Jamie Tartt is back on the AFC Richmond Greyhounds and Roy Kent has a new job — pundit. How will Jamie be received in the locker room? And is Roy actually happy at his new job? Read on to find out what happens in Ted Lasso season 2, episode 3, “Do the Right-est Thing.”
When Ted heads in to see Rebecca in her office he’s met by a much younger person sitting at reception. It’s Flo a.k.a. Sassy’s daughter, Nora, who Rebecca is watching while Sassy speaks at a conference out of town.
At his press conference, Ted has to answer to Trent Crimm about the return of Jamie. Ted assures Trent that Jamie is on a better path now and he’s just here to help him on his way. Speaking of Jamie, back in the locker he’s keeping to himself, observing the team around him.
Keeley comes in to show Sam his ad photos for Dubai Air. The team begins to haze him for his fancy photos, but when Jamie joins in on the teasing it’s clear he’s not welcome. On her way out, Keeley asks the boys to sign up for the new dating app she’s running promo for, Bantr.
When Ted comes in to get the day started Jamie asks for the floor before they get going and Ted agrees. Jamie apologizes for his past behavior. Growth, I suppose? The team isn’t having it, however. They’re upset, and they begin yelling all at once at Jamie who’s clearly overwhelmed. Ted puts a stop to it and gets everyone out onto the pitch.
Rebecca and Nora are at a tea house, and then Rebecca realizes that this isn’t the most age-appropriate place for a 13-year-old. Then, Nora teases her for having disappeared for the past six years.
During practice, Ted tells Jamie that he’s starting out on the reserve squad. Ted thinks it will help the rest of the team see Jamie earn his spot back. Jamie agrees … with words. Not so much with his actions. He’s a show-off on the field, just like old times, until Sam slides in and knocks him down … literally. Ted also spots Sharon watching and taking notes in the stands.
Rebecca and Nora walk past a doll store, stopping to chat about how terrible the doll’s orphan stories are, when Roy and Phoebe walk out moments later.
Back at the facility, Sam is sharing his Dubai Air promo with his dad via text. Now they can get free tickets to come visit! His dad is less than pleased. The company that owns Dubai Air, Cerithium Oil, is destroying the Niger Delta.
Rebecca tells Roy she dumped John and that Keeley’s got her on Bantr. He gives her another piece of sage Kent advice to help her with Nora; kids don’t need a lot, all they want is to feel like their part of our lives. Rebecca heeds his advice. Later that night, she asks Nora if she wants to shadow her at work the next day. Nora is thrilled.
The next day, Nora and Rebecca head into the Richmond facility. On their way in they spot Higgins at the water cooler. Higgins compliments Rebecca on her brilliant suggestion, it solved everything! Rebecca is confused, and it turns out Higgins was just being the incredible wingman he always is and making her look like a superstar in front of her goddaughter. We all deserve a Higgins in our lives.
When the two head up to Rebecca’s office they’re greeted by a surprise guest. Turns out Keeley borrows Rebecca’s office on her days off. Nora spots Keeley’s paperwork for Bantr on the desk and asks her about it.
Bantr is working to make dating less superficial, with no photos and complete anonymity. Rebecca doesn’t seem thrilled at the concept, but Nora loves it.
It’s time for the Diamond Dogs to meet. Ted, Nate, Beard, and Higgins are chatting, and Nate tells them he downloaded Bantr and then deleted it immediately. Ted toys with the idea of signing up and finding his soulmate, then asks Beard if he’s gotten on there. He hasn’t. Beard has taken it one step further with Jane, actually, they’re now sharing an iCloud account. Which basically means Jane can see everything he downloads, so a dating app is a huge no.
When the Diamond Dogs adjourn, Ted calls Jamie in. Jamie’s had a great idea, he’s going to win the team over by buying them all PS5s. Ted questions the idea, but Jamie is all in. So, Ted decides to bring out “the other guy” to help Jamie out with the team.
The other guy? Led Tasso is his name and mean is his game.
While Higgins, Keeley, and Rebecca run some team finance issues by Nora, Sam comes in to speak with Rebecca. He wants out of his Dubai Air deal. He can’t be the poster boy for a company destroying his home country of Nigeria. Rebecca ensures him she’ll take care of it.
Led Tasso comes stomping out of the locker room, flipping the water table on his way out onto the field. The Ted we know is gone, for now. He yells at the team, much to their confusion. (Let’s be honest, Ted doesn’t do mean very well even when he tries.)
In an exchange of favors, Rebecca gets Sam out of the Dubai Air campaign. The return favor? Kick Sam off the team. Uh oh …
On the pitch, Jamie finally calls out Ted’s Jekyll and Hyde act, prompting Led Tasso to cancel practice altogether. Beard claps Led out of his trance, and Sharon comments on their theatrics. The ruse never fooled her. Ted’s entire purpose was to make the team’s one common enemy him and not Jamie. Has that worked? (One time at Chuck E. Cheese.)
Rebecca is between a rock and a hard place. Fire Sam, one of their best players, or go against the wishes of the team’s biggest sponsor. Nora tells Rebecca that sometimes you have to do the right thing, even if you lose.
Jamie goes to see Keeley to talk about his issues with getting the team to like him. Keeley has no time for this though. She takes him directly up to see Sharon.
Later that night, Rebecca sends the email off to let the CEO of Cirithium Oil she will not be letting Sam go.
On Soccer Saturday, Roy still hasn’t settled into his gig. He insults his co-anchors with his signature Roy Kent language, of course. What did anyone else expect? Rebecca gets a response to her email as they wait in the stands for the Saturday game to begin. A simple “Fine.” Looks like she won that one. When she closes out the email she swipes over to check her Bantr account as well. Sassy returns to watch the boys play, and embarrasses Nora in the process by revealing Sam is her favorite.
Speaking of Sam, he’s taking a stand against Dubai Air and Cirithium Oil. He covers the Dubai Air logo on the front of his jersey with tape. The team begins to tease him, but then he tells him the truth. That Dubai Air is destroying his home, and he refuses to wear their name on his chest. Sam’s fellow Nigerian teammates follow suit, but Sam assures the rest of the team they don’t have to. Then, Jamie stands, asking for the tape.
It would seem that Jamie might have finally earned back a shred of the team’s good graces.
The entire team has blacked out Dubai Air’s name on their jerseys. Rebecca promptly gets a call from the CEO, and she declines it. At the press conference after the game (which Richmond lost), Ted supports the team’s actions. Ted brings Sam out to speak on the matter personally. Trent asks Sam if he’s openly accusing the Nigerian government of corruption. Sam says yes.
Hey, doing the right thing is never the wrong thing.
Ted Lasso
Sam is concerned the team may not be happy with him, but when he gets back to the locker room they have a toast for him. Sam and Jamie also share a moment, and Sam tells Jamie it’s nice to have him back. This is progress!
Tune in next week for episode 4 of Ted Lasso! Ted Lasso releases every Friday on Apple TV+.
Keep up with our ongoing coverage of the series!
