#I also have many thoughts about Ted and Nate - and I don't think this would fit

[kalinara]

It’s interesting.  I’ve seen a lot of meta suggesting that Ted’s steps this episode will lead to him confronting Nate, but I think there’s a bigger possibility, when it comes to Ted and long overdue confrontations:  Rebecca.

I mean, this whole series started because Rebecca wanted to hurt Rupert.  She roped an innocent man into her schemes to do it.  She went out of her way to set him up for failure, to make him the target of a virulent fanbase, threatened his marriage and so on. 

She apologized, of course.  And he forgave her.  But that doesn’t mean she didn’t hurt him.  Look at his face during All Apologies.  Think about how we’ve never really seen Ted have the same kind of blithe confidence in his coaching ability since then.  It’s a sad fact that she might have caused him more pain trying to fix her mistake: he went from the belief that, for all of his ignorance and early struggles, someone believed in him to realizing that he was actually hired to bring everything down.

And ultimately, she’s still doing it!  She’s not maliciously sabotaging Ted anymore, but she’s still completely obsessed with defeating Rupert.  She just defines that differently now.

I keep seeing folks talk about her grabbing him as some kind of ‘ship moment, but to be honest, I didn’t see it that way at all.  She was aggressively unhinged, and while it was pretty hilarious, it was clearly freaking him out a bit.  And while, of course, it’s a coach’s job to help the team win, but she’s putting a lot of extra pressure on him - when she’s already had to use his emotional honesty safeword on him earlier in the episode.  (It’s also funny that, in a way, it probably contributed to the team’s loss.  Ted was busy dealing with her that he wasn’t there to motivate and focus the team - which is what he excels at.  And left the opening for the showing of the tape.)

She’s never acknowledged what she’s done to the team.  She’s never admitted to Jamie, as far as we know, that she, not Ted, sent him back to Man City.  And that really needs to happen.

From day one, or at least episode four, this show has made a big deal about accountability.  So the fact that Rebecca hasn’t, and so far, seems inclined to repeat her mistakes is significant.

And I do think Ted has some emotions about that.  Throughout season two, folks had talked about the way the characters were so separate from each other.  The sad fact is, Christmas episode aside, they were a lot closer before Rebecca came clean.  Before Ted knew what she’d done to him and the team.

IF Tedbecca is going to happen, I think we’ll need this confrontation.  And even if it doesn’t, I think Rebecca needs someone to finally call her out, or she’ll never get herself out of this rut.  

[thirteenemeraldcats]

in one of your tags you mentioned-

'one of the things that gets chatted about A LOT in teaching is meeting students at their point of need- which ted does NOT do with jamie'

I would love to hear more of your thoughts on this! Both in terms of what that concept entails, and also what you think Jamie's point of need was at the time versus what Ted saw the situation needing

(You have excellent tags btw, don't know if anyone's mentioned that)

I HAVE MANY THOUGHTS ON THIS THAT I LOVE THAT YOU'D LOVE TO HEAR!

(I have more thoughts than I anticipated, this got errr, long. Whoops)

(potentially necessary/relevant background here is I am a high school teacher 👋)

Okie dokie, so, one of the principles of best practice in teaching is the idea I tag-rambled above; meet both the individual students and collective class at their point of need. Essentially this means practising differentiation in teaching and adjusting how content/ideas are communicated to students based on who they are as learners and people. Particularly if a student is performing outside the 'average' (either exceeding or still developing), this means adjusting to their needs by (among other things) curating differentiated resources and adapting delivery style. Differentiation is especially important in an all-abilities classroom, unfortunately public education is perpetually underfunded and overcrowded so everyone's just out here doing their best (the decent people of the world at least). BUT! WHILE I'M ON IT! SPEAKING OF THE THINGS I'VE TAG RAMBLED, the education system's (global) inability to adequately differentiate for students of different-abilities, particularly students with ADHD, ASD and Dyslexia, is perhaps the greatest failing of the whole dang thing and if anyone who ever stumbles across this is neuro-divergent and feels like they were a bad student or couldn't 'keep up' in mainstream education- THAT WAS NOT YOUR FAULT. You don't have to break yourself to 'fit', school is MEANT to bend for you. (Particularly when you're young, ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU'RE YOUNG)

ANYWAY, the fictional football of it all!

We don't see a lot of Ted actually coaching in this show (stick with me). The scenes in which he 'coaches' are typically him and various other coaching staff standing on the sidelines while the team skirmishes or occasionally runs drills, so me saying Ted doesn't differentiate is more based around his patented Ted-talks. NOW, Ted PROBABLY knows the team fairly well as individuals, particularly in season 2 and 3, purely by having spent quite a lot of time with them, despite this the only times we really see him 'adjust' his style with the team are ironically season 1 (examples include conferencing Jamie and Roy in 1x04 For The Children, and allowing/facilitating Nate's speech in 1x07 Make Rebecca Great Again). The moment that always sticks out to me as most significant is when he goes and seeks out Keeley's advice on how to get through to Jamie in 1x02 Biscuits.

