Death upends everything.
In the wake of the sudden passing of Rebecca's father, Ted and Rebecca reckon with the past.
It causes Nate, Keeley, and Jamie to rethink their present circumstances, and it could bring down AFC Richmond's future.
With Ted Lasso Season 2 coming to a close, we kind of find ourselves in a similar position.
The past is a lot clearer to us now -- specifically Ted's and Rebecca's pasts. What is there to say about the scenes of Ted and Rebecca baring their souls about their fathers? They are another fine example of the acting, writing, and editing coming together to pull off a great setpiece.
Jason Sudeikis and Hannah Waddingham once again deliver memorable performances. I could go on about line delivery and staging, but it's the quizzical expression Sudeikis has on his face when Sharon asks Ted to share what he loved about his dad that sticks with me.
Sarah Niles and the writing for Sharon deserve praise too. She strikes the right balance between being a professional and being a friend. The questions Sharon asks are just as crucial to the story as the answers Ted gives.
Also, the reasoning for some of the earlier decisions made this season is clearer. When Deborah debuted on Ted Lasso Season 2 Episode 6, she was fine, but she didn't pop the way so many other Ted Lasso characters do.
Plus, it seemed like Ted Lasso was dipping too often from the well of Rebecca reconnecting with someone from whom she is estranged. Yet without Deborah's earlier appearance, the funeral storyline wouldn't land as well as it does.
Her character is more fleshed out now. She's less cringey and more relatable. It's nice to know her obliviousness is a front, and she's more knowledgeable about people than first impressions suggest. She gets some good lines too.
Speaking of earlier events making current events resonate more, Beard telling Jane being in an Anglican church makes him miss her immediately reminds you of the Ted Lasso Season 2 Episode 9 rave sequence.
Before Ted Lasso Season 2 Episode 9, the Beard and Jane moments at the church would be viewed solely as comic relief. Now there's more emotion to their scenes, and you take them seriously as a couple, even when they share their love for open-casket funerals.
However, it's a sad state of affairs when Beard and Jane appear to be the show's most stable couple after Higgins and Julie. Sam and Rebecca are on a break, and the Jamie/Keeley/Roy love triangle rears its head.
On other shows, developments like these would be upsetting and worrying. Ted Lasso writes its relationships with a lot of sensitivity and doesn't sell out its characters for shock moments, so the show earns the benefit of the doubt as to what's in store for these characters.
Sam and Rebecca's story is the less worrying one. Rebecca's need to soul search feels authentic and not an excuse to pair her up with someone else. Likewise, Sam is not the type of character who would immediately make out with the next available person. It seems unlikely we'll be dealing with the usual "we were on a break" annoyances.
The Jamie/Keeley/Roy love triangle has the greater potential for going bad. The concern isn't even the love triangle itself but the pacing of it. Will this be resolved quickly, or will it continue on Ted Lasso Season 3?
The other concern is Keeley's story getting lost. The purpose of the love triangle seems to be to give Roy and Jamie a reason to butt heads and explode AFC Richmond. There's a risk Keeley will be a bystander instead of a character whose choices and feelings shape the story.
Phil Dunster's performance and Jamie's character development are largely why the love triangle isn't frustrating. Jamie's growth is real. His confession is about committing to being his best self and not about winning Keeley.
Keeley dumped Jamie and chose Roy in the first place because Roy was mature and held himself accountable while Jamie did not. Now the boot is on the other foot. Several times throughout Ted Lasso Season 2, Jamie has been the mature one between the two.
It doesn't help Roy's case that his mature moments tend to happen when Keeley isn't around: the Man City match hug, his conversation with Phoebe about swearing, and his advice to Rebecca about kids.
Meanwhile, Keeley spends a lot of effort preventing Roy from beating up children and convincing him to try things like the pundit job.
Her reexamination of both men's maturity, her expectations, and her wants have the potential to be interesting.
The love triangle isn't the only bombshell about to be dropped on Richmond.
Rupert makes his inevitable return, and you know he's hatching a revenge scheme. The signs -- gifting Bex's Richmond shares and whispering to Nate -- point to him buying a rival team and offering Nate the manager position.
Nate will take the job.
Nate wants to be reincarnated as a tiger so he can ravage people who cross him. He's more concerned with impressing Rebecca than expressing sympathy for her loss. He humiliates himself twice at the funeral. His issues are only getting worse.
If Nate is not already at the point where his resentment overrides his Richmond loyalty, he'll be there soon.
Just as Ted finds some measure of peace with his dad's betrayal -- he's about to face another -- this time from a son. It will hurt worse than Dani's dress shoes.
Over to you, TV Fanatics!
Do you think Nate will jump ship?
Will the Jamie/Keeley/Roy love triangle have a happy ending?
Hit the comments below.