#and especially when she's in a relationship with nate who WAS a father like

[agirlinthegalaxy]

It's been rolling around in my brain the last few days for some reason, but I still hate the family backstory reveals for Sophie and Eliot. I've seen some of the meta for it, but quite frankly, it still makes no sense. If it had been something actually thought of and intentional in the original, I think it could have been so fascinating. I mean, Sophie's willing abandonment of Astrid to contrast with Nate's loss of Sam or Eliot's adoption in contrast with Hardison's and Parker's? Could have been excellent! But they came out of nowhere in Redemption and don't work with these characters.

Sophie was still actively using the fucking alias that she met Astrid under! She met with someone from her past on the show! Like. Quite frankly, that one is unequivocally bullshit that they made up and threw in and pretended could fit with the established canon. (And I'm sorry, but the idea of Sophie abandoning Astrid and never telling Nate about her just... So much of Nate's trauma was rooted in the loss of Sam, and I think that introducing this element after he's gone and unable to respond to it taints Sophie and Nate's relationship in a way bc I'm not exactly sure how Nate would've responded to learning about this but I think that it's something he'd have needed to know. I don't know how to fully express my thoughts on that but yeah.)

As for Eliot, I don't like the adoption aspect literally at all. The way that he would interact with his family and the memory of his family would be different, and I think that it's flat out ridiculous to think that he'd have never mentioned it to the team in the original show, especially when dealing with the kid cases. (I also dislike the biracial adoption as its own element because if Eliot was actually raised by Black parents in the... idk what 80s/90s? That just. doesn't feel congruent with how they write Eliot interacting with PoC, not necessarily in a bad way, but babe, he's written like a white southern man raised in a specific kind of culture that does not jell with that. It also makes Eliot look... really bad that he was apparently raised with the knowledge of how fucked up the military was and his parents' history and made the choices that he did.) Like the show may not have explicitly stated it but the implication of that relationship was vastly fucking different throughout the original show.

Just. These were not backstories that were congruent with their depiction and characters in the original show, and they're also just moves that I don't particularly like or find interesting directions for those characters. There's also something to be said about how it was apparently unacceptable for a woman to not have kids or someone not reconciling with their biological family when that was something that the original show handled a lot better. Out of all the directions to take Sophie and Eliot's stories, that's just not really one that I think was a good idea.

[bumblesimagines]

“ please, whatever you do... don't fall in love with me. “

“ we need to set some ground rules. “

“ we're keeping this to ourselves, right? “

- Cassie howard

“ please, whatever you do... don't fall in love with me. “

“ we need to set some ground rules. “

“ we're keeping this to ourselves, right? “ (changed right to remember)

pronouns: he/him/his, m!reader

You couldn't pinpoint exactly when it had all started with Cassie Howard. One minute she'd merely been a friend of a friend and the next minute you found yourself sneaking around with her. You supposed it was inevitable considering you were often forced to spend time together due to your brother and her best friend's relationship. And that reason was precisely why sneaking around was necessary.

However, the blonde believed otherwise.

"(Y/N), you have a guest!" Your mother's voice echoed through the house, pulling your attention away from the notebook on your lap. Your brows furrowed and you set the notebook aside, double-checking your phone for any messages as you stepped out of your bedroom and approached the staircase. Upon spotting Aaron gazing down toward the front door with the same look he gave girls who'd never even glance at him twice, your stomach twisted. You tucked your phone away in your pocket and descended the stairs, nearly groaning at the sight of Nate leaning against the wall by the stairs while your mother and Cassie chatted.

"What's going on here?" Nate questioned, sounding far too much like your father. He held a smirk on his face, cruel and challenging as always, while his dark eyes remained on Cassie. While she may have been his ex-girlfriend's closest friend, Nate's favorite subject was talking shit about her and showing her pictures and videos to anyone who hadn't seen them yet. 

"Class project." You answered through gritted teeth, meeting his amused gaze with a glare.

"Really? What class?" Nate folded his arms over his chest with furrowed brows, the fake curiosity on his face making a wave of irritation wash over you. Once upon a time, Nate had been your best friend. He'd been the brother you relied on for everything and then one day, a switch had flipped in him that made him unbearable to be around due to his volatile and angry nature.

"English." You walked forward and took Cassie's wrist, leading her away from your mother and smirking brother. You headed up the stairs and continued down the hall back to your bedroom, slamming the door loud enough to cease Aaron's attempts at chatting. You exhaled heavily and dropped her wrist to run your hand over your face.

"Is... Is this a bad time?" She asked softly, setting her purse aside on the desk near the door. 

"It's always a bad time here, Cass." You sighed again and approached your bed, plopping down on it and resting your arms on your thighs. "I think we need to set some ground rules. For starters, we're keeping this to ourselves, remember? That means we don't drop unannounced at each other's places, especially if our siblings are home. I like hanging out with you, Cass. You're funny and sweet and pretty but Nate will be a pain in the ass and Maddy might get mad at you if anyone else were to find out." 

"I get it." Cassie nodded, her blonde waves bouncing back and forth over her shoulders. "I'm sorry."

"I know, Cass." You extended your arm out toward her and she smiled, blue eyes sparkling as she crossed the room and happily settled down on your lap. She wrapped her arms around your shoulders and pressed her pink-colored lips against your cheek. Bumping your nose against hers, you gazed into her pretty eyes. "But please, whatever you do... don't fall in love with me.“

[leverage-ot3]

parker in the inside job is so real to me

parker, who has had a very complicated relationship with the concept of ‘family’, who blew up her abusive foster parent’s house, who bounced around the foster system before ultimately making a run for it

who was caught pick pocketing a world-renowned thief and taken in under his wing where he molded her into the best thief that ever existed, where he then ‘released her into the world’

archie took her in, yes, but he didn’t really take her in. he kept her at arm’s length, letting her live in empty warehouses and learning how to pick locks and beat security systems instead of going to school or learning what familial love was

he raised her, but only barely

and leverage did a great job of adding subtleties to her to have her come off as neurodivergent, most likely autistic. she was never what society would deem as ‘normal’, especially back then. and then archie tells nate to his face that she would never fit in, not anywhere

(and nate is mad. eliot is mad. rightfully so.)

parker is different from most people, thinks differently and acts differently. but that’s not wrong, and not her fault. but archie couldn’t see past that and take her in as she truly was, not when he had an ‘actual’ family at home. she wouldn’t fit in and that was something he wasn’t willing to risk, try or explain

and then archie calls parker asking for her thoughts on the steranko situation and she doesn’t even hesitate because his family is on the line. his real family. and he’s her father in a way no one had ever been before and looked after her in the only way she knew how and that meant something to her and she couldn’t have something like that happen to him

not on her watch

[thestupidhelmet]

Do you think Jay's womanizing could be explained by his father's and uncles' constant bragging about his conquests when he was growing up? It would make sense for him to turn out like you described, but the way he turned out in the actual show could also make a lot of sense if you imagine his father and uncles sharing TMI about their own sex lives or saying things like: "don't settle down, sleep with as many girls as you can, that's the life" or "you are twelve and you still haven't kissed a girl? You need to get right on it, you're behind!" This kind of upbringing would produce a womanizer but the show could have delved more into that and had Jay tell more stories about his home life than just "my mom is mad that I set the carpet on fire"

I think it's a plausible possibility -- without Jackie being his mother or in his life. But Jackie would've made Jay the center of her life, especially with Kelso stepping out in her regularly (a reasonable extrapolation based on his T7S characterization and their relationship in both T7S and T9S).