Side note: I will be forever obsessed with Keeley jumping straight from 'blowjobs' to one of the four operant conditioning techniques (positive reinforcement) when asked about this. That woman is a very fascinating puzzle of a person.

Ted recognises that his typical perpetual-optimism-style isn't cracking the Jamie-Tartt-nut and seeks out a different opinion. This kind of collaboration and whole-system approach is key in teaching too, either by tapping the knowledge-well of a student's broader school context or the difficult-to-crack student's parents.

SO, having gotten the Jamie-Tartt-cheat-code from Keeley he DOES meet Jamie at his point of need, speaks clearly to him and communicates what he needs from him. AND IT WORKS! Temporarily! During the conversation between the two in Ted's office we see Jamie engage, he even practises self-reflection! Granted it's about his left foot cross, but still! The nut is cracked.

Jamie even maintains the perspective Ted has taught him for about two seconds while talking to Trent, until Jamie's other (definitely not positively-reinforced) behaviours rear up and he reverts to what James others have taught him.

On the other hand.

Multiple times throughout the show we see Jamie be visibly or verbally confused by Ted's communication style. Ted often talks in meandering metaphors that Jamie doesn't seem to be able to follow. We verbally hear him state 'Why doesn't he just say that then, do you know what I mean?' in 2x07 Headspace after Beard has to translate Ted's 'peas and carrots/beefchunks' analogy to 'starters and reserves'. Then there's the infamous 'What the fuck are Denver Broncos?' from 3x09 La Locker Room Aux Folles. The only notable time we really see Jamie 'get' one of these metaphors is the sewer-system-tunnels from 3x01 Smells Like Mean Spirit.

(His understanding of that specific metaphor, along with his use of the magnets to demonstrate total football in 3x07 The Strings That Bind, and a Watsonian-perspective of his near perfect mimicry of movements he saw two years ago when executing the decoy play in 3x12 So Long, Farewell, are actually all examples I use to head-canon Jamie as a primarily visual/physical based learner. For whatever that's worth!)

NOW! Ted's willingness to seek and apply alternate techniques in season 1 when he should know the team as both individuals and a collective the least, coupled with his inability or unwillingness to practise differentiation in later seasons when he DOES KNOW THEM is why I don't think Ted is meeting the team, specifically Jamie at their/his point of need. Any person's ability to differentiate behaviour to meet the needs/requirements/comforts of the individual or group they're talking to is increased the more they know them. (We all do this in life, consciously or subconsciously we typically try and 'match the vibe' of whoever we're communicating with [doubly so for people who're engaging in masking.])

Ted should and does learn more about Jamie as a person and his background as the show progresses. He listens to Jamie vocalise both his internal justifications for his actions and his reflections of those justifications/actions in 1x06 Two Aces, he sees him being explicitly physically abused in 1x10 The Hope That Kills You, he listens to him describe a spiralling mindset in 2x02 Lavender, he sees him being explicitly verbally abused in 2x08 Man City.

Of course, one of the fascinating things about Jamie is how much he learns and grows over the course of the show, and there are instances in which I don't think Ted is recognising that (primarily his dismissal of Jamie in 3x03 4-5-1 and not utilising Jamie's knowledge of total football as a resource from the beginning in 3x07 The Strings That Bind).

Ted understands and has previously applied Jamie responding well to positive reinforcement, yet at multiple times in the series doesn't respond in a way that reflects his perspective being informed by that knowledge. Essentially not practising the appropriate level of care/caution when interacting with/around Jamie.

There's not intervening on Jamie's behalf in 2x03 Do the Right-est Thing or 2x06 The Signal when the team and Roy are targeting or ignoring him respectively. The assumed absence of any follow up to the events of 2x08 Man City, the Zava of it all in season 3, and of course the eternal 'forgiveness' kicker from 3x11 Mom City.

POINT BEING. And to actually answer your inquiry lol, I think Jamie is someone who needs clear communication, ideally bracketed in positive reinforcement based operant conditioning as a learning technique (reward behaviour you want reinforced by offering something desirable [praise in Jamie's case]) and visual/physical aid/references for concepts; as a LEARNER.

AS A PERSON, there's more. Ted can readily infer from all he's heard and seen that Jamie's a victim of child abuse. The long term damage to the adult psyche that abuse during formative years has is astronomical, it literally changes the foundational structures of a person's brain. And yet, again, we never see Ted even acknowledge this. Jamie in 3x11 Mom City, incidentally compares his father to Freddy Krueger, Ted elaborates on the comparison, then Jamie reiterates that Freddy Krueger's 'fucking terrifying'. Ted doesn't reassure Jamie (the requirement of his point of need), he gives him a Ted-talk (and in doing so doesn't differentiate his perspective/communication technique).

