Ted is a more awkward fit as a father figure to the Lady Greyhounds because, well, the new gender dynamic could read as less paternal than paternalistic. Make him a voice of reason, and he might be perceived as mansplaining; have him defer too much to his players, and he becomes the cringey, try-hard male feminist he sometimes resembled in previous seasons. The show’s solution is to keep him largely on the sidelines, leaving female characters like Alice and, in one clumsily inserted storyline, erstwhile AFC Richmond therapist Sharon (Sarah Niles) to dispense wisdom on such female-coded issues as intra-team cliques. This puts the players at arm’s length as well. There’s a mom, a couple, a goalie who refuses to wear gloves, but no Roy or Jamie emerges.
Female characters were never the mostly male Ted Lasso creative team’s strength. Despite charming performances from Waddingham and Temple, Rebecca and Keeley’s business plot never lives up to its potential because these colleagues continue to interact like giggly teenagers at a slumber party. Although there are plenty of women writing and directing in Season 4, Alice—the highlight of the series’ second act so far—is the only substantial character who doesn’t feel filtered through the male gaze.
