Ted Lasso Season 4 Episode 2 Recap And Review: We’re Getting Warmer

Ted Lasso Season 4 Episode 2: A Recap

We open on a groggy Ted in bed. He is clearly back in the UK, as evidenced by the glories of British morning telly (featuring Momo the cooking chimp) and the chunks of Weetabix. Turns out he’s living above Mae! She’s happy to have him (and sick of coke fiends and yapping-dog owners leaving behind shit everywhere). She’s also only slightly affronted when Ted turns down her offer for a breakfast Guinness.

He walks outside, all nostalgic for the present. Oop, there’s some construction on this alley. “I guess nothing stays the same,” Ted shakes his head. Right on schedule, the wanker guy runs into him.

“Too bad you’re coaching a bunch of girls, you wanker,” says wanker guy. “I guess some things do stay the same,” smiles Ted.

If the excruciating minutiae of this play by play is getting to you somewhat, that’s because the scene was spelt out exactly this way. I would never presume to be the smartest TV watcher in the world, but I would’ve understood the same/not the same juxtaposition even if both of Ted’s lines were entirely cut out. I would actually have appreciated it more.

I guess the curse of the Netflix phone-watching-assumption has spread to Ted Lasso too. A real shame, and not even true for everyone.

Sure, I am texting myself notes about this episode, but I’m doing it by pausing every three seconds and flitting back and forth. Like a real cinephile.

Meanwhile, Higgins continues to be in his woke era by commissioning a report on the viability of women’s football (KSSASLVPWFLTPLRHBAR for short). There’s two copies, but the episode sows more seeds of future discord between Rebecca and Keeley; Rebecca would rather Keeley doesn’t read it right now.

Hey, Tanya Reynolds is here! She’s playing assistant manager Alice Chilton, who’s been waiting at Rebecca’s door this whole time, and I mean RIGHT at the door. I will 110% be reviewing a season 2, but Reynolds was a similarly sour-faced standout in the very very delightful The Other Bennett Sister.

Coach Chilton strides in, strikingly different from the coach Rebecca’s used to having stride into her office. “Good morning,” says Rebecca. “Based on what?” comes the reply. Must admit I let out a guffaw at that one.

Apparently she’s doing great, not to mention all under budget, unlike the men’s team who are struggling under the weight of Roy Kent’s alternative milk budget. Coach Chilton, however, is here to resign, upset that she wasn’t promoted from assistant manager to actual manager. As she stalks away (to no fight from Rebecca), Coach Chilton lets a brilliant second of emotion spasm across her face before she exits. “Did you ever consider me as head coach?” she asks. Any woman at all? Rebecca is unflinching as she says no.

Ah, Coach Chilton, you don’t realize the oversight had nothing to do with women, just everything to do with Ted. You’re in the trailer, I know you’ll stick around and find out.

Keeley and Rebecca, on the other hand, are fuming at the IMPLIED declaration that Rebecca is some sort of woman hating monster. Keeley knows for sure that’s not true because isn’t Rebecca going to spend whatever it takes to make sure their badass women’s team is a success?

Yeah Rebecca, aren’t you? Rebecca?

Plus, continues Keeley, she rehired Ted effing Lasso! A Ted-shaped voice pipes up to say it’s actually pronounced fricking.

There he is! Back in the old digs again officially. To Rebecca’s delight, Kansas’ smoked meat is apparently the new biscuits.

We’re only a little ways into the episode, but something about the way they’re trotting out callback after callback feels like they’re checking off boxes to make sure all their bases are covered, albeit with not enough effort to have it flow organically.

“Where are Michelle and Henry?” someone asks. “They’re getting in next week,” Ted replies. “Why can’t Coach Beard be assistant manager?” someone asks. “He’s under contract with the men’s team,” expounds Higgins. Very ‘here, damn’.

Each of these explanations could have been folded into other lines of dialogue or phone calls or literally anything else instead of being spelt out alphabetically so Twitter can’t point out a plot hole.

Apparently Ted is excited to meet Alice after getting a detailed dossier on the team from her, but alas, Rebecca gleefully informs him, she is not a part of them.

Ted then meets Caroline Seaward, the physio for the women’s team who seems to be named for the express purposes of mid-swear jump cuts. And for any bum stuff Ted might want confidentially looked at.

Wait, I hear Roy Kent’s dulcet tones from the press room! The main sponsor is now someone called Pinter and Sons, so I’m assuming we’ll meet Pinter and/or their offspring in future episodes, but look, Bantr is still a sponsor! See how I caught that reference without needing someone need to write it on Roy’s forehead?

Awww Ted wanders through the old the locker room, looking at the rows of names. Rojas, Montlaur, McAdoo.The pieced-together ‘Believe’ sign, under which he and Roy hug now. Okay, still contrived but I don’t mind it.

Apparently Beard is not in a good place what with Ted coming back and the ‘whole thing with Jane’, which, with their history I will not believe is a breakup until I see it.

