I had a wonderful time with this episode. I've watched it twice. The first few minutes in the grocery store in the first viewing were (re)calibration time for me. Here is Ted. I know Ted. Right? This is fine? I'm watching a new episode of the show? But I settled in, so did the characters, and we were off.
The Kansas City that Rebecca and Keeley and Higgins see is so bright, and Ted's house which they are not invited into is so sterile and dull! Rebecca seems the most clued in to Ted's somewhat muted existence, which is perfect, but I truly love that the newcomers to this place get to experience sunshine and the sparkle of Dazzle Me Moi (Rebecca and Keeley lowkey crushing on Ted's longtime youthful crush as she sells Rebecca a phoenix suit? What?!) and expanding horizons (baseball museum, KC Current being this thriving institution for the city) and I love that Rebecca is repeatedly drenched in barbecue sauce (!). I love that we get to see them love KC not because Ted is necessarily currently in love with it, but because it's a great place. It was a neat trick to show how Ted is struggling, being away from his vocation as coach, but nonetheless does live in a wonderful place that has been a very important home for him. I'm doing a poor job articulating how I feel, but it felt like a lot of different threads of home unknotted themselves and nonetheless became better connected.
Very fun how Ted in particular is in a bit of a holding pattern, but so is everyone, sort of. Not because the last three years have been wasted--far from it--but because they needed to figure out a way to continue the story without stranding anyone, and for the most part I think they did that. Rebecca's sustained honeymoon period with Matthijs, which owes everything to the physical distance between them (gotta believe that's going to be challenged at some point soon!), and Keeley's performative breeziness about her really, really, really great friendship with Roy, etc.
The new Henry actor is fantastic. The way he and Jason played off each other in even a few scenes felt real and lived-in, a father and son who are truly close in the ways Ted wanted to be even if something else is missing and they both kinda know it.
Obsessed with Ted and Michelle's parenting dynamic. Their face journeys realizing Henry's over-serious teacher is just reading out lyrics, not some "dark poem" Henry created himself? GOLD. I was relieved and happy that they arrived in a good place. The decision to move to London together would not have been able to happen back in 2022 when Rebecca offered it; I truly felt like a lot of the healing needed to take place specifically in Kansas City, and that outgrowing their lives there (for now anyway...) was a natural unfolding of circumstances that in no way negates Ted's decision to leave Richmond.
It is so lovely to think about Ted moving back without having to be away from Henry, and choosing to do it while allowing himself time with his super heart-wrenching shrine of coaching/Richmond/etc. memories. And he enters that room with a cup of TEA from REBECCA and a very important memento from his dad. Fuck. It's always growth and stasis, freedom and anxiety, all those dualities.
I truly had no idea how the show was going to handle making it clear that Ted needs a change and owes it to himself to go back without completely erasing, like 3x11 - 3x12, or the entirety of s3. But they did it! They were able to complicate the "happy ending" in a way that actually made that ending feel like the bittersweet one I watched and enjoyed even if it propelled me into an actual emotional breakdown! I feel like they ended up agreeing with me on what that ending said, so obviously I'm delighted.
Keeley and Rebecca!!!! There is going to be so much tension as they navigate this new venture, omg. But there was genuine delight. My favorite moment might be Rebecca professing annoyance at the overly friendly barista whom Keeley has of course also bonded with, but at the same time being able to recall all of the specific facts about him. Hey, Ryan's bisexual sister, are your ears burning? Because Keeley Jones and Rebecca Welton are talking about you! And holding hands. I adore them.
Another favorite moment is the Keeley/Ted hug. And all three planeside hugs and exchanges.
The T/R of it all is alive and well in my soul. I am pretty certain that one of the arcs this season will be about Rebecca and Matthijs navigating their romantic commitment to each other--measuring it and deciding what the future looks like. I anticipate they'll stay together and be the stronger for navigating what post-honeymoon looks like, and that feels bittersweet for me, but I don't actually hate it. I'm looking forward to more of their interactions and seeing how I feel, and no matter what it's gonna make for some incredible fic explorations of how these decisions and various canonical romances on the show intersect with the other bonds. And there was certainly a very strong T/R bond, so much so that I've been saying to anyone who'll listen that I'm just planting a flag in the ground for a third relationship category that is Ted And Rebecca's Soulmate Situation and Whatever The Fuck That Means For Them. That simply has to exist alongside whatever else they've got going on with romances and other commitments, and in my heart and my docs (and hopefully on the show!), it will. I'm not looking for a canon T/R romance around every corner; it's just not a healthy level of anxiety and disappointment for me to sustain! But I love them very much and they're hot together and that just stays true!
As the season progresses, I'm sure there will be ups and downs. I'm thrilled to start meeting new characters and get into the meat of the season (not unlike how Rebecca was nonstop chomping down on meat slathered in Ted's favorite condiment, ha ha ha). I'm excited to see some old faves again. Despite everything in that last bullet, I'm half-nervous that I'm going to end up craving more Ted and Rebecca interactions than I see on the screen, but I'm also absolutely thrilled that 4x1 has laid the groundwork with their connection and multiple other meaningful connections that matter a lot to me.
Ted Lasso is a fun television show! I feel grateful to have gotten to sit back and have fun watching the first episode of a return I didn't count on or ask for but am genuinely happy to have received!
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