Jackie would not want Jay emulating his father, despite that -- or because -- she can't disentangle her romantic feelings from Kelso. While she's her T7S S1-S4 controlling and somewhat violent self to T9S Kelso, she could very well treat Jay in a much more loving way. We know she's capable of it with the right influences and motivation.

With a mom who respects, loves, and supports him, Jay would (hopefully) not develop the misogyny Kelso and his male siblings have due, in large part, to their mother's inability to parent so many children and give the attention each needs. As Eric tells Kelso in "Stolen Car" (T7S S1), Kelso's parents have seven kids and won't notice Kelso is missing or have the wherewithal to care that one was arrested.

Of course, Kelso's father is equally responsible. But from what we see of him in "Career Day" (T7S 1x18), he's not turned into his emotions. He's a worker, possibly a workaholic. He's not the dad to play a baseball game with his kids or take them to a baseball game.

But for Kelso and Casey, at least, their anger and resentment at their upbringing is transferred onto all women since their mother is likely the parent who was physically present and doing most of the parenting -- and probably at her wits' end with seven of them to raise.

Jackie has one child in T9S. Despite that she's a Jackie whose relationship with Hyde is cut from her core, her core still contains her potential to love unconditionally, her emotional insight, her reflex to be helpful and supportive, her potential to be self-aware. Jay would've gotten the best of Jackie while growing up with the discipline and boundaries Kelso is incapable of giving him.

For example, he wouldn't have stolen Nate's bike because Jackie would've made sure Jay had the best of everything, partly to (over)compensate for the father he has and her toxic relationship with him.

Kelso's sex talk(s) would consist of "doing it as much and as often as you can. That'll prove you're the hottest guy around, and everyone'll look up to you. Also, most chicks'll expect you to be monogamous. Just tell them you are and have sex with whoever you want. It worked for me. Your mom still married me --twice -- despite all the cheating I do -- I mean did. Yeah. 'Cause she'd rather be with the hottest cheater than the loserist monogamist."

(^^^ This is before the third divorce and third remarriage).

Jackie's sex talks would also be romantic relationship talks. First, she'd tell him to ignore everything his dad said. Then she'd say, "Find out who the girl you like really is. It's easy to ignore red flags if you want an idea of a girl badly enough. Don't mistake what's fantasy for what's real.

"If you don't want to be 'tied down' to one girl, that's okay. Just be honest with the girls you date. Let them know you aren't interested in being anyone's full-time boyfriend. Then they have the choice to hook up with you or not. You wouldn't want a girl you really, really like to lie to you about that, right? And being silent about the truth is the same as lying."

Jay might ask her why she stays "with Dad" or keeps going back to him.

Jackie says, "You are a wonderful, smart, creative boy. You can be whoever you want. Have what you truly want. Don't settle for less than what you're worth."

Jay says, "Wait ... are you telling me you settled for Dad? Why?"

Jackie says, "I'm telling you that you don't have to settle."

Jackie refuses to elaborate, but Jay wants to know why his great mom would settle for his not-so-great dad. This would be a driving force because it's an inextricable part of his own identity (as forged by his upbringing).

[raviposting]

Nate is really one of the most interesting characters to me, because his character begs the question: what happens when your life gets better but you’re still not happy? 

Because we see how Nate is in the beginning. We root for him and we love the attention that he gets and how he gets his time to shine. Ted’s methods clearly work for a lot of the characters, it has its merit, and Nate (at first) is no exception. He’s promoted to being a coach, he’s getting attention, the team is also improving so they’re being kinder and everything is better now, right? 

Except in season 2 (and 3!) we see the cracks - in Nate, but for all the coaches, really, because ironically the coaches who are mentoring the players and telling them to believe are also the ones we see struggling with that mentality the most. Beard’s one of Ted’s strongest supporters, his right-hand man, but we see in Beard’s episode how deep his depression and self-hatred run. Roy isn’t exactly screaming Ted’s methods from the rooftops, but we see how he slowly accepts it and appreciates it, and how it does help him - but he struggles with finding his purpose and feeling wanted and needed, and it shines in quitting things early and never getting proper closure in things he really loved, with him constantly wondering if he ever really made the best choice (his team, his job, his relationship with Keeley). Ted struggles to express these negative emotions and it spirals quickly, especially in season 2. 

And Nate? Nate watches as his life objectively gets better, but struggles because his anger and resentment don’t go away. He gets the attention from Ted but (even though it’s not the intention!) feels as if Ted drops him the second things improve. He gets a better job but his father will never say he’s proud. He tries to exude confidence but Jade (who’s most likely seen him for a while since it’s his favorite restaurant) immediately sees through through his persona and Doesn’t Care and Nate is so thrown off by it. He keeps looking for that validation through other people and we see that clear frustration because everything is better on paper so then why are the bad feelings still there? With every win, with every improvement, he gets angrier and more frustrated and then it spirals into him leaving for West Ham and Rupert. With Rupert, Nate leans in on hey, nobody loved me at my lowest and nobody loved me at my best, so maybe I’ll try being my worst. 

And god, I LOVE that even though fans thought he’d fail and that this would humble him into a redemption, he hasn’t. He tries to go with Rupert and get that validation from him and we see how much he struggles with that, because now he’s leaning in at what Rupert wants and we see how much he hates that, but Nate’s also at a point where Rupert’s attention is clearly conditional, he’s still not getting that fatherly validation, and he knows that and that’s where we see him finally start to come into his true self. Jade finally softens because she sees Nate holding strong to his opinion on Taste of Athens and admitting he’s putting on an act, he’s being honest and himself for the first time in those scenes. He tries to cultivate a relationship with the other employees and even if the Diamond Dogs ripoff didn’t work? They still invited him to drinks this episode! He sees Rupert for who he is and he goes back to Jade, and he wants so, so much to apologize to Ted for everything. 

