"The Bear" is the tenth and final episode of the second season and 18th overall of the American comedy-drama series The Bear. Alongside with the rest of the second season, it was released on June 22, 2023, on Hulu. It was directed by series creator Christopher Storer and written by Kelly Galuska.
Plot
On family and friends night, Richie runs the front of house while Sydney runs the kitchen. Issues begin to mount: a line cook disappears, the restaurant runs out of forks, Marcus and Sydney run into communication issues due to her earlier rejection, the toilet once again breaks, and Carmy disrupts service when he elects to serve Claire one of the dishes himself only to nearly blow up upon his return to the kitchen when he decides some of the dishes were prepared wrong. The final straw comes when the walk-in refrigerator handle breaks, trapping Carmy inside. With tickets piling up and their head chef trapped, Richie steps in to take over expediting while Sydney jumps on the line. Despite some initial trepidation, Richie and Sydney work together to get the kitchen running smoothly.
While Natalie helps out in the kitchen, Pete sees Donna outside and runs out to invite her in. She refuses, feeling she does not deserve to witness her children's success. Donna begs Pete not to tell her children she showed up to the restaurant. Pete accidentally reveals Natalie's pregnancy to Donna before she leaves. Shaken by the experience, he keeps Donna's secret while suggesting to Natalie she not hold it against her mother. Though the service finishes successfully, Carmy spirals from his lack of ability to oversee it, imagining his abusive former boss in New York's voice criticizing him. Marcus finds the missing line cook, Josh, outside in the alley smoking meth, and obtains Sydney's permission to fire him. Richie has front of house serve Cicero a chocolate banana as a surprise, a gesture that moves Cicero.[a] Tina tries to encourage Carmy through the refrigerator door by telling him how well everything has gone, but Carmy starts to rant about how he has failed the restaurant with his lack of focus. Claire comes into the kitchen after hearing he is stuck in the walk-in and overhears the end of his rant where he declares that his relationship with her was a waste of time, causing her to leave in tears. Richie sees her leave and angrily confronts Carmy through the door, leading to a heated argument when he impulsively insults Carmy by calling him "Donna".
Sydney has a panic attack after imagining the ticket printer continuing to spit out orders[b] and runs out of the restaurant to vomit. Sydney's father finds her in the alley and expresses his pride in her, emboldening her. Marcus receives a package from Luca as an opening night present: a sign reading "Every Second Counts". As Marcus hangs the sign, he fails to notice several missed calls and frantic messages from his mother's nurse. Most of the staff celebrate the successful service, but Richie is left emotionally drained from his argument with Carmy. As he waits for the fridge to be cut open, Carmy plays a missed voicemail from Claire earlier in the day, in which she confesses her love for him, leaving him devastated.
The episode was directed by series creator Christopher Storer and written by Kelly Galuska. It was Galuska's first writing credit, and Storer's twelfth directing credit.[1]
Filming
The episode opens with a single continuous long take, a device also used in the season one episode "Review". (The sequence also reuses Wilco's "Spiders (Kidsmoke)" from "Review".) The episode makes frequent use of the split screen camera angle effect during the period where Carmy is locked in the broken walk-in refrigerator, a plot point that was frequently referenced throughout the second season.[2]
Jeremy Allen White indicated that the filming of the episode mainly occurred in one sitting, with the exception of the dining scenes,[3] typical of the production style that Storer liked to use while filming to create a hectic atmosphere familiar throughout the show.
Molly Gordon revealed that certain aspects of the script were changed during filming. The voicemail that ends the episode was not originally written but was later included on Gordon's suggestion.[4] Storer decided that White, playing Carmy, would only hear the voicemail during the shooting of the scene while alone in the refrigerator.[5]
Reception
The season two finale was released to generally positive reviews and praised for its typical style of high pressure and intensity. Alan Sepinwall of Rolling Stone said, "The Bear ... is already at a level of artistry few of its competitors can touch. It continues to make every second count."[6] Marah Eakin of Vulture praised the show and its continuous intensity.[7]Salon.com critic Melanie McFarland praised the episode, saying: "'The Bear' deserves all the hype poured over it for the usual reasons – its atmospheric directing, writing, awareness of place, and performances collaborate to grant its consumption a sense of urgency and necessity."[8]
Josh Rosenberg of Esquire praised the show while contrasting it with the first season, noting that this season showed more background and displayed more emotion from the characters.[9] James Poniewozik of The New York Times also praised it while noting differences between the first and second season: "'The Bear' is no longer a war story that takes place in a kitchen. It is now a sports story that takes place in a kitchen."[10]
Vanity Fair's Rebecca Ford and David Canfield praised Jamie Lee Curtis's acting for her guest appearances throughout the season as Donna, including the season finale, suggesting she should be in consideration for an Emmy for her work on the show.[11]
