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Jun 27, 2024 By Kyle Mullin Photography by FX Web Exclusive

In “Tomorrow,” The Bear’s Season Three premiere, dialogue is sprinkled in like seasoning. This may come as a surprise, considering this multiple-Emmy-winning dramedy about Carmy (Jeremy Allen White), a burnt out former fine dining chef, attempting to put bougie twists on greasy spoon classics, is known for its heated arguments. These arguments between Carmy and his fellow scrambling cooks are both hilarious and heartbreaking. Last season in particular ended with Carmy and his townie-turned-maître d’ cousin Richie (swaggering scene stealer Ebon Moss-Bachrach) in a shouting match. The younger, Carmy, berated his big cuz about his mediocre career, while Richie lambasted the once hotshot chef for dumping his girlfriend Claire (Molly Gordon) to fixate on his culinary ambition.

Worse still, Richie and Carmy’s blowout occurred on the opening night of their titular upscale restaurant, when Carmy accidentally locked himself in the kitchen freezer. This left prodigious sous-chef Syd (Ayo Edebiri, masterful at acting as her character is at the stove) overwhelmed with orders, the register spitting out receipts at a horror flick evoking rate. Season Two’s cliffhanger is followed by a season opener that dials the proverbial stove burner temperature down. Fans will be familiar with the series’ balance between spirited and extended dialogue exchanges and artful cooking montages following each other like palate cleansers. But in a daring move on creator, writer, director of this episode, and overall The Bear mastermind Christopher Storer’s part, the Season Three premiere is mostly one long montage, with flecks of conversation between the beloved funny and heartwarming characters rendered all the more stark because it’s been added so sparingly.

One such exchange in the premiere finds protagonist Carmy at his former stomping grounds, Daniel, listening to a top chef warn him that while pan frying a particular set of ingredients, “You don’t want smoke, but you want music. You hear the music here?” Carmy nods and grins as it sizzles symphonically. Our driven protagonist at first appears to be globetrotting to numerous renowned restaurants to prepare The Bear for a Michelin star. But when fan favorite guest chefs pop up like the ghosts of Carmy’s kitchens past (no spoilers here), we’re left to wonder if this is only a collage of memories rushing across our screen and inspiring his new recipes. In the same way a well prepared dish’s aromas trigger memories, these scenes conjure an ambiguous sense of time travel and a potent mix of emotions.The lack of explanation, and the dreamlike shooting of each frame also make it initially unclear which scenes are flashbacks and which are current. Instead of being confusing, Storer uses this daring strategy to help viewers understand just how obsessive Carmy can be and how dynamic his inner world is. It’s little wonder he is so introverted and anxious.

Much of this is achieved by spectacularly shot closeups of ingredients readied into perfectly plated courses that leap off the screen, thanks to the sumptuous cinematography that also captures White’s every facial tick as he infuses his character with heart and grit. But those visuals are rivaled by the sound effects. Soil rustles off fresh produce as Carmy uproots it, whisks clink in pans, and dollops of sauce softly spatter onto other ingredients like grace notes completing each fine dining dish. At one point boiling water envelops diced carrots, and the sight and sound is captured so naturally you’ll feel like you’re being immersed in the bubbles.

When the characters speak during the premiere, they’re almost drowned out by white noise-like synths and a refrain of spare piano notes, a distinct contrast to the maximalist needle drops that punctuated the prior season’s pivotal moments. The guest stars leave their marks as elder chefs who needle Carmy for overlooking key details while on the line (one of whom orders him to “subtract” showy ingredients, a theme in keeping with the premiere’s toned down dialogue and score). Carmy and Syd share a tender moment mending fences after The Bear’s tumultuous first night. Carmy’s sister Natalie (a movingly nurturing Abby Elliot) who keeps the books at The Bear, and their family’s preceding down home diner The Original Beef of Chicagoland, pleads with her brother to take care as he boards his flight to New York, where much of his trauma and career setbacks happened not to mention Joel McHale’s sneeringly domineering head chef, who haunts Carmy to this day.

The third season’s second episode, “Next,” is a showcase for the series’ versatility. Where “Tomorrow” was spare, artful, years-spanning and minutely detailed (thanks to celebrity chef and series secondary cast member Matty Matheson co-writing the episode), “Next” fizzes with dialogue, and occurs almost entirely in real time. Carmy burrowing into memories of prior recipes, colleagues and traumas in the wee hours while experimenting with new dishes is followed in “Next” by one lucid exchange after the next with key characters. Natalie tries to dote on him. Syd is blindsided by the number of dishes Carmy has updated without her signoff and his commandments-like list of “non-negotiables” that will make the restaurant difficult to operate. The bitterness between Carmy and Richie has not diminished. They argue, at first dramatically then comically, with profanity bordering on the poetic. The scene swerves into slapstick when the esteemed Fak brothers (Matheson as former mechanic/current maître-d’ Neil, along with Ricky Staffieri as current mechanic Theo) attempt to ease tempers and install a fluorescent light, failing spectacularly at the latter.

As the season unfolds, Matheson in particular emerges as the series’ heart, soul and funny bone, trading hilarious lines with household name guest stars and providing a literal shoulder to lean on for the series’ most vilified character during an especially emotionally complex scene. Like Season Two, there are also some new episodes that zero in on secondary characters making them the main protagonist. One such episode, intuitively directