“Goodbye Earl” bypasses the aftermath of AFC Richmond’s relegation to jump forward to the team working their way through their season and caught in an endless string of ties, and I couldn’t shake the idea that the episode was similarly stuck. These may be brief moments, but they were enough to make me question whether I was still tuned to Ted Lasso’s wavelength. I felt similarly when just as I was about to add “ The Independent” after Trent Crimm introduced himself, all the other journalists did it as well, as though they were just as in on the joke as I was. It’s one thing for everyone to be on Ted’s side it’s another for the show’s characters to be channeling the same energy of someone who just binge-watched the entire first season.
When Ted enters Rebecca’s office early in “Goodbye Earl,” he’s greeted with a chorus of “Ted!” from Rebecca, Keeley, and Higgins like he’s Norm entering the bar on Cheers, and I have to be honest: even as someone who was thrilled to return to this world, and who had excitedly hit play on the screener, this moment worried me. And it’s safe to say that the show’s second season return is not going to turn you into a convert, as the world of Ted Lasso is not a safe space for those resistant to his charms. Now, if you’re reading this as someone who has either never seen Ted Lasso or remains decidedly Tednostic, this probably sounds preposterous. And whether it’s Roy begrudgingly seeing himself in A Wrinkle in Time, Rebecca coming clean with Ted about how she had sabotaged him from the start, or Jamie poetically relegating Richmond by finally taking Ted’s advice to pass the ball once in a while, the show is built around us anticipating each character “waking up” to Ted’s philosophy like we did at some point in the earlier episodes. But while some characters like Higgins just can’t resist Ted’s charms, you have others-Roy, Rebecca, Jamie-whose character arcs are defined by the hangups they need to get past in order to accept Ted’s advice. Nate is first, because Ted is the first person to bother to learn his name, and Keeley follows shortly after because she’s a positive person and sees a kindred spirit. I honestly don’t remember at what point I let down my guard and accepted Ted’s earnestness, but rewatching the show when you’re tuned to his wavelength-which I’ve done twice, because *gestures at state of the world*-really lets you focus on when each of the show’s characters turns the corner.
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