As audiences prepare to return to the heat of the kitchen inThe Bear,here is every major development to remember ahead of the new episodes. Created by Christopher Storer, with the screenwriter serving as co-showrunner with Joanna Calo, the FX series focuses on young chef Carmy Berzatto (Jeremy Allen White), as he takes up the responsibility of running his recently passed brother’s sandwich shop. Across its first three seasons,The Bearhas earned widespread acclaim for its handling of complex, darker themes and the portrayals of restaurant management.The Bearseason 4is set to premiere on June 26.
The Bearseason 1 kicked off the show asCarmy returned to Chicago to manage the run-down Original Beef of Chicagoland restaurant following his brother’s death, turning the restaurant from a sandwich shop into the titular establishment. Season 2 continued their journey to make The Bear a success, facing interrelationship difficulties and challenges from the renovations. With season 3, Carmy is torn between ensuring a healthy relationship between his staff and close friends, the stresses of seeing fellow establishments being forced to close, and an incoming review that couldmake-or-break The Bear.
6The Tribune Review
A Critic’s Write-Up May Determine The Restaurant’s Future
The Bearseason 3 picked up in the aftermath of the restaurant’s complicated soft launch event. Carmy tried to make amends with his staff and loved ones for being trapped in the walk-in freezer and the subsequent arguments that ensued from the stress. Carmy tried to keep his team together while enacting his vision for the restaurant. Alongside a stressful month and tension with the team due to his decisions and poor handling of the situation, the team soon learns thata review of The Bear is being written by The Chicago Tribune.
As such, Carmy is faced with new pressures, such as the team scrambling to recreate the dishes highlighted in the review as they await the full verdict. When paired with the issues that they had already faced, Carmy is told by Cicero (Oliver Platt) that the restaurant’s finances are in dire straits, and could lead to him pulling his support.The Bearseason 3 finale, “Forever” concluded withCarmy looking at his phone, only to see several missed calls from Cicero and a published review, ending before revealing the write-up.
5Carmy & Claire Spend Time Apart
Each Character Has Kept Their Distance
Alongside his troubles at work, Carmy was also facing difficulties with his on-again, off-again relationship with Claire (Molly Gordon). While she had left a message confessing her feelings to him on the day of the soft launch,Claire overheard Carmy ranting about his poor work/life balance while he was trapped in the freezer, leading to her leaving brokenhearted and in tears. As such, season 3 sees them separated while they grapple with the fallout.
Throughout the season, Carmy is questioning whether he should be the one to approach Claire to make amends. While his Al-Anon group and conversations with the Faks, he has consistently put off reaching out to her due to his own traumas. Furthermore, when the Faks attempted to act as mediators between the pair, Claire refused to be the one to reach out, leaving their relationship troubles unsolved.
4Sydney Faces A Big Decision
Sydney Is Offered Her Dream Job
Claire isn’t the only one of Carmy’s closest acquaintances to find their relationship with him fracturing, as Sydney (Ayo Edebiri) is also being pushed to her limit. Despite her playing a key role in the relaunch of the restaurant under Carmy and having proven herself,season 3 sees her becoming more aware of the flaws of the business under him. As such, even with her role as a partner being formalized, she sees herself weighing her place in the establishment going forward.
As pressure mounts at The Bear and Sydney grows to acknowledge the dysfunctional management of the kitchen,she finds herself approached by Ever’s CDC Chef Adam (Adam Shapiro), hoping topoach Sydney from her roleas he establishes a new restaurant. As Carmy undermines her role, and she learns that Adam’s offer has more benefits than Carmy’s partner agreement, Sydney holds back on signing the agreement as she weighs up her future. Ultimately, the pressure over her loyalties overwhelms Sydney, inducing a panic attack and leaving her future uncertain.
3Richie Is Opening Up
Richie’s Loved Ones Are Trying To Reach Out To Him
While his overall presence in season 3 has been smaller,Richie (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) has continued to but heads with Carmy, especially after they argue over the soft launch incident. Between their season 2 falling out and Richie overexerting his control over the establishment, their conflicts played a part in highlighting the chaos to Sydney. However, Richie’s main conflict in season 2 has been far more personal and more removed from the restaurant.
As the restaurant scrambles to please its critics, Richie is also faced with how he’ll navigate his new family life, now that his ex Tiff (Gillian Jacobs), is set to marry Frank (Josh Hartnett). For Richie, he is not only uncertain about whether he would attend their wedding, despite Tiff’s insistence on his making an appearance, but is also left wondering whether he is a healthy presence in his daughter’s life. Despite these woes, however,those who care about him are encouraging him to be proactive.
2Is Marcus Set To Leave?
Marcus Is A Weak Link In A Difficult Time For The Bear
Another member of The Bear’s staff who is set to face his own challenges is Marcus (Lionel Boyce). Having been a mainstay since season 1, Marcus was greeted with tragedy at the start of season 3,asMarcus' mother passed awaywhile he assisted with the soft launch of The Bear. While the rest of the staff did their best to be conscientious of his feelings, Marcus stated he feels that his mother would have been happy to know he was enjoying his passion in the kitchen.
However, how long Marcus would be able to continue with his career path was brought into question as part of Cicero’s business recommendations.One of the recommendations he and The Computer (Brian Koppelman) offered was to either fire Marcus or reduce his pay, something which Natalie (Abby Elliott) strongly stood against. However, should the Tribune review prove to be as catastrophic as they fear, Carmy may be forced into an untenable position, and Marcus' career may be on the line.
1Tina’s Origin Highlights The Series' Ongoing Conflict
A Flashback To The Character’s Past Highlights Present Issues
One final notable season 3 moment worth remembering is the events of “Napkins”. The episode is a flashback to the moment Tina (Liza Colon-Zayas) joined The Beef, as her agonizing job hunt brings her to Mikey (Jon Bernthal). While Mikey takes an interest and sits down to comfort her, the pair have a heart-to-heart about how the younger generation keeps them inspired and hopeful, with Mikey specifically shining a light on how proud of Carmy he is.
Though this flashback isn’t directly referred to in the present,its position in the series is important in how it reflects the cast’s current situation. As more pressures have piled up on Carmy, he has found himself increasingly at odds with his team and, by extension, those in his life, such as his growing disconnection with Sydney and lack of connection with Claire. Even Carmy recognizes this, confronting former boss David Fields (Joel McHale) about the lasting impact his abuse had.
At this moment inThe Bear, the cast is caught in a cycle.Mikey feared letting Carmy work at The Beef because of how it could break him, and now the younger sibling is facing nothing but heartbreak and turmoil, with his support network fracturing as he unintentionally harms those around him. WhileCarmy may be in a difficult position, it isn’t too late for him to break the cycle and regain the hope Mickey saw in him, though it is incredibly likely that season 4 will bring him plenty of new challenges to test his strength.
