Ted Lasso season 2 review: Weirder, but no less infectiously uplifting

After a year (and oh, did it feel like longer) off the air, tv’s most infectiously uplifting comedy, Apple TV+’s Ted Lasso, returns today for a second season – this time an extra 2 episodes long. Though the season premiere has a few stumbles (surprisingly rocky, considering the strength of the original series premiere), Ted Lasso season 2 irons out its creases rather quickly, and by introducing sports psychologist Sharon (Sarah Niles), the series’ nearly saccharine positivity is perfectly balanced out by a newer, more intimate look at Ted Lasso (and the entire team’s) less savory side.

Picking up the season after AFC Richmond lost to Man City (thanks to a key goal from ex-AFC Richmond player Jamie Tartt), Ted Lasso follows the club management and players as they navigate a new season, which gets off to a rough start after the endlessly optimistic Dani Rojas accidentally kills the team’s mascot while attempting a goal.

Horrified by the accident, Dani becomes nearly inconsolable, prompting management to step in and hire a sports psychologist to help him work through his trauma. The presence of the prickly psychologist Sharon (Niles) prompts the entire team (and the rest of the club’s staff) to take a look inward, as Roy and Keeley navigate their relationship with Roy’s niece as their de-facto daughter, and Rebecca finds love with an unlikely suitor thanks to online dating.

A nearly immediate change that Ted Lasso makes from season 1 (and one that undoubtedly works to the show’s advantage) is the decision to more prominently feature the rest of the AFC Richmond team. In season 1, if your name wasn’t Roy Kent or Jamie Tartt, you didn’t have a whole lot to do – but this season, Sam (Toheeb Jimoh), Isaac (Kola Bokinni), and of course Dani (Cristo Fernández) all get individual episodes to truly shine. Though Dani’s silly (and surprisingly violent) season opener about accidentally killing the team’s mascot isn’t as grounded or well-written as some of the arcs that his teammates get, it’s good to see the series embrace the lives of characters other than the two star players.

Nigerian right back Sam Obisanya (Jimoh) is a particular standout this season, thanks to a thoughtfully written and particularly relevant arc about his struggles to support the team’s main sponsor, Dubai Air, when he finds out they’re actively contributing to the economic and environmental destruction of his home country. Sam also joins another character’s narrative in an unexpected B-plot in the back half of the season – but we won’t spoil that (pretty big) surprise quite yet. Even without touching on that side of his performance, though, Jimoh brings just the right amount of charm, passion, and charisma to the role of Sam, and makes for a more than capable team leader figure in the absence of Roy.

Speaking of the legend himself, Roy Kent is now “happily” retired from football, coaching his niece Phoebe’s girls’ football team, attending yoga classes with old ladies, and cooking for his girlfriend Keeley, another of AFC Richmond’s employees. Though Roy claims to be satisfied in a life away from the limelight, Keeley nudges him to explore a career as a pundit, and season 2 follows his struggles to decide on a career off the field. That’s all well and good, but when it comes to Roy (who still is far and away the show’s most dynamic character, not to mention the funniest), we’re more interested in his relationships with Phoebe and Keeley.

Roy (and actor Brett Goldstein, who serves as one of the show’s writers) works best when he’s playing off more lighthearted characters, and with the duo of Phoebe and Keeley, he’s just as endearingly standoffish as ever. Though at times his relationship with Keeley does get a little monotonous, they still make a more than compelling odd couple, and it’s exciting to see Roy in a leadership role in the back half of the season, especially when contrasted with the newly-appointed assistant coach Nate.

Nate (Nick Mohammed) is perhaps this season’s most dramatic shift in character and most interesting arc – though meek and often the team punching bag in season one, season 2 picks up with Nate enjoying the power of assistant coach, often hurling insults at the new kit boy, his former post. Nate also gets a taste of fame when he goes viral online, and much of his arc this season follows his consumption into the world of social media stardom, and his struggles to build a healthy sense of self following the sudden influx of attention after having been put down for so long. Though it’s certainly a sharp turn for Nate, it’s a story that fundamentally works, and Nick Mohammed strikes the perfect love-to-hate-him balance for Nate in season two.

Less compelling this season, unfortunately, is team owner Rebecca, whose arcs begins and ends in season 2 with “trying to find love via online dating.” Free from the shackles of her messy divorce and her jerk of an ex-husband Rupert, Rebecca doesn’t have a whole lot to do this season despite her newfound freedom, and though it’s refreshing to see a series approach casual sex in such a refreshing, empowering way, it’s a rather lackluster storyline for such a dynamic character.

Most crucially, though, the series doesn’t drop the ball with the man of the hour: Ted himself. After hinting several times last season (including a panic attack on karaoke night) that Ted might not be as peachy-keen as he lets on, season 2 follows through on this thread in a big way, pairing the ever-cheerful Ted up with level-headed sports psychologist Sharon. For a show that built itself on the optimism of its protagonist, it’s incredibly gratifying and validating to see season 2 explore the reality that no, not everyone can be 100% “on” all the time, even the very best of us.

Through Sharon, Ted Lasso season 2 gives the entire cast an outlet to resolve their baggage and issues in a mature, externalized way, but none more so than Ted himself. Ted is a classic case of distrust of therapists and psychologists, and the way the show handles the power of therapy with the ego’s attempts to downplay mental health struggles or discredit therapists is incredibly honest and vulnerable. It’s a bold move for a show that sells itself on cheeriness to explore the depths of depression, anxiety, and childhood trauma in its second season, but that willingness to talk about mental health in such a positive light is what makes the season truly shine, elevating it beyond the fluffy feel-good of season 1.

Though the series premiere fumbles ever so slightly with the off-putting Dani Rojas storyline, Ted Lasso season 2 makes a quick recovery with the introduction of Sharon. Shining a spotlight on mental health, leaning into the strength of its ensemble cast, and never losing sight of the affectionate humor and charm that made the show so beloved in the first place, Ted Lasso season 2 proves that Sudeikis and co’s massive success was no fluke – and with any luck, they’ll be heading for a hat trick.