Roy is dumping pills into his hand and verifying how many times Keeley said ‘really’ before the phrase ‘good friends’ to describe their current situationship. According to him, most people think Alice is “rude as shit”, but not only does Roy think he’s hilarious, but she’s good. Ted assures him that whether Beard comes back to him is between him and Roy. Good for Beard, who has been behind the blinds the whole time matted hair and massive er…beard included.

Coach Chilton’s side of their shared office seems very motivated, complete with folders and everything. Ted thanks her for the dossier with a Beastie Boys reference but she’s sadly uninformed about her right to party. It’s very similar to the Roy-Ted dynamic and you can already see her thrown off by his relentless cheer.

The latter hasn’t accounted for the fact that he doesn’t coach men anymore and can’t just walk into women’s locker rooms (which are just the youth academy changing room with tape over the door) without warning.

It’s quite cramped, there’s one shower, one toilet, and they have to share it on Mondays Wednesdays and Fridays and every other Saturday. Yikes.

Naturally, Ted wants to figure out the turd of a locker room sitch (Tanya Reynolds’ disgusted face is just so wonderful) before asking Alice to do the presser with him.

She declines, of course, because she’s leaving Friday, but Ted says surely that’s fine because the press conference won’t last that long? Oh, Ted.

In the press room, which is not as packed as it is during men’s games, Rebecca is overcompensating for the dig at her feminism with a rousing speech about women that rouses only Keeley.

She will give her support to all women at all times, she assures the press, who asks her if that includes Ghislaine Maxwell, Eva Braun or Cruella deVil. Aww, Marcus Adebayo is here! I hope Trent Crimm makes an appearance at some point too.

Turns out Rebecca’s speech was also to lay the ground for the fact that the AFC Richmond lady greyhounds are being managed by an aged man. See what I did there? A MAN-ager? Oh, shush.

Unsurprisingly, the reporters at this women’s football presser are asking Ted only questions about the men’s team. Does he think they’ll win against Liverpool? What does he think of Jamie Tartt leaving Richmond to play at Barcelona this season (another spelled out beat that was already wonderfully addressed via a Trent Crimm byline last episode)? Does he think the men are underpaid? Oh, boy.

Beard meanwhile is too busy to watch his boyfriend take these questions at the presser because he’s reading ‘The Time Traveler’s Wife’. No hold on, he’s watching the conference on his phone from inside the book.

As Ted goes out on to the field with Coach Chilton, we finally get to hear the names of the players this season will acquaint us with.

There’s striker Josie Gordon, bickering twin sisters Siobhan and Niamh, glove-shunning goalie Katie ‘Boots’ Quinn and couple Maddie and Margy. “You don’t get a lot of that in men’s football,” says Ted, to which Coach Chilton retorts, “Not that you know of.” You tell him.

Awww Roy has kept bringing her (macro-friendly, entire unappealing) biscuits in Ted’s absence.

Keeley barges in, wanting £300,000 for a new locker room to which feminist Rebecca, despite her feminism, has to say no. Roy is nonplussed. “A budget isn’t a real thing, it’s just a made up number.” Keeley just uses the bait and switch to claim the visitors locker room for the women.

The three stooges (now part-owners at Richmond, like most of the fans) are back at Mae’s, alternatingly a different colour of dumb misogynist. Ted is interrupted by a cup of milk, sent over by a Bearded Mr Gladstone has sent him a cup of milk.

The show then goes on to repeatedly hit me in the head with a running list of what the women are up against.

“For a sport that asks you to be light on your feet women’s football sure does seem to have a lot of weight around it,” says Ted. “Lack of resources underwhelming media coverage subpar pay. It’s a tougher gig all around.” Yes, Coach Beard, I know that. Why do I know that? This episode ALREADY REFERRED TO EACH OF THESE THINGS IN THE 24 minutes we’ve been here!

“So how’s Alice ?” asks Beard, in a completely not boyfriend way, which would have been funny if, once again, the show hadn’t extended a bit for ten seconds too long.

Downfield from a spying Beard and disgruntled black-clad Roy, Ted wonders what Boots’ origin story is about not wanting to wear gloves. Chilton is of the opinion that goalies are just crazy. According to Boots, they couldn’t feel the sting without gloves and what’s the point if you’re not feeling things? For example, she asks Ted, does he prefer with or without a condom? The long, silent pause and the little jog back is so FUNNY.

Inside, Roy and Keeley have a moment in the visitor’s locker room, which Keeley is trying to clean out for the team. But first, Roy has to undo all the booby traps in there placed to mess with visiting teams’ heads. Higher hooks makes the players feel shorter. Hotter temps make them sleepy. Benches have one leg shorter than the other. The more you know, huh.

She doesn’t have enough time to ogle him doing carpentry stuff because there’s a rat here, ew. Not to fear, though, it’s only Jonathan, the understudy rat from the “endless Harry Potter play” he watched with Phoebe (Uncle Roy is alive and kicking still!). Jonathan is trained to run back and forth when the lights are on, HAHA. These football teams are cutthroat, aren’t they.

