‘Ted Lasso’ Season 4 Found Its Way by Settling for Less

[Editor’s note: The following review contains spoilers for “Ted Lasso” Season 4, Episode 10, “Being Alive.”]

Late in “Ted Lasso‘s” Season 4 finale, Jason Sudeikis’ happy-go-lucky coach apologizes for lying to his son. Earlier, Henry (Grant Feely) asked Ted how his father died, and before Ted could answer, Henry shared what his grandmother told him about his grandfather’s passing: that he fell down some steps and hit his head.

Ted knows that’s not what happened and so do we. His father’s suicide was a focal point of an emotionally rich second season, in which Ted’s panic attacks led the habitually optimistic coach to seek help from a therapist. Every fan of the series (and likely plenty of its haters) will remember Ted’s breakthrough session with Sharon (Sarah Niles) as one of the sentimental series’ most resonant moments.

But here, in Episode 10, “Being Alive,” Ted goes along with the lie — at first. Later, after consulting with his generally sage (yet personally disastrous) bestie Beard (Brendan Hunt), Ted pushes past his discomfort, apologizes to his son for not telling the truth initially, and proceeds to explain what really happened to Henry’s grandfather.

Or, I think that’s what happened. There’s no way of knowing for sure, since the camera pulls back and the dialogue fades out as soon as Ted broaches the topic.

Seen one way, the choice reeks of cowardice. Cutting away from the difficult discussion mirrors Ted’s initial reluctance to have it in the first place. Don’t viewers deserve to hear how Ted, our hero, explains a sensitive subject to his 16-year-old son? Shouldn’t they see how Henry reacts, or at least how Ted reacts to reliving one of his deepest traumas? Doesn’t “Ted Lasso” — a series built around doing what’s right even when it seems impossible — need to brave these treacherous waters in order to guide us safely to the other side?

Nah. Not anymore. Not this “Ted Lasso,” anyway.

When director Matt Lipsey zooms outside Ted’s window, it’s a relief — not only because the 56-minute episode doesn’t need an additional five minutes tacked on, but because it specifically doesn’t need five more minutes on Ted’s trauma. The series covered it, extensively, two seasons ago. It’s no longer central to the story. It’s barely important enough to bring up now.

The scene’s relatively minor significance reflects a fourth season that comes into its own in a similarly minor key. What Ted learns in the finale is something he should’ve already known: He needs to spend more time with his son. Even though Henry is doing well after moving to London, Ted recognizes he needs to be more emotionally available and physically present, and that’s one of the key reasons he steps down as the Lady Greyhounds manager, joining Coach Beard as an assistant to the new coach, Alice Chilton (Tanya Reynolds). (The other key reason being that she deserves the promotion.)

Henry isn’t a major factor in Season 4. He pops in from time to time to offer updates on his soccer games (too many of which Ted misses), but the series never tries to invest in how he’s adapting to living full-time in another country — and that’s OK. Yes, I wish the premiere came up with a better reason to move Ted, Henry, and Michelle (Andrea Anders) across the Atlantic, but “Ted Lasso” isn’t a family drama. It’s a sitcom set in a soccer club, and Season 4 is at its best when it embraces that original identity.

To do so, it cuts a few corners. There’s the recurring omission of pivotal moments — in the last two weeks alone, Mae’s death happens offscreen, as does everyone finding out about it — which is less vexing with tough scenes than joyous ones. Take Roy (Brett Goldstein) and Keeley (Juno Temple): After stretching out their inevitable reunion until the end of Episode 8, Episode 9 jumps past the honeymoon phase into a surprise pregnancy. I don’t mind belaboring the couple’s “will they won’t they” romance as much as others seem to, in part because it was always clear they’d get together. (Their love was unfailing, even when challenged by worthy suitors.)

‘Ted Lasso’Courtesy of Colin Hutton / Apple TV

But it’s a shame to rush past the good bits. There’s fun to be had in falling back into a long longed-for relationship (a second first date? telling their friends? addressing any changes since the break-up?), and the pregnancy also steals focus from the finale’s other big change: Roy taking the head coaching job at Chelsea. The old version of “Ted” could have treated this as an opportunity to see how Roy and Keeley work as a couple when they’re no longer working in the same building. The dynamic shifts, their time together lessens, what do they do about it? Better still, they could’ve been forced to navigate a professional rivalry if, say, Roy is expected to support Chelsea’s women’s club.

That’s a more nuanced conflict, however, with less broad appeal than watching Keeley balloon up with Roy’s baby, and choosing a traditional relationship progression once again shows where “Ted’s” head is at overall: classic sitcoms. Roy is leaving the show’s main setting, Richmond F.C., to work somewhere new. Keeley is going to try to have it all: a job and a family she loves. These are big changes, sure, but they’re familiar to anyone who’s seen TV comedies before, so they’re hardly a threat to the show’s bubble of comfort.

Similar shortcuts to feel-good vibes are seen in Season 4’s greatest success: the new team. The Lady Greyhounds’ midseason rise to prominence is as rushed as the finale’s explanation for selling out Nelson Road with a single viral video. Really? Another viral video? Just funny this time? The repetition should feel especially galling since the team already earned its promotion last week, making the climax of this week’s match just getting butts in seats.

But you know what? That’s fine! The video is cute enough to convey the fun and energy the players managed to capture in their limited screentime throughout Season 4, and for as much as I would’ve preferred more meaningful time with the Harrigan sisters (I love pigs, so the Oo Goobley cross-talk really won me over) and Captain Lizzie (Faye Marsay), I prefer to be left wanting more than to be left wanting way, way less — like I was in Season 3, with its disjointed storytelling and egregious runtimes. Plus, Season 4 dedicated proper resources to its true breakout star, Coach Chilton, who I only expect more from in Season 5. (Gemma and Alice love story, when?)

When looking toward the future, as painful as this may sound, it may be better to remember the lows of “Ted Lasso” Season 3 than the highs from Seasons 1 and 2. Sudeikis told the story he originally wanted to tell across those first three seasons, meaning whatever’s next for Ted isn’t part of the same plan.

And that’s OK, so long as fans are OK with it.

Sitcoms are built to last. They have perpetual story engines that run on affable characters. But those first three seasons weren’t a traditional sitcom. They made something more — more ambitious, more challenging, more magical. (I know, I know, barf. But it’s true!) Point being, it wasn’t built to last, but the “Ted Lasso” from Season 4 might be. There’s plenty of clean-up work to be done in terms of trimming the fat, balancing out that enormous cast, and building stronger arcs — and the depth of feeling isn’t anywhere near what it was — but “Ted Lasso” managed to become what felt impossible after Season 3: a functional sitcom with just enough laughs and a slightly oversized heart.

If that’s all it can be going forward, I’ll take it. No apologies necessary.

“Ted Lasso” is available on Apple TV. As of publication, the series has not been renewed for Season 5.