REVIEW: ‘The Bear’ Season 3 Shows Signs Of Strain

The Bear Season 3 gets off on the right note. It also shows its hand immediately. In the tone poem premiere that delivers a course of past and present, we follow Carmy (Jeremy Allen White) throughout time as he works and builds versions of himself around those he learns from and grows with. From time overseas to local establishments and the New York City restaurant that left him with stomach ulcers and panic attacks, we bear witness to his trials as a burgeoning chef whose eyes become increasingly jaded in the face of so much manipulated, calculated beauty.

The premiere is a stunning demonstration of everything The Bear does well while spinning the spotlight on all The Bear Season 3 does wrong. It’s beautiful but enormously self-indulgent and more preoccupied with how it looks rather than what it conveys. Like the gorgeously plated dish that Carmy, unbeknownst to him, serves to a bright-eyed Sydney (Ayo Edebiri), there’s evident skill behind the camera that brings such lush, haunting visuals to life. But what the series seems to forget in Season 3 is that we aren’t just meant to look at this dish; we’re meant to consume it.

The Bear Season 3 operates on visual spectacle rather than delivering heart. Moments that should land don’t, such as the funeral of Marcus’s (Lionel Boyce) mother. Mounting tension between Carmy and Sydney burns out because we never spend consequential time between them. Any would-be conversation is derailed, despite countless examples in the past demonstrating their desire to make sure there’s always an open line of dialogue, spoken or not. There’s way, way too much time spent with the Faks, who aren’t nearly as funny as the writers seem to think they are.

And then there’s the Claire (Molly Gordon) of it all. Gordon is a charismatic actress. But that doesn’t mean anything when she’s given a character so thinly written that the series is determined to rewrite its own history to make her more integral to the plot. Serious conversations regarding how Marcus is doing after the death of his mother are hijacked by characters asking Carmy if he’s spoken or apologized to Claire yet. Claire is declared Carmy’s version of peace despite their relationship only ever adding to his stress in Season 2. Claire is, seemingly, poised to be the lynchpin that has the potential to keep all of Carmy together as he spirals into his worst instincts.

There are threads in The Bear Season 3 that still work. White delivers some of his best work as the character as we reach greater internal depths of just how messed up he was after his fated employment under David Fields (Joel McHale). It’s purposeful that, in that gorgeous premiere, we see the influence of Fields and Olivia Coleman’s Chef Andrea Terry. While the former spat vitriolic abuse at Carmy, the latter led by example and substantial notes that helped him improve. It’s interesting to note then that Carmy in Season 3 seems to have taken a page out of Fields’ book instead, yelling at his staff and throwing away any food he deemed unworthy.

It’s not a likable version of the character and I’m not sure the season fully justifies the extent his warpath can take. But there’s no hiding from the fact that since season one, Carmy has had a temper. It’s just more targeted this time and becomes a divide between him and Sydney. Sydney, who, by the season’s end, is now also suffering from panic attacks as she tries to decide on what new career path she’ll follow and if staying with Carmy is the most effective, healthiest use of her time.

Perhaps the character who suffers the most in terms of screen time is Richie (Ebon Moss-Bachrach). Moss-Bachrach is still doing tremendous work as the ever-work-in-progress Richie, and there are some beautifully understated scenes between him and his daughter and ex-wife. But the writing leans too heavily on dragging out the fight between him and Carmy that closed out Season 2. Like many other decisions in Season 3, it feels out of character. Yes, they’re both hot-headed, but the way they bicker and derail services due to it fails to match up with the other ways they’ve grown and progressed throughout the series.

There’s something to be said that the two most impactful episodes of the season are the only ones written by women. They speak to the heart and warmth that the series delivers in its best moments. The first is “Napkins,” directed by Edebiri and written by Catherine Schetina. The flashback episode follows a recently laid-off Tina (Liza Colón-Zayas) who stumbles into the Original Beef while looking tirelessly for work and meeting Mikey (Jon Bernthal) in the process. Their ensuing conversation about aging, dreams, and what it means to be allowed chances is subtle, stunning work that sits back and allows two formidable actors to bounce off one another.

There are nods to Mikey’s depression and the fact that he spends his life rudderless, tethered only to the dreams of his loved ones, but it doesn’t engulf the moment. Instead, it offers an adult, poignant look at what jobs can be for so many of us. Tina isn’t looking for passion; she’s looking for routine. She finds it in this run-down restaurant, only to discover a love for what she does at her own time and speed.

There are similarities in tone to the other standout episode, “Ice Chips,” written by Joanna Calo. Jamie Lee Curtis returns as Donna summoned because Natalie (Abby Elliot) needs someone to meet her at the hospital as she goes into labor. The two-hander between Curtis and Elliot gorgeously captures the intricate nature of being a mother and daughter. Their relationship is marred with trauma, addiction, and emotional abuse, and yet the two, still in these moments of primal vulnerability, find solace in one another. Its ability to thoroughly address the harm Donna caused her daughter while refusing to fully demonize her is profoundly compassionate and makes their tender moments all the more impactful.

However, these highs aren’t fully able to counter the lows. The Bear Season 3 looks great, but it’s hollow outside of the premiere, “Napkins,” and “Ice Chips.” More than the previous two seasons, it feels like a setup rather than its own story, too eager to look ahead rather than explore the characters and their motivations. The Bear Season 3 loses focus as it tries to be prestige television first and a character-driven story second.

The Bear Season 3 is out now on FX on Hulu.