Nate’s moved from a positive environment to this conditional one and the narrative could have easily went “Nate has crashed and burned and now realizes what he messed up” but instead it allowed Nate to figure out who he is and who he wants to be, by himself. He’s still growing and learning, of course, but he’s well on his way, and I think it’s just such a cool way to show that what’s helpful for some people can be incredibly detrimental for others if it doesn’t target what they need and that there’s so many avenues for a person to grow and improve themselves. 

[raeflora]

Do you think Chuck was an alcoholic? I could see him ending up in rehab at some point. I can also see he and Blair cheating each other---they're both the most immoral people on the planet, but I also think they'd eventually forgive each other

hi!! so truthfully I absolutely can't see either happening sorry 😭😭 chuck was always more of a drug addict than an alcoholic, although he drinks scotch on an daily basis it doesn't seem to be a problem for him unless he's spiralling and he doesn't really exhibit any signs of being an alcoholic. he turns to cocaine and other drugs when he spirals, although like serena he doesn't seem to have a cocaine addiction rather they use it when they feel things are going wrong. I think in terms of rehab if gg were real then obviously both serena and chuck would've probably had to go to rehab at some point as you can't really casually take cocaine, but it's not and after s5 neither are shown to be taking drugs (aside from chuck and nate smoking weed recreationally) so they're both not depending on drugs at all. to me chuck's version of rehab was in s5 where he goes to therapy and actively tries to improve himself, so I can't see him ending up in rehab after everything he did, and especially not now he's a father

to your other point there's absolutely no way chuck and blair would cheat on each other, and the show proved it. blair cheats on every bf she has either emotionally or physically with chuck, never on him. in s3 and s6 they're in a committed monogamous relationship (their games are the closest they get to infidelity but the rule is specifically that chuck doesn't kiss the women and blair was the one who actually came up with the games so she obviously doesn't see it as cheating) and blair canonically doesn't love any man more than she loves chuck, so she couldn't cheat on him as there's no-one she could be more attracted to or want to be with. for chuck it's basically the same, when they date in s3 he's nothing but loyal and committed and it's the same with eva and raina. there's never any real concern that he'll cheat on her, he even says that in 3x15. despite them both having dark sides and being morally dubious, that doesn't extend to the way they treat each other by the end of the show. they're both deeply in love with the other and would never risk their marriage because there's no-one worth risking it for

[datura-tea]

i just realized something. my player characters with bethesda-mandated family (lone wanderer gwen and sole survivor sofia) are estranged from that family. meanwhile my couriers (moz, kiwi, and avery) have pretty good relationships with their families :) that's what happens when a backstory isn't forced to your character i guess!!

details under the cut

gwen and james, though stuck in close proximity in the vault for 19 years, are as distant as can be. james has his work, his projects. gwen has all the turbulent drama of childhood and teenage life. they have their moments, but otherwise? nothing much. except for lectures and reprimands, they don't really talk, especially post-james and ellen's divorce. gwen has more of a relationship with ellen and butch than james.

their relationship gets worse topside, when after all gwen has done to get to james is pushed to the side because all james can think of is project purity. so after he dies, what does gwen do? let his pet project die as well. she doesn't even know what the passcode number is, when sarah lyons asks her. how the fuck would she know? her father barely told her anything. she didn't know ellen deloria wasn't her biological mom until after james divorced ellen and told gwen the truth. she's not even sure if he loved her for herself, or if he just loved her the way a parent loves their child - as an extension of themself and their values. now that he's dead, she'll never know for sure.

sofia has a good relationship with her family back home in the philippines, all six siblings and both parents and both sets of grandparents, and countless uncles and aunts and cousins of them. the problem is nate. and shaun, eventually. the thing is, sofia never imagined herself marrying a foreigner, much less a blue-eyed american soldier. she never would have married nate if he hadn't gotten her pregnant. but with abortion being illegal in the philippines, and with nate being "a true gentleman" in his words, there was little else she could do.

in boston, a shotgun wedding. which turned into a loveless marriage pretty quick, once the honeymoon phase wore off. homesickness. morning sickness. anti-asian racist microagressions from neighbors who've never met a filipino before, even though america annexed the philippines decades ago. a miserable life, freshly post-partum and friendless and jobless, all alone in a big house with only a baby and a robot butler for company. who wouldn't fall into a deep depression?

and don't get me started on shaun. sofia placed all her hopes and dreams and joys on meeting her baby boy and watching him grow up, teaching him tagalog and sharing with him all her favorite meals and memories. can you imagine how sofia felt, when he got kidnapped? when she spent her first year in the post-apocalypse relentlessly trying to find him? when she killed kellogg in her rage and grief over him? when, finally, they meet and he isn't a baby but an old man, the leader of the group she's looking to dismantle, and she realizes that he came from her but he's not of her, he doesn't know her and she doesn't know him, and she hates everything he stands for, but still she's his mother and she loves him but she'll never like him? can you imagine???

meanwhile: moz and her big family with her mothers dalisay and philomena, her big brother lakan with his wife guadalupe and their eight kids (all adopted), and her husband ulysses and their child ree, plus everyone in the painted hairs, everyone in their town whom she calls tito and tita and ate and kuya and bunso and totoy and nene :) nothing but love and understanding there!!

kiwi and their family of butchers and tailors - grandmother, father, mother, and brothers, all adept with shiny sharp things. strict but loving, in the "i want what i think is best for you" kind of way. kiwi would have stayed if their father didn't keep forcing the butchershop and their straight marriage to a family friend's daughter on them. honestly if kiwi went home, they'd find their father a changed man - he only wants kiwi to be happy, really; if wearing sequins and being the right-hand man of mr house is the key to that happiness, then so be it!

avery is an only son, raised by a single mother after his ncr ranger father died. he and his mother will defend each other to death - which is why avery set fire to his mother's asshole (now ex-)boyfriend's house when he hurt avery's mom. on the run, avery still writes letters home. he never leaves a return address until after he gains amnesty for his arson charge. by then, his return address is the lucky 38. his mom sends him one hell of a letter. the first thing he does after winning the battle of hoover dam is go home to his mom :)

[percysaidnever]

ted lasso s3e11 oh dear god

i’m not mentally stable enough to fully process so initial thoughts!!

I truly believe Phil Dunster filmed to boot room scene with the sole intention of making Brett Goldstein break character

THE PARALLELS from the very beginning of Ted being happy go lucky and loved while Rebecca is angst!! to now Ted’s mom being happy and loved while Ted is angst is truly amazing

plz rebecca getting in the team bus bc nora yelled at her about her private jet usage i love

SAM AND REBECCA TURNING TO EACH OTHER DURING THE END OF YOUVE GOT MAIL OMG

Beard’s nickname for Teds mom!!

Rebecca excited to know Teds mom!!

Mae dropping free therapy everywhere she goes?? love that for her!!

the boys showing up at Taste of Athens was so …? bc last time they were like fuck nate!! at the west ham game but now their like happy and healthy like the lovable himbos they are

this was not an episode about mother/son relationships and truly processing trauma, this was an episode about kebabs

the way Jade likes the things about Nate she doesn’t understand!!! (thinking 60 pgs is crazy but still picking up the pen to edit!!)

