The Bear: Season 1 Review
Reel Rating: 8.7/10 | 3-min Read | TV-MA
WARNING: THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR ‘THE BEAR’ SEASON 1
From left to right: Liza Colón-Zayas, Edwin Lee Gibson, Jeremy Allen White, Lionel Boyce, Ayo Edebiri, and Ebon Mass Bachrach as Tina, Ebraheim, Carmy, Marcus, Sydney, and Richie in The Bear (2022)
The Bear is an unbelievably-enjoyable watch. It’s incredible how much character exploration they are able to fit into a 30-minute show, I couldn’t help but binge the whole series. The last two episodes are an absolute whirlwind of chaos and emotion. Jeremy Allen-White is back in Chicago where he belongs - can’t wait for season 2!
I recently rewatched The Bear for the second time, and surprise surprise, it was even better. I have tremendous respect for projects that have more to offer the second time around, there are often shows that show their whole hand on the first watch, which can be a great quality to have, but I believe that genuinely great cinema/TV is everlasting; Something that you can come back to every year and be equally stimulated with each and every watch. The Bear is a perfect example of this.
Ayo Edebiri and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Sydney and Richie in The Bear (2022)
Highlight of the Season: Episode 7 ‘The Review’
From the moment you press play on the first episode, The Bear throws you straight into the fire of the restaurant industry - A hot, chaotic, and uniquely tense environment that The Bear captures perfectly throughout the series. Episode 7 in particular, titled “The Review” turns the heat up in ways you wouldn’t think possible for a 20-minute episode.
I think the thing I love most about The Bear, is the top to bottom involvement it obviously takes to make this show as great as it is. From production to post-production, from the handheld camera work to the background music, changing or removing a single element in The Bear has drastic effects on the final product we see.
Every single shot in The Bear is interesting, and that’s a large compliment for a show that majority takes place in one location. Most shots within the kitchen are very close up and focused to communicate detail and tension, once again another production detail that brings the audience into the environment.
The Bear shows us how the problems and conflicts characters face in the restaurant only follow them as they climb the ladder. But instead of using this as the root cause of all our character’s problems, The Bear treats it as the root cause for all of their inspiration. And I like that.
“You know, like, like, I’m gonna go work in real kitchens. Like, f*ck Mom and Dad’s piece of sh*t, right? And it sounds ridiculous, you know, me saying that now, but that’s-that’s-that’s what I did. And I got the sh*t kicked outta me. And I separated herbs and I shucked oysters and clams and uni. And I cut myself, and I got garlic and onions and peppers in my fingernails and in my eyes, and my skin was dry and oily at the same time. I had calluses on my fingers from the knives, and my stomach was fսckеd, and it was... everything.”
Jeremy Allen-White (above) as Carmen ‘Carmy’ Berzatto in The Bear (2022)
Standout Performance: Jeremy Allen-White as Carmy
I know it may feel fairly obvious, but YES Jeremy Allen-White is so good in The Bear that he deserves recognition for his standout performance. If you’re like me, you know Jeremy from his portrayal of Lip Gallagher on Shameless (2011), another show set in the south side of Chicago I might add. As Carmy, Jeremy continues to put his best foot forward with each new performance. Carmy’s extreme talent combined with his humble nature is a true testament that his plans for the restaurant will work. Carmy is arrogant, yet humble. Harsh, yet sincere. His demeanour reminds me of chefs like Marco Pierre White (who Jeremy mentioned was a small inspiration for his performance). Like many of my favourite actors, White clearly shows his background in theatre and uses it to deliver these amazing one-take scenes like Carmy’s incredible 7-minute monologue in Episode 8. I’m really hoping he wins Best Actor at the 2023 Golden Globes! He deserves it.
The whole cast of The Bear does a great job, to be honest; Ebon Moss-Bachrach brings something so real to Richie that you can’t help but feel bad for this man. Big ups to Ebon for starring in two of the best TV shows of the year (he also appears in Andor). Syd was an interesting reflection on my own life at this point, very young and full of ideas, impatiently eager to help. The same with Marcus (played by Lionel Boyce), an obsession with perfection, obsessing over every little mistake… I guess a way you can describe each character’s significance in The Bear is that everyone is struggling with different things at every stage of life, and so they all have different ways they feel will solve the restaurant’s problems. Which when put together in a small, hot kitchen, creates incredible layering and dynamics for your story.
One last shoutout to co-star, co-producer and real-life chef Matty Matheson playing Neil Fak, who ironically is the one person in the show who can’t cook for sh*t. His behind-the-scenes involvement is a large factor as to why I think The Bear is able to feel so real and gritty.
A can of crushed tomatoes (above) as a can of crushed tomatoes in The Bear (2022).
What To Expect From ‘The Bear’ Season 2?
The Bear quickly earned a renewal for season 2 by Hulu, with the entire cast set to return. The real question is, after that big discovery in the finale, where do we go with all this dough?
I reckon when we next meet Carmy and the gang; The Bear will be open, and we’ll see a much more sophisticated kitchen setup with new cooks/characters. While this show is based around the real-life Chicago sandwich shop “The Beef” I hope the story embraces its sophisticated potential and truly brings the Michelin star flair to the fast food kitchen. I do want to see how the trials and tribulations of the story evolve with the kitchen. I do wonder if they will use the money to pay off the debt to Carmy’s uncle or if they will invest most of it into the restaurant 🤷♂️ After rewatching this show for a second time it’s actually laughable how many times you will notice these small tomato sauce cans placed within arms reach of characters throughout the season. Just adding on top of how close the answer to their problems is, but the chao
The one thing that I really hope we get out of The Bear Season 2 though; is a larger glimpse into Carmy’s life as a chef at The French Laundry, the flashback scene we get from Episode 2 was so tense and chilling that you begin to understand why Carmy is setting kitchens on fire and dreaming of bears in the middle of the night. Even if it’s just 1 of the 8 episodes, I NEED to see more!
The Bear is just 8 30-minute episodes of pure excellence, enjoyment, and chaos; the perfect recipe for a really good TV show. The cast is phenomenal and the themes are so real, you can see that the entire production was crafted to show respect to all back-of-house chefs around the world. This is a 10/10 recommendation from me, can’t wait for season 2 and my fingers are crossed that The Bear will receive its due recognition come awards season! Let it rip!