football and this is a series about a fictional club - it has some other stuff in it too - but - you know ...football!".
I'm in the first group - would be curious to hear about the experiences of people in the second.
posted by rongorongo at 12:47 AM on June 2, 2023 [2 favorites]
Just chiming in to say that Nate mending the Believe sign with kintsugi technique was a really nice little touch, given that the philosophy of kintsugi is (1) to foreground the mending, and (2) to make stronger and more beautiful than the original through the act of repairing.
posted by sockshaveholes at 9:40 AM on June 2, 2023 [22 favorites]
posted by sockshaveholes at 9:40 AM on June 2, 2023 [22 favorites]
Which seems to be the only redeeming quality of the psychic scene.
posted by pwnguin at 9:42 AM on June 2, 2023 [4 favorites]
posted by pwnguin at 9:42 AM on June 2, 2023 [4 favorites]
I think I read somewhere that Flying Dutchman's name is something like....Matthjis or something like that? In credits? I didn't see it and I can't recall where I spotted it. I obviously have the spelling wrong, but it was a name like Matthew but with a J...?
Speaking of flying Dutch, am I imagining it or was there an airline poster or something in his boat house?
posted by Atreides at 10:56 AM on June 2, 2023 [5 favorites]
Speaking of flying Dutch, am I imagining it or was there an airline poster or something in his boat house?
posted by Atreides at 10:56 AM on June 2, 2023 [5 favorites]
Started a longer response but I imagine it'll be lost here.
But I wanted to go on record as loving the final episode. I'm fine with S3, overall, but I'm especially happy with the last episode. There were some storylines this season I'd have pruned and some things I'd have liked to have seen more of, but I feel like I'd be dinging Let it Be because it wasn't quite Abbey Road or Sgt. Pepper.
For those who felt let down by this season... sorry. But I'm quite pleased with it, and I love where the story went and where the characters landed. I love that we got the fairytale ending of the team winning the season. I love that we didn't get a neat conclusion to the Roy/Keeley romance but it was left with Keeley choosing none of the above.
The fakeout with Ted + Rebecca had me barking with laughter. Roy meekly asking to be part of the Diamond Dogs. Nate's apology and humility and clear joy at simply being part of the team again. The musical production to send Ted off. Rupert's utter humiliation and Rebecca being beyond caring about it.
I'm sad it's over but it couldn't go on forever. I'm definitely going to be re-watching the show, and I hope we have more media that champions kindness and forgiveness and growth like this. God knows we need it.
posted by jzb at 11:15 AM on June 2, 2023 [13 favorites]
But I wanted to go on record as loving the final episode. I'm fine with S3, overall, but I'm especially happy with the last episode. There were some storylines this season I'd have pruned and some things I'd have liked to have seen more of, but I feel like I'd be dinging Let it Be because it wasn't quite Abbey Road or Sgt. Pepper.
For those who felt let down by this season... sorry. But I'm quite pleased with it, and I love where the story went and where the characters landed. I love that we got the fairytale ending of the team winning the season. I love that we didn't get a neat conclusion to the Roy/Keeley romance but it was left with Keeley choosing none of the above.
The fakeout with Ted + Rebecca had me barking with laughter. Roy meekly asking to be part of the Diamond Dogs. Nate's apology and humility and clear joy at simply being part of the team again. The musical production to send Ted off. Rupert's utter humiliation and Rebecca being beyond caring about it.
I'm sad it's over but it couldn't go on forever. I'm definitely going to be re-watching the show, and I hope we have more media that champions kindness and forgiveness and growth like this. God knows we need it.
posted by jzb at 11:15 AM on June 2, 2023 [13 favorites]
I'm generally not a fan of journalists - even sports/entertainment journalists - playing themselves in TV shows or movies; they're supposed be separate from the world they cover. But I think this show did a good job of integrating real-world journalists into the cast of characters. Fitting that Jeff Stelling wrapped up his appearances on Ted Lasso and Soccer Saturday within a few days of each other.
posted by Ranucci at 1:11 PM on June 2, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by Ranucci at 1:11 PM on June 2, 2023 [2 favorites]
Ultimately I'm on board with the second-place outcome — both as a dodge of hokey sports-movie tropes and as a knowing commentary on the inevitability of Man City stomping on everyone else’s sandcastle.
