Ted Lasso is an original Apple TV+ series developed by Jason Sudeikis, Bill Lawrence, Brendan Hunt and Joe Kelly. The series stars Sudeikis as Lasso, Brendan Hunt as Coach Beard, Hannah Waddhingham as Rebecca Welton, Jeremy Swift as Leslie Higgins, Phil Dunster as Jamie Tartt, Brett Goldstein as Roy Kent, Nick Mohammed as Nathan Shelley, Juno Temple as Keeley Jones, and Anthony Head as Rupert Mannion alongside others.
Premiering on April 5, 2023, Ted Lasso Season 3 Episode 4, titled ‘Big Week’ opens the third instalment and has a runtime of 52 minutes with a synopsis that reads, “Everyone’s feeling the pressure as Richmond gear up to play West Ham. Ted is reunited with an old friend.”
-Ted Lasso Season 3 Episode 4 Review Contains Spoilers-
Ted Lasso Season 3 Episode 4: What Happens?
As we have it, Brett Goldstein wrote this episode, and as Ted’s slang would have us say, it was a doozy. D-day finally arrives, and Richmond go up against West Ham. Roy starts mentoring Jamie during the early hours. On the other hand, although he puts up a composed countenance, Nate is freaking out about having to meet Ted for the first time since he parted ways with the team on a not-so-peaceful note.
Sassy and Ted get together, and the latter asks her if it would be possible for them to ever go out on an actual date. She turns him down as they’re both messes, but him being the bigger one in their present situation. And while he gets her point about keeping things casual, he starts going through an existential crisis about being “a mess”. This calls for a Diamond Dogs reunion, and the members validate his confusion by affirming that he’s a mess.
As Keeley lets Shandy take over the issue, new changes come up on the Bantr scene. She devises new plans that work out well for the reception but ultimately questions the foundation the platform was laid on, leading to a conflict between her and Keeley in the end. It becomes even more stressful for Keeley as she wants to save face in front of Jack Danvers (Jodi Balfour), her boss (also a woman who helps Keeley in the bathroom), whom she also wishes to impress.
While the Richmond coaches are busy developing a strategy that will work against Nate’s gameplay, Trent helps them recover old footage, revealing who tore up the ‘Believe’ sign. Beard and Roy wish to take this up as an opportunity and tactic to fire up the team’s morale, but Ted has some pointers against this.
Ted and Nate’s first meeting leaves the latter tongue-tied, and though he starts with an apology, it never lands as he’s cut off by Rupert, who advised him not to do so. The match commences, and things don’t go well for Richmond. For the second half, Beard and Roy surprise Ted with their idea of playing Nate’s video for the team, and a vengeful spirit takes over the Richmond name. They walk out on the pitch, wanting to prove a point, and it all switches to a violent showdown very soon, pushing several players off the field.
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As you’ll have it, Richmond loses, and Rebecca tries her best to keep her nerves down. Amidst it all, she catches Rupert with his assistant, proving that he hasn’t changed a bit. She calls him out for his actions and tells him to mend his ways. Finally, Ted takes up Beard’s word to speak upshot has been weighing on his chest. He opens up to Michelle about her relationship with their old therapist and clears the air out, as was much needed for him at this point.
Ted Lasso Season 3 Episode 4: Discussion
The best bit about hip the show approaches things is that it never sets out to undermine Nathan’s character by looking down upon him. Everyone at Richmond, even the coaches, is ticked off and fumbling because they’re well acquainted with Nate’s capabilities as a coach. Moreover, while it’s equally necessary for Rebecca to want to win the match against her ex-husband’s team, it doesn’t go through, just as expected.
The show takes its good time to chart out the winning trajectory for the team every time around and doesn’t pull off any unbelievable streaks just for the sake of it. This palpable believability of the story, characters and their respective arcs make the series and all its elements such a loveable lot.
Nathan isn’t pictured as a villainous evil character; rather, he’s posited with humane qualities that strike his guilty conscience now and then. However, the conflicting thoughts in his mind and the off-timed situations don’t add up to coming full circle. Yet, they leave hope for a possible future when he and Ted have resolved these tensions. But, rising above all that, I truly and deeply miss ‘the Lasso Way’, both on and off pitch.
There’s no denying he’s dealing with many things this season that have been piling over the previous seasons, so he can’t always be the biscuit-bearing angel he is. However, his present arc has turned him into looking like a wise Yoda who rises above everything on the professional front. While it’s great seeing him be his mature self, his quirky attitude has been toned down to the point that his huge perky personality, which fuelled the engines of the show in the first place, has taken a back seat.
While this has allowed others to enjoy more screen time and space in the show, it also makes you miss him intensely. Now that he’s cleared the air with Michelle, much like Coach Beard had advised him (although he’d hinted at him doing so with Nathan), we can start getting back his original high-spirited, bubbly ebullience in small doses. And, of course, love the writers for not having made an antagonist out of Michelle, either.
Ted Lasso Season 3 Episode 4: Favourite Moments
- Nick Mohammed’s physical comedy in the old footage of him trying to reach out to the ‘Believe’ sign.
- A new iconic quote to be taken to heart: “I’m a work in progmess”.
- Roy mentors Jamie, and they bond in their unique style over their shared love for football during these extra practice sessions.
- Ted correcting Sassy about the No Strings Attached and Friends With Benefits confusion.
- Ted and Rebecca’s ‘Oklahoma’ moment.
- Rebecca being her fierce and powerful self and telling Rupert to be a better person after catching him with his assistant because Bex and his daughter deserve better. Plus points for Rebecca and Bex being on the same team and not being posed as adversaries.
- Ted finally speaking his mind to Michelle.
Ted Lasso Season 3 Episode 4 is now streaming on Apple TV+.
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