TED LASSO Season Finale Review: ‘The Hope that Kills You’

Hello, TED LASSO fans!

It’s been a pleasure to write about this show over the past few episodes (especially knowing there will be a season 2). Last week I mentioned how season finales are often used to set up plots or conflicts for the next season, and the writers did a nice job of that here with the finale, “The Hope that Kills You.”

I really liked that title and how it was applied to several characters. Last week’s episode was about taking a look in the mirror and being true to reality: Rebecca came clean with Ted and Higgins, Roy accepted his position on the bench squad, and Ted acknowledged that wanting to win (and save the team from relegation) isn’t the worst thing in the world. How did it end up? Well, read on!

The Plot:

Nate’s been promoted to coach, and he, Coach Beard, and Ted ask the guys to come up with some trick plays against Manchester City and their former teammate, Jamie Tartt. More than just a win is on the line…if the team loses (or ties based on the results of another game in the league), they will be relegated out of the league. At the pub, the regulars thank Ted for all he did. He’s surprised and tells them to have some hope. Mae says, “It’s the hope that kills you”, which Ted doesn’t like to hear. Ted wants everyone to have hope, to believe, to deliver chaos to ManCity, and he wants to play to win!

Roy, now a bench player, wants to resign as team captain. Ted doesn’t want to hear it and insists that Roy select the next captain. When Nate shows the team some footage of Jamie trash talking the team, Isaac throws a chair at the TV; this is good enough for Roy (and we’ve seen Roy notice Isaac step up the past few weeks), and Isaac is named captain.

Jamie is still stuck on the idea that Ted is the one who sent him away from the Richmond team. He doesn’t know that Ted fought Rebecca on it and that she went behind his back. We see Jamie’s dad issues come out, as he feels betrayed and hurt and doesn’t want to trust anyone. Any positive messaging from Ted in the press about Jamie just makes him feel confused and like Ted is playing mind games with him. When he visits Keeley to talk about it (and Roy answers the door—hilarious), she tells him not everyone is out to get him. But, of course, Jamie doesn’t see it that way; he’s never experienced anything but mind games.

Ultimately, it all comes down to the game itself. As goalie, Zoreaux makes several great saves, and the team goes to the locker room tied 0-0. The second half starts with Manchester City scoring a goal. Soon Jamie gets the ball again too and looks to score. Roy chases him down and kicks the ball away but goes down with a knee injury. The crowd cheers for Roy as he leaves the game, likely for his last game, according to the announcers.

Richmond only needs a tie to stay in the league, and they run “The Sandman,” a trick play Dani suggested. It works, and the score is 1-1. But as they cheer, Jamie gets the ball again and is heading down the field. He has a line to the goal, and at the last minute, he makes the extra pass to a teammate, who scores. The game is over, Richmond has lost, and they will be relegated from the league.

The Players:

The finale did a great job with several scenes that showed the unity on the team. Several spoke up with trick play suggestions.

We also saw Isaac accept the captainship appropriately and lead the team. It will be great to see how this (and a possible Roy return) in season 2.

It was also good to see Keeley seek Roy out in the locker room after his injury. Roy’s gruff exterior in the season has softened a bit, and Keeley’s character has matured, but overall they’ve stayed consistent…and it’s been about two people being willing to be together & make it work; well done to the show on that story arc & not dangling a will they/won’t they in the finale.

The Point:

The message of the episode is that it’s not fatal to have hope–it’s fatal to not have hope. He asks each member of the team to consider within himself whether he believes in miracles. And later, as the team loses and sits together in the locker room, Ted is clear with them that they have the right to be sad and mad–but there is something worse than that, which is being sad and alone, and none of them are alone.

This scene comes after Ted sees Jamie alone in the visitor’s locker room. As he goes to approach the younger man, we see Jamie’s dad physically and verbally abusing him for making the pass (Ted’s encouragement to Jamie earlier in the season) and not scoring the winning goal himself. Jamie knows Ted has seen this occur and he’s embarrassed. Ted’s follow up encouragement note to Jamie is the right kind of promise embedded in a next season storyline. In Jamie’s case, the idea that a coach or mentor could actually care about him as a person and empower him to be a team player is a hope that hurts, but as the episode showed, it’s a hope and pain worth leaning in on and believing…as the alternative of not having hope is lonely and even more painful overall.

The season ends with Rebecca telling Ted he’s not fired or going anywhere, and they will rebound next season, get back in the league & win the whole thing. I can’t wait to see it.

What did you love about this season? What are you hoping happens in season 2? The comments are open, feel free to sound off–and we’ll be back next season!

RELATED:

• TED LASSO Review: ‘All Apologies’
• TED LASSO Review: ‘Diamond Dogs’
• TED LASSO Review: ‘Make Rebecca Great Again’
• TED LASSO: What to Know (and Why) to Watch

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