What I’m Watching: Ted Lasso

Ted Lasso: Season 2, Episode 9 “Beard After Hours” (B)

I usually watch and review this show early, but thanks to some traveling, Jewish holidays, and extensive TIFF coverage, I’m writing about it long after everyone I know has had the chance to watch and comment on it. Most of what I’ve heard has been negative and that this was an add-on episode to the season’s original count, which is why it doesn’t feel like part of the general narrative. What I suspect is that the writers, particularly Brendan Hunt, who plays Beard, always wanted to explore a bit of his backstory while paying homage to numerous cinematic influences. What resulted is a strange, trippy half-hour that looks almost nothing like a traditional episode of this show and which includes almost none of the other characters besides him. But it is fun to know that, each morning when Beard silently nods at his fellow coaches and at Ted when asked how his night was, these are likely the kind of hijinks that he got himself into, not entirely sure whether they really happened or if he might have imagined them. Seeing him in those pants was entertaining, as was how he got to bond with the man who was chasing him to give him back his wallet and not to beat him to death, as he worried was the case. And, though their roles are extremely minimal, the fans always seen cheering and commenting in the pub got to see Beard after hours and experience a truly winning reward thanks to his generosity.