Warning: Reviews of Ted Lasso season 4 episode 7 will contain spoilers.

Regardless of how much Ted Lasso episode 7 does or does not push the season 4 narrative forward, it remains a very funny outing, especially in its middle section (more on that in a minute). But there’s a poignant scene towards the end of the episode that speaks to the overall approach to this season, and I wonder how deeply the show will interrogate this for the remaining three episodes. Yes, my frustrations remain after the bait-and-switch of the cold open, but I should probably just come to accept that the show simply isn’t interested in exploring the lives of the Richmond women’s team for now.

As if the Ted Lasso writers had been reading these reviews through a time machine somehow, episode 7 starts off precisely how I’d been wanting, by showing each of the main Lady Greyhounds in their normal, daily lives. Lizzie (Faye Marsay) frets over whether her kids’ father will be available to watch them so she can attend practice. Gemma (Abbie Hern) receives the news that she’s eligible for a prestigious internship. The twins (Aisling Sharkey and Rex Hayes) fret over a sudden increase in their rent. Boots the goalie (Jude Mack), uh, fixes her car.

But this bit is the last we’ll see or hear of their struggles outside the confines of Richmond, aside from a few cutesy moments with Lizzie’s kids as they learn to read. Instead, the unifying thread becomes more of what the season’s worked on already. Chilton (Tanya Reynolds) is still working on herself, and her newest strategy is to simply say “yes” to everything. This is where the episode gets its title, as Ted (Jason Sudeikis) and Beard (Brendan Hunt) suggest that, instead of a simple yes, she “yes, and”, and it’ll lead to more positive results.

Apparently the Ted Lasso writers couldn’t think of a more compelling individual storyline for Ted in season 4 beyond his love life, which is what occupies him throughout most of episode 7. It’s an extension of his conversation with his ex-wife last week, and he starts to consider online dating. Here’s part of where the episode reaches its comedic heights, as Keeley (Juno Temple) helps him fill out his profile. What follows is a rapid-fire back-and-forth filled with Ted’s trademark goofball humor, and I found myself wondering how much of the bit was scripted versus the two of them simply riffing. By the end of the episode, it almost seems as if Ted and Keeley could develop feelings for each other, which would be horrible and stupid, but I have faith that the writers will at least be able to recognize what a colossal narrative mistake that would be.

The other highlight of episode 7 comes from Rebecca (Hannah Waddingham), Higgins (Jeremy Swift), and – to a lesser extent – Zelda (Tracey Ullman). The episode starts with Danny Rojas’s agent strong-arming Rebecca into giving him a contract extension because of competing offers from another, unnamed, team. This leads Rebecca to covertly call around and, in a moment of panic, pretend to be an employee for Chicago’s MLS team. Waddingham has been the stealth MVP of season 4, and her exaggerated Chicago accent is consistently funny. Much like the aforementioned scene with Ted and Keeley, there’s a quick, chaotic rhythm to the scene that doesn’t overdo it or wear out before the humor dies.

I’ll admit that when Tracey Ullman first appeared in Ted Lasso season 4 as a kind of angel investor in the Lady Greyhounds, I figured she’d be a glorified cameo, possibly returning for another episode or two. But her continued presence this year, while fine enough, hasn’t really led to any fruitful territory beyond the initial setup to her character. For all its solid history of supporting players being given room to breathe, Ted Lasso has an equally bad history of disastrous cameos. Remember Sam Richardson or Jodi Balfour’s appearances in season 3? Ullman’s continued presence on the show would be easier to swallow if her screen time didn’t take away from that of the Richmond women.

Anyway, there’s a curious development at the end of episode 7, as the women’s locker room gets their own version of the infamous “Believe” sign from previous seasons of the show. The only problem is that the team doesn’t need to be reminded to believe in themselves or one another. Indeed, team unity seems to be at an all-time high. This feels a bit like the Ted Lasso creative team asking themselves what their greater purpose is for coming together again. And, with only three episodes remaining in season 4, I hope they can come up with a worthwhile answer.