"So much of what is interesting to think about when it comes to TV, and especially bad TV, is anthropological," says Willa Paskin. "Why did that show make a connection with the audience? Why did it work, even though in lots of ways it doesn’t? Answering such questions can involve lots of armchair theorizing that, for the past five years, has tended toward obvious, but probably at least semi-truthful, explanations. What I’m wondering is, where does that leave the shows that seemed to work in this particular moment when the moment’s over? How will Ted Lasso play when we don’t need it so badly? Will it still be so lovely, or does it become cloying? Does the fact that Ted only makes about three-quarters sense as a character—if his charms have failed on his wife, maybe they shouldn’t work on literally everybody else—start to seem like a bigger flaw? Does the fantasy at the center of it—that a white, straight, Southern, football-loving, male American is a genius at emo and humane connection—become even more obviously, unbearably self-serving? And if the show keeps working, does that indicate moment-specific explanations are, like Ted, at least one-quarter baloney?" ALSO: Ted Lasso defied the odds with its perfect blend of Coach Taylor and Mister Rogers.
TOPICS: Ted Lasso, Apple TV+, Coronavirus