The Bear

(S1:84/S2:76) Both S1+S2 decline at the end. S1 has a deus ex tomatoes. In S2 characters shift towards concepts they previously seemed critical of without deeper recognition/exploration. Pretentious elitism, service to ridiculous/obsessive whims of wealth & mind-numbing wage servitude are simplistically glossed over in a patina of saccharine feel-goodisms & uncritically depicted as journeys to personal excellence/respect, especially in the purity of serving others, without much balance/analysis.

There’s a couple of money-related deus ex machina I found a touch unconvincing, but otherwise it’s an admirably intense and often near exhausting depiction of kitchen stress and that feeling of being in the weeds. Certainly not a comedy in any traditional sense, but that makes the rare actual “punchline” stand out more and the sitcom-length 30 minute episode lengths suit the food prep speedrun vibe very well.

Season 1: The cast rocks (Edebiri being the standout), and the s01e07 onetake is badass. It makes zero sense how Sydney acted in that episode though. She should be the one apologizing. Moss-Bachrach's character is also great. Season highlight: Carmy's monologue in the finale.

(S1) That second-to-last episode perfectly captures the existential terror only those with kitchen stripes can fully understand. (S2) The loongest uplifting 80s training montage, the double length family episode is just mind-blowing! (S3) The narrative momentum comes to a halt in place of psychological vignettes. The 'haunting' dialogue is so epic! (S4) ... (S5) A fitting end, we can can breathe easy again!

Thoroughly impressed by the fact that someone was able to make a drama series about a fast food kitchen this tight. That was my comment after season one. Now amended: the first season is fantastic, by the end of the second season it starts showing problems, after that it gets stale, and I've just remembered that I forgot to watch the last couple of episodes of season 4. Still, season 1 is pretty sweet.

S3 forgets what was good in the previous seasons and comes to a screeching halt in a textbook circle jerk. There’s barely any conflict or storytelling, just pretentious montages and unfinished conversations. A vapid, boring and extremely snobby work that ejaculates on itself and leaves a huge sticky mess. S4 is marginally better than 3 but still so slowly paced it’s comical, and contains 0 new ideas and 100 acts of self indulgent pathos. Syd is one of my most hated characters of all time

S1 is some of the best TV ever made. I'd recommend resisting the temptation to watch the rest.

I don't think I've seen a drama show that's varied in quality this much before, though there's more good than bad. The best episodes portray the utter frustration, intensity, dedication, duty, and even joy from running or working in a service industry -- and the family Thanksgiving episode is an absolute blast to watch. Yet the worst episodes (mostly from season 3) can be so unbelievably redundant, emphasising airy cinematics over actual progression with story or character.

One third the most emotionally resonant drama on TV. One third the slowest, most boring show on TV. One third yelling.

I am just rating the production, the quality of acting, editing, overall cinematography, and the pleasure I get from watching. I just couldn't take my eyes off of it. If I go into theoretical aspects, I'd say The Bear has many flaws. I wouldn't say I like this lame philosophy of fine dining, to be perfectly honest. I find it very pretentious. To make more sense, the whole flow of the events should have been the other way around, ending where it had started in the first place.