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If I were writing Ted Lasso, Nate would not have a redemption arc that brought him back to Richmond. I would have either left him a villian or had a redemption arc that did not lead back to Richmond. I plan to more fully focus on that in a chapter on the theme of forgiveness and in a chapter on a more fitting character arc for Nate. However, if the show is set on bringing him back to the team, there’s a lot of things that needed to happen to make the story feel complete.
The show fails to show us the biggest moments of Nate’s character arc this season. There are several moments that are implied to happen that we just don’t get to witness. Actually seeing those moments play out would be a big first step in making this arc feel more believable. One moment that we really needed to see was the moment that Nate quit West Ham United. There’s a reading of that moment where the only motivation Nate had in quitting was not losing Jade, his first romantic partner. The show does nothing to show us that the reason he quit was actually a sign of character growth. There’s a big difference between how we would view his character based on both how he quit and what reasons he gave. The show completely skips over this and just implies that Nate quit because he’s grown.
Part of the reason he left Richmond in first place was him being more interested in his own goals than what was best for the team. If he quits by leaving a note without verbalizing his problems to Rupert that would be a negative parallel to him leaving Richmond. He internalized his problems with Ted and the team, then exploded and left. He did not give anybody a chance to actually explain their side. He also doesn’t give anybody an opportunity to help him or change. He makes negative assumptions and then treats that as fact. Nate needs to learn how to talk about what’s bothering him. Obviously verbalizing to Rupert probably wouldn’t change anything about Rupert’s behavior, but Nate needs that skill regardless if the person will listen to his request. It’s a skill he needs to have if he wants to succeed at Richmond the second time around.
Showing the moment Nate quit would also give his character a moment to express that he knows that the way he took the job in the first place was wrong. Nate should have verbalized that he took the job for the wrong reasons. He knew that the way he made his decision would be a direct insult to many of the people who gave him the opportunity in the first place. Nate cannot be redeemed if he does not demonstrate the fact that he has learned. It could even be an interesting look at if Nate has realized how much Rupert does is to negatively impact others. Along that line it would have been interesting to show Nate changing his approach with the West Ham players to be less negative and Rupert’s response to that. This would also give more depth to Nate’s moment of quitting. It would not only make it about not wanting to lose his girlfriend, but also about how he wants to be a coach that treats his players well.
Once the show has shown Nate quitting and given him those opportunities to show growth, now it needs to show him actually respectfully apologizing to all of the people he hurt through his actions. I appreciate that the one moment they did show was Nate apologizing to Will because he is the person Nate hurt with the least amount of power in the show. However I think Nate needed to have full conversations with Ted and Colin about the impact of his behavior.
Nate needed to demonstrate to Ted that he understood the impact Nate did have as well as the impact he could have had. Leaking Ted’s mental health problems to the press is something so egregious. Although it turned out ok for Ted it’s the kind of thing that could have dire consequences. Ted could have very well lost his job. The stress of having his mental health problems broadcast could have significantly worsened those very problems. It’s also the kind of thing that can drive people to suicide. Ted’s family history of suicide also puts him at increased risk. Just because those outcomes did not happen, does not mean that Ned doing what he did was ok. He needed to recognize the severity of that behavior before the show allows him back onto the team. There are other secrets that we know the team is keeping. Allowing somebody who spilled such an important secret back onto the team without ensuring he understands the potential negative consequences is a disaster waiting to happen. One of Ted’s character flaws that is not well explored on the show, but could be is him not being able to see the difference between forgiving somebody and allowing them back into your life so they could hurt you again. I want to explore that idea in a later chapter, but it makes the way the show ended between Ted and Nate feel incomplete.
Nate also needs to have a conversation with Colin. The way Nate treated Colin throughout Season 2 was unacceptable. Yes Colin did bully Nathan at the beginning of the series, but he also was one of the characters who called Jamie out on his behavior when he returned. Nate utilized the new position of power he was given to verbally abuse Colin. This becomes even darker when consider the fact that Colin is a closeted gay man. Colin has needed to deal with homophobia in football his entire career. Though the show does not delve too deeply into the problem. There is a single openly gay player in the top four divisions in English football. In a survey from last year more than half of English football fans say homophobia is a serious problem in the sport. All of this amplifies the negative impact that Nate’s words have on Colin. He already knows that to many people he does not deserve a spot in the sport due to his identity and now a coach is telling him he doesn’t have the talent either. While Nate doesn’t realize that implications of his words to a closeted gay man, his intent does not negate the impact. He needs to connect that his players are people whose lives he does not fully know and who can be hurt by his words. If Nate is going to return to Richmond, there needs to be a scene between these two to talk out everything that has happened between them.
Once Nate has shown that he understands why his actions are wrong, has shown he is now able to verbalize what is bothering him, and apologized to the people he has hurt most. The next step is to show the team actually debating this. The team vote is something that should have been a scene the audience gets to see. Show the deliberation. Have the characters discuss how the tension of that betrayal negatively impacted the team as a whole and not wanting to allow that to happen again. Show the team’s protectiveness. Show the team not wanting Ted to be hurt again. Show the team protective of Colin and of his secret. Show them actually considering if it is safe for him to keep Colins secret. Show Colin’s opinion on letting Nate back in after his apology. Show the deciding argument and what actually convinces them to give Nate a second chance. This moment is vital to the show as a whole and I am annoyed that they skipped it to show them offering Nate a position back.
Where the show ends, theres not much time to actually see this, but going forward it would be important to show that change in the way he interacts with others. Make sure to show him not just shouting negative things at players, but appropriately giving constructive feedback. Show something bothering him and asking the person involved about it. Show the process of him learning about Colin and ensuring that the people around him know he won’t tell. Nate needs to demonstrate through actions and not just words that he has truely changed. The show uses Nate quitting and coming back to Richmond to imply that he has changed, but those actions in themselves do not actually show character development.
Overall I think the show does a disservice to the characters and the fans by leaving so much out of Nate’s redemption arc. They needed to show he had learned and they needed to show him actually repairing relationships with the people he hurt. Not showing this makes the lesson of his redemption much more muddy. He is back on the team, but does he actually understand how to be a good coach? Does he understand the negative impact that leaking secrets has? Can he actually be trusted to verbalize what he needs with out exploding or taking it out on others?
How his and other character’s redemption are handled on the show remind me of a toxic pattern that happens in abusive situations. This is geniunely the theme I think is handled most poorly on the show. I know stories of people in real life that feel they need to forgive an abuser. They then give them more chances and are back in the cycle of abuse. I have watched the negative impact that has had on the individual and on kids who don’t have a say. In the chapter Abuse and Forgiveness I will cover in depth how second chances and letting abusive people return to your life does not need to be the same thing.