Something else that was pipped at the post was Sam Ryders song "Fought and Lost" which made its debut, in part, last episode (acoustic version here). It has lyrics which specifically talk about the bitter sweet experience of coming second in, I guess, a football game "We will see you here, same time, same place next year..."
In the end the finale was carrying not just a farewell to the characters, and the season's most important match - but also decisions about where everybody was going to end up and expositions about the future. So, in the end, The Greyhounds coming second with honours - was left as pretty much a dramatic sideline.
Fortunately for Sam Ryder, most televised sporting events do have somebody who comes very prominently second - so I'd expect to hear his song appear in that context fairly often. Second place did him OK in Eurovison after all.
posted by rongorongo at 2:50 PM on June 2, 2023
Something else that was pipped at the post was Sam Ryders song "Fought and Lost" which made its debut, in part, last episode (acoustic version here). It has lyrics which specifically talk about the bitter sweet experience of coming second in, I guess, a football game "We will see you here, same time, same place next year..."
In the end the finale was carrying not just a farewell to the characters, and the season's most important match - but also decisions about where everybody was going to end up and expositions about the future. So, in the end, The Greyhounds coming second with honours - was left as pretty much a dramatic sideline.
Fortunately for Sam Ryder, most televised sporting events do have somebody who comes very prominently second - so I'd expect to hear his song appear in that context fairly often. Second place did him OK in Eurovison after all.
posted by rongorongo at 2:50 PM on June 2, 2023
Re: that beat of Mae straightening the photo of Geronimo, which was a callback to Cheers -- TIL that "Norm" actor George Wendt is Jason Sudeikis's uncle!
posted by BlahLaLa at 3:32 PM on June 2, 2023 [5 favorites]
posted by BlahLaLa at 3:32 PM on June 2, 2023 [5 favorites]
I must say, looking back, I really enjoyed the fake-out cold opens they’ve done this season, both this episode and the wine subscription service
posted by DoctorFedora at 4:38 PM on June 2, 2023
posted by DoctorFedora at 4:38 PM on June 2, 2023
Well, @rongorongo, as a football fan first, the shift to the PL* has been discombobulating. Stadiums are right, but the pitch condition and edge-of-fields are completely off. I don’t blame them for it at all (CG, etc), but watching it is strange.
Also, not having real PL players on opposing teams, but then people like Henry, Pep, and Arlo White make it even more strange.
The actual game filming and pace of action is also a little on the slower side. Brendan Hunt was on this Mark Kermode and Ellen Jones BBC pod talking about other soccer/futbol films. It’s a good listen.
*premier league
posted by grimley at 5:54 PM on June 2, 2023 [3 favorites]
Also, not having real PL players on opposing teams, but then people like Henry, Pep, and Arlo White make it even more strange.
The actual game filming and pace of action is also a little on the slower side. Brendan Hunt was on this Mark Kermode and Ellen Jones BBC pod talking about other soccer/futbol films. It’s a good listen.
*premier league
posted by grimley at 5:54 PM on June 2, 2023 [3 favorites]
Now that I've sat with this for a couple of days, I'll say that although I will always have some alternate-history re-writes of season 3 events, and even though I agree with many criticisms of it, I genuinely enjoyed watching it all. I kvetch about it because I love it, and I love the characters created by the cast and crew. As someone said dozens of comments ago, Ted Lasso has been so much more enjoyable to watch than so much other tv out there. Gimme this anytime rather than yet another medical drama or arsehole-genius show.
But after reading Brendan Hunt's AMA on Reddit, I'm now a bit worried. He defends Jane and Beard's relationship as toxic but not abusive. I see 3 possibilities: a) one or two of the other writers think she is abusive and put in stuff that contradicts Hunt's writing of her character, or b) he has a relationship in his life that is so bad he doesn't realise that the stuff with Jane is actually awful or c) he's led a nice life and doesn't recognise abuse the way that some of the audience do (me, I'm that some). I hope it's that last option.
posted by harriet vane at 4:34 AM on June 3, 2023 [7 favorites]
But after reading Brendan Hunt's AMA on Reddit, I'm now a bit worried. He defends Jane and Beard's relationship as toxic but not abusive. I see 3 possibilities: a) one or two of the other writers think she is abusive and put in stuff that contradicts Hunt's writing of her character, or b) he has a relationship in his life that is so bad he doesn't realise that the stuff with Jane is actually awful or c) he's led a nice life and doesn't recognise abuse the way that some of the audience do (me, I'm that some). I hope it's that last option.
