Ted Lasso was a surprise hit in 2020. Its ensemble
cast and warm-hearted brand of humor proved a welcome addition to the streaming landscape,
especially for those of us who wanted a distraction from the ongoing global pandemic,
along with those of us who purchased Apple products and just wanted to
figure out what we could watch with a one-year free trial of Apple TV Plus.
By the time Season 1 concluded, many of us were invested in the show’s lineup of great
characters. Viewers found someone in this show that they loved or related to most, or both.
And, for many, Nathan Shelley, or Nate, or Nate the Great became a fan favorite.
[I love this kid.]
His bumbling, awkward demeanor provided an excellent contrast among these many seemingly
self-assured characters taking the field at Nelson Road Stadium or walking the front halls.
In Season 2 of the series, however,
Nate’s character heads down a path that many viewers, including myself, did not expect.
And before I go any further, I’d like to warn you that this video includes
spoilers for Season 1 and Season 2 of Ted Lasso. If you haven’t watched both seasons,
please Like, Subscribe, hit the bell for notifications then promptly go watch Ted Lasso.
In Season 2, the bashful equipment manager we saw in Season 1 was now
self-absorbed, spiteful, and gray…
The shift in Nate’s character felt jarring to many viewers to the extent that Nick Mohammed took to
social media and a number of online publications to point out that his character’s turn
was by design from the beginning. In fact, if you look back at everything that led to this moment:
You’ll realize that there were moments, both subtle and obvious, that Nathan Shelley’s
evolution from the timid kit man to a full-blown West Ham United villain was happening right before
our eyes across the twenty-two episodes that exist to date, and I’d like to revisit those moments.
Now, Season 2 is where we witness the bulk of Nate's character evolution toward his final form,
but there are a handful of moments in Season 1 that really suggest that Nate's
character arc was being primed for a tragic fall to the dark side. So,
with that said, let's dive into Nate the Great's fall from grace from the very beginning...
...the very beginning! As in, Nate's very first scene in the entire series.
The moment we meet Nate, he's shouting at Ted and Coach Beard for being on the field. He isn’t aware
of who he’s shouting at initially. He’s yelling at strangers without assessing the situation.
- God! You're the new manager! - Yes, sir.
-Take all the grass you want. -On, no-
We just had it cut. I can go through the garbage.
-I can get you some more -That's alright.
It’s really just an innocent misunderstanding, buut it’s also our first impression of Nate,
who as we will eventually see, will show more misguided aggression and have his judgment clouded
by misunderstandings like this. From here on out, we get a better picture of Nate's world. He's
not respected by the players. He's practically invisible to the front office. And it isn't until
Ted comes around that Nate is given any level of attention and respect, from what we can tell.
Ted injects confidence into Nate. Which, at times, only escalates his outward
aggression and sense of entitlement. The scene in which Nate roasts players
in the locker room - it's one of the more memorable moments of Season 1.
-You think that's funny, do you, Colin? You and all your fancy step over [ __ ] Let me
ask you this do you ask your pubes? What, did I stutter [ __ ]? Do you wax your pubes, yes or no?
-No.
-Then why are you always trying to play like a Brazilian? Yea?
The moment is still very funny, in my opinion, but after you've experienced the path that Nate goes
down in Season 2, it's not a stretch to say that Nate's spite in this scene feels a bit heavier
on a second watch. Interestingly enough, right before Nate's roast Ted apologizes to Nate for
his outburst the previous night. This is an important moment because it's the last time
Ted and Nate have a one-on-one conversation until the Season 2 finale, but more on that in a bit.
Nate's inability to handle his insecurities was always present in Season 1.
When Will was hired as the new clubhouse attendant, Nate
immediately sees him as a threat and even lashes out at rebecca.
-You shrew! You did this, didn't you? -Why so hostile, Nathan?
Nate's back is against the wall in this moment and he loses what little control he had over his anger
for a brief moment. It's a funny scene especially once the payoff is realized. Nate is actually
being recognized, promoted, and therefore given greater status, which he really really wants.
You may not have realized it in this moment, but that's a problem, at least for Nate. Look,
Nate has been the butt of jokes up to this point. He's been bullied. And,
he didn't have a voice until Ted came into the picture. So, we celebrated his rise and status
in Season 1, as we should. However, Nate's inability to handle his success is an issue.