Roy and Keelee trying to steal follow Jamie is the funniest thing, especially when she’s farting between cars and Roy’s just on the sidewalk

he! went! to! see! his! mom!!!

i am very happy that Jamie has one canonically fantastic parent and fun baking stepdad!

also the crowd cheering him as he leaves truly made me tear up

the duality of the Roy Keelee posters in Jamie’s room

Ted and his mom having a real talk truly showing how much Ted has grown, especially with how he started off kinda anti-therapy to who he is now

question: what actually is meatloaf? I have no idea????

i know the whole thing is gonna end with Ted going back to Kansas and that’s why we have the whole, admittedly important for Ted, Henry part but I still want him to stay so badly and it feels right for the character to stay and bring Henry to Richmond

lmao the nose mask bc of Dani

Van Damme slayed so hard omg absolute king i love you baby keep saving those goals!

THE COACH BEARD LORE OMG

truly explains his dedication to Ted and why he was so angry with Nate, who hurt his friends and betrayed Teds trust the same way he did with the car

i know he’s but but for a second there i thought Jamie’s father was dead!?!

and i love Higgins and his refusal to move!! he’s so sweet!!

[faorism]

why does it seem like every tv character with an established shitty relationship with a parent (whether abusive or otherwise) has to reconcile with them lol i hate it so much

[context: this post on billy and eliot]

i have no fucking idea, other than that lev:red found ways to insist on your current (queer) found family is not enough to soothe one's soul. there is no true going forward, if you havent gone backward in order to fix something that we didnt see as broken; instead, it was a complexity that humbly fades into the background of the cool characters we love to untangle in our own projections.

reconciliation is not always the answer. the pressure to reconcile (and specifically to do so before i was ready) did irreparable damage. sometimes things happen where we came from, but we find our people. it is not a wish fulfillment fantasy i feel is necessary for leverage. archies first episode ended with difficult parent relationship done right: parker, realizing archie is not who she wanted him to be but settling into the fact that she has family now. real family. they backtracked in the last dam job, sadly.

billys wife, eliots mom, the REASON billy gave up on eliot due to the funeral absence.... she didnt warrant a first name.

they also did the billy&eliot from the other side with sophie and her first crew, but especially sophie with her stepdaughter. sophie didn't need to have a mothering role thrown on her after six seasons without it being mentioned or hinted at. (dont you think that when nate was grieving once against over sam, sophie might have mentioned ANYTHING about being a parent??). sophie suddenly became a Bad Mother that we had to just accept haunted her. and then astrid (A FUCKING SUPER COP, UGH ACAB, HATE THAT LEVERAGE LOVES COPS SO MUCH) had to just.... reconcile with the woman who broke her father's heart, broke her heart, and is still working with the tools that helped deceive her father.

is that was redemption is to lev:red? tracing back the supposed "core" of you (bio/in-law family) so you can confess your wrongs and get a stern pat on the back? maybe nate is there as a ghost but as the earlier version where he was a priest, cuz this is all sounding mighty catholic to me......

[sweaterkittensahoy]

Oh, look, more Ted Lasso 3.1 thoughts

So many. Let's go to the bullet points:

Rebecca thinking she's fine about the whole Rupert and Nate thing and clearly NOT being okay with it to the point of wanting Ted to be an asshole in response to Nate, but then, when Ted is Ted, Rebecca's realization comes from Keeley PRAISING her for a decision she didn't even make. But Rebecca realizing through Keeley's genuine praise (because Keeley wasn't there) that the best decision is to let Ted be Ted was just a really great, layered Rebecca moment.

Keeley's office doesn't look like Keeley. The neon sign does. Her wardrobe does. Those people in that office? The couch furniture in her own office? None of that is Keeley. That is Keeley thinking this is what it looks like to go into corporate PR with investor money. I look forward to watching furry pillows and glittery accessories take over the office as Keeley finds her confidence in a different phase of her career.

We all fucking know Roy is the one who decided they needed a break, and Roy, you fucking walnut. I get it. I look forward to the story of it. But the story is Keeley saying, "If I put this off again," and trying to comfort Roy, and Phoebe, smart nugget that she is, knowing stupid when she sees it. Keeley has agreed to this break up because Roy thinks it's needed, and she has no doubt spent a lot of time trying to talk him out of it. They deserve each other wholly, and I can't wait for Roy to get slapped in the face with that.

The himbos are doing great. So proud of all of them. But, yes, especially Jamie but also Richard making clear that a fine wine is not an expensive wine. But also also, all of our boys.

I love you, Jan Mass. You keep up being Dutch, kiddo.

Beard being proud of Ted for learning soccer shit and also knowing how long to wait before getting back on the bus with a toad venom-addled driver is just the perfect dichotomy of Beard.

I have a lot of thoughts about Ted's actual relationship with Henry (clearly positive and happy and healthy) and what he thinks the relationship is (distant and unhappy because he's not physically there), but if I go down that road, I'm never coming back. In short, I hope that part of Ted's journey this season is realizing he is a great fucking father and that physical distance doesn't change that.

Ted calling Sharon for a clearly planned session right after dropping off Henry? That is fucking PROGRESS my friends. And not just that, but also he doesn't question Sharon setting time boundaries OR setting personal boundaries.

I LOVE that Sharon allows him to ask personal questions because the personal connection is absolutely what Ted needs. And I love that she refuses to give him clear answers and doesn't rise to the bait he tries to set out with 'You usually say no'. The way he asks the team and the sport then asks the number of Australians, then guesses rugby, and Sharon confirms NOTHING? That's top-tier therapist shit. And we all knew she was that good, but now Ted clearly knows it too and TRUSTS it, more importantly.

I didn't notice until gif sets, but they named the stadium after Earl. Which. Shut up.

Higgins having matching Keeley mascara on his shirt makes me SO HAPPY. Because it tells you without showing you that Higgins and Keeley are still close and caring about each other. And Rebecca and Higgins having a moment about it is so NICE. Just NICE. It's fucking NICE.

I mentioned Sharon's boytoy in another post, but I want to repeat it because 1) she deserves it, and 2) he shows he deserves HER because he's wearing headphones while she talks to a client, and he doesn't take them off until after she walks in the room, clearly off the phone. He respects her as a professional. This is very important and excellent.

I am going to find Rupert and kick him in the balls as many times as I can in one minute, then I'm going to take a five minute breather and start again.