As far as what Ted thought the situation needed... search me I've got no idea. I do think Ted projects onto Jamie a hell of a lot. That he gets Jamie's personhood and life experiences all tangled up in the emotions he has about his father's death and his consequent perceived abandonment, his insecurities about his own ability to parent Henry and even in his own inability to clearly communicate with his mother. I do think Ted relies on his own forced optimism to 'get by'. Like how a great white shark dies if it stops swimming, if Ted stops being 'Ted', if he stops swimming, his past and his fears and his feelings will catch up to him and swallow him whole. (For what it's worth, I do think Ted is more unwell than even the show explicitly tells us, much like Jamie experiencing ongoing trauma due to childhood abuse, the effects both short-term and long-term as well as potential causalities of having a parent die by suicide are... grim.)

(Essentially the entire fandom has talked about basically all of this at one point or another, I'm just using slightly different language.)

NOW! These characters are fictional (obviously) and I am judging them based on real-people conventions and the best-principles of my own profession, as well as my background in theoretical psychology (which I think I forgot to mention and is also probably [??] relevant). My Doylist-perspective of Ted and his coaching/communication style is ...kinder, but if I get too sucked into the narrative it results in either brief tag-rambles or... whatever this thing I've just typed is. I think it's been too long since I've written academically, my thoughts have gone circular 🫠

ANYWAY! I hope this made something-approaching sense! Thank you again for asking to hear my thoughts! Always happy to word vomit!

ALSO, thank you for saying my tags are excellent (you are the first and currently only to say so!) - The tags are where I send my thoughts to die (in a 'I must banish them to move on' kind of way rather than a 'I'm strangling them' kind of way) so you saying they're excellent is even MORE flattering than you realise! Makes my brain want to purr 💚🤣

[chainofclovers]

(apparently i will never stop having) ted lasso s3 thoughts

It was such an interesting and weird experience to mostly really like TL s3 because it kind of felt like agreeing to go on a vacation with a large group of people and at the end I was like "well there were some ups and downs but that was a good time and I'm going to put together a scrapbook of this special vacation that broke my heart in ways I kind of appreciated" and then many fellow travelers were like "I can't believe I was stupid enough to get tricked to go on this shitty vacation and that we're all having such a bad time." And also it was like that at every checkpoint throughout the travels. I obviously wasn't alone in loving plenty of things about the season; I feel lucky that there are people who feel similarly enough to me that it wasn't totally lonely, and also of course it doesn't truly matter that everyone has different opinions about the same thing. I don't need a bunch of identical opinions to feel like I've earned the right to my own. It's more that there were multiple points where I was genuinely questioning whether my brain was just working totally differently in a way I should actually explore more because of how I felt about the intentions/intentionality and execution behind certain things on the show. Things that if I'd been watching sans fandom experience but with a similar level of obsession, I think I'd have been pretty unphased by and peaceful with. And it made me genuinely sad to feel like so many people I care about were having such a bad time with something that I, for whatever reason, was just having a mostly good time with in ways that I wish I could have transferred over.

Also, I'm clearly still trying to figure out how I feel because I did have an extremely emotional reaction to the show ending, more akin to something deeply earth-shattering happening in my own actual 3d life. There was a 72-ish hour period in which I cried more than I had in probably a year or two combined before that. I cried in the bathroom at a baseball game because baseball >>> sports >>> Ted. I cried about things I wanted to see on my screen that I did not get to see. I cried about the absolute unfairness of a human being only being able to exist in one physical space at a time. I cried about having a community that was centered around a shared interest and the sheer stress that goes into that. All through the summer and even now, although I am no longer crying about Ted per se, I feel like my ability to cry is way more close to the surface than it used to be.

So it's not that I had some kind of super simple reaction to the show that just made me willing to bop along to everything, even if some of my crying was just about mourning the end of something and appreciating it. There are definitely things I'd change if I'd been involved, including:

Zava's presence would have been a far more short-lived dalliance with the team that would allow them to do the same exact stuff in terms of Zava's recruitment allowing the show to more explicitly discuss Rupert's manipulation of both Rebecca and Nate (I loved that Zava initially felt like a device that would allow Rebecca to make those observations with full awareness that this is what was happening to Nate, and I thought her backstory coupled with Nate's scenes with Rupert were super well done)...but it would not have dragged into so many other episodes (and this would have freed up time for one of the main things I felt was missing, which was a more explicit discussion of the legacy of coaching, which Ted and Roy [and also Beard and Trent via the book and eventually Nate] all needed more room to discuss)

Shandy's role in KJPR would have been more explicitly about mentorship and its limitations and would have afforded Keeley more onscreen contemplation time

Instead of backtracking into raging out with jealousy over Keeley in the final episode, Jamie and Roy would have had their fight sooner in the season and would've spent the finale navigating the ambiguities of simply not knowing what was going to happen with all their relationships (which is what we basically get in the montage, and I believe those characters would get there, but even as a non-linear progress enthusiast I found their final scenes together annoying after having really loved most of their scenes together throughout the entire series...I have no trouble believing that Roy and Keeley would likely reunite in the future, or that they might really pull off the throuple, and I didn't personally need to see that happen on my screen, but I did want a more concretely sunk in growth moment for Roy)

