re: The Bear season 3 - spoilers ok

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I think some of you guys are over reacting. It was a solid B of a season

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I have been wanting to watch this show and finally took the plunge. Family was away for the Holiday weekend and I binged all 3 seasons - 1 season a day. Yes, I think I now have anxiety.

While watching season 3, I was thinking how this show can end and how many more seasons it can have because you cannot keep this pace, and I recalled an article a few years ago about how Netflix series are by design 3-4 seasons. Tell a story, finish the arc, and move in before it gets too stale. Season 3 and 4 of The Bear were shot consecutively, and 4 is done shooting now. In that context, I think this season did its job, yes it’s the weaker of the 3, but the character development really was good and we got an entire season of a new restaurant struggling to open. I do think season 4 will be the last one as they finish the arc of opening a new place, how it will end should be entertaining to watch.

Sydney can be annoying sometimes, but she isn't overly

She is a good #2 in the show

Just got through episode 2. Was going great, until

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Take us there, Bear

Yes Chef

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Suddenly got some dust in my eyes. . .so maybe I missed some of the impact of the scene.

Also helps that Marcus is my favorite character. Reminds me of my friend from a group home I was in as a child. Jesse Crippen, Kid never talked. When he did talk, it was slow and laconic. People thought him stupid

But he was always learning and working hard, just quietly acing everything in school. Kid finally opened up to me, after we roomed together for a year. May have been the most incredibly intelligent person I have ever known. Like Reed Richards level shite. Found out he was battling schizoaffective something-or-other, and his medication slowed his speech.

He didn't give a corn of a shite that people thought him slow, and always used that to his advantage.

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I don't remember if the big cans or the little cans have the money in them

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I don't understand why there is money in the cans. Did they ever explain that? If so, I either missed it or don't remember it.

Season 2 was better overall but I did enjoy S3.

Jamie Lee Curtis was absolutely amazing in the hospital episode.


I really want a Matter Of Faks spinoff.

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Well, I just finished season 3. Apparently I'm in the minority. I just did not enjoy this season nearly as much as the first two. Actually that's not accurate. I didn't enjoy this season at all.

The major plot points, both new and old, just didn't have much substantive progression. The background gaps that were filled in - which seems to be the entire point of the season - were kind of trivial details to me that didn't warrant so much time. That god-awful 15 minute conversation between chefs sitting around the table waxing poetic about their spiritual connection to food was hard to sit through. It was basically 10 episodes of meandering to me.

I'll still watch the next season, but I won't be looking out for it.

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I agree in the sense that I didn't enjoy it as much as Season 2. I thought it was, at times, a lot of filler that didn't advance the story much.

Things I really liked:

- Vedder Save it for Later ode to Chicago intro (loved it actually)
- Carmy background episode and the subsequent inclusions of that history throughout
- The segments with Boulud and Keller
- Richie's arc

Things I didn't like:

- Sydney basically doing nothing but fretting and looking uncomfortable all season
- I agree with you on that long segment of the Ever funeral, it was pretty blah. I don't know if they shoot those scenes in the actual Ever dining room, but on the show they just look really bleak and boring and that makes that scene drag even more IMO
- As noted above, the general slow pace. I like a slow burn, but it seemed like 2 episodes of content stretched out, albeit in a really well-made package

Mixed:

- The birth episode was very relatable and genuine and just well-made TV. In isolation it's really good. I just question whether an entire episode to this mini storyline makes sense, especially in context of a season where the major plot lines just didn't advance much. If I thought this was going 10 seasons I'd be all about it, but it's not so I'm mixed on it.

- Same with Tina. Her storyline is probably a little more pertinent to the show, but I wonder if she'll ever really feature enough in remaining seasons to really make it that worthwhile. But it was good and I like her character.

- The cousins are funny but they got so much screen time - once again - in a season that didn't tell us very much.

I love the show, it's must-watch TV for me and I don't think this season killed any of that. It just felt like a placeholder season.

I can't decide if I hate or love Sydney. Same with Selena Gomez's voice.

We have only final episode left. Bummed to read that it might not be great as people seem to dislike the funeral for Ever,, which I assume will be majority of episode.

I agree with a lot of the takes above. It’s still one of my favorite current show, but this season was slow with a lot of stuff that kind of felt like filler (birth Ice Chips episode, though it was also a great episode of TV). Also agree that I love the Faks, but they’re getting a lot of screen time. Disliked the drawn out conflict/stress between Carm and Claire. The whole Carm tortured and depressed and such is inherent to his character, I know, but he needs some redeeming qualities as well besides just being a driven, tortured perfectionist who is a pain in everyone’s arse.


I also loved Boulud and Keller being featured. Overall, I like the season, but it was weaker than previous seasons.

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I can't decide if I hate or love Sydney.

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I really don't like her at all.

She has such an inflated sense of self. She was a complete nobody that came to work at a sandwich shop because of Carmy. She has not worked at the places Carmy has. She has not put in the hours of torture.

Yet she thinks she is his equal and is frustrated that she isn't considered it immediately.

She had some improvements in S2 but I didn't see them in S3.

I also found the stuff with the offer from Shapiro to her to be totally not believable. She is, again, a complete nobody.

Chicago is filled with very accomplished CDC's at big time places that he could choose from and he goes with her? Not really believable.

It's also odd that Shapiro wants to start his own restaurant and then completely step away and let Sydney run it.

He himself appears to just be a staff chef (maybe he;s the CDC? I cant remember), who other chefs who worked at Ever tend to make fun of on occasion (hinting that he's a lesser chef??")

He then wants to hire another chef who is a "lesser chef" to run his new restaurant in a struggling economy post covid where restaurants are failing left and right?

The whole idea doesn't really make sense.