The isolation of Nate at West Ham (alone on the escalator; not answering to a polite hello; standing far away from his co-coach on the field; working far away from the locker room) is intentionally uncomfortable for us as an audience. We're used to a very collaborative coach in a close-knit environment. But that's not Nate's story. Nate's story is one of thinking isolation and arrogance will save him from his worst self-fears. We all know that shouldn't be his goal, but it isn't about how WE know he's wrong. It's about NATE figuring out he's doing it wrong.

There is no fucking way Rupert didn't know it was Nate's car when he towed it. New guy. New car in the fancy lot. Does he ask, though? No. That would be healthy. Instead, he sets it up so Nate can see he's disappointed in him without him saying it (a common abuse tactic), and then lovebombing him with a new car as a way to tighten his control (another common abuse tactic). He also encouraged Nate's worst tendencies to build a sense of safety that isn't actually there because Rupert will absolutely use those same groomed instincts at a later date against Nate (more abuse tactics).

I hope Rupert gets him by a team bus is what I'm saying. And I want Nate to be driving it and do it on purpose, frankly.

I don't want it to be Rebecca only because she's beyond that point of her anger. But I def want her to be a character witness for Nate.

I want Ted to stay in England. He's talking a lot about how he doesn't know why he is where he is or doing what he's doing. And I know a lot of people hope he goes back to Kansas. But that's not my hope. My hope is that Ted will realize he's doing great stuff with these boys and that he's a great dad even with physical distance, and he finds a new love and appreciation for himself that is directly connected to making this huge, confusing, and messy leap to go to England.

You can do something dumb (run to England to escape your failing marriage) and learn that while your instincts may have been dumb, the overall result is positive and good for you.

Which, also, could be Nate's arc this season. He made several dumb decisions about being a source and going to West Ham, but the end result could be, "Oh, shit, I don't want to be this shitty person." and then he can grow and change on a similar but different path to Ted.

Okay, that's enough. That's very long. I get a lot of feels.

[radiokathryn-if]

What are their thoughts about marriage and kids?

MARRIAGE

Nate only proposed to Eva to attach his name to her and her upcoming fame. He thinks marriage would "tie him down too much" when he's a free bird "for the people, don't want to disappoint." (he's a dick with commitment issues and an ego the size of the sun)

Eva has been dreaming of a perfect wedding since she was ten years old. She was chosen to be a flower girl in her aunt's wedding and fell in love with the whole thing… which is probably why she's still so hung up on the ring on her finger even though the person who gave it to her has lost her love.

Mica is not fussed with marriage. They don't think a relationship needs to cumulate to marriage for it to mean something real or for forever. Would be content to just be with you──you both know how much it means to you. Bonus if you're the same gender: you become the infamous 'friends who live together and everyone assumes you're together but they never confirm or deny' couple of the neighborhood.

Detective Han is surprisingly into the thought of marriage. It's only a thought that comes to them after they've dedicated themselves to you for a long while but it's one that makes them smile. Won't go extravagant for the wedding though, a smaller one would be great.

José would love to get married! They're a romantic at heart. Might actually propose first but would love it if you proposed at the same time (it's a secret dream of theirs). They'd want a big wedding but keep it simple, they don't need everything to be perfect they just want to marry you!

Ji Han will be so into the wedding planning process it's actually quite funny. He wants everything to be perfect for the two of you and it happens because he's made of magic. Husband material 100%.

One of Fauve's biggest dreams is to be one of those people that's been engaged for forever. She doesn't want to get married purely because she liked the sound of 'fiance' over 'wife'. That's the reason. She's might try to convince you to play along and keep proposing to each other every few years... keep people wondering 'aren't they already engaged???'

Jackson's not rushing to get married again. Marriage is kind of ruined for him at the moment. If it's important to you he may come around but other wise it's not really an adventure he wants to run through again.

??? is sceptical about marriage they have parental issues but not so much they hate it. They'd prefer a really small wedding of just you, a couple of witnesses and the officiant.

KIDS

Nate would rather die than be a father. It might be because of his own parents but he won't even entertain the thought.

Eva would like a child. She's the youngest of two girls──Marisol being almost seven years older than her however meant they didn't have much in common growing up. She's a little scared about pregnancy and birth but she's willing to do it at least once. Her feelings might change after the child is born if she'd want another but one child is enough for now! (She secretly wishes for a girl but she will not shun a boy, she was raised better than that!)

Mica likes children. Children are cool. They don't think that being a parent is for them though. It's not a deal breaker but it's not something they are actively looking for.

Detective Han is… indifferent about children, especially their own. They could live without them and they would definitely have an existential crisis if it turned out the two of you were expecting but they would stay and step up! The day after the news dropped they'd've bought like five books on pregnancy and babies and already studying them intently.

José loves children! They come from a big family──they have four siblings (five children including them) and is the second oldest! José would want to wait until things are very settled before starting a family but they definitely want children. Two of three would be a dream but they don't mind less or more!

Kids are something Ji Han hasn't thought of before. He's still focused on his school and professional life and then his relationship with you. It would be some to sit down and talk about because he doesn't have much of an opinion on the situation. He'd be a great uncle 100% though.

Fauve doesn't want children, it's a hard no for her. The thought of pregnancy is a terrifying one for her (and for you if you're able) and babies make her extremely uncomfortable. I might be because she was alive when her mother went through a late stage miscarriage but she isn't taking any chances. She might be open to adopting a child over the age of five if you are someone who really wants a child but she will not be giving birth──ever.

Jackson already has a daughter, Cilly. He loves her more than anything in this world. He won't object to having another child in the future, especially with you, but it's not a requirement of his, Cilly is more than enough for him!

??? would like to have children but would actually brick it if it really happened. Their own parents were not the best so they have no idea what kind of parent they'd be, which is a step towards being a good parent anyway. They'd prefer to go slow with one child but if there's more they won't complain.

[threewaywithdelusion]

I’ve been seeing the Jamie Forgiving His Dad debate and I think it’s really interesting.

A) we don’t know if he forgives his dad. All we know is that he visits him in rehab. Maybe they fight. Maybe Jamie decides he can’t be around his father because his dad finally making an effort is too little, too late. Maybe James Tartt falls off the wagon.

B) I don’t hate it as an ending because it feels true to the characters. If I were Jamie, would I forgive James Tartt? No. Do I think people should always forgive their abusive parents if they learn from their mistakes and try to be better? Also no. Do I think Jamie Tartt, as a character, is the type of person to give his dad a second chance even after everything his father put him through? Absolutely yes.

Do I think Ted Lasso is the type of person to tell Jamie to forgive his dad even though that’s arguably terrible advice? Also absolutely yes. Ted believes in second chances, even when people don’t deserve them.

Watching Ted Lasso, I was thinking about Buffy. (Haha yes, the day I don’t relate something to Buffy you will know I have been replaced by an alien lookalike).

Anyway.

In Buffy, Giles says “To forgive is an act of compassion, Buffy. It’s not done because people deserve it. It’s done because they need it.”