Nate looks at people in power and wants to be them. Presently, he looks at himself as an example
of someone to push aside in order to become powerful. It's why he treats Will the way that
he does. Will not only moved in on his job but, in doing so, Will embodies everything Nate despised
about himself as a lowly clubhouse attendant. Nate watches those around him to understand what
it means to be powerful. As actor Nick Mohammed describes, in a recent interview with Vulture,
rather than dance with everyone at the charity dinner in episode 4,
he stays seated and takes in the environment which consists of Ted, Rebecca and Rupert - all
in the same room, and all people he sees as either powerful people or people in a position of power.
When season two kicks off, we find that Nate is still coaching,
he still torments Will, and he's still
- Just a tad aggressive.
And, despite the fact that he's getting support from those around him,
including Keeley and Rebecca, who helped Nate become more assertive in order to get
the window seat for his dinner reservations, Nate remains fixated on what he lacks. This
fixation becomes worse as Ted welcomes Jamie Tartt back to the team along with,
more significantly, bringing Roy Kent on as a coach. Ted doesn't realize it at the time,
but it's decisions such as these that Nate takes personally and, right or wrong,
they add to the growing list of transgressions that Nate is taking note of throughout season two.
It's a paradox, of course. The more confidence Nate gains, and the more attention nate gets,
the more his fragile ego inflates. Two episodes later, Nate steps up in a time of crisis
-he spits at the ground and makes a decision on the field which results in an AFC Richmond win.
About the spitting, by the way... Nate spitting is interesting, not just because of the obvious;
Look, it's Nate's way of being the aggressor as he sort of battles himself. Remember,
he perceives people of power as aggressive, while soft-spoken timid people are to be pushed aside.
But, it's even more interesting because Rebecca gave Nate the advice of making himself feel bigger
whenever he needs the confidence. Rebecca explains her approach to this - she finds a place to be
alone, where she extends her arms and growls. She's physically making herself appear bigger for
the boost of confidence. Nate takes this advice and, rather than making himself appear bigger
in the physical sense, he wants to ensure that he's shrinking the part of himself
that he despises - the awkward and timid Nate. And, so, he spits on him. This act of spite,
or humiliation towards someone or something else, is what fulfills his sense of power.
Back to the AFC Richmond win though... Nate makes headlines. He's all over social media. He's the
wonder kid instead of the wunderkind. Regardless, his ego is at an all-time high, and it's one of
the most impactful moments of Nate's character arc this season, perhaps of the series at this point.
Despite all of the success Nate is experiencing, he still can't get the approval he expects
from his father. And, even if Ted was capable of filling that void, Nate doesn't directly
interact with ted for several more episodes, as Ted works on his own personal well-being.
Between his unhealthy reliance on public opinion and his continuous aggression towards
those he needs to tell himself are beneath him, Nate becomes more bitter by the day,
and more gray through each episode.
There are plenty of smaller moments that result in Nate feeling slighted or neglected, of course.
Ted laughs at Nate when he suggests he'll step up and serve as a 'big dog' and speak to Isaac.
- I'll do it
- Oh, you're being serious.
Ted quickly apologizes, but the damage is done.
Or, Nate feels indirectly slighted by ted for buying him a suit in season one.
In season two, Nate's suit is always associated with Ted,
as if Nate didn't earn the suit - it was just handed to him.
- Is this the suit that Ted got you?
- What? This? I can't remember. Uh, yes. Yeah.
- Another man buying you clothes is infantilizing, yes?
- Well, well no. He didn't buy all my clothes.
So, Nate goes to buy his own suit; to take control of the situation.
Once again, his sense of power, the go-for-it attitude that Keeley helped Nate get in
touch with - it's too much for Nate. It disorients him, and Nate makes a misguided
move on Keeley. Nate is humiliated by this misunderstanding - he should be. He once again
spits at the version of himself that he sees in the mirror. Any remorse Nate has from the
moment is buried once he realizes that Roy doesn't feel threatened by Nate's actions.
- She's told me about it. It's okay.
- I kissed her.I kissed your girlfriend.
- We good.
- All Jamie did was talk to her and you wanted to
kill him. Do you at least want to headbutt me or something?