One (1) fewer ambiguous facial expression from Michelle Keller, please, mostly because of how much I've hated talking about it

Ted and Roy would have gotten a goodbye(-for-now) that alluded to their overlapping traumas and things they had observed about each other and appreciated in each other

BUT. In general, I felt like the characters were never unrecognizable (including Ted in 3x12, who was not emotionless and dead inside and cruel and would not need to grovel if/when he returns to the UK and I will totally die on that hill), and the various missed opportunities and unfinished business and open-ended trailings off into the future did nothing to ruin the perfect beauty of s1 (which will always be soooo special and great) or the (often more clunky than s3 in my opinion) complications of s2 (which I did love in its way).

I think I'm just basically at my core someone whose favorite show is this one? So I'd rather, when my brain presents the options, take the more generous interpretation of certain things in a way that allows me to engage more fully than I would otherwise, if disappointment was ruling my viewing experience. And I think a kitchen metaphor is the only way I can make sense of this whole experience and why I'm kinda here for it and find post-canon a compelling place to explore.

I think of a cook performing mise en place to get a dish ready to cook. Or a baker getting all their ingredients out on the counter so they can more easily assemble the cookies or whatever. But if you're making more than one thing, which I think Ted Lasso the show was doing (and your mileage may vary on how well that went), you've got your assembled thing in the oven and then you're also doing prep for the next thing and you're loading the dishes in the sink from the old thing and it's kind of a constant state of prep and action and clean-up. And agree with it or not, s3 ends when pretty much every character has a messy kitchen. I absolutely include Ted in this. The montage at the end feels like Ted's attempt to neaten up the kitchens of every person he knows so that he can survive making his choice to take a long physical break from actually being in those kitchens. (Linked post describes how I feel about that scene, which I do think was reality rather than a dream, but highly filtered through one person's consciousness.)

(((Whispers: and the thing that mystifies me the most about fan reactions--other than the literal threats of violence against creators--is the whole "I guess Ted and Rebecca didn't have any meaningful connection after all and the parallels were just accidents or cruel jokes" thing...which is not something I have really read or seen online much recently at all if you're wondering. Because their parallel journeys matter so much! And the main way I can make sense of it all is by feeling like they did have all the ingredients out for the meal that would allow them to have gotten together during the 3 season arc, and because of Ted's very necessary choice they could not do that, and that doesn't mean the ingredients and their particular arrangement are meaningless even if hurts. That is genuinely what I see. And I completely understand why the missed opportunities or lack of acknowledgment of certain parallels is frustrating, but what i don't understand is the belief that the things we actually did get shouldn't have even been there if they weren't gonna kiss. I feel similarly about where Ted and Beard end up, actually, but that may be a post for another time [or the inside of my brain only] because I'm already very self-conscious about how long this is. The "Jason I am in your walls what was the reason for any of this" stuff just makes me feel so. Incredibly. Tired. The reasons were in the show!)))

Ted Lasso's finale attempted to put one last dish in the oven and bake it and bring it out, but just behind the outstretched arms with the neatly presented dish is a kitchen (a whole ensemble's worth of kitchens) in absolute disarray, no matter how much good stuff the characters have learned about mise en place and being a loving person and all that. Because the dishes literally never stop when you're a person, and neither does the hunger. I am not necessarily interested in analyzing how other shows whose endings I've loved or hated handle their character's figurative kitchens, but I do think that the way this show handled it is a big reason why the finale (and whole final season) was so divisive. I would love to remain as happily obsessed with it as I am while figuring out how to feel less intense feelings about how much some of the communal elements of it stress me out! I am an adult! I get how opinions work! I just have lots of feelings, I guess. :/

[vole-mon-amour]

3x08, part 3.

THIS.

Rebecca's facial expression change as she reads that nonsense. These two holding hands. This is MY silver lining in this. I miss Rebecca and Keeley spending more time together.

I love them your honor.

This is so awkward. :') I can't help but to wish Roy x Jamie x Keeley all together.

Not gonna lie, this was one of my first questions bc I'm curious, but I didn't think Roy would go there. Couldn't imagine that happening, even, bc I probably think better of him? At the same point, I can see him being jealous like that & can't imagine Jamie, of all people, asking that question now 'cause he definitely knows better. Would be ironic if he actually goes there, too, and Keeley answers. It's weird, and awkward, and I'm glad we get to see their personalities through this.

Keeley's soft, "That's okay" with an "Unbelievable" undertone is known to so many women, I think. This is so important.

What? You fucked up? :')

I keep wondering, what model and year is this car? It's such a huge change from Jamie's Aston Martin.

Keeley is THE best girl. The bestest.

"It's all shit, Ted." ROY X JAMIE X KEELEY WHEEEENNNNNN

They're really cute, and I'm still very much on the fence, but I wish they could stay together. :( Jack doesn't seem EVIL evil, you know? maybe she just needs to learn, idk.