In some places, Ted Lasso executes that idea really well. It’s Ted forgiving Rebecca for sabotaging Richmond for a whole season because “divorce is hard.” It’s Ted telling the police that he gave Beard his car. It’s Ted never holding Nate’s betrayal against him, even though it hurt him deeply and personally, and welcoming him back with open arms.

It’s Ted, it’s Ted, it’s Ted.

Of course Ted told Jamie to forgive his father. He couldn’t ever have done anything else.

Also featured in Buffy is the idea that “redemption is a process, not an event” (to quote Mark Field in Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Myth, Metaphor, & Morality). This idea shows up again and again, but especially in the characters of Angel, Faith, Spike, and Willow.

One grand gesture is not redemption. Promises are not redemption. Redemption “is fighting. It’s hard and it’s painful and it’s everyday.” 3.10

So no, I don’t think James Tartt has been redeemed. I think he can be. If he tries really, really hard every single day for the rest of his life, then maybe he can be redeemed. He can’t know he will succeed and that’s part of the point: to struggle and fight to be good, not to win back Jamie’s affections or to be considered a good person, but because it’s the right thing to do.

(Doctor Who now: “Goodness is not goodness that seeks advantage. Good is good in the final hour, in the deepest pit, without hope, without witness, without reward.”)

Redemption is Jamie apologising to his teammates, not being a bully again, and actually passing the ball. A (much flimsier) redemption is Nate giving up the glory that he’s chased at everyone else’s expense and going back to being Richmond’s kit boy.

Redemption is not Isaac attacking a homophobic fan because that is an Event, not a Process. (If he wants redemption, he’s going to have to work harder and keep working, but I do have faith that Isaac will get there).

One of the things I like about Ted Lasso is that the characters are imperfect. Always. They work on themselves and try to be better people and they’re still imperfect. When the story ends, Roy is still the kind of guy to get into a fistfight over his ex-girlfriend. Jamie is still the kind of guy to use a leaked sex tape like a weapon when he feels threatened. Rebecca is still the kind of woman who shields herself against a relationship that could really hurt, because she's been burned before. Ted still hides his emotions behind humor and forgives people who don’t deserve it. Beard goes back to Jane.

Do the characters end up better than where they started? I’d say overall, yes. Have they fixed all their flaws and overcome all their struggles? Absolutely not.

All that to say, I like that Jamie went to see his father. Personally, I think that's going to go terribly and James is going to let him down again. I don't think James Tartt deserves forgiveness or a second chance. But Jamie has to be Jamie. And Jamie was always going to forgive his father the second James Tartt showed the slightest hint of trying to reform himself.

[wildflowercryptid]

SOME MJVERSE FAMILY HEADCANONS!

kris and lyra are sisters, kris being the older of the two. she went on her journey two years before lyra and ethan go on their's, but now she's working as elm's field assistant and researches the myths and mysteries of johto whenever she can find time. ethan and lyra run into her a few times throughout their own journeys, almost always accompanied by leaf ( who was traveling through johto and insisted on joining her the moment she mentioned legendary pokémon. ) lyra also makes a habit of teasing her big sister for the obvious crush she's developing on her companion.

agatha and bertha are relatives, bertha being a direct descendant of charm while agatha is descended from one of charm's siblings back in kanto. they used to spend time with each other at family reunions as kids and still keep in touch through letters.

pheobe is half-alolan and related to acerola. staying connected to her alolan heritage is very important to pheobe and talking to acerola about the culture helps her feel more in touch with it. in turn, she helps acerola strengthen her spiritual abilities and teaches her how to better communicate with ghost-types.

hilda and hilbert are siblings, with hilbert being older by one year. they're very close and are always looking out for each other, no matter how much they bicker and rib each other. hilbert sits out on picking starters at the beginning of the game, as he received a scraggy for his birthday the year prior.

rosa and nate are twins, rosa being older by a minute. the two seem to have pretty similar personalities at first glance, ( both being high-spirited, big-hearted, and ready to take on whatever life throws at them, ) but the small differences become more obvious the more you get to know them. rosa has a tendency to run headfirst into any and all situations, which often gets her into trouble, while nate is a lot more pragmatic and tries to assess things before tackling problems. they often seem to balance each other because of this, but have to learn how to not rely on each other as much when their journeys put them on different paths.

serena is a descendant of az through her mother, grace. no one is aware of this expect az himself.

mizuki and elio are cousins, mizuki being half-alolan and staying with elio's family at the start of the game. elio is a lot more laid-back than the high-energy mizuki and often looks out for her like a big brother during her island challenge ( even though he's only a few months older than her. )

nia and penny are sisters. their parents separated when penny was pretty young, ( all the stuff going on peony and the league and rose put a major strain on their marriage, ) with their mother moving back home to paldea with her. they keep in touch through text / video chat and nia is very protective of her little sister, especially after finding out what happened at the academy.

larry is giacomo and poppy's father. he separated from their mother after coming to terms with his sexuality, but the two are still on good terms. he overworks himself to help provide for his kids, not realizing how his lack of presence could end up straining his relationship with them. giacomo is especially distant from his dad, going as far to not mention who he's related to unless asked, but that has more to do with him feeling like a failure when being compared to him than anything else. he does love hanging out with his little sister, though. ( he likes teaching her songs... and bad words, but don't tell his dad he does that. )

[piperslovebot]

My current feelings on the T9S ships (updated)

I made this a few months ago and I thought since s2 is out, I can do this again.

Jay/Leia - I ship them even harder this season than the last because we get to see just how rock solid their relationship is. It’s like how Formciotti was a budding relationship in s1 and in s2, we see them mature. And I love their ‘I love you' arc! It’s so angsty and obstacle filled yet so them! I love how much Jay was willing to do to prove that he's changed. I can easily say that after watching this season that I can’t imagine Jay nor Leia with anyone else.

Gwen/Nikki - Still my otp of otps. I'm so happy to see more scenes of them just like I wanted. Nikki actually gets upset at Gwen for lying and the latter apologizes and is there for her. Their plot in Baby Baby Baby was also SO GOOD. It just proves why Gwen is Nikki's best option. Gwen challenges Nikki to get out of her comfort zone, and take risks. And Nikki is good for Gwen too! I feel like aside from Cole, Nikki really brought out Gwen's soft side this season. I actually have a feeling they'll end up being a thing. I hope they do.

Gwen/Cole - They were so sweet together imo. I loved seeing Gwen navigate a relationship for the first time, and I really like Cole. He’s such a sweetheart and makes Gwen really happy. I hope we see more of them in part 3. This is the only valid het ship for Gwen as far as I’m concerned.

Gwen/Leia - I love their dynamic, but I don’t ship them romantically anymore this season. They had cute moments, but for the most part, that romantic tension was gone this season. I do love seeing their friendship growing stronger and they truly remind me of Jackie and Donna, especially in the episode where Leia gives Gwen relationship advice.

