When NYT Bestselling author Matthew Paul Turner writes your foreword

A reminder to be kind and generous

I love that Ted Lasso showcases kindness and generosity. It’s what sets the show apart from so many others. We get to see people care deeply for one another.

I met Matthew Paul Turner back when Twitter was 1) still Twitter and 2) still fun. I followed him because he was connected to other writers I admired and he sent me an automatic DM to buy his latest book. I was naive enough to think that was a legitimate invitation to conversation, so I replied, and over time, we became friends.

Matthew has always been one of the most encouraging people I’ve met in the writing world, and I’ve met a lot of encouraging people. He is like a brother to me in that we tease each other relentlessly and know that we love each other just as much. And yes, we have talked about Ted Lasso a lot, especially during the third season.

When I was writing The Ted Lasso Relationship Guide, I knew that I wanted Matthew to write the foreword. I love his takes on pop culture and I love the heart and vulnerability he showcases in his books for children. My heart was so full when he agreed to do this.

So please, enjoy the foreword to The Ted Lasso Relationship Guide. And grab your copy today!!!

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I started watching Ted Lasso shortly after the rest of the world finished season one and had already begun salivating for season two. My late arrival to the Ted Lasso party happened intentionally for two reasons: 1) Shows dubbed comedies are not my usual go-to fare. It’s not that I’m opposed to sudden bursts of laughter; I’m just more comfortable getting lost in drama, mystery, and sexual tension than engaging in what I often assume are nonsensical narratives. And 2) the online hype surrounding Ted & Co. was loud—almost insufferably loud—which, more often than not, turns me off rather than sparks curiosity. 

But in the spring of 2021, when the world was at a standstill due to the pandemic and the majority of TV networks had run out of new content, I learned that one of my very closest friends had become a Tedvangelical and he started proselytizing me about my need to accept Ted Lasso into my life.

Eventually, when I’d run out of new shows to binge and was so desperate for a TV fix that I was considering signing up for a TLC subscription, I caved and watched the first three episodes of Ted Lasso in one sitting. Within a week, not only had I finished season one, but I had joined the mighty chorus of the online Ted cult, singing the show’s praises and publicly proclaiming my longing for season two to premiere.  

For me, the lure of Ted Lasso was the series’s delightful characterization. I wanted to become best friends with every single member of Ted’s circle. I imagined myself enjoying a beer with Ted and Coach Beard at The Crown & Anchor. I longed to be in the owner’s box with Rebecca, Keeley, and Higgins, cheering for AFC Richmond as they battled one of their rivals. I wanted to sit with the guys at Ola’s—the restaurant that Sam started—and experience the team’s camaraderie while enjoying Nigerian cuisine. Nearly every single character brought something beautiful and good to Ted’s story arc,  something blatant or nuanced that we, the viewers, related to and, at times, needed to experience. 

Now, I admit, I thought some of the narrative threads that weaved Ted Lasso together were less-than-perfect, and sometimes the writers did exactly what I hoped they wouldn’t. Yet, even when I thought they were flawed, Ted’s stories were healing, somehow able to connect with intricate parts of my own humanity and cause me to consider (and reconsider) how I was living and writing my own story. 

That is why a book like the one you are about to read—The Ted Lasso Relationship Guide—is an actual thing that needed to happen. Because the stories and characters and subject matters that Ted Lasso brought into our lives mattered. We felt seen by this show. Many of us changed something about ourselves because of this show. Each and every episode caused us to feel delight, gave us language for describing our life’s challenges, and encouraged us to rethink how we engaged each other.

As you engage this book and relive the glorious narratives, characters, and relationships that made Ted Lasso so affecting, I can assure you of this: you are in really good hands. Alise Chaffins is a perfect Ted Lasso companion. And I would know because, during every week of Ted’s season two and season three, Alise was my guide, that friend with whom I gushed about the show’s best moments, the one who helped me connect narrative dots and better understand Ted’s story, and the one who challenged my sometimes negative opinion about the choices that Ted’s showrunner made. 

However, Alise is not simply a Tedvangelical. I mean, she is definitely a card-carrying member of the cult. But she’s more than just a Ted fanatic. My friend possesses a deep love and understanding for story, specifically cinematic stories. As a writer and film critic, Alise knows what makes a visual narrative work and what doesn’t, which is why she’s my very favorite person to talk to about movies and TV series because she loves good entertainment, and she knows her shit. 

But what makes Alise the ideal Ted Lasso guide is that, when it comes to entertainment, she’s a lot like Ted in that she engages a new film or show like Ted believed we should engage other people, with lots of curiosity. 

As somebody who almost missed the joys of Ted Lasso on purpose because of his resistance to embracing curiosity, it’s my hope that you’ll engage The Ted Lasso Relationship Guide with an inquisitive spirit because you’re about to fall in love with Ted (and yourself) all over again.