One of my favorite moments in Season 4 of “The Bear” is a kind of delicate ballet before the chaos—a dialogue-free sequence that lasts nearly three minutes. With the camera swooping in elegantly slow fashion about the kitchen, Ayo Edebiri’s Sydney prepares a seared scallop dish, with the hauntingly beautiful sounds of “Slow Disco” by St. Vincent providing a lush soundtrack (Am I thinking what everybody’s thinking? I’m so glad I came, but I can’t wait to leave…). The background colors switch from stylized hues of blue to purple and magenta, furthering the calm, dream-like vibe.
You have to be supremely confident in the level of affection and faith you’ve reached with your audience to pull off such a quietly audacious scene, and “The Bear” creator Christopher Storer and his greatly talented team of artists have unquestionably earned that trust over the course of a series that has garnered more awards in its first three seasons than any other comedy in the history of television has over the same time span. (The argument about whether or not “The Bear” is a comedy is over; it’s not, but because most episodes run shorter than an hour, and because the FX folks wisely position it as comedy when submitting for awards, a comedy is what it’s officially labeled.)
“The Bear” is also one of the most intense series of the decade, regardless of genre; I know some folks who love the show but couldn’t make it through the “Fishes” Christmas Eve flashback episode because it hit too close to home and was too stressful. While the 10-episode Season Four has no shortage of heavy baggage unpacking, including one episode that unfolds in tight confines and plays out like something you’d see onstage at the Steppenwolf Theatre, the overall tone is relatively lighter this time around, highlighted by a guest star-studded episode that breaks the shorter-than-an-hour pattern, running for 1 hour and 9 minutes. Even this episode contains a couple of hard-hitting dramatic moments, but on balance it’s one of the most buoyant and joyous pieces of television I’ve experienced in years.
Throughout the show’s run, the crushing pressure of time has been a constant theme. Gotta build the new restaurant in 12 weeks. Gotta get the house prepped in time for doors opening. Gotta make that dish in under five minutes. Gotta make sure the customers are served in timely fashion. Gotta rush to the farmer’s market, gotta pay the bills on time (or at least make enough of a payment to buy a little more time). We literally get a ticking time clock in the premiere episode of Season 4, when the restaurant’s financial backer Uncle Jimmy (Oliver Platt), and his financial analyst Computer (played by Brian Koppelman, co-writer of “Rounders” and “Ocean’s Thirteen”) burst into The Bear, and Computer plugs an enormous digital clock into the wall. The clock is set to 1,440 hours, i.e., 60 days, and when it runs out, the restaurant will cease operations, unless a miracle transpires. Reminders of time passing are sprinkled throughout the show, from exterior shots of clocks on buildings around Chicago to the repetition of the “EVERY SECOND COUNTS” mantra to certain movies playing on TV sets, e.g., a time-loop movie from the 1990s, and a scene from a 1950s Western where one character says to another, “Squeezin’ that watch ain’t gonna stop time.”
As per usual with the extended Berzatto clan (as well as the “work family” of staffers), nearly everyone’s life is in a state of flux, with parental issues frequently in play. Jeremy Allen White’s Carmy is trying to manage his anger while continuing to keep his mother (Jamie Lee Curtis) at bay. Syd is contemplating an offer to jump to a new restaurant. Ebon Moss-Bachrach’s Richie is coping with the impending marriage of his ex, Tiffany (Gillian Jacobs), to the wealthy and annoyingly likable Frank (Josh Hartnett). Abby Elliott’s Sugar, Edwin Lee Gibson’s Ebraheim, Lionel Boyce’s Marcus, Liza Colón-Zayas’ Tina, and Corey Hendrix’s Sweeps have their respective challenges to face. (The main cast is once again superb, and yes, there are some most welcome returning guest stars, and a couple of A-list first-timers as well. The writing on “The Bear” makes brilliant actors even better, and makes great actors want to get in on the game.)
The dialogue crackles and sears, whether it’s a painfully honest monologue that must have taken up two pages of a script, or keenly observational one-liners, as when Richie says to Carmen, “Can I lock up, or is that gonna interrupt your mopin’?” or when a Berzatto-adjacent character explains the family to a newcomer: “It’s a lot of people with very specific and unique personalities that feel things very strongly.” I’ll say.
Camerawork and editing remain first-rate, as the series continues to find new and unique ways to showcase the choreographed chaos of the kitchen, while celebrating the craft of elevated cooking and baking. We also venture outside for insightful detours, as when Carm takes a drive to Oak Park, or with an absolutely lovely and warmly funny episode written by Edebiri & Boyce that showcases Sydney’s neighborhood roots, and her life outside the restaurant. Showrunner Storer is a maniac when it comes to needle drops, whether it’s expertly placed callbacks to songs from previous seasons, or he’s augmenting certain moments with selections ranging from “That’s the Way” by Led Zeppelin to “Most of the Time” (time!) by Bob Dylan to “It’s Magic” by Doris Day to “Throw Your Arms Around Me” by Ed Sheeran. (The entirety of Episode 2 is paced like a musical, but don’t worry, the characters don’t actually burst into song.)
We don’t yet know if there will be a Season 5 of “The Bear.” My guess is it will happen, and there are certainly a plethora of storylines yet to be resolved. Still, if we left the characters where they are at the end of Season 4, they would still live on in our imaginations for years to come. We know these people. They are three-dimensional, they are passionate, they are deeply flawed, they’re capable of breathtaking generosity and irritatingly tiny pettiness. Their lives are noisy and funny and heartbreaking and chaotic, and we love watching them go through it all.
All 10 episodes of Season 4 of “The Bear” were screened for review.