Outside, twins Siobhan and Niamh are still at loggerheads, which leads Ted, via one of his classic a long winded description of a Hank and Howie Rasmussen, to conclude Siobhan is older. Coach Chilton thinks stories are irrelevant to their play on the pitch. Ah, Alice, you are so wrong to say this to Ted, but you’ll learn.

Suddenly, their player Josie is down with a terrible knee injury and Coach Chilton turns from grumpy sidekick to warm, professional and reassuring. Always knew she had it in her.

Meanwhile, Roy wants to know what to do when someone’s heart is with another. It’s Beard, of course. “I think keeping two people apart who belong together is bad,” replies Keeley. “Not just for them but for everybody.”

Okay, Ted Lasso, the lamp shading gets to a point. Filled with sexual tension is this locker room. Who knows what would’ve happened if Jonathan hadn’t been there.

Rebecca bangs on about Eleanor Roosevelt saying no one can make you feel inferior without your consent before melting into the wall to avoid Coach Chilton. Which would have been funny in itself, because let me tell you, Hannah Waddingham is unexpectedly hilarious just facing a wall. But then Higgins has to say “what was that quote again Rebecca?” Let the subtext BREATHE, for goodness sake. It’s not even that subtle!

Ted is waiting up at their office to hear about Josie, to Coach Chilton’s surprise. She’s torn her ACL; Chilton notes she’s seen a lot of devastating one is devastating every time especially cos she’s out for the season. “She was our starting striker,” she says hesitantly. Ted clocks it. She said ‘our’. Aww. Then of course, the moment is underlined in red marker with him saying, “No I know your last day is Friday.” Screaming.

Going to skip over a bit wher Rebecca is lunching with her anti-feminist but might-be-feminist mom who’s scanning the menu for something that tastes like cheese but isn’t.

Now to my favorite part of the episode.

Coach Chilton’s last Friday is here, and as practice winds up for the first week, Ted shows the team to their brand new locker rooms. It has eight showers and everything!

For all the frustration I had with this episode, I still teared up seeing their joy and gratitude for something that, bar for bar, the men’s team takes for granted (except maybe the unlimited tampons). What a relief to finally feel an organic emotion without it being dictated to me.

Beard is fashioning a Ted out of paper clips when Roy comes to release him for violating the comportment bylaws. He’s free to go and join any women’s teams he’d like. Ja Simran, ja.

Tanya tries to hand him the resumes, but Ted just gives her a going away gift, and then a speech. He knows who his assistant coach is. A working class whiz kid midfielder from Lewisham (aahhhh) who went through Arsenal academy, was known for her work ethic and was captain material till she tore her ACL at 22.

She spent a whole year at rehab, tore the other one at the first game back, and then two years later tore the left one again. Oh, Coach Chilton! But that’s not the end of her story, continues Ted, because she’s strong and smart and loves the sport and cares about the players. There’s a coach.

I told you you can’t tell Ted that stories don’t matter, Tanya Reynolds.

He gives her all the time to decide (five seconds alone while he faces the wall). Ted Becca shippers crashing out right now. She agrees! He asks for the gift back though. How much you wanna bet she gives him one if he leaves at the end of the season?

In her office, Rebecca is struggling to write Coach Chilton’s recommendation letter when Higgins finally finishes the report. Women’s football is not only non-viable in the long term, it could hurt the men’s program as well. But, according to Mom Higgins, strong women stand up for themselves and stronger women stand up for others.

She marches off to give Coach Chilton her rec letter and a dressing down while bulldozing through her attempts to say she’s staying. Rebecca points out that she has done plenty from her end that can be considered feminist, but thanks her for calling her out; only next time do it with more empathy and less judgement. She’s compassionate and humble but firm and ok I like it, Picasso. Of course this is undone by her reaction to Tanya saying she’s staying on.

This last beat was, for me, easily the only interesting addition to the inevitable discourse around women’s football the entire season (read, two episodes).

It’s a tricky one to acknowledge with feminism, isn’t it? Or any rights movement, for that matter. To Rebecca, currently a white, conventionally attractive millionaire club owner with a private jet, the fact that she’s considering a women’s team at all is already at the fringes of her own (real) struggles. And she has had several, as we have seen from her treatment by a vitriolic press after her divorce to her belittling by other club owners.

To Coach Chilton, however, who came into a marginally better world with much higher expectations from society (as she should!), it seems a given that there would be an AFC Richmond women’s team, as does the idea of a woman coaching them. Like we see with Rebecca’s mother, who would hate to call herself a feminist but still holds views that align with its general purpose, perhaps we ought to take a second before decrying someone’s un-wokeness?

Where does one become content with the strides one has made while also encouraging others to make bigger ones?

This is the kind of thing I’d like to see more of, show!

And Tanya Reynolds, please know you are the only reason I’m coming back next week. Well, you and Jonathan the rat.