posted by harriet vane at 4:34 AM on June 3, 2023 [7 favorites]
I strongly suspect it's b.
posted by jenfullmoon at 5:24 AM on June 3, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by jenfullmoon at 5:24 AM on June 3, 2023 [2 favorites]
I cannot express how badly I want a spin off about Keely and Rebecca’s AFC Womens team.
posted by floweredfish at 8:11 AM on June 3, 2023 [9 favorites]
posted by floweredfish at 8:11 AM on June 3, 2023 [9 favorites]
Nick Mohammad just killed Nate's apology scene, and I loved loved loved how that played, with Ted trying to brush it off before it began and Nate insisting and them immediately breaking down because he's been needing to say the apology for so long.
Nick Mohammed did a breakdown of the season on Twitter, going into Nate’s character arc and redemption and some other S3 tidbits. The apology scene was the last day of shooting and they basically just shot the rehearsal because it was such an emotional moment for the actors.
posted by nathan_teske at 8:28 AM on June 3, 2023 [4 favorites]
Nick Mohammed did a breakdown of the season on Twitter, going into Nate’s character arc and redemption and some other S3 tidbits. The apology scene was the last day of shooting and they basically just shot the rehearsal because it was such an emotional moment for the actors.
posted by nathan_teske at 8:28 AM on June 3, 2023 [4 favorites]
He defends Jane and Beard's relationship as toxic but not abusive.
I think part of it is that Pathologically Clingy Girlfriend is played so often as a comedy trope. And maybe that was the intention for Jane, to be the comedy-trope Pathologically Clingy Girlfriend. But if this is a show that wants to interrogate toxic masculinity - and it did feel to me as if that was often the intention - it seems like it would have been good to have an Afterschool Special moment of "hey, this is what abuse looks like, even if it's a woman doing it to a man" (just like we got the Afterschool Special moments about lovebombing and revenge porn). And yes, it strikes me as very plausible that Beard isn't ready to hear it yet. It strikes me as plausible that the highs and lows of this relationship are addictive for him.
It's just that it's framed as a happy ending, and I can't buy it as one.
posted by Jeanne at 8:49 AM on June 3, 2023 [3 favorites]
I think part of it is that Pathologically Clingy Girlfriend is played so often as a comedy trope. And maybe that was the intention for Jane, to be the comedy-trope Pathologically Clingy Girlfriend. But if this is a show that wants to interrogate toxic masculinity - and it did feel to me as if that was often the intention - it seems like it would have been good to have an Afterschool Special moment of "hey, this is what abuse looks like, even if it's a woman doing it to a man" (just like we got the Afterschool Special moments about lovebombing and revenge porn). And yes, it strikes me as very plausible that Beard isn't ready to hear it yet. It strikes me as plausible that the highs and lows of this relationship are addictive for him.
It's just that it's framed as a happy ending, and I can't buy it as one.
posted by Jeanne at 8:49 AM on June 3, 2023 [3 favorites]
Give it six months or so, when he finds out he's not allowed friends any more.
posted by Grangousier at 9:13 AM on June 3, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by Grangousier at 9:13 AM on June 3, 2023 [2 favorites]
That would also explain why Ted isn't at the wedding. Jane won't want him.
My impression is that Jane is a Manic Pixie Dream Girl From Hell. She's sexy and keeps life interesting/not dull and Beard is into that, and he's also a Wild and Crazy Guy who still does crazy drugs he gets from the bus driver (and this is after doing some jail time SO YOU THINK HE MIGHT WANT TO NOT DO THAT ANY MORE) and he's high on the excitement and drama factors.
But yeah, sad that Beard and Jane get "happy ending" and Kelley and whoever don't.
posted by jenfullmoon at 2:00 PM on June 3, 2023 [1 favorite]
My impression is that Jane is a Manic Pixie Dream Girl From Hell. She's sexy and keeps life interesting/not dull and Beard is into that, and he's also a Wild and Crazy Guy who still does crazy drugs he gets from the bus driver (and this is after doing some jail time SO YOU THINK HE MIGHT WANT TO NOT DO THAT ANY MORE) and he's high on the excitement and drama factors.
But yeah, sad that Beard and Jane get "happy ending" and Kelley and whoever don't.
posted by jenfullmoon at 2:00 PM on June 3, 2023 [1 favorite]
Er..Keeley, damn autocorrect.
