Ted Lasso Returns: A Welcome Return to Form for a Show That Didn’t Need It
Three years after Ted Lasso packed up his mustache and dad jokes and flew home to Kansas, the Apple TV show has returned for a fourth season. I went in deeply skeptical, but I came out a believer. The new season, which puts Ted in charge of a women’s soccer team, is the most fun I’ve had with this show since season 1.
Season 4 doesn’t quite have the show’s early magic, but the new women’s team gives it a fresh spark and plenty of new stories to tell. It didn’t necessarily need to come back, but after the uneven third season, this warm, funny return to Richmond is very welcome.
Why a Women’s Team Gives Ted Lasso New Life
Season 4 starts with Ted in Kansas City, working as an assistant manager at a supermarket. On paper, everything is fine: He’s with his son, Henry, and his co-parenting relationship with his ex-wife is friendly. But Ted is bored. Very bored. It doesn’t take long to realize that he’s missing the thing that has defined his life for the past few years: coaching.
So, naturally, he ends up back at AFC Richmond when Rebecca, Keeley and Higgins fly in to offer him a job. Except this time, it’s coaching the club’s new women’s team. It’s a breath of fresh air that the show desperately needed. The women aren’t simply a replacement for Jamie, Roy and the rest of the old Richmond crew. They have their own personalities, cliques and tensions, and Ted has to learn that coaching this team isn’t going to work exactly the way it did with the men.
For starters, he can’t just wander into the locker room whenever he wants. A small thing, but one that immediately makes the new team feel like its own world. More importantly, the women’s team gives Ted Lasso some genuinely new things to talk about. The show tackles the massive disparities between men’s and women’s sports through storylines about funding, facilities and fan interest.
What Works and What Doesn’t in Season 4
Among the new cast members, the standout is Tanya Reynolds as Alice Chilton, the assistant coach. Alice is determined to prove herself, and her solution seems to be becoming the least fun person in England. Her prickliness contrasts well against Ted’s sunny optimism and Beard’s dry moodiness. Roy isn’t around quite as much with the men’s team pushed into the background, but he gets a pretty funny dating storyline. And, yes, his will-they-won’t-they with Keeley is still very much a thing.
It isn’t perfect. Some of the show’s more cringe-inducing material is still here, particularly Beard’s on-again-off-again relationship Jane, which continues to be a thing. There’s greater emphasis on romance all around, delving into Rebecca’s relationship with her Dutch boyfriend, Keeley and Roy, and possibly even a new love interest for Ted. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, as long as those storylines don’t completely take over the show.
Does Ted Lasso Season 4 Live Up to the Original?
Five episodes in, season 4 has similar vibes as the first season, almost like a reboot. Then again, I’ve seen reboots and revivals that not only lack the spirit of the original, but they also cast shade on it. At least Ted Lasso season 4 doesn’t do that. So, no, the show doesn’t match its peak. And no, it didn’t need to come back. But I’m glad it did. It’s a harsh world out there and I’m happy to hang out with a group of warm, funny pals doing their best to help each other succeed.
Ted Lasso season 4 streams weekly on Apple TV.
Photo: Tom’s Guide