THEY'RE SO CUTE. Ugh, Ted is the ultimate dad tbh. I'm 28 & even I kinda envy having a dad like this. If only he could pull himself together. :( At the same time he's poking that topic with Henry very gently, so I don't think there's any hard with that. Idk. Those things are complicated.

You know who's excited to be around you and looks at you like you're their entire world, Ted? That's Trent. He's right there, within the reach of your hand.

You definitely should have had. There is sooo much learning for Jack to do. You know who mostly learned their lesson? Jamie. :) My feelings are all over the place.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Beard smooching Ted WHEN???

Of course he does, what did you expect? :DDD His fav player is Jamie fucking Tartt. Also, Beard smiling like THAT.

I honestly love the idea of Beard and Ted living together, but at the same time the idea of Beard getting up early in the morning to stop by at Ted's and cook breakfast for him and Henry? Are you kidding me? Fucking goals. I want what they have.

RESPECT!!!!!! Beard is the real one.

Henry is his dad's son. Can he just move in with Ted, please? I wouldn't mind that kid growing up around the team, Jamie constantly interacting with him. Beard taking Ted and Henry out for fun activities. That kid would grow up an AWESOME person.

I'm sorry, friend? I thought you were open about this? Gosh, there is so much wrong with their relationship. Do they communicate at ALL? It's like i'm on a swing: on the ship, off the ship. Can you two finally establish what's going on between you? Are you showing off your girlfriend or what? Like, listen, queer people shouldn't come out every time, especially if they're not comfortable with people around them. At the same time, I'm confused. She didn't even address this interaction after while Keeley obviously felt awkward and insecure about this. That's not good.

This is what Nate should have sent. I'm so fucking done with Rupert, when will Nate leave him and go back to Ted?

[politelymenacing]

My Series 2 rewatch thoughts that no-one asked for. Mostly random thoughts and things I've only noticed since watching series 3. Series 1 rewatch here.

The bit of Jamie on This Morning feels so wrong. There is nowhere near enough giggling on the part of Phil and Holly. The vibes are so off.

Jamie's eyes light up when he sees the little Richmond fan asking for his autograph. He is super cute with kids, actually.

Ted says his favourite book is The Fountainhead. I haven't read it, but from what I understand the philosophy of that book really does not seem to line up with Ted's at all. If anyone has read it, I'd love to hear any insights as to why the writers chose that as his favourite.

The way that Phoebe's team looks at Roy 🥰

There's Isaac in glasses again (I might be slightly obsessed, but in my defence, he looks so good in them).

Jamie x Dani shippers be like:

This is the most unconvincing email I've ever seen:

Love hearing some Queen on the soundtrack.

There has been a serious lack of Trent so far. We truly are spoilt in series 3.

Instant chemistry between Ted and Nora. I love it

Bring it On references and is that pom pom shaking, Mr Crimm? They are so embarrassing. I love them.

Bumbercatch as always asking the important questions:

The whole British Doll thing is soooooo weird to me. I guess this was a thing for the Americans?

There is no way that many people would be outside on Christmas day in London.

Dani and Zoreaux playing with Higgins's kids is wonderful. They really commit to the bit.

Julie Higgins / Dani BFF agenda starts here, they are so cute.

Mr Shelby! (Damn you really do have to rewatch it all to get all their little references, huh?)

Oh interesting. Jade is actually not particularly rude to Nate the first time they meet. It's only after he pulls his demanding shit. I had remembered her being worse. Or maybe I've just come around to her after she took none of Rupert's shit.

Kids looking at Roy with heart eyes Part 2.

The pub lads' Bake Off chant 😂

Gifs and screenshots truly do not capture the adorableness of Colin and Will's camouflage interaction. Will's laugh is So. Cute. (Sorry. Michael, I am still holding out hope for these two)

Also, I don't know if anyone has mentioned this yet, but under the camouflage is a rainbow trim on Colin's jumper:

They truly did such a good job casting Jamie's dad.

How is Sam so smooth a) at his age and b) in the presence of Rebecca??

New headcanon: The scarves that Beard and Jeremy get from the lost and found at the Crown and Anchor were Trent's.

Jamie helping Dani walk in his dress shoes 🥰

The lads all look great at the funeral (especially Isaac). I am living for Colin's waistcoat.

Hearing Roy say "service station" is painful. At least he said aeroplane. (I am telling myself he was talking about a service station in America, because I don't think I have ever seen an advert for a petrol station in my life)

Ted is so happy when Trent texts him! (Maybe because he wrote 'The Independent' and it seems hella flirty if you don't know what's coming next and if you think about the fact he's texting at night)

I'm sorry, but Trent's byline photo is so funny.

It doesn't matter how many times I've seen it, it still hurts so much.

WILL LURKING. 💖

FOLLOW THE MONEY!

Well this makes me nervous for the end of series 3....

Still the best shot of the entire show.

That theory about leopard print indicating a character is queer? Don't forget Mae:

Dani giving Will a piggyback!

