Ted Lasso Season 4 Review: A Welcome, If Uneven, Return

Returning to "Ted Lasso" was always a bit of a dicey proposition. Not just because the narrative was wrapped up with the end of the show's third season in 2023, but because the series retains so much goodwill among fans. It's beloved, and it managed to stay beloved even after its Emmy history-making Season 1 surged in popularity and came out as one of the must-watch feel-good shows of the pandemic era.

A sense of uncertainty surrounds "Ted Lasso" Season 4, returning to Apple TV with new episodes at a time when it's easy to be cynical about something like a cash grab reunion. But if the people behind this new season have heard any of these complaints or concerns, it definitely doesn't show it. There's a self-assurance to Season 4 of "Ted Lasso" that was far from a given, and its confidence in showing us a new journey for Ted (Jason Sudeikis), with a new team and the same supporting cast, is a real boost right out of the gate. The resulting show, while far from perfect, is still charming as ever, and a reminder that with the right cast, you can wring compelling comedy and drama out of just about anything.

Precious little about "Ted Lasso" Season 4's plot has been revealed, so there's only so much we can say about the five episodes offered to press ahead of its August 5 premiere. The basics are laid out in the trailers, though (and you can catch Looper's recap video here): Ted spent a while away from coaching to be with his family, but now Rebecca (Hannah Waddingham), Keeley (Juno Temple), and Higgins (Jeremy Swift) need him back in Richmond. Keeley's pet project over the last couple of years has been an effort to launch a women's team, the Richmond AFC Lady Greyhounds, and they'd like Ted to coach.

It doesn't take long for Ted to accept the offer, and he's back off to London to meet his new players — a scrappy group of footballers led by the often-cold coach Alice (Tanya Reynolds), who's not necessarily happy to be supplanted by Ted and his right-hand-man Coach Beard (Brendan Hunt). As Ted settles back into life in London and reconnects with old pals, including current Richmond men's coach Roy Kent (Brett Goldstein), he discovers that coaching women's soccer has challenges all its own, and building a team from the ground up sometimes seems almost impossible.

Right away, the show gets off to a solid start by refusing to repeat the conflicts of previous seasons. Ted does not enter this new chapter as a tortured soul constantly putting on a face of optimism and joy. The torture is gone, and instead the season is about new challenges and, crucially, new points of view. Other characters get more time, particularly Keeley and Rebecca, who struggle to balance their personal lives with their professional ones, and the more the new team gets in on the action, the better the show gets. "Ted Lasso" was always an ensemble piece, but this time the narrative feels broader and more ambitious — and that's an asset, especially in these early episodes.

The issue with the show's ambition, and widening its scope a bit, is a slight one, but it arrives when you realize just how many characters it's set to serve this time around. Even with the Richmond men's team largely relegated to cameo status (with the exception of Roy), there's just so much happening that the show sometimes gets bogged down and loses its narrative focus over the course of an episode. It helps that, for many of these characters, we already know and understand them, but over time it feels like even they are crowding out some of the newer characters, and that gets a little frustrating. But only a little. Throw in a few jokes and running gags that simply don't land as well as they should, and the occasional forced reference to the show's past, and there are some stumbles in Season 4.

Beyond those stumbles, though, lies a show that's lost none of its charm or ensemble energy. Jason Sudeikis, Hannah Waddingham, Juno Temple, Brett Goldstein, Brendan Hunt, and Jeremy Swift all slip back into their characters like they're putting on a favorite jacket, seamlessly re-integrating into the world of Richmond AFC, with some especially potent flourishes of meaning added for Keeley's story in particular this time around. The new players are the real treat, though. At first, it seems like Alice is simply there to be a female Roy Kent — the joyless pragmatist to Ted and Coach Beard's more fanciful approach — but she quickly warms up and reveals quirks and humor far beyond the archetype. Faye Marsay is lovely as a single mom turned budding soccer star; Abbie Hern steps up as the potential new superstar of the bunch; and the rest of the Lady Greyhounds add loads of charisma and humor to the equation. Throw in a guest starring spot from the great Tracy Ullman, and there's something for everyone here.

If you come into "Ted Lasso" Season 4 expecting the same lightning in a bottle that made Season 1 such a rocketship for its cast and crew, you will be at least somewhat let down. You can't go home again, no matter what Ted says, and something about that initial spark of the series cannot be replicated. What we do get, though, is a thoughtful approach to reinvigorating the show, which becomes less about Ted and more about the people in his orbit, the ways in which they both embrace and push back against his way of doing things. When the new season does that, it's great. When it tries too hard to be the old show, it stumbles. Fortunately, the focus is largely on making something new, and that makes this season well worth your time.

"Ted Lasso" Season 4 premieres on Apple TV on August 5.