Ted Lasso Season One Theme and Recap
what I think it's all about
Two weeks until season three, and here’s my official season one conversation/discussion/summary. I wanted to see if I could write one short paragraph about each episode, plus what I see as the central theme, and would love your comments!
Season One Summaries
Episode 1, Pilot
I remember first watching this on the recommendation of Brene Brown. It was a tiny bit wobbly, with about 8% more cringe than I like in my shows, but it had good bones (so much of what’s to come is right there from the very beginning) and a fundamental decency that’s winning.
Episode 2, Biscuits
I always tell people to give this show two episodes. If you’re not smitten by the end of this one, with Ted sprinkling sea salt on his homemade shortbread, this series isn’t for you. It also gives us the best GIF of the season:
Episode 3, Trent Crimm: The Independent
The idea of Rebecca running Richmond into the ground as revenge on her ex-husband was the reason I was tempted to give up on this show the first time around; it’s such a silly sitcom trope. By this episode, that plot is starting to fade, even though the truth won’t come out for six more episodes. Also: A Wrinkle in Time.
Episode 4, For the Children
The relationships are deepening: Rebecca and Ted, Rebecca and Keeley, Keeley and Roy. Feels like a transition from a show about distinct characters to a show about networks of people who have histories and futures together.
Episode 5, Tan Lines
This one is highly honored; it’s not a favorite of mine, partly because it’s such a sad watch, and I care more about the family Ted’s finding than the one he’s leaving behind. But the episode had to dispatch with Michelle in a way that didn’t vilify her. Mission accomplished. Best moment is Beard showing up at the end with two beers.
Episode 6, Two Aces
By the halfway point in the season, we just assume we have everyone assembled that we could possibly need. But we realize we were wrong, because: Dani Rojas. The scene when the team does the ritual to remove the curse on their treatment room is when I knew Ted Lasso would be one of my favorite shows of all time. That, and “semantic satiation.”
Episode 7, Make Rebecca Great Again
Second favorite episode of the season. Rebecca’s kindness toward Ted after his first panic attack, Roy and Keeley’s incredible chemistry, and the karaoke, especially Rebecca’s, which brings tears to my eyes (weird?).
Episode 8, Diamond Dogs
My favorite of season one. The dart scene is legendary. I love the playful yet mature way Roy and Keeley make it official, I adore the lack of slut-shaming on the part of the Diamond Dogs, and relatedly, the portrayal of mature masculinity. Also, “Does my face look like it’s in the mood for shape-based jokes?”
Episode 9, All Apologies
More on this below, but hot take! Higgins is the true moral hero of season one.
Episode 10, The Hope That Kills You
True confession: I don’t watch the very end of the game; I end at the celebration. My heart took it once, I can’t take it again. Oh, and brilliant, subtle acting on the part of Phil Dunster, when Jamie opens the note from Ted—he gives us wounded and touched at the same time. In that single moment we get a glimpse of his fantastic arc in season two.
Season One: Central Theme
We know that the ethic of the show is kindness and empathy. Season one nuances that theme around the central theme of Accountability. It’s a thread that crops up again and again. At the auction, Roy tells Keeley not to use him to get back at Jamie, and she apologizes and tells Jamie that accountability matters. Sassy holds Rebecca accountable for deserting her and Nora. And of course, in episode 9, we see Rebecca apologize to both Ted and Higgins.
I may be one of the few people who isn’t moved by Ted forgiving Rebecca. For me it’s too quick; I don’t trust it.
In her book Radical Candor, Kim Scott argues that positive communication and feedback are built around equal parts caring personally and challenging directly:
If we challenge without caring, we lapse into obnoxious aggression. But most people I know, especially church people, err on the side of ruinous empathy–“caring” so much that nobody is ever held accountable. (Lots of YouTubes about this if you want to dive in.)
I think Ted is full of empathy, but it’s frequently of the ruinous variety. See how he deals with Roy’s declining performance in episode 8, saying he has his back, then refusing to do the uncomfortable work of benching him even if it’s right for the team.
By contrast, Higgins expresses radical candor. Compare Ted’s instant forgiveness of Rebecca with Higgins’s confronting Rebecca in her office when he quits, or the conversation at his house. And even as he holds her accountable, he admits the ways he fell short. It’s all in the name of helping her be better:
Kindness lovingly holds people to account, otherwise it’s not kind, it’s nice. Accountability matters.
How about you? What do you think is the central theme of season one?
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