The Bear is more than Bearable

The Bear (FX)is one of those shows that starts off really strong, and never makes you question why you turned it on. One season, eight episodes, and a pity there wasn't more.

I was drawn to it because of my sister wanting to go into cooking and subsequently being very invested in cooking shows. Also because I'm from Illinois (I'm too suburban to say "Chicago" these days I suppose ha). So, I plopped down in front of the tv ready to start a show I only heard a few quick things about, and was very quickly impressed.

What does the show do right? As far as I'm concerned, everything.

I mean, it's theme song is Chicago by Sufjan Stevens and if that isn't perfect...I don't know what is. Sets the scene, matches the pacing and the tone of the show...yeah. Perfection.

Characters

Every character feels real and flessed out. Just when you think you have someone pinned, you find something new about them that you didn't really consider.

They all have their own style. There's Carmy (He came from the prestigious world of cooking, a world that was all about high end food, precision, and I guess this world was not devoid of joy...but the joy came at a high end price), Sydney (the high strung, but incredible woman who sees the resturant as being more on the "five star reviews" and "modern/tech-y" side), Carmy's cousin, Richie (who wants things to stay put because he was in charge of things more or less, and doesn't want the heart to leave from the restaurant), Marcus (oh kind Marcus...he gets really into his craft...), Tina (Carmy's #1 hater or? Shev has been there since forever and her cooking skills have not been fully developed, but she's great at what she does do and is mad entertaining), Ebraheim (more or less just along for the ride while offering stories and advice) and Sweeps(there to uh Sweep, a right hand man if there ever was one). Should I mention Neil? Wait, he doesn't work there. He's just always around.

They are all easy to care about, interesting and have backstories that they reveal a little at a time. "Ohhh that's why they did that..." came out of my mouth a few times.

All of the employees have different dreams when it comes to the restaurant and their careers in general. Carmy is both a bother because he is changing things, and someone to look up to because he does have a lot of knowledge.

Conflict

I thought this show would only deal with the main character needing to handle a failing family business, but it is that, and so much more. It manages to make it far more interesting and fast paced than I thought it would be.

I mean, let's first give props to the pacing. Man, it takes time on things, but it also thrusts you into their world. and I am told that it truly is that fast paced in real life. When they are cooking, you feel the heat. When they argue, you feel the heat. Then, they slow down. And you are sitting then just feeling like you are both so slowed down, yet still on the edge of your seat. Nothing feels rushed. Not their arguments and make ups, not their character arcs (which, I mean it has only been one season, so there is still lots to come in terms of character growth or regression), and nothing in between. Everything flows very well.

Anyway, back to the conflict. So, the main one has to be trying to work out how to run a restaurant that was so far in the gutter that Sugar, the main character's sister, thought should just be let go (she also wanted it gone for other reasons I will not spoil). And I could see why it seemed like a loss cause. It has its quirks. It was ran by their brother who did not take care of it at all (health code violations) and the employees did not do what they were supposed to do. So, Carmy had to quickly jump in.

Everyone has such a distinctive role and voice. So, naturally they clash.

Carmy is dealing with trying to keep a business afloat while dealing with the death in the family that caused him to take over the business in the first place. His cousin hates how pretentious he thinks Carmy is, and everyone has their opinions on Carmy too.

Food

Now, I'm not gonna pretend my food critic expertise goes beyond the few words I've heard on competitive cooking shows I binge once a month. I'm not gonna act like I care all too much about the cooking/food world outside of the random bursts I get after I've finished watching said shows (these bursts last for five minutes, or until I realize I do not have any ingredients they promised me were right in my very kitchen).

but, the food they show is absolutely mouth watering and this is coming from a vegetarian (if I don't tell you at every corner that I am one, will I still be one?). They truly go into detail about recipes and cooking styles. They discuss flavors and timing to show you that this show does care about a main focus: it being a restuarant. They want to be there. They want their food to be loved and devoured, so they hone in their talents. I feel proud of them when they taste something and their eyes light up. Man, I just love how much they care.

Relationships

By the last episode I realized something that quietly 9not quickly because I didn't notice till the end) helped make this show stand out more to me. There was no romance between any of the main characters that you could really pinpoint. It was not some scandalous show where everyone is hooking up with everyone (I heard/seen firsthand that this is a bit common in restaurants-at least the cooks are known for being very flirtatious and someone is bound to fall for their charms). It was not even really...romantic unless you count them being totally in love with their craft.

It was just people learning to deal with each other's differences in the kitchen and hearing their stories on how they got to working there in the first place. There was a lot of growth, and a lot of tangling of relationships. That makes sense right? Well, I wrote it, so probably not.

By the end, I understood who worked well with whom and why certain people butted heads. But, I still saw everyone as a family.

You learn to take all of the characters as a whole instead of judging them off of one characteristic or action. It shows you that they are complex, so you have complex feelings about them. All you can see for sure is that you want the restaurant to succeed. And you want to find out more about everyone as you enjoy the fast paced (yet perfectly paced) world they are in. It's real, raw, and sometimes hilarious.

10/10 recommend!