Nate's apology letter.
posted by jenfullmoon at 2:52 PM on June 3, 2023 [3 favorites]
Nate's apology letter.
posted by jenfullmoon at 2:52 PM on June 3, 2023 [3 favorites]
I think what will stick with me about Ted Lasso is that it was a warm hug of a show when that’s exactly what I needed in my television consumption. It wasn’t perfect, and there is some valid criticism to engage with (as with all media)… but I’m still satisfied with the series overall.
posted by eekernohan at 5:46 AM on June 4, 2023 [8 favorites]
posted by eekernohan at 5:46 AM on June 4, 2023 [8 favorites]
sad that Beard and Jane get "happy ending" and Keeley and whoever don't
Upside: hopefully this means they're leaving space for Keeley and whomever for happy endings in whatever spinoff, and no more Beard&Jane?
Also, Rebecca got a happy-ever-after, and Keeley doesn't need nobody
Jane is a Manic Pixie Dream Girl From Hell
Given the actress who plays Jane is in the writers room, I'm quite curious how much input she had into the character, and what her opinion is on Jane's toxicity (or otherwise)
posted by coriolisdave at 8:23 PM on June 4, 2023 [5 favorites]
Upside: hopefully this means they're leaving space for Keeley and whomever for happy endings in whatever spinoff, and no more Beard&Jane?
Also, Rebecca got a happy-ever-after, and Keeley doesn't need nobody
Jane is a Manic Pixie Dream Girl From Hell
Given the actress who plays Jane is in the writers room, I'm quite curious how much input she had into the character, and what her opinion is on Jane's toxicity (or otherwise)
posted by coriolisdave at 8:23 PM on June 4, 2023 [5 favorites]
William Shatner wants to be interviewed by Trent Crimm
Trent Crimm says they have to do it in Space
posted by honey-barbara at 4:21 AM on June 5, 2023 [7 favorites]
Trent Crimm says they have to do it in Space
posted by honey-barbara at 4:21 AM on June 5, 2023 [7 favorites]
Apologies if this was already posted, but I thought it was so cool that the same child actor played Rebecca’s younger self in the mirror and the flying Dutchman’s daughter.
posted by Bella Donna at 11:06 AM on June 5, 2023 [9 favorites]
posted by Bella Donna at 11:06 AM on June 5, 2023 [9 favorites]
I have two opinions on Beard/Jane:
1. Their interactions are primarily in there as comic relief, so it's best not to think of it as a real-life situation (the same is true for Dani Rojas going feral on Zoreaux during the international break).
2. I am absolutely convinced that Beard enthusiastically consents to everything Jane throws at him, and I would like to believe that they have discussed it ad nauseum in private. I think they're just a couple weirdos being weird together, and what looks like abuse from the outside is just part of it.
posted by Ben Trismegistus at 12:37 PM on June 5, 2023 [7 favorites]
1. Their interactions are primarily in there as comic relief, so it's best not to think of it as a real-life situation (the same is true for Dani Rojas going feral on Zoreaux during the international break).
2. I am absolutely convinced that Beard enthusiastically consents to everything Jane throws at him, and I would like to believe that they have discussed it ad nauseum in private. I think they're just a couple weirdos being weird together, and what looks like abuse from the outside is just part of it.
posted by Ben Trismegistus at 12:37 PM on June 5, 2023 [7 favorites]
I think in a show that deals with toxic masculinity and love bombing and problematic relationships of all shapes in sizes, I can't really look past Beard/Jane's relationship being left unexamined. It's so clearly toxic from the text of the show, giving it a pass because "it's just a TV show" does a disservice to all the work the show put into other characters learning to set healthy boundaries.
posted by crossoverman at 3:51 PM on June 5, 2023 [7 favorites]
posted by crossoverman at 3:51 PM on June 5, 2023 [7 favorites]
I laugh at someone posting the GIF of "it's the hope that kills you" after that.
posted by jenfullmoon at 1:40 PM on June 6, 2023 [4 favorites]
posted by jenfullmoon at 1:40 PM on June 6, 2023 [4 favorites]
If a spin-off is coming, I'm glad they let the original show wrap-up on its own terms and not be overshadowed by the next chapter looming. The fact that Ted Lasso wrapped up without much fanfare (ha!) is kind of strange - I know lots of people who didn't realise the show was finishing.
posted by crossoverman at 8:52 PM on June 6, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by crossoverman at 8:52 PM on June 6, 2023 [1 favorite]
Well, they're trying to downplay "series finale," apparently, and people just wanna ignore the "we had a 3 season plan" interviews.