- You made a mistake, Nate. Don't worry about it.
Roy sees Jamie as a threat, but his lack of concern for Nate's transgression makes Nate
feel less big or powerful. Look, the list goes on when it comes to
Nate's poor judgment and aggression when we talk about season two.
Nate's obsession with becoming the boss - it escalates towards the end of the season.
- You guys ever want to be in charge? Be the boss? Get all the credit?
Interestingly enough, the fixation of who should be in charge seems to peak
after Rupert takes a moment to speak to Nate at Rebecca's father's funeral. We don't know what was
said in that moment, but we do know it made Nate more anxious about his role on the coaching staff.
Nate may have felt like his love from the public was fading just as Rupert swoops in
with the promise of his attention and affirmation, which really makes the season's climactic betrayal
by Nate all the more interesting. Nate needs recognition from Ted leaking information regarding
Ted's panic attack accomplishes three things: 1) He believes he is discrediting Ted
and therefore giving himself a sense of legitimacy and power.
2) He's effectively pushing aside someone that is weaker. He's relying on the stigma of mental
health, especially in professional sports, in this case, and giving himself a false sense of strength
and stability in the process. Nate can win the public back if they don't approve of Ted Lasso.
Lastly, he is forcing a rift between himself and Ted. Nate can now tell himself he no longer
needs Ted. Of course, all of this ends with a conversation between Nate and Ted. This is where
everything covered so far comes together in a single, really one-sided monologue from Nate.
Again, it's the first one-on-one conversation between Ted and Nate since Ted apologized for his
outburst in season 1, episode 7, and it's really more about Nate justifying his actions to himself
than it is opening up any sort of real discussion with Ted. When you listen to his monologue,
it's full of skewed rationalization, and, really, just misunderstandings.
[Nate] "And I worked my ass off trying to get your attention back to prove myself to you,
to make you like me again, but the more I did the less you cared.
- It's like I was [ __ ] invisible. You haven't even got the photo I gave you
for Christmas up in your office, just pictures of dumb Americans.
- And now you're going to play Nate's false nine. So, when the team [ __ ] up, which they will,
you can blame it on me. Well, no. [ __ ] that!
- Everybody loves you.
- Without me, you wouldn't have won a single match and they would have shipped your ass
back to Kansas where you [ __ ] belong with your son. Because you sure as hell don't belong here.
- But I do. I belong here. This didn't just fall into my lap, right? I earned this."
[Ted] "If I didn't tell you how important you were to me enough I'm sorry about that."
[Nate] "No, no. you're not you're full of [ __ ]
- Just [ __ ] you, Ted."
Ted is great at recognizing the qualities of those around him,
and he gave Nate opportunities that put him in a position to succeed. However, what Ted didn't
realize is that Nate didn't know how to navigate through his success. Nate believes Ted abandoned
him. And, while that's not entirely true, the root of the problem lies in that accusation;
Ted succeeded at recognizing Nate's talents and by putting him in a position where he was best suited
to utilize those talents. However, Ted failed at recognizing what Nate needed from that point on.
Good leaders, they offer opportunity for growth but, perhaps more importantly,
they help develop that growth while understanding the unique needs
of the individuals that they are leading. Of course, Ted had his own share of problems he
was dealing with during this time, which makes the outcome of season two all the more tragic.
The final scene of Season 2 shows us that Nate has gone
to his next source of attention and recognition: Rupert.
A close-up on his eyes to close the season - A reversal
of what we saw as the opening shot of Season 2.
Whether it happens in the end or not, Nate is capable of finding redemption. Once again,
much like every character in this show, Nate is flawed. He's not evil. He's doing what he believes
needs to be done in order to achieve status and success - to achieve his definition of meaningful
self-worth. Regardless, Nate is now in a position where any sort of redemption may have to occur
in spite of Rupert being his mentor, his current father figure. If Nate
was able to overcome his insecurities and flawed understanding of leadership in that environment,
he'd be even stronger in character because of it. Either way, Nate has become one of
the most compelling characters for Season 3. Regardless of the outcome, it will be interesting
to look back at these first two seasons to see, once again, both the subtle and obvious moments
that led us to, in the case of Season 3, what will become the conclusion of 'Nate the Great'...