Why were we surprised to learn Sam named the restaurant after his dad? He is credited as Ola:

[absolxguardian]

After I made a post asking for fic recs that aren't setting aus, and generally being frustrated going into ao3 fandom tags and seeing so many setting aus, I thought about why I don't like them. The answer isn't relevant, but I did realize one setting AU for Ted Lasso I'd read the fuck out: Star Wars (probably because it's my main special interest).

Except I'm not interested in a fic where the cast are Jedi or something. Instead, I'm thinking about one where Ted is a coach for Outer Rim grav-ball (space American football)- perhaps for the Academy of Applied Sciences on Lothal (I'm just saying that because the children's chapter book that is half a high school sports book is set there. I know this would made Ted more comparable to a high school football coach, but ages for secondary and tertiary education in the galaxy is weird) who gets hired to coach a professional Core grav-ball team (space European football).

And this fic would really work by exploring the changes caused by the different societal norms between the gffa and our world. Homophobia? Nonexistent. Sexism? Also gone, which would change Rebecca and Rubert's dynamic. And sports aren't gender segregated. Mental health stigma? Honestly probably worse than current times given its unclear how prevalent therapists are in the galaxy.

But the big change would be that Ted goes from being an American expat to someone moving within the same nation that has a massive urban/rural divide as well as provincialism. His accent would be something people would discriminate against him for.

It would make things pretty dark, tbh, I think setting it during the Empire would be the best. Ted goes to work in the Core not just because he needs time away from Michelle, but because something doesn't feel right with AppSci becoming an Imperial feeder school and the new Athletics director is a racist ass.

The story would become about what you're supposed to do when you're just trying to be a semi-regular person within growing fascism. I think Ted would eventually snap and join the Rebellion (probably with a good portion of the main characters). There's the blockade and presumable communications blackout of Lothal, new policies banning aliens from professional sports, and probably one of his star players gets kidnapped by the Empire because they're force sensitive (there would be a higher than average occurrence of force sensitive people in professional athletics).

Some other new elements would be Nate (who is an alien) trying to be one of the "good ones" with Rupert, who is a die-hard imperial loyalist. He starts coaching for the Hammers at the same time aliens are banned from playing and only keeps his job because of Rupert's protection. Trent has the additional motivation to quit journalism that he doesn't want to have to deal with Imperial censors day in and day out, even though with sports there isn't much censor. Heck, Trent has always struck me as too somber and cynical to be a sports reporter, and maybe the reason he does sports reporting is because its the most honest specialty left.

The final new element I've thought of is that when I was running through my head for what planet the Greyhounds would be in, I landed on Chandrila. Which means that Rebecca and Rubert would be Chandrilan upper-crust- so instead of what we have in canon, Rebecca and Rubert are similar ages and were arranged to be married eachother when they were young (adults in their society, teens in our world). Instead of Rubert hurting Rebecca, they were both hurt by their society- which turned Rubert cruel. All the arranged marriages also means that divorce is more stigmatized and cheating more tolerated. This would also make Ted's in to the Rebellion through Rebecca and then Mon Mothma. Rebecca originally becomes a bit of a rebel sympathizer because Rubert is just so pro-empire.

[roman-roy-apologist]

I went to sleep, but now my thoughts about ep 7:

I thought Ted would reject Sassy, I don't think he was ready for hooking up with strangers especially after having a panic attack.

Loved Sassy!!! I liked that conversation she had with Rebecca about how yeah Rubert was terrible, but Rebecca also made her choices.

Her atempts to try to make her friend like she used to be were very cute.

Roy nodding to Keely and then saying bye was very funny.

I like how we barely see the football matches in Ted Lasso.

The way Higgins or whatever is his name family reacted to Richmond winning was very accurate, reminded me of the world cup.

Also someone said that Nate wasn't insulting Brazilian players when he said that white guy shouldn't try to play like them, but I didn't like his tone when speaking about my country so I'm keeping my eyes on Nate.

Caesar you later! (idk if you noticed but i really liked this pun)

yes!! i love this episode so muchhhh sassy is honestly amazing and so many people don’t like her for such stupid reasons and yeah. nate.

[sparkliingdust]

IDK - I really liked Ted Lasso's series/season finale. Spoilery thoughts behind the cut.

I finished the series finale on a high, and legitimately cried a lot which I never do and did not think I would do at all after the disastrous season two...but seeing the mainstream criticism is disappointing. It feels like people really loathed it and said the whole series was a waste of time - like wow, have we come far from what the show was supposedly teaching everyone during the pandemic...but I thought it was good - heartfelt character development, a little fan service, wrap-ups to more of the important things, and I couldn't believe it won with them going all the way, to get to #2nd place but for it to still feel like a massive victory.

