2x11 Midnight Train to Royston

Nate's development is annoying, but honestly realistic. It was as Keeley put it somewhat: people like them have more to prove; Nate was literally the towel boy / kit man before his promotion and has a father whose approval he yearns for. I feel for him and can see where he's coming from, and where he wants to go. Even his defensiveness about his new position in life that he presents as cruelty to his successor, Will, and even Colin, (currently the only people he can exert some power over) is behavior I've seen in real life with people who climb up ranks. But not everyone who does this goes through a similar transformation. tl;dr Nate: Cool motive, still a dick move though.

I wonder which Ted will meet Nate in the fallout though: kind Ted who forgave Rebecca, or a rare, angry Ted who's gone through a rollercoaster of emotions in the past few months (weeks?).

I wasn't surprised he tried to kiss Keeley, too. Saw that coming the minute he asked for her help to pick out a suit. And yo, I thought Roy had good chemistry with the teacher. In my head, I immediately established it as a possible fallback for Roy if Keeley goes back to Jamie. I don't know, for some reason, I'm just not feeling Keeley and Roy this season. Roy looks so aggressive next to her lol

I loved Ted and Sharon's scenes. Their dynamic is a pleasant surprise for this season.

[7.4/10] Let’s start with the stuff I like. I really enjoy the send-off for Ted and Dr. Sharon. I wouldn’t call it understated, exactly. But it’s not as big or bombastic as Ted normally goes, and that's kind of the point. Ted surfacing his abandonment issues but being touched by her letter, and Sharon complimenting Ted on helping her be a better therapist through offering her own vulnerabilities to her patients are both great beats. Sudekis continues to kill it as an actor with his reaction to Sharon’s letter, and I love that he surreptitiously bails on their drink at the pub so that she doesn't have to say a goodbye. I started out very hesitant about this storyline, and it ended up being one of my favorite things in the season.

I also really loved the moment with Keeley and Roy in the “dressing room” for their photoshoot. I don’t know that Keeley has ever seemed more down-to-earth or vulnerable than admitting her nervousness. She’s anxious because this interview is exposing her soul, not her body, and she’s worried what people will see. Roy’s reassurance that “the real you” is wonderful, and the world will see that, is the sweetest and most supportive thing he’s ever said or done.

I also enjoyed Sam being courted by Ukufu, a Ghanan billionaire who wants to bring African players closer to home. His attempt to awe Sam with actors in a museum or a newly-established West African restaurant are a little too out there. But their interactions are great, with Sam Richardson doing the same superb job he does in every project, conveying the sense of someone persuasive but sensitive. The idea that he wants Sam not just as a player, but as someone who stood up for the African country where he came from is inspiring.

Hell, I even like most of what the episode does with Nate. it’s hard to watch him be such a bad egg in all of this. He’s rude to the new kit manager again, is too focused on getting credit and wanting to be the boss, and even blames Ted for “taking credit” (when?) and spills on his panic attack. It sucks, given all Ted and others have done for Nate, but it’s also believable as someone who’s been stepped on and overlooked all his life trying to assert himself and not really knowing good boundaries or who’s genuinely on his side. I don’t like Nate right now, but I appreciate him as a character. Antagonists and foils who make bad choices for comprehensible reasons are the most interesting.

Here’s where this episode loses me. Once again, I don’t care about the romantic drama of this. Nate kissing Keeley is a weird thing to throw into the soup, even if it helps motivate his heel turn here. I thought it was odd that the show had previously given Roy some sparks with his niece’s teacher when he was so firmly with Keeley, but I guess they’re playing that card too. And Keeley confesses that Jamie said he was still in love with her. So now we have some bizarre love pentagram, and I just can’t be bothered.

At the same time, I don’t know how to feel about Rebecca’s deal with Sam. Her whole “I need time to figure us out” thing already felt like a cheap plot device for maximum drama. Coupling it with Sam’s big decision only adds fuel to that fire. She is his boss! It’s not cool to put pressure on him to stay, either as his employer or his sort-of girlfriend! I think the show wants us to sympathize because she’s in love, or at least has feelings for him, but it doesn’t really grapple with the crappiness of what she’s doing here the way it does with Nate. I don’t know who/what I’m supposed to root for here, or at the very least, I’m worried with how Ted Lasso is engaging with that idea.

Overall, there’s plenty to like here, including Ted and Sharon’s goodbye and the all time best Roy/Keeley moment. But there’s also a lot of questionable decisions that make me wonder and worry about the major plot arcs of the season as we head into the finale.