Ted Lasso
Seasons 1-4 | Apple TV
THE ROBIN RATING
★★★★★
Ted Lasso is a rare offering in many ways.
It's one of those shows that I think only comes around a couple of times in your lifetime.
On the surface, it's a funny, feel-good show about an American football coach who moves to England to manage a Premier League team. It has great characters with story arcs that are both fun and poignant.
But it is so much more than that.
What makes it unusual is its ability to offer so much more, with such simplicity of storytelling. It uses humour to diffuse big issues. And it does it all with no overt violence or sex, and an M rating to boot.
It touches on masculinity, feminism, sexuality, mental health, misogyny, friendship, relationships, wealth and power, and so much more, without ever feeling like it's trying to teach you a lesson. You can simply enjoy it, or you can notice all the other things going on.
I'm rewatching the first three seasons at the moment, and I'm reminded how hard it is to find something that manages to be both light and deeply thought-provoking at the same time.
It's sooo good. Not “good” in the sense of not great or not excellent. I mean really GOOD.
I also have a soft spot for Ted's guiding ideas: believe and be curious. Curiosity has long been one of my own guiding principles, so perhaps it was inevitable that Ted and I would get along.
Worth your time? Absolutely. If you've somehow missed it, start at the beginning.
Created by Jason Sudeikis (who plays Ted), Bill Lawrence, Brendan Hunt (who plays Coach Beard) and Joe Kelly, the writing is a big part of what makes Ted Lasso so clever.