‘Ted Lasso’ recap: Season two, episode one – “Goodbye Earl”

AFC Richmond and England’s most unorthodox Football coach, Ted Lasso, has returned. The first episode of the new season started, and right from the beginning, the new season came off as a bit unorthodox. Many would have predicted that season 2 picks up moments after  AFC Richmond’s relegation at the hands of Jamie Tartt (Phil Dunster) and Manchester City, but it seems everyone has moved forward. The second season in many ways is about rebirth, and the first episode really sets that up beautifully. How our favorite lot from AFC Richmond accomplishes that remains to be seen. Here are 5 takeaways from the season 2 premiere of Ted Lasso.

5. Roy Kent is doing what?

We see Roy Kent adrift in the first episode. He’s retired from playing professional football and finds himself balancing time between being with Keeley (Juno Temple), coaching elementary girls soccer in the most Roy Kent way possible, and bonding with his girls from Yoga as they watch reality TV and drinking rosé. The only thing that’s solid in his life right now is his love for Keeley. Everything else is unsettled. It seems that Kent might be about to embark on a journey of sorts. We hear that there’s been an offer made for Roy to do some television work on Sky Sports. He, of course, hates the idea, which comes as no surprise to anyone who has season one but could we see Kent soften that stance later on? The idea of Kent as a pundit is just too good.

4. Oh no…

In the first episode, there is an incident during a penalty shot where Dani Rojas (Cristo Fernández) makes the kick and accidentally kills the team’s greyhound mascot, Earl.  These events shatter Richmond’s most upbeat player, and no amount of positivity from Coach Lasso can fix the situation. Higgins (Jeremy Swift) ends up being the voice of reason and brings on a sports psychologist played by Sarah Niles. Seeing the show attack the notion that getting help is somehow a sign of weakness was refreshing. Ted, of course, thinks he can solve everything and actually perceives bringing on a psychologist as a bit much. He, of course, goes along with Higgins’s suggestion as Lasso is a pleaser. Ted is taken aback, though at the end of the first episode when he sees so many players wanting to speak with her. Could the good doctor be sticking around?

3. Empowered

We find Keeley’s professional and personal lives beginning to blossom in season 2. She’s fully entrenched as the marketing maven of AFC Richmond. Keely is in the best relationship of her life with Roy. She’s even become very close with Rebecca (Hannah Waddingham) and is helping her navigate the dating world again. It seems as if her influence on Roy has grown in season 2, which of course, makes so much sense. It’s as if they’re in this honeymoon phase of their relationship. Could it remain this way? Perhaps, but we have learned that the show thrives on authenticity. Every good romance has its trials. Will their relationship survive when they inevitably face theirs?

2. Nate is struggling

We find Nate (Nick Mohammed) fully entrenched as an assistant coach for AFC Richmond in season 2. What’s apparent is how much he’s struggling to establish his own identity in the role. Should he be too harsh? Should he tone it down? Is this all an act? Remember, he was the affable locker room attendant in season one that was often the butt of everyone’s jokes. There is certainly a vast difference between his approach and the other coaches. Will this lead to friction?

1. Rising from the ashes

Rebecca (Hannah Waddingham) has just come out of a very public divorce where her husband sought to humiliate her every chance he could. With a personal life that has been obliterated, she’s attempting to pick those pieces up and glue them together. There’s fear in being alone, and Waddingham does a brilliant job of projecting that without saying it in episode one. She’s eager to date but doesn’t even know where to begin. While we do see that Rebecca has met a man, is he right for her? He checks all the boxes but is that sufficient? Not according to Keely and Roy after their double date. Roy tells her after the date, “you deserve someone who makes you feel like you’ve been struck by lightning, don’t you fucking settle for fine.” At the end episode, we find Rebecca realizing that Roy’s right. What that means for her romantic future in season 2 is anyone’s guess.