Ted – Season 1 Episode 6 Recap & Review

Episode 6

If Susan is going to get a big payoff in episode 5, then in episode 6 of Ted, it is time to explore what makes Matty really tick. The episode begins with Matty discovering a long-lost toy truck he had when he was a little boy. It conjures up sentimental feelings and a side we have not seen in Matty all season long. This is also an episode that shows a passage of time in the world of the show, as this episode takes place on Christmas.

Episode 6 is titled ‘Loud Night’ instead of something like Silent Night. Which is something we see Susan sing in church at the last Sunday mass before Christmas Eve. Matty does not attend the ceremony because he is opposed to going to church. By this point in the season, any views can’t stand Matty.

He’s an annoying middle-aged man with opinions on matters that feel out of date by 1993 and 2024 standards. He clashes with his family on a regular basis. Everything he does comes from a place of anger, and his not being there for his wife is only the beginning.

But for a funny moment, when the leader of the sermon begins to speak, Ted chimes in, convinced that he may be Jesus. He’s met with disagreeing opinions, but he makes a solid point. He’s a bit of a miracle; he’s a teddy bear that comes to life, and if you squeeze him, he says, “I love you.” He’s a miracle from God. He makes a valid point.

Back at the house Matty not only clashes with people in the house but even guests in the house. Blaire has her friend Sarah staying with them for Christmas. Sarah’s family is from India, and she can’t get a flight back to see them, apparently. Matty has made political and racial jokes against Blaire and Sarah that only add fuel to the fire. The content of this show still lands its humor, but you can sense something brewing that is bound to explode.

Matty gets up in the middle of the night, looks out the window, and sees a shooting star. He makes what seems to be a wish, just like how Ted came into the world. He ended up making his toy truck come to life, and he’s named Dennis. The toy truck is a foul-mouthed version of Matty. He puts Ted to shame, but Ted at least finds lessons to be learned. Dennis just says one wrong thing after another and never wants to be corrected.

All of this comes ahead when Susan learns that Sarah and Blaire are more than friends. She catches them making out in her room and politely asks them to hold off telling the family until after Christmas that she’s into women. However, due to a clash at the dinner table with Matty, she outs her and Sarah.

Matty and Dennis say some pretty unforgivable stuff to them. Blaire tries to mend fences later on, but Dennis shouts rude things at her about her life choices. Matty, however, knows he needs to apologize, and he does to both Sarah and Blaire.

He gets into a shouting match with Dennis. He yells at him, wondering why he’s so full of distasteful things to say, and Dennis tells him that he’s gay. The delivery of this reveal is utterly hilarious. At the end of Ted episode 6, Dennis and Matty decide to part ways, and his toy truck drives off from his family as he now heads to find purpose in Provincetown, Massachusetts. A town with a huge gay community.

The Episode Review

Writing the recap of this show makes it sound like it’s a drama at times. Yet, Ted episode 6 did have a talking truck that ended up being gay. Only Seth Macfarlane could pull that off. It was good to get down to why Matty is such an irritable character. You have had enough of him by midway through this episode, but by the final moments, you will give him a break.

There is a lot of great comedy and also an episode that tackles a lot of tough subjects, like political disagreements with relatives that then evolve into disagreeing with one’s way of life. It’s handled and somewhat resolved in the best way a show like Ted could.