Someone decided to start cutting onions during episode 9 of Ted Lasso. As the Lady Greyhounds approach the biggest match of their season, the episode tries to walk a tightrope between the thrill of victory and the devastation of loss. It’s a great episode, but for the sake of the metaphor, it’s a terrible tightrope walker.
The first half is the easy part. The Lady Greyhounds travel to Bristol City with their next promotion within reach, and the match delivers. The thrilling victory rewards the team’s perseverance and gives the season’s central narrative a desperate payoff.
Happy Birthday! Keeley discovers she is pregnant with Roy’s child. Roy’s impending fatherhood has obvious comic potential, given his stoic dense shell covering his mushy heart. However, this is all very quick. Just last episode, we were in a “will they, won’t they” situation. But maybe that’s the point of it all, isn’t it? Unwanted pregnancies are usually surprising.
Then there’s the passenger who gives the episode its title. Mae, the beloved owner of the Crown & Anchor, joins the team on the trip and shares her own unfulfilled dream of becoming a professional footballer.
So, when our Lady Greyhounds get their big win, it makes the win feel like a communal victory rather than a simple sporting milestone.
That’s what makes the final turn so devastating. While Mae is jumping and celebrating in the stands with all the Richmond fans, she celebrates a little too much and suffers from a heart attack.
Mae’s death casts a shadow over Richmond’s celebration and turns a triumphant afternoon into something far more complicated.
This is when Hannah Waddingham and Jason Sudeikis show off that they are titans among men–acting wise. In the show’s final shot, Rebecca does not tell Ted what happened. There’s just tears and silence.
There’s a pregnancy and a loss. It doesn’t take a genius to see the significance in that. When we are given a birth of celebration, tragedy can often loom over us. That tightrope analogy.
“Mae Rides the Bus” ultimately understands what makes Ted Lasso special: the emotional impact of the lowliest characters. Richmond may have won the match, and the victory comes at a cost.
Review: 9/10