The second episode of Ted follows two main storylines. The main storyline follows Johnny and Ted trying to get back at their bully Clive, but take things way too far. The secondary story focuses more on Matty, Blaire, and Susan as they try to get Matty to get his colonoscopy, but Matty keeps refusing out of fear.
The episode opens with Clive bullying Ted and Johnny in the bathroom. This scene ends with Ted getting flushed down the toilet. After school that day, Susan gets a call from Matty’s doctor about a colonoscopy. When Matty refuses to get the procedure, Blaire and Susan argue with him about how he should. Nothing gets to him, and he still refuses.
This is when Clive’s name is mentioned by Ted, and Susan chimes in by mentioning that Clive doesn’t have a father. Ted sees this as information that can be used against Clive. Later that night, Ted and Johnny prank call Clive pretending to be his father. They set up a meeting with Clive at Friendly’s to try and embarrass him.
The next day, Clive goes to Friendly’s in an embarrassing outfit like Johnny and Ted asked, and he sits there waiting. Ted goes out to a pay phone and leaves a horrible message, that says how disappointed he is in Clive. The waitress reads the note to him, and Clive cries and storms out. Johnny and Ted are left feeling horrible about what they’ve just done.
The next day at school, Ted and Johnny can’t stop worrying about Clive, so much so that they start a parent-like banter with each other. They remember Clive mentioning a math test so at lunch, Johnny gets curious and goes over to him. He proceeds to get bullied by Clive but also sneaks a look at the test Clive has in front of him. When he comes back over to the table, he and Ted are just happy that Clive passed his test.
Back in our B storyline, Matty is continuing to refuse the colonoscopy. Blaire gets fed up and warns him that if the doctors don’t catch colon cancer early, it can become more fatal, and he could risk leaving Susan and Johnny behind. This argument is enough for Matty to agree, on one condition, that Blaire has to go with him. Matty is afraid that when he is under the anesthesia, he will reveal a wartime secret of his.
Back to our main storyline, Johnny and Ted put together a surprise party for Clive from his dad. Now the boys have to find an actor to play Clive’s father. This is when Ted remembers that the security guard they dealt with earlier in the episode was an actor.
Later that day, Blaire and Matty return home. Matty ends up revealing the secret that he was so scared to reveal to the doctors. He tells this disgusting, dark story from his past, and the family is taken aback by it. The family comes around to cheer him up once Matty got a chance to explain himself. They support him and understand him fully.
The next day is Clive’s party, and as expected, their whole plan goes up in smoke, as the actor was not very good. Clive sees Johnny and Ted there and begins beating them up. Ted convinces Clive that this prank was a good thing. It made Johnny and Ted care about Clive, and it gave Clive someone who believes in him. Clive accepts this explanation, and is able to move on and enjoy his party as the episode concludes.
Overall, this episode featured good writing, great comedic performances, and a great plot. So far this show has accomplished quite a bit in these first two episodes and it sets them up well as the series continues. Max Burkholder and Giorgia Whigham are both delivering as the leads of Ted. The new original characters fit perfectly into this world, and are written, acted, and directed so well.
Rating: 8/10