posted by jenfullmoon at 9:09 PM on June 6, 2023
posted by jenfullmoon at 9:09 PM on June 6, 2023
I suspect the show wrapped up without much fanfare is due to the ongoing WGA strike.
posted by applesurf at 5:52 AM on June 7, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by applesurf at 5:52 AM on June 7, 2023 [1 favorite]
TED LASSO Succeeded Because of Its Goodness, Even When It Wasn’t Good
posted by jenfullmoon at 10:54 AM on June 7, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by jenfullmoon at 10:54 AM on June 7, 2023 [1 favorite]
I would watch a Richmond show without Ted, absolutely. He was a catalyst for change, now let's see what those changes can catalyse.
posted by seanmpuckett at 9:29 AM on June 13, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by seanmpuckett at 9:29 AM on June 13, 2023 [2 favorites]
‘Ted Lasso’ Star James Lance ‘Cried’ When He Learned About His Arc in Season 3: ‘It Changed the Course of My Life’ [Variety]
posted by ellieBOA at 2:19 PM on June 17, 2023 [6 favorites]
posted by ellieBOA at 2:19 PM on June 17, 2023 [6 favorites]
Most of the psychic stuff was just plain weird (don't see what shite in nining/matchbook had to do with ANYTHING AT ALL)
The psychic's nonsense had nothing to do with anything at all. That was the entire point. Rebecca was right: Psychics are bullshit. Her mom was wasting a ton of time and money on them instead of going to therapy.
A big take home message of the show was "Go to therapy", and "Don't go to a psychic, go to therapy" is a sub axiom of that.
posted by hydropsyche at 10:08 AM on June 18, 2023 [2 favorites]
The psychic's nonsense had nothing to do with anything at all. That was the entire point. Rebecca was right: Psychics are bullshit. Her mom was wasting a ton of time and money on them instead of going to therapy.
A big take home message of the show was "Go to therapy", and "Don't go to a psychic, go to therapy" is a sub axiom of that.
posted by hydropsyche at 10:08 AM on June 18, 2023 [2 favorites]
I would have liked it if "Psychics are bullshit" was the point, but considering that all of the predictions came true, it's a mixed message at best.
posted by mmoncur at 9:42 PM on June 18, 2023
posted by mmoncur at 9:42 PM on June 18, 2023
The green matchbook was a complete red herring the entire season that put significance on something absolutely meaningless, which is what psychics make people do. The shite in nining armour was meaningless. The "thunder and lightning" only works if it is metaphorical, which is also a meaningless coincidence. I will grant the upside-down and drenched as a surprisingly good coincidental catch. The becoming a mother thing was just cruel thing to say to a woman Rebecca's age and was one of my least favorite things about the whole season and a great reason to stay the fuck away from psychics.
posted by hydropsyche at 3:16 AM on June 19, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by hydropsyche at 3:16 AM on June 19, 2023 [1 favorite]
Yeah I think it's weird to have Rebecca call the psychic out as preying on innocent victims who want to believe her bullshit but then basically show all of the predictions come true. Especially the 'shite in nining armor comment which is so specific it can't be ruled out as coincidence. On the other hand they were all used as marker posts in Rebecca's story arc. It's a weird device to use for storytelling foreshadowing though.
posted by TwoWordReview at 11:08 AM on June 19, 2023 [6 favorites]
posted by TwoWordReview at 11:08 AM on June 19, 2023 [6 favorites]
> But after reading Brendan Hunt's AMA on Reddit, I'm now a bit worried. He defends Jane and Beard's relationship as toxic but not abusive.
I freeze framed the texts from Jane to Beard in the Beard ep last season. It was a startling, remarkably unpleasant Easter egg.
posted by Pronoiac at 12:48 AM on June 20, 2023 [3 favorites]
I freeze framed the texts from Jane to Beard in the Beard ep last season. It was a startling, remarkably unpleasant Easter egg.
posted by Pronoiac at 12:48 AM on June 20, 2023 [3 favorites]
Tressie McMillan Cottom on How Ted Lasso Explains America (gift link) - I love her even/especially when she's breaking my heart like this.