Nikki/Leia - I honestly don’t know. I like how things were handled with them when it came to the Nate shit, and I loved their hug in the premiere 🥰. I'm not exactly in love with Nikki saying that Leia was "clueless" and like "a doll that was wished to life yesterday" (she’s not wrong tho since girlie was sheltered after till '95 😂) and obviously there’s the Nate stuff haha. But I like the bones we got and I think it'll be cool to see more of them in part 3.

Jay/Ozzie - I love their friendship, but I can’t see them romantically anymore, even if I didn’t only see Jay and Leia with each other 😂. I don’t see Ozzie being into Jay tbh, but who knows? Anything can happen.

Ozzie/Etienne - Etienne, you dickhead lol. Him dumping Ozzie through a phone call is so shitty and Ozzie deserves better.

Jay/Nate - Still love them. Even though Jeia is my heart, I still get Janate feels haha. I love how Jay was there for Nate during his breakup with Nikki. One thing about Jay Kelso is unlike his father, he's loyal as fuck haha. I really love their friendship in this season and I can’t wait to see more in part 3. No one gets Nate the way Jay does.

Nate/Leia - At this point, I only want them as Hyde/Donna friendship. Them being a couple at this point imo would make no sense. Both of them admitted it was just a heat of the moment thing and that they want Nikki and Jay. They still have great chemistry tho haha.

Nate/Nikki - I like their storyline a lot better this season. With them finally breaking up, Nate apologizing to Nikki, and their fwb arc. And they were so carefree and happy around one another.

But as a couple, I don’t want them back. It's like, they both are still on different pages when it comes to their futures; and I've talked how I believe that Nikki's current views on her future make them more incompatible so I'm not gonna do that again haha. Plus I feel like if they got back together, all that carefreeness and joy would be gone and they'd go back to constantly fighting.

I much rather them as friends or fwb than them becoming a couple again.

[wellnoe]

I love love love all of your art, and tbh you're the reason I love Madelyne and Rachel so much now (especially Mads I love her), and I was wondering exactly how many kids Cyclops has? And how do you think his relationship is different with each kid?

scott has 3 children in 616: nate, rachel, and nathan. i am going to be honest right out the gate i know nothing about nate. he's from a different universe or a different timeline or something. i don't think he and scott have much of a relationship? i don't know that he even really sees scott as his father or a father figure? i have read exactly 1 comic that he appears in. i guess scott did kind of die for him, but in my head that ends up affecting scott's relationship with cable more than with nate.

i think that scott thinks his relationship w cable is more precarious than his relationship w rachel. this is bc his relationship to cable has been largely defined by the threat of nathan being taken from him, or having to literally acquiesce to nathan being taken from him, and also bc cable had/has a lot of grievances against his dad.

cable and scott don't exactly see eye to eye. they have different ideas and different approaches and also cable spent a lot of time being upset about decisions scott had made while nathan was a baby. while scott and rachel certainly have had uhhh rifts in their relationship, i think scott still thinks of rachel as someone who is like. committed to the x-men and that kind of way of fighting in a way he does not with cable. and i also think scott is more able to see rachel as a kid. bc she is younger than him. and that makes some things easier.

like i just think scott and cable's relationship is way more defined by a sense of scott's failings (personal and ideological) than scott and rachel's is, even when rachel also gets mad at scott? that is my impression anyway.

[variousqueerthings]

okok i do wanna think about structure and ted lasso, real quick (or not, we'll see) (edit, it was not quick) (edit, okay we'll make a separate post for hypothetical s4) (edit, I have no idea if there are mistakes in this, but fuckit we post!)

I really liked the ending overall (I have some things I disagree with, mainly that nate would want to be kitman again and his relationship with jade, but I will get more into nate on this post!) (edit, I will get more into nate's ending in the s4 post, however other nate stuff is here)

I keep feeling confused about why it was 3 and not 4 seasons, I am charlie day meme about it all -- several characters could've done with more space overall, especially nate, sam, and keeley

so I'm thinking about the 4-season structure

SEASON ONE: introductions + set-up for some of the major storylines. we know rebecca and rupert, we know ted's panic attacks (but not, yet, his family backstory), we know jamie a little better, we know that nate's been bullied but has an opportunity now to change his fortunes, we know that keeley's been floating around and is trying to find her purpose + she and roy are something or other, we know roy's going to retire, so there'll be something about that + a few other things, such as potential narrative development with sam

* SEASON TWO: roy and keeley's relationship continues to develop + they're both on the journey of figuring out who they are individually (which may clash with finding out who they are together), jamie needs to find his way back to the team, we get more about sam and his ideals + the struggle with politics in football, especially through being Nigerian, so focus on exploitation and effects of colonialism on a young Black man playing for an english football team, we discover that ted's father killed himself and he isn't a fan of therapy, nate's newfound power clashes with nobody really dealing with the harassment he faced in the past and so he turns to rupert to get what he considers real power, rebecca genuinely wants the team to succeed off the back of relegation which changes the overall focus, but with the success of the win on a playing level, comes the fallout of personal relationships *deep breath in*

* SEASON THREE: here could be the continued delving into those personal relationships, including times when one needs to cut off a relationship (whether professional or personal or both) and times to remember who matters to you and who you'll be there for, with the episodes ranging between 30-40mins max (except for sunflowers, you can stay at that length) -

a lot of below is similar to what does happen, but with an understanding that they're structured differently, particularly with regards to the ending (which being a hypothetical s3of4 rather than a final season, is filled with uncertainty, rather than wrapped up)

keeley: roy and keeley split up (in second ep not first) because roy is convinced it won't work out, and it affects keeley's start in a new business. as a consequence of not feeling confident on her own two feet + very hurt about roy, she gets into hot water because she hires a past friend and gets romantically involved with her boss. the season ends for her with the friendship, romantic, and business-relationship being ended, but with one character she didn't think was in her corner, sticking up for her -- barbara. rebecca offers some start-up money for a smaller version of the company at the end. her need to have shandy around and unhealthy relationship with jack last the whole season. at the end of it her boyfriend split up with her, and similarly two people she thought she could rely on (her friend and her new gf) made things worse for her, but she discovers who she can rely on, and makes a commitment to being in control of her company and not putting others' needs ahead of her own. the end of season 3 is her bringing the proposal for a women's team to rebecca, but there's another season to come...

