Stronger Together in Ted Lasso Episode 9, “La Locker Room Aux Folles”

The winning streak continues! With AFC Richmond now up to eight wins in a row, the team’s success is making national news. While Ted Lasso (Jason Sudeikis) is finally in a better state of mind, team captain Isaac McAdoo (Kola Bokinni) and best friend Colin Hughes (Billy Harris) have some serious turmoil thrust in the middle of their friendship.

They’re not alone in their struggles. Keeley (Juno Temple) finds herself single once again and Roy Kent (Brett Goldstein) gets a major wake-up call from Rebecca (Hannah Waddingham). Additionally, Nate (Nick Mohammed) finds himself making better decisions and reminiscing on his days with AFC Richmond as his redemption arc continues. Ted Lasso episode 9 packs a serious punch and continues the trend of incredible television in season 3.

*Warning: This post contains spoilers for Ted Lasso episode 9, “La Locker Room Aux Folles”*

It’s been a whirlwind of a season for Colin Hughes, both on and off the field. He lost his spot on the pitch to Zava early in the year before reclaiming it when he left, and that is far from the most important part of his story. While Colin is able to come out to Trent Crimm in a previous episode, he’s still keeping a part of his true self from his teammates, and understandably so.

While we all hope AFC Richmond will be the exception to the rule, a professional sports locker room is naturally a worrisome place for someone to come out. To make matters worse, his team captain and best friend Isaac snatched his phone away in an attempt to delete his teammates’ naughty photos of others for cybersecurity. Unfortunately, this led to Isaac finding out about Colin’s secret outside his own accord. While Isaac definitely didn’t handle the moment well at the time, this show has taught us in the past that proper communication eventually reigns supreme.

A common theme in Ted Lasso season 3 is hidden battles. You never truly know what those around you are going through. Whether it be mental health-related or worrying about being accepted for who you are by your teammates and friends, the toughest battles are often dealt with in private.

The first half of Ted Lasso episode 9 takes a while to develop, with Isaac constantly giving Colin the cold shoulder any time he tries to talk to him. While this was meant to give the impression of Isaac not being accepting of Colin’s sexuality, it’s clear to viewers there’s more going on. However, as we know, anxiety often clouds how we view things, and we can only imagine the anxiety that must be coursing through Colin at this moment.

The turning point of the episode happens at halftime, with AFC Richmond being down 1-0 heading into the locker room, as Isaac snaps and rushes into the stands after a belligerent fan yells a homophobic slur at the team. Isaac’s outburst clearly reveals he’s got more going on than the team realizes, leading to the most powerful moments of the Ted Lasso episode 9.

As the team tries to figure out what upset Isaac so dearly, Colin finally reveals to his teammates the truth, that he’s gay. In classic Ted fashion, the coach makes a heartfelt attempt at an analogy for the situation, leading to one of the episode’s funniest pieces of dialogue from Colin “Did you just compare being a Denver Broncos fan to being gay?”. Although the metaphor falls flat, coach Lasso and the rest of the team come through for Colin exactly how we all hope, embracing him for who he is and letting him know he isn’t alone on his journey.

The chain reaction of support in Ted Lasso episode 9 is intriguing to follow. Rebecca is the queen of support as she provides Keeley with a shoulder to cry on while extending some tough love to Roy. It’s always been an interesting relationship between Rebecca and Roy, as the two of them never beat around the bush with each other and just tell it how it is. Rebecca tearing Roy a new one after he skips a press conference is the push he needs to confront his personal issues head-on. Additionally, it helps him teach Isaac not to repeat his own mistakes.

Coach Kent’s advice to Isaac in the kit room where Mini Higgins, AKA Will, (Charlie Hiscock) is there to break the tension with comedic relief makes for truly an impeccable scene. Before we dive in, let’s take a second to appreciate that the character, Will Kitman. Kitman the kit man and Hiscock, what a set of names. However, although Will tries to steal the scene, Isaac and Roy still provide one of the most heartfelt moments of the season in Ted Lasso episode 9.

After Roy convinces Isaac not to follow in his footsteps and talk about his feelings, things are finally cleared up between Isaac and Colin. Although it would be nice if Isaac didn’t victimize himself in the situation and understood where Colin was coming from naturally, it is wonderful to see them back on the same page. It is a perfect example of how we can learn and grow. Despite being hurt that his best friend was keeping a secret from him, Isaac is able to realize he is the one who handled the situation poorly and apologize.

With Isaac being booted from the game after receiving a red card, not only is AFC Richmond forced to play a man down, but the team selects a new captain for the second half as well. I’ve been hoping for Jamie Tartt (Phil Dunster) to make a push for team captain for a while, so it is wonderful to see him step up and attempt to carry the mantle.

However, that is overshadowed by the wonderful display of confidence from Sam to keep the captain’s band and lead the team in the second half. I love the idea of Jamie becoming captain as he grows to become a better person and leader, but it’s hard to argue anyone deserves it at this point more than Sam.

The growth is evident throughout all the characters who have ever come across Coach Lasso this season. Although Nate’s been the season’s antagonist, he continues his redemption tour in Ted Lasso episode 9. There are multiple moments throughout where viewers can catch Nate pining over his days with AFC Richmond without becoming self-destructive. He continues to thrive in his relationship with Jade and is finally turning Rupert’s sinister allure to the side.

Ted Lasso episode 9 finishes with Roy Kent delivering one of his most heartfelt speeches since the series debuted. Roy has grown so much over the course of three seasons, and after some tough love from Rebecca, he’s finally stepping up into the man we’ve always known he could be. He handles the press conference for Ted and the team, deflecting away from what happened with Isaac by giving the best possible response.

Roy channels his inner Ted, telling a story about a former teammate who lost a child but kept it to themselves. Roy was giving them a hard time without knowing, and the teammate retaliated by beating the crap out of the young superstar. Similar to what Isaac did, the response wasn’t great, but we shouldn’t be too quick to judge others without knowing what they’re going through. More importantly, we should always treat each other with love and respect, because everyone is fighting a battle we know nothing about.

Ted Lasso episode 9 is now streaming on AppleTV+. Follow the Agents of Fandom socials for the latest Ted Lasso news.