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 7:29 AM on June 20, 2023 [3 favorites]
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 7:29 AM on June 20, 2023 [3 favorites]
That Zava avo is what avocados from Durban are like and they're absolutely delicious.
posted by Zumbador at 1:44 PM on June 24, 2023
posted by Zumbador at 1:44 PM on June 24, 2023
In the end, we could have done without Jack, Shandy, Zava, or the fucking psychic. My heart was reasonably warmed by the finale, but what a long, dumb trip it was to get there.
I'm very behind at watching season 3, just finished last night, and yes, this is my takeaway. Except maybe Shandy, she was funny. But the rest were confusing - how could Keely have possibly not known the "Jack" that invested in her company wasn't a man? What did the psychic say again, they really needed flashbacks because I couldn't remember?
Also, I agree with whoever in an early thread said that Keely's look this season really confused me. Everything was wearing and enveloping her. Big hairdos, big jackets. She was drowning.
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 10:27 AM on June 26, 2023 [1 favorite]
I'm very behind at watching season 3, just finished last night, and yes, this is my takeaway. Except maybe Shandy, she was funny. But the rest were confusing - how could Keely have possibly not known the "Jack" that invested in her company wasn't a man? What did the psychic say again, they really needed flashbacks because I couldn't remember?
Also, I agree with whoever in an early thread said that Keely's look this season really confused me. Everything was wearing and enveloping her. Big hairdos, big jackets. She was drowning.
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 10:27 AM on June 26, 2023 [1 favorite]
I agree with whoever in an early thread said that Keely's look this season really confused me. Everything was wearing and enveloping her. Big hairdos, big jackets. She was drowning.
If this was an intentional choice, I applaud it. Keeley was so self-evidently competent in seasons 1 and 2 that making that sort of change to symbolize how "in over her head" she was feeling this season is a kind of brilliant one.
posted by Navelgazer at 9:53 AM on June 27, 2023 [1 favorite]
If this was an intentional choice, I applaud it. Keeley was so self-evidently competent in seasons 1 and 2 that making that sort of change to symbolize how "in over her head" she was feeling this season is a kind of brilliant one.
posted by Navelgazer at 9:53 AM on June 27, 2023 [1 favorite]
I didn't think her wardrobe was drastically different, but I did notice her usual big black eye makeup was gone after the opening of the season, presumably because she cried it all over people.
posted by jenfullmoon at 11:01 AM on June 27, 2023
posted by jenfullmoon at 11:01 AM on June 27, 2023
ted lasso is the hamilton of the pandemic.
posted by bombastic lowercase pronouncements at 9:13 AM on July 3, 2023 [3 favorites]
posted by bombastic lowercase pronouncements at 9:13 AM on July 3, 2023 [3 favorites]
I was expecting the “Shite in Nining Armor” thing to ultimately be revealed to be some sort of lowbrow meme or comedy reference that flew completely over Rebecca’s head, because she obviously doesn’t watch that sort of TV.
I know that the show shouldn’t and couldn’t have tied up every loose end, but considering just how overt everything else was, it’s weird that so many subplots (like that one) were left dangling.
posted by schmod at 8:43 PM on July 21, 2023
I know that the show shouldn’t and couldn’t have tied up every loose end, but considering just how overt everything else was, it’s weird that so many subplots (like that one) were left dangling.
posted by schmod at 8:43 PM on July 21, 2023
Still upset we didn’t get to see Trent Crimm make his final exit offstage, only to be followed a few seconds later by TARDIS noises in the distance.
posted by schmod at 8:46 PM on July 21, 2023 [7 favorites]
posted by schmod at 8:46 PM on July 21, 2023 [7 favorites]
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Ooooh, Ms. Kakes reported Rupert. I wish we got more of this.
OH DEAR GOD THERE'S A THONG.
"Those ropes are not garbage! Some are dirty on purpose!"
ISAAC IN A JUDGE WIG HOLY SHIT WHAT IS THIS
NATE IS ASSISTANT TO THE KITMAN.
"Objection, your honor. I did put a teeny little heart on someone's birthday."
"What are you thinking about?"..... ".... Stuff....." "Terrifying."
Jane SHREDDED BEARD'S PASSPORT but never mind, he has triple citizenship?! How does one get citizenship in Vatican City?
Even at the end, Roy won't Diamond Dog....OR WILL HE?!?
"I threw in a basketball coach from New Zealand just to spice it up a bit."
"I only got into this to ruin Rupert's life and he seems to be doing a pretty good job of it himself."
Suddenly the scariest thing is Roy being vaguely perky.
AND NOW THEY'RE DOING SOUND OF MUSIC LOLOLOLOLOLOLOL.
