Ted Lasso 4: Fast food instead of gourmet cuisine
For me, the first three seasons of 'Ted Lasso' were like a delicious meal made from many surprising ingredients. Season 4 feels like a ready-made meal in comparison. The recipe is similar, but they don't take enough time.
Attention: This article contains spoilers. Unlike Lucas' preview. If you want to finish watching the fourth season of «Ted Lasso» without any preconceived notions, stop reading here.
I reactivated my Apple TV subscription because of «Ted Lasso». Lots of anticipation, high expectations. And now, having finished the fourth season, I am a bit disappointed.
Not overly disappointed. I finished the series and was well entertained. I never felt like my money or time was being stolen. I didn't think the fourth season was bad. But it was never as good as the first three.
Sure, the starting position was difficult. The series was designed for three seasons and was completely finished. Reviving it again without a drop in quality is a huge challenge. Nevertheless, I believe: this could have been done better.
The glue that holds everything together is missing
It has been a hallmark of the series from the beginning that it is rarely directly about football – I know several football skeptics who were enthusiastic after initial hesitation. But all the many different people and stories were centered around football. It was the heart of the story, the glue that held everything together. Thanks to it, despite the many subplots, one always had the feeling of being told a consistent story. That was the genius of the series: that it managed to bring so many characters and events under one roof without it feeling like a random pile of thrown-together individual stories.
In season 4, that is no longer the case. What the AFC Richmond women's team kicks around is not the center of the story. The screenwriters don't seem to care much about it. They find the relationships between Roy and Keeley or between Rebecca and Matthijs much more important – people who don't have anything directly to do with the team. The women's team feels like a pretext for the series to continue.
Source: Apple TV
But it's not just a central plot that's missing; the plot itself is missing. An overarching story that carries the audience through an entire season. Ted comes back, takes over the women's team, then a bit of this and a bit of that happens, and in the end, everyone is happy. That is too arbitrary; that is not a plot that weaves a season into a coherent whole.
It was completely different in season 1: A US American football coach with no knowledge of football takes over an English Premier League team. Because the owner, Rebecca, is on a revenge mission and wants to run the club into the ground. Rebecca doesn't just hate her own club, but everyone who works for it, and fights against them. She despises Leslie, with whom she is naturally not yet on a first-name basis, and she initially sees Ted's engaging manner as a big problem. There is tension there. Initially, there are almost only problems and plenty of embarrassing scenes. This allows the series to develop gradually. Ted is the crack in the wall through which the light shines in. In the second season, the supposed beacon of light, Ted, then develops cracks himself.
That is such a daring story that you can almost only fail with it. But just like the character Ted Lasso, the series manages the impossible: We accept the absurd plot, start to like it, and are thrilled. And we ask ourselves: How on earth did the creators manage that?
No time for the new characters
In the first three seasons, the series took a lot of time to characterize individual players. They proved to be complex personalities, with their backgrounds, their abysses, their masks, and their true core. That was exciting and gripping.
The women on the team in the fourth season, on the other hand, are sketched quite superficially. Stereotypes without depth. The reason is probably that there is simply no time for more complexity.
Apparently, the goal of the new season was that as many of the previous characters as possible had to reappear. Journalist Trent Crimm, psychologist Sharon Fieldstone, superstar Jamie Tartt, CFO Barbara, and Nathan the Wonder Kid, all appear for a brief moment and disappear again without playing a role in the story. The fourth season consists half of reminiscences, of allusions to earlier events.
At the same time, Keeley, Roy, Rebecca, Leslie, and Coach Beard take up a lot of space. This space is missing for the new characters, the players. There is no time to portray individual players as complex personalities, to realistically trace their background and development. There are approaches to this: especially with Gemma, who has a complicated relationship with assistant coach Alice, and with Lizzie, the single mother with strong leadership skills. But I would have liked to learn more about Lizzie in particular.
Source: Apple TV
This is especially a pity because the familiar characters no longer undergo the personal developments that made them so interesting in the first three seasons. Coach Beard goes through a strange midlife crisis, but remains an enigmatic and unapproachable figure. The other main characters reveal nothing new about themselves; on the contrary, they behave like caricatures of themselves. Keeley is always over-the-top, Roy grumbles and growls, Rebecca is constantly threatening to lose the composure she is so concerned about. As soon as Leslie enters the room, he is embarrassed by something, and thus everyone else is too. It is as if the creators were constantly reminding us what the characters are like, as if we would forget every ten seconds. That was not what was meant by «Be a goldfish».
Problems solved with a snap of the fingers
In the first three seasons, problems were almost as persistent as in real life. All characters who wanted or needed to work on themselves had a long road ahead with many setbacks. For example, the arrogant Jamie Tartt or the initially far too modest Nathan Shelley. It is incredibly difficult and time-consuming to shed bad habits or even character flaws, but it is possible – the series showed that very nicely. The optimism that the series radiated always seemed credible, despite the danger of kitsch.
In the new season, however, problems appear briefly, and with a snap of the fingers, they are solved. Ted's dilemma of having to choose between family and career? Very simple: quickly send a text message to his ex saying they could all three come to London – done. The formation of cliques is resolved by a joint team evening and is not an issue from then on. The problems on the pitch seem even more banal. Alice tells the striker Shannon not to think so much – and suddenly she plays like a transformed person. And the goalkeeper just needs to finally put on those damn gloves and drop her stubbornness. The solutions are far too simple – I find that boring and unrealistic.
Source: Apple TV
The highlight: Alice Chilton
Despite all these weaknesses, I enjoyed watching the fourth season. Because the ingredients are all there: the characters we have grown fond of. The humor that always strikes when things threaten to get too serious or too kitschy. And there is also something new that is really good: Alice.
Alice is the perfect character for a series like «Ted Lasso». Dealing with her is anything but smooth – which makes her perfect for Ted, the master of understanding difficult personalities. At the same time, Alice is very honest and really wants to do a good job. Her facade is fragile from the beginning; a vulnerable, fundamentally sensitive person who is full of surprises is revealed. Alice is by far the most interesting character in season 4 – and she gets the necessary space.
It helps that the story surrounding Alice is less shallow than with the other characters. She starts with a difficult starting position, actually wants to become head coach, then Ted is put in front of her – a man who has never worked with a women's team and understands a hundred times less about football than she does, the former professional player. You understand her frustration. You also understand her anger at Rebecca, who sees herself as a great feminist but never considered making a woman the head coach.
Source: Apple TV
For Alice, atypically for the fourth season, there are also no shortcuts in her personal development. Even if it looks like it at times. As a New Year's resolution, she follows the advice of a short video and says «yes» more often. Although she implements this clumsily, it does not remain without effect. After further advice from Ted, she expands it to «Yes, and». That then works well, a bit too well. Fortunately, the series follows the earlier seasons here: you don't become a different person overnight. Two steps forward, one step back. Alice falls back into old behavioral patterns in between, but she also learns new ones.
A glimmer of hope
Alice also gives me hope that «Ted Lasso» can still be more than just any old feel-good series. Maybe in season 5, what I wished for in season 4 will finally come. Maybe then it will finally be about the team. About the players. Maybe space will be created for good stories. Ones that touch you and don't just provide a few laughs.
I will definitely watch the next season. Sometimes, even ready-made meals taste quite good.
My interest in IT and writing landed me in tech journalism early on (2000). I want to know how we can use technology without being used. Outside of the office, I’m a keen musician who makes up for lacking talent with excessive enthusiasm.
This is a subjective opinion of the editorial team. It doesn't necessarily reflect the position of the company.
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