TED LASSO – SEASON 3 FINALE REVIEW (WITH SPOILERS AND GRADING MY PREDICTIONS FROM LAST EPISODE)

Photo courtesy of Stream Punk Entertainment

 

Article by Scott Churchson

Host and Columnist of Tales from the Film Set, Spanglish World Networks, H.E.R. Network, La Ronda del Dia & Zingo TV

 

New Jersey. - Ted Lasso is now a show in the past. It feels a little bittersweet to see this great series call it a night, but here we are. After last episode I had 10 predictions that I felt we’d see in this finale, and overall, I’m happy to say I got 6 of them right. I’m going through each one along with my thoughts on the finale. There be spoilers on the final episode of the series, but if you want a full refresher on my predictions, they’re here:

 

Last Week’s Prediction 1: Ted Goes Back To The States. Got this one right, and it makes sense that he’d both want to be closer to his son and that his work with AFC Richmond was done at the close of the series. It wasn’t about the wins and losses, it was about making those young men the best versions of themselves but those wins and losses we’ll get to shortly. But seeing him now coaching his son Henry’s soccer match with his ex-wife in the stands makes sense. Surprisingly it’s left a bit ambiguous I thought as to whether they reconciled and got back together, as her BF Jake showed no interest in soccer during Ted’s final match and wasn’t even in the stands for Henry’s match. With Ted having had so much more growth as a person since season one, it could be argued they got back together. Score – 1/1

 

Last Week’s Prediction 2: Beard Stays Behind. So far two for two, but this will eventually drop off. After we learned the backstory between Beard and Ted it’s understandable that they’d go their own way in the finale as Beard chose to stay behind with Jane. I was never a Jane fan as she was way to nuts in my mind, but this is comedy so the rules are different. Him getting as far as getting on the plane before following what he felt was right surprised me a bit, thinking it would be earlier, but in the end it felt right. As did them getting married at Stonehenge. Score – 2/2

 

Last Week’s Prediction 3: Jamie Will Reconcile (sort of) With His Father. During the ending montage Jamie showing pictures to his father didn’t need any dialog, it was just a nice moment between the two as his father is going through rehab and trying to make amends for who he was. That small scene, simple as it was, made me smile and showed that Jamie wasn’t about hate for his father anymore. Something that was mentioned in the previous episode. Score – 3/3

 

Last Week’s Prediction 4: They DON’T Come In First In the Final Match. They won their final match, as is often the case, in come from behind fashion. Something this team has done pretty much through the entire run of the series. But despite winning the match and celebrating (with several callbacks I straight up loved) they came in second overall in points, so no trophy for AFC Richmond. Also Ted trying to explain the level of leagues both above and below Premier League was golden to anyone outside of Europe. Bonus points that he finally understood the offsides rule at last. Score – 4/4

 

Last Week’s Prediction 5: Nate Becomes Richmond’s New Head Coach. Now I start getting them wrong. While Nate is back at the club, this time as Will’s assistant which was ironic, it’s Roy Kent who is the new head of AFC Richmond. This makes sense as he has come to love coaching and has spent the entire season working on himself and aiming to get better, even been seen with Dr. Fieldstone during the ending montage. This shows a growth in the character and a desire to improve himself that bit by bit we’ve been seeing all season. Nate’s future is a bit ambiguous, as he’s seen painting during the final montage and a giant family gathering with his family and Jade’s, and a great moment where Nate’s father is all smiles ear to ear as he grabs Nate’s shoulder in a show of love and unity. Weird, I’m half getting choked up as I write this, ha ha. Score – 4/5

 

Last Week’s Prediction 6: Roy and Keeley Will Legit Get Back Together. Swing and a miss big time. Got this one dead wrong. After Roy and Jamie both admit they want Keeley back and blending both a power struggle with their new friendship with their affection for Keeley it ends in fighting and blood Keeley dumps them both. Another growth moment for the two as individuals, and they come to understand how badly they both screwed things up, but that despite it, a friendship has come from it. Also Roy asked to join the Diamond Dogs and barked. Roy Kent, barking like a dog. Score – 4/6.

 

Last Week’s Prediction 7: We See Colin With a Boyfriend Among His Teammates. This one I got right, as before the match we find a ticket being left behind (again under a celebrity name) which we all knew was going to be Colin’s BF at the end of the episode. And sure enough, during the celebration they find each other on the pitch, kiss and join the team in celebration, even been seen together during Beard and Jane’s wedding. Score – 5/7.

 

Last Week’s Prediction 8: There Will Be a Time Skip/Epilogue. I’m not going to give this to myself because while there was a time skip and epilogue, I believed it would be directly tied to Trent’s book, which after initially being titled the Ted Lasso way, was aptly re-named “The Richmond Way.” We got to see what happened to all the characters, including Sam (which I got wrong also but will discuss at #10) playing for the Nigerian National team so in the end everyone pretty much got what they wanted. Giving myself a wrong on this one. Score – 5/8.

 

Last Week’s Prediction 9: New Rebecca Will Divorce Rupert and His Credibility Will Be Ruined. Justice at last! The episode started with Rupert’s credibility already going downhill, with the tabloids turning against him for his infidelity. Playing the final match of the season/series and putting Rupert’s Man City against Rebecca’s Richmond was appropriate, with former AFC Richmond coach and TV Pundit George Cartrick how at the helm for Man City. Seeing Rupert’s contempt at Jamie Tartt tying the game up at 2-2 and literally shoving Cartrick to the ground showed just how far he’d fallen, even without trying to convince his new coach to take out Tartt by any means necessary. In a small way it showed some growth in his character as well, as Cartrick had always been a bit of a putz, but standing his ground and refusing to cheat impressed me. He should REALLY stop wearing shorts though. Score – 6/9.

 

Last Week’s Prediction 10: There Will Be a Spinoff Focusing on Sam. This last prediction ends with me getting it wrong, but a spinoff is definitely plausible, as Keeley proposed to Rebecca the idea of an AFC Richmond’s WOMEN’S Club, something Rebecca is 100% down for. It makes sense that Apple TV would want to continue the series in some way, but it’s unknown if it would contain the same magic as our now finished Ted Lasso. Time will tell. Rebecca opting to sell 49% of the club to the fans themselves was a beautiful move on so many fronts; with the trio in the bar as well as Mae now owning part of the team they love so much, plus Rebecca moving on at least somewhat from the team (and reconnecting with the Dutchman she met in the earlier episode) could see her less involved with the team she original owned just to destroy. Final Score – 6/10.

 

So I got 60% right in the end, which I guess is decent. But saddened a bit that the series is done. It had some struggles during the early/mid part of the season, but seemed to find it’s way back to the magic we’d come to love from the first two seasons. In the end, I don’t feel season 3 was as strong as the first two, but a very good season is still a great sendoff to a fantastic series. Now we wait for Shrinking Season 2.

 

Season Rating: 8