Just Say Yes (Ted)

"Just Say Yes" is the first episode of the American fantasy comedy series '' Ted''. Written and directed by series creator Seth MacFarlane, it premiered on the American streaming service Peacock, along with the rest of season one, on January 11, 2024. The episode introduces John Bennett (Max Burkholder), the series' primary protagonist, an awkward high-school aged boy, along with Ted (Seth MacFarlane), the series' titular anthropomorphic teddy bear. The two live with John's family, Susan (Alanna Ubach), his mild mannered mother, and Matty (Scott Grimes), his conservative father. Also residing with the family is Blaire (Giorgia Whigham), his radically liberal cousin whom often clashes with Matty.

The series acts as a precursor to the ''Ted'' film franchise, showcasing the childhood lives of John and Ted. Like the rest of the season, "Just Say Yes" makes use of Viewscreen, a technology that allows the production crew to visualize what Ted's presence in each scene will look like in real time. While auditioning for the part of Matty, Grimes was told to "think of ''All in the Family''". The episode received mixed reviews from critics, who condemned the episode's crass humor and offensive nature.

Plot

Following a recap of the first movie's events, John and Ted struggle to play a video game on the Nintendo Entertainment System, and are shamed by Blaire for calling Mario and Luigi midgets. At dinner, Blaire continues to shame John and Ted, whilst also calling Matty out on his racist comments. After an argument, it is suggested that Ted goes to school, an idea that Ted dismisses. Home alone, Ted creates a mess in the house and invites over several prostitutes, prompting Matty to force him to go to school. At school, Ted and John go to class, where Ted mocks the teacher and suggests his wife is having an affair; the teacher breaks down and informs him that she is having an affair, causing confusion among the class.

Ted and John discover that Shiela, John's crush, has drugs, and the two attempt to buy some to get Ted kicked out. Shiela, after some bargaining, informs them of the address of her drug dealer. Ted goes to the address, finding Blaire and her roommate selling pot. She assures him that they are selling the pot to pay for college tuition, and she agrees to give it to Ted on the grounds that he won’t share it with John. Ted agrees, but still smokes it with John after pressuring. After this, John and Ted go to dinner and Blaire realizes the two are high.

Blaire threatens Ted for this, and he agrees to not do drugs anymore. John and Ted go to school with the weed in an attempt to get Ted kicked out, but Clive, John's bully, steals it from them. After a failed conversation with the school principal over having Ted kicked out, the boys go into Blaire's room to find more pot, but hide in a closet after she walks in with Susan. After being discovered with the pot, Matty kicks Blaire out of the house, whilst Susan is upset with Matty for charging Blaire rent. Feeling guilty, Ted retrieves a piece of memorabilia from his time in Hollywood, and uses it to bribe Matty into letting Blaire stay. He accepts, and agrees to not charge her rent anymore. Blaire thanks John and Ted, asking them not to partake in drugs anymore, which the two falsely promise.

Production

Development

"Just Say Yes" was written and directed by series creator Seth MacFarlane. Following the success of the ''Ted'' film franchise, Universal approached MacFarlane about the idea for a series based on the movies. He agreed on the condition that the CGI would not be "nickel-and-dimed" and conceived the idea of a prequel to the films, mainly due to the busy schedule of Mark Wahlberg and greater storytelling potential. Peacock ordered the series in June 2021.

Casting

Actors Giorgia Whigham and Max Burkholder auditioned for the series by sending tapes. Both actors were given the roles after their first audition. Burkholder called MacFarlane "very good at making sure you know that you got it", noting the "reassuring" environment during his audition. Alanna Ubach also sent in tapes for her audition, but was asked to do "chemistry reads" with Scott Grimes, after which they were not told if they got the part.

Grimes says he was told to think of ''All in the Family'' while auditioning, and to try his best at impersonating Carroll O'Connor. Ubach was asked to audition another time with Grimes, and they were both given their respective parts soon after.

Technology of ''Ted''

Prior to the first table read, the cast were given a replica of Ted, and were told to practice scenes with it to "get used to nteractingwith the toy". MacFarlane was able to act live with the cast as Ted due to the series' use of Viewscreen, a technology that allows the production crew to visualize what Ted would look like in real time.

Reception

In a review of the season, John Nugent of Empire noted the crude humor of "Just Say Yes" as one of the series' fault, commenting: "Is that the best you can manage?" Fred Topel of United Press International criticized the episode on " ryinga bit too hard to be edgy", using the scene of the family discussing racism during dinner as an example.

Accolades

Despite the mixed reception, "Just Say Yes" received two nominations at the 4th Astra TV Awards. Seth MacFarlane was the recipient of both, with nominations for Best Directing in a Streaming Comedy Series and Best Writing in a Streaming Comedy Series.

References

External links

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{{Ted (franchise)

Peacock (streaming service) original programming
2024 American television series debuts
2020s American comedy television series