And Dani, of course, is the last and littlest one.
"Is everybody decent? Awww! One of these days, right?"
"Oh, sorry, sausage, I'm going to get a tattoo."
"You're like the mother we never had." -bar dudes
"All human beings are opposed to the laugh police." (Hear, hear, I say, having been laugh policed a lot.)
"If you go, I go." Awwwww.
"Like Eat, Pray, Love style?" "Well, more like drink, sleep, fuck."
BOTH GUYS SHOW UP ON KEELEY'S DOORSTEP AFTER A BRAWL.
"Rescue some puppies from a burning building?"
"What are we, Neanderthals?" NOPE, THEY'RE LETTING HER PICK.
"We're fucking idiots." "Yep yep yep yep yep."
"You hungry?" "Well, you're still in training, but you can watch me eat a kebab."
Aww, crying and hugging with Nate.
No one wants to hear your 0-0 jokes today, Jacob!
"You stay put, Trenthouse Magazine."
CAN I BE A DIAMOND DOG?!?!?! I just died. I'm dead. "I assume we're all looking for cameras because we're on a prank show?"
"Apparently I've been doing fucking shit because I'm still me." I HEAR YA, ROY.
"Ruff ruff." -Roy
"I won't let you lose to your ex-wife....I mean your first ex-wife...."
SASSY! "Looks like you're going to lose another team. My god, you get through them like wives. Or mistresses! Or I'm assuming tubes of hemorrhoid cream!"
Barb prefers rugby because "There's just more grown men throwing other grown men into the air like children. And blood. Which is nice."
"I am sorry for destroying your face."
"Actually, from now you can call me Zorro." "Pronounced Zorro." "Oh! Because of the mask!"
"I hear he wants to be called Zorro now." "WELL, IT'S ABOUT TIME!"
"Shut your butts and sit your mouths down! You know what I meant!"
Everyone retrieves their pieces of the Believe sign, which apparently they all had on their bodies or in their lockers. Also this goes a lot faster than puzzles IRL. "Number four. Yeah?"
"There ain't a whole lot of places like AFC Richmond either."
Look at this poor sad dude sitting next to Rupert. SO UNCOMFORTABLE.
"This is madness from 18 yards." (watch the dog whimper)
"It's like he's shooting a free throw with his feet."
Even Jacob put down his phone.
Barb LOVES THE BLOOD.
Ah, yes, what did I say earlier about people who lose their shit in public? There goes Rupert, shoving George.
"There's three balls on the field!" Ah, lovely callback to George's lack of underwear while wearing short shorts. "George, put them away."
"WANKER! WANKER! WANKER!"
WAIT TED JUST PICKED UP A FOOTBALL THING?!? And won a bet, I guess.
"YOU USED MY PLAY! YOU USED MY PLAY!"
And Colin kisses on the field, audience be damned.
"I never know how to react when a white guy does the running man in front of everyone."
Rebecca sold 49% to the fans.
Richmond came in second.
So Rebecca's a mom...of the football team.
WHAT THE HELL IS THIS WEIRD PLANE THEY ARE ON.
"I've finally accepted that air conditioning is a privilege, not a right."
I knew Beard wasn't gonna leave Jane, darn it. "But with your permission ,I'd love to run off this plane and into her arms." "What about your luggage?" "I don't care, it's full of rice."
"Whatever's about to happen, that's a great start."..."MY APPENDIX!"
"Would you like to go to the hospital with your friend?" "Nah, I'm ok. Thanks, though." "What a fucking arsehole."
REBECCA RAN INTO DUTCH GUY (and kid) AND HE'S A PILOT!!!!!!
RICHMOND SNOWGLOBE.
"I'd change the title. It's not about me. It never was." -Ted
Roy becomes manager and starts seeing Dr. Sharon. I think there is some drawing from Phoebe in the corner. (Darn it, no last Phoebe sighting. Wah.)
I think Sam made the Nigerian team?
They're leaving Roy/Keeley/Jamie ambiguous, I see. SIGH.
Trent's book is now "The Richmond Way." Keeley wants to start a ladies' team.
Believe is taped back on the wall.
Beard and Jane get married at Stonehenge And God help us all, of course she's pregnant. Um, was that Dutch guy with a baby and a redhead?!
Ted arrives home to Henry and soccer coaching.
posted by jenfullmoon at 10:39 PM on May 30, 2023 [9 favorites]