nate: we follow nate at west ham as a trainer. as he starts to doubt rupert's intentions and realises that his newfound power has not, in fact, given him confidence, he begins to change his training methods from bullying to taking in some of ted's ways of buoying the team. he dates jade who's suddenly giving him the time of day, but it doesn't work out because he realises that she was never all that nice to him and part of a wider group of people that he let dictate his worth (including his father). he leaves both the team (rupert) and jade, with an expectation that while he doesn't know how he'll get around to it, he will start valuing himself more. this can end on his making amends with will with the locker-room scene, and returning home to his old bedroom, unsure of what will happen in his life now, but at least out of a bad place. rupert bad-mouths him to the press and without nate knowing, this upsets the richmond team and ted especially

sam: sam's narrative with the restaurant and his political narrative start to become more intertwined, like they do on the show, but on a larger scale and slower -- this includes edwin akufo sabotaging his career several times and his hitting an overall breaking point, at which point his dad comes into the picture. again, this builds up slower + are connected, so him not playing for nigeria is tied emotionally to the restaurant being trashed. the team continuously supports him in getting people to the restaurant and start openly backing up his political presence online, perhaps urging other footballers to do the same. they help to rebuild and reopen his restaurant, getting him tons of customers. for now his future is very uncertain, but he knows the others are there for him. near the end of the season he and rebecca have a conversation as well, finally clearing the air between them, so that the breakup isn't just something coming from her side, but sam has some opinion about it and say in how it goes down as well

roy's and jamie's storylines still revolve around their bonding and unpacking Stuff together, and perhaps includes talking about keeley and where they both went wrong + jamie's nerves about eventually playing manchester city again and his dad being there (he finds out at the end of the season that he's in rehab). keeley, roy, and jamie celebrate the mancity win together/we still have them coming to his mother's place, but it's at the end of the season. overall pretty similar, including roy's commitment to go to therapy, but spread out more

rebecca's storyline is still about letting go of wanting to "beat" rupert and ends with bex coming to her, and we have a conversation between them, although we don't know what they'll do yet. I want her to continuously not like zava, despite having hired him, and feel like there's something more she ought to do for the team. at the end she does consider selling, but then final scene is keeley putting the women's team proposal in front of her

ted's storyline is still him floundering between his commitments to the team and wanting to go home, and while he does get it together, it ends with him telling rebecca that at the end of the football season he'll be going home (or it ends on the cliffhanger and s4 begins with them knowing he'll be going home at the end of the season)

colin's storyline still ends with him kissing his boyfriend, except it's at the end of the mancity match, and perhaps there is some focus on this/perhaps it'll affect s4 (I'm on the fence about this as it is meant to be a fantasy, but for this version, which grapples a tad more with the politics inherent in football)

trent's still there to write the book, and as a chronicler gets to still do that meta exposition, and exists even more to comment on the ways things are happening with the various characters, including doubting zava's presence as a good thing. perhaps as a callback to s1 he challenges ted more directly on his lack of passion (because he's torn and unsure), but the difference is that this time he believes in ted, where ted doesn't believe in himself. we also get an episode where he interviews various team-members, because that would be hilarious

beard is still in a rocky relationship with jane, but it's on the outs/not considered healthy. he ends up breaking up with her for good (although she's still in s4 in some capacity/he still thinks about her in s4). he misses the signs that ted isn't totally focused at first, because he's focused on jane, but he and ted briefly have a disagreement (not a falling out, more a "oh hey what's happening there") before both recommitting to the team doing well in the league at the end of the season

*

overall: the season includes putting zava into the mix, but he stays for most of the season, with people gradually realising (both the team, and the commentators) that he's not actually good for the team as it's been developing thus far, and there's an overarching message of knowing who's got your back (both in the specifics of the storylines, as well as on the pitch). zava perhaps leaves on his own, or ted starts a conversation about getting rid of him that he overrides as if it was his idea, and there's no overall hard feelings. we also meet his wife at some point

the rest of the team get closer throughout, with similar kinds of narratives as what we saw, particularly around colin and isaac

the 3rd season is only half of the league and ends on the mancity match, mirroring the mancity match in s1, with jamie this time scoring that goal and it being a different kind of victory to when he made the extra pass + it overall goes down pretty much the same

the focus of s3 is about various personal relationships that either need to be left behind or re-committed to, whilst ted's preparing for his exit. it sets up the final pieces for s4 to play out

three bigger subjects that are also set up to have more focus in the final season are: racism and homophobia in football, and equal access for women in football -- perhaps we start on a women's match, or with some discussion about the england vs germany win, so there's a sense that this will matter going forwards, and continuously there's reference to women's football in some way

structural changes: a lot of the second half of the show doesn't happen (partially, yet), with several of the earlier season things developing much slower, with nathan leaving west ham + keeley and jack breaking up + shandy blowing up + sunflowers all coming later + zava arrives later and stays for longer, edwin akufo arrives earlier and is centred around sam's storyline, and the restaurant destruction occurs later, along with sunflowers "ultimate football" doesn't begin to happen until late in the season, with the understanding that it will be developed more in s4

where s1 was a structural setup for s2, s3 is an emotional setup for s4

the biggest difference overall is that people leave the season mostly uncertain of their future, except for trent who's kind of a narrator now, and ted. ted knows he'll be going home. everybody else is focused on rebuilding in s4 -- keeley's business version 2.0. having less money behind it but a dedicated team, nate no longer with west ham but back home with his parents, sam's restaurant reopening but unsure of how he'll achieve his dream of being on the Nigerian team, rebecca considering selling the club but suddenly handed a brand new opportunity, roy starting therapy with shannon (as s3 ends for him already), jamie discovering his dad has gone to rehab and not knowing what to make of that information. there's a feeling that certain relationships (jamie, keeley, roy // nate and the team // keeley and rebecca // ted and beard // rebecca and ted) have been pushed aside more or less for things that didn't matter as much, and next season they'll try to make it right

what doesn't happen in this season: nate doesn't return officially to the team in any capacity (yet), he doesn't have an interaction with beard or the rest of the team (yet), he doesn't date jade for that long and we don't have as many scenes of them vs what's happening with him at west ham -- the akufo league isn't proposed, we don't see jamie texting his dad (yet) or reconnecting with him, the last episode doesn't happen (since it's a finale episode)

the mancity episode is still the second-to-last, but the last one has a focus on setting up s4, including nate going to live with his family + apologising to will, sam's restaurant having a grand reopening that everyone comes to, ted telling rebecca he's leaving (or about to tell her), roy starting therapy, bex coming to rebecca about rupert, with the most one-to-one parts being keeley's revamped business and the women's football team proposal shot

what I'm not sure about: michelle's relationship with their therapist -- I didn't really want to see it, but since it was there, I kind of wish it had felt more organic in some way and not just "oh and then they don't get on"

jamie and roy fighting for keeley's attention -- wasn't a big fan of it, especially as it was tacked onto the final episode of the show and so felt a bit out of nowhere, but if it was with an understanding that they both have work to do, then yeah maybe? but also I don't think it's so interesting, so I'd leave it on the cutting room floor, especially for this season