Season 3 was miles better than season 2 for me. I think what ended up happening is that the series wanted to add more to supporting characters in season 2 to give everyone more of a life outside of Richmond and focusing on Ted, but they couldn't really know how to piece it all together with one season left - so we got bits and pieces of heel turns with Nate or the racism Sam faces or whatever that dead dog thing was with Danny or delving into Ted's past but it struggled to know how to wrap things up more. A lot of it was off-kilter from the first season's tone, which was ultimately dry humored sprinkled with Ted's anxiety on top. The episodes became more of flashes of life rather than full-scale plots - it worked sometimes, it flopped others. Then, Season 3 turned its attention to having extra positive wrap-ups for the deeper details, and it was hard to readjust.

I agree with the critics that the weird love triangle finale between Keely, Roy, and Jamie was unnecessary, even if in the montage it seems like they're all on good terms... But Roy and Jamie became such good friends based on so many things outside of Keeley and who she should be with. It was out-of-character for S3Jamie to want to ask her out again just because he did well at the game, and ignore the boundaries Roy was trying to set, and for them to be petty enough to get into a fight about the video that leaked. Not only was Jamie and Keeley were in a consensual relationship when that happened, but wrongfully shamed Keely more than anyone. It seemed like such an odd way to pivot her arc back to two men who don't really have a leg to stand on in terms of defining self-worth for herself. The writing made it seem like she was a trophy for them, but she isn't.

I also get why fans are upset about Ted and Rebecca. Granted, I never really paid attention to them or shipped them, so I didn't see all of the smaller things shippers loved. But even in the beginning of episode 12, I screamed 'THEY FUCKED?! OMG'....but by the end, I was okay with them not ending up together - because it still felt to me like they were soulmates beyond romantic connection, much like Ted and Beard's friendship transcends Beard and Jane getting married without him. Like the impact they have on each other adds up to all of those little connections to show why they were meant to meet but not meant to be. (I'm not crazy about the Dutchman somehow being a fucking pilot out of nowhere, but damn he was hot, so I'd take as back-up.)

A lot of the resolutions loosely came down to the montage or pivoting from ideas that didn't feel fully finished, because the show was still striving to be happy-go-lucky at its core, and I think overall, that's okay. They found themselves in the end even if the rest of it wasn't exactly perfect.

[damelucyjo]

Here we go!

Episode 3 - 4-5-1

Colin finally getting the recognition he deserves!

But I don't think this is the reveal they expected it to be 😂

His boy is cute though...

OMG the false start with the theme 😂😂

YYEAAAAHH!!!!!

Ted thinking he got maths correct then saying 'are' and Roy shaking his head - perfect

Roy fully understanding Ted’s metaphors now!! ONE OF US, ONE OF US!

Perfect reflection on actual conversations had in an office 😂

BEARD’S ACCENT! Kinda hot??

Julie Andrews talk!! And they all fancy her. My people!! 🥰

Fuck yeah Princess Diaries! But how is that a deep cut?? 🤔

They boys are all incredibly cute

Please never change Dani!!

Uh oh. For Isaac to be the one to make that comment 🫣

Paul & Idris I get, but Norm??? Come on Sam

Oop that classic ‘gay sex’ joke 🤔

Rebecca looking fine, as always! (Also this must be where that clip of Hannah, Juno & Jeremy playing ‘kissy shoes’ is from

Shandy’s first question to Rebecca being ‘how tall are you?’ was very funny to me and I don’t know why 😂

Hannah’s face! 😂

Ooo mysterious Rebecca

(I also have thoughts about the ‘I’m late’ line, but I’ll keep it to myself (unless you ask))

That Virginia line had to be for Hannah

The thigh touch 👀

Who the fuck are you? DO NOT DISRESPECT MY BOY LIKE THAT!!

I am living for angry Rebecca

‘Your desk is covered in biscuit crumbs’ fucking dying 😂😂

Zava is incredibly OTT, but I kinda love him

You are the glue 🥹

Apparently they couldn’t get through this scene for laughing and THIS IS WHY WE NEED THE BLOOPERS!!

Is there going to be something to this whole ‘everyone is enamoured by Zava but Rebecca’ thing?

Oh, & Jamie too

Ted popping out from behind him - may be the funniest thing in this episode 🤷🏻‍♀️

HES 25?!?! Wtf 😂🫣

Roy is really making me chuckle in this scene. Brett, I love you 😍

I mean, they’re all brilliant in this scene to be fair

These 3 acting like little kids is amazing. Again BLOOPERS!!

‘He’s tall’ I see you, Trent 😏

Ooo the psychic 👀

They’re testing each other… interesting

Mentioning Sam then telling her Deb told you is not going to help her believe you, Tish 🤔

I don’t understand why Rebecca has gone to see her though if she’s so against it?? She must believe in it even slightly to agree to see her

Am I the only one confused by the sudden odd smell??

‘A shite in nining armour’ 😂

I have many thoughts and feelings about this whole psychic visit, just like everyone else apparently

This whole interview talk and making it viral makes me think Colin’s story is going to come out amongst all this Zava shit

Roy would do an interview for Keeley 🥹🥹 my heart

The boys!! ‘Makes sense’ 😂

This Wordle bit is purely Jason and Brendan. Tell me I’m wrong

Jamie boy is growing up 🥹

Beard being shocked Jamie knew what he was talking about 😂

Rebecca must wear BBP always this season apparently. I ain’t mad at it!

Ted still really knows nothing about football. So real 😂

Apple getting their Tetris promo in 😂😂

So this new guy is just another Ted 👀👀 interesting

Poor Ted

Rebecca being super excited! We love to see it!

Jamie walking in & straight out again. King

Ted internet stalking the new guy. We’ve all been there 😂

Rebecca still thinking about what Tish said 👀

Poor Roy 🥹

I’d be pissed too if I was Jamie!

He got a job!! Things are looking up for the Bar Boys 😂

We love a little flirty flirt moment over food 👀👀

He’s their couples therapist?! I thought he was Henry’s doctor or something 🫣

Why keep mentioning how great Nate is? He’s coaching a team that was already good… what’s he doing??

That fucking tattoo 😂 and playing Jesus Christ Superstar over it. Genius 😂

Love to see a happy Rebecca. She feels like she’s finally winning!

Dani copying Zava 😂😂

More flirting 👀

Issac is so fucking intense 😂

How long have they been together if the boys have never met him before??

REBECCA MIDDLE NAME WELTON!! That is how you show up to your ex’s new restaurant opening!

‘Told you’ what we’re they talking about for that comment?? 👀

Beard & Jane are terrible but Brendan & Phoebe are brilliant!

Poor Jamie

LOVING this bromance developing here

Fucking pre-Madonna 😂😂

I’m excited for this training

Sassy is such a terrible person?? Like, we knew?? But my god woman

I’m very undecided on Shandy…

So is Rebecca, apparently

Hannah & Juno having a whole conversation with no words 🥰 all the awards to both of them!

I just noticed Zava is wearing a t-shirt with his name all over it 😂

Avocado callback 👍🏼

‘Borderline unethical’ says everything about Sassy

Uh oh. Rebecca beginning to panic so she drinks instead. She’s just like me!

Trent’s so cool

I think it’s gonna be important that Trent was the one to spot Colin & Michael

Also fitting ‘everybody knows’ over that part of the scene - genius!

[nancywheeeler]

📔📖📕?

three fandoms for the price of one!

(more) Ted Lasso:

okay, so one of my all-time favorite 90s movies is The Fully Monty and i think it would be such a fun AU for TL. the movie's themes overlap with a lot of what Ted Lasso's got going on (mental health, insecurity, father/son relationship, and how everything is wrapped up in men's relationship to their masculinity) and some of things Ted Lasso hasn't really addressed (yet) like class and sexuality. Plus stripper Ted! and the rest of our Diamond Dogs fit really well with the other characters (Beard as the best friend, Nate as the younger, insecure guy they help with his self-esteem, Higgins as the one who teaches them how to dance, Roy as the grump who is surprisingly good at dancing (definitely thanks to the yoga moms), throw Jamie in there as the hot guy lol). i could also see it as either Rebecca/Ted (she owns the club where the guys want to put on their strip show) or Trent/Ted (trent discovering what the guys are up to and sticking around to write an article about how the state of immigration affairs is so bad this poor man is putting on a strip show to get money to stay with his son; in this AU, i imagine michelle has a job in the UK). who knows if i'll ever write it but i'm thinking thoughts!

Stranger Things:

i'm going to keep the plot i've tentatively started drafting under wraps for now, but i have sent so many ST fic ideas to the graveyard over the years (rip the Will-centric ready player one AU, my beloved). a recent one that will haunt me for a while is a Station Eleven-inspired post-canon where our gang technically won the war against Vecna / the Upside Down, but it has inadvertently caused the apocalypse. while the rest of our gang has scattered across the country, trying to pick up the pieces of the world, Steve is one of the last holdouts in Hawkins. Meanwhile, Eddie has been traveling around as a wayfaring musician. idk it would be a little western-inspired because i've always loved western aesthetics in the apocalypse (stranger stumbling into town! nature running wild again! outlaws abound!). who knows what the plot would be other than finding a sense of home again. but i love that Station Eleven idea of art surviving the apocalypse and how it fosters community and i don't know!! maybe one day i'll figure out what this rambling would be about.

Dead Poets Society:

to anyone who ever subscribed to me / followed me for DPS, i am so so sorry. i wanna get back on the horse! i'm not sure if this is the plot i'll go for when i do (i once promised a Charlie POV of my good grief series and i do have some scenes of that drafted), but i have been toying with a While You Were Sleeping AU.......just thinking about Neil Perry being "in love" with Jeffrey Anderson who he has never actually spoken to. Accident happens, Jeff's in a coma, his friends and family think Neil is his fiancee, chaos ensues as Neil starts falling for Jeff's brother, Todd instead. This or my 80s The Sure Thing road trip from hell AU.......they compel me!

(Put "📓" or some other version of a book emoji into my inbox and I'll explain the plot of a fanfiction that I haven't written but daydream about.)