Ted Lasso Review: The Signal (Season 2 Episode 6)

Dame Harriet Walter guest stars as Rebecca’s mother (talk about perfect casting!) in Ted Lasso, Season 2 Episode 6, “The Signal,” an installment that explores several of the series’ more difficult and prickly relationships. 

Most immediate reactions will likely have something to do with the revelation of Rebecca’s mysterious Bantr match, but there’s plenty to dig into here, from Nate’s uncomfortable evolution into a coaching “wunderkind” to Roy and Jamie’s uneasy truce and Ted’s continued mental health struggles. 

But, I have to admit, I’m not shocked that Rebecca’s match turned out to be Sam. The past few episodes have been very coy about the way that certain scenes were cut, often moving between images of Ted and Rebecca smiling at their respective phones in a way that certainly hinted they were talking to one another. But, let’s face it, even if the show is planning to go the Ted/Rebecca romantic route, it seems far too soon for that to happen. 

Plus, there’s something cute about the idea of Rebecca dating one of her players. (Especially when I still can’t decide if I even want her and Ted to get together romantically or not? Their friendship really is so pure as it is.)

But the reveal that Ted was actually hiding out in Doctor Sharon’s office felt strangely perfect. Ted Lasso has repeatedly shown us that, while Ted’s sunny disposition is genuine, it’s also a tool he occasionally uses to keep from having to share his real emotions with others. 

He’s been so resistant to Doctor Sharon’s place within the organization and so determined to make sure she sees him and his relationships as healthy and good this season — it’s almost a relief to see that wall finally cracking because it has been very obvious that Ted is Extremely Not O.K. 

Since Ted is basically serving as the entirety of AFC Richmond’s emotional support system, there’s been little room for processing his own feelings. And after the call from his son’s school — though truly, I’m not sure if the time difference lines up quite correctly for that moment? — it makes perfect sense that some uncomfortable and difficult emotions about his divorce and his general absence from his son’s life at the moment might crop up. 

Plus, Ted always seemed to bounce back from his wife leaving him pretty quickly — too quickly, probably. Even Rebecca took a full season to really move on from her marriage to Rupert and he was a complete dirtbag! 

I’m really looking forward to seeing more of what’s underneath Ted’s relentlessly positive public persona. (And, to be fair, I actually believe that’s his real personality. Just that no one can be that upbeat all of the time.) 

Elsewhere, Roy Kent settles into being a Richmond coach as smoothly as we all knew he would. It was probably unavoidable that Ted Lasso had to address the ongoing rivalry (dislike? discomfort?) that still exists between Roy and Jamie Tartt, but at least it does so in a way that generally feels true to both men and that doesn’t require either of them to “lose” to the other.

True, the entire subplot basically exists simply to get to the sight gag of the whole Richmond coaching staff collectively flipping Jamie the finger, but, as visuals go, it’s pretty funny. And I like the idea that Jamie’s superpower isn’t just being good at soccer — it’s also being a huge jerk. That tracks. 

I’m generally less comfortable with whatever’s going on with Nate at the moment. Last week’s episode, “Rainbow,” showed us his attempt to become more confident and claim his place as a leader on the team. But it also showed us a side to Nate that I’m not sure I like very much.

Though Nate makes a smart call at the end of the game with Tottenham Hotspur (a real team whose name I just adore), he also does it in what feels like an ugly and very un-Nate-like way. He even does the gross spitting thing!

There’s also something really uncomfortable and awful about his post-game behavior — Ted would never, even jokingly, make an interview about the team’s success about him, nor would he scour Twitter afterward to see what people were saying about him. 

To be fair, this is a complex and interesting storyline to give Nate, as a character whose arc has already gone in plenty of unexpected directions over the course of the series first season. But it makes me kind of nervous anyway, simply because i want to keep liking Nate, and I truly do think there’s a place for him on this team that doesn’t require him to become something he isn’t. So…we’ll see, I guess?

Stray Thoughts and Observations

• The locals at the Crown and Anchor making up chants The Great British Bake Off and soggy bottoms is the best thing I’ve seen on TV in ages. 
• I’m not entirely sure what the point of everything involving Rebecca’s mom was, so I can only hope that Harriet Walter will come back for another episode at some point in the future. because she and Hannah Waddingham had lovely chemistry. (And I was looking forward to their promised heart to heart.)
• However, the weakest link in this week’s installment has to be the Beard/Jane subplot, though. I don’t feel like I even know enough about Coach Beard to really care who he does or does not date, and while I applaud Higgins for being the kind of friend who will risk someone’s anger to tell them truths they need to hear, this story would likely have landed better had it been focused on any character OTHER than Beard.
• Though I suppose his preoccupation with Jane at least explains why Beard doesn’t pick up any of the warning signs that Ted is struggling/spiraling? 
• Jane calling Keeley to make sure Ted/Beard wasn’t canon though! I cannot! 

What did you think of this episode of Ted Lasso? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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New episodes of Ted Lasso stream Fridays on AppleTV+. 

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