From the very beginning of the first episode of Season 1, “System,” when Carmy (Jeremy Allen White) wakes up in a panic to buy meat for The Beef through to the creation of the new restaurant, one of The Bear‘s strongest qualities was the amount of trauma it could impart on the audience, especially former hospitality workers, with every scene set in the kitchen. However, it could be argued that, by Season 3, the constant dysfunction was bogging down the story by not allowing characters to progress their arcs. Season 4 returned some of the joy of cooking, yet these scenes, along with nearly all the best moments in this season, are not set in the restaurant. They’re set in homes, hospitals, even the benches outside The Bear’s beef window. These moments provide the space to explore the character’s inner thoughts and dilemmas and allowed the story to go beyond just a dinner service.
‘The Bear’s Restaurant Scenes Feel Repetitive by Season 4
The tone of the restaurant in which The Bear takes place has certainly changed, with The Beef becoming The Bear. In the past, whether it was a place where everything went wrong in comedic fashion or a fancy establishment that was being built, there was always a new challenge or atmosphere. However, Season 3’s portrayal of a kitchen and business that was falling apart due to Carmen’s overthinking and his broken relationship with Richie (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) became a predictable pattern. Even the editing showed repetitions of days on end, and whenever Richie and Carmen spoke, they argued, and whenever Carmen and Sydney (Ayo Edebiri) spoke, Carmen would shut her out.
As the lack of scenes that followed service proved in Season 4, there simply isn’t much dynamism when the kitchen is supposed to run as efficiently as possible. Even if it spirals into arguments and yelling, there is little to be explored if that happens every time. If we had constant scenes of Tina (Liza Colón-Zayas) remaking the pasta sauce with the same outcome of being too slow until the final act of the season, the payoff would not have been as great as what we were given outside the restaurant.
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The Outside World in ‘The Bear’ Allows the Characters to Be Seen in Different Contexts
When we see the chefs in the real world, we get far more poignant moments that allow us to explore their inner conflicts. Ebraheim (Edwin Lee Gibson) is one of the most underrated characters in The Bear, and much of his story takes place outside the restaurant with Albert (Rob Reiner). We watch Ebra go on his journey of finding his confidence, especially after previously being scared of trying new things in Season 2. He goes back to school and is constantly chasing the ability to “create opportunity,” and in doing so, realizes that the beef window is the most profitable part of the restaurant.
It is vital that we get to see characters in more than just one light throughout a narrative, and it is these scenes that allow us to do just that, and in doing so, we get to see how they act in different scenarios. Episode 7, “The Wedding,” is arguably the best example of this because of the different dynamics we get to watch that wouldn’t be possible inside the restaurant. For example, it is unlikely that Carmen and Lee (Bob Odenkirk) would have talked so personally about Michael (Jon Bernthal) being proud of Carmen, or been in the same room, in any other situation than at a wedding, and especially not in The Bear.
When nearly the entire Berzatto and Fak families are underneath the table trying to make Richie’s daughter, Eva (Anabelle Toomey), feel less scared about dancing, it is a subversion of how these groups normally interact. Nearly every character comes under the table swearing at first, before being told by Tiff (Gillian Jacobs) and others to be quiet and help Eva. In doing so, we get one of the only calm scenes of this plethora of colorful characters as they admit their fears, which also provides a unique opportunity for Carmen and Claire (Molly Gordon) to reconnect.
‘The Bear’ Returns to Comfort Cooking When Away From the Restaurant in Season 4
When food was cooked in the first and second season of The Bear it was typically done with the portrayal of a comforting or heartwarming experience, portrayed through beef sandwiches and the egg omelet Sydney makes for Sugar (Abby Elliot). However, when the restaurant developed, much of the cooking became sterile, with Carmen’s obsession with subtracting and pushing dishes ruining the appreciation of the work that goes into food that can satisfy. Yet, when we see people cook for others in their personal lives, the warmth returns.
When Carmen cooks for his mother, Donna (Jamie Lee Curtis), following her heartbreaking monologue about not being there for Michael, he cooks her the same meal as the one he made at the French Laundry. This is where he learned that cooking for people was heavily tied to the idea of nurturing, as he is helping to heal his mother by performing this act of service. The return to this ideology is arguably why he phones Pete (Chris Witaske) straight away to remove himself from the Partnership Agreement, since he does not need to prove himself and “nothing to draw on” to keep going. During scenes at home with Tina and her husband, the validation she gains from his approval of her dishes gives her huge confidence to keep pushing forward despite the timing setbacks.
In Episode 4, “Worms,” we see how this less pressurized version of cooking can allow characters to explore the difficult decisions they face. When Sydney is cooking for her cousin’s daughter, TJ (Arion King), the meal she makes for her is a home staple recipe that gives her a chance to connect with TJ when they are buying the ingredients, which is further developed when Sydney opens up to TJ about her stress surrounding whether to stay at The Bear or take the job offer at a new restaurant. Arguably, this scene is the first time we see an indication of which side Sydney will come down on, as she fights for the argument to stay when TJ tells her to leave, and it is the food that brings these characters together so they can interact on this personal level.
Season 4 of The Bear included fascinating character moments by placing their scenes outside The Bear. These not only kept the tone and mise en scène constantly evolving, but brought us back to one of the best aspects of The Bear, the food.
All episodes of The Bear is available to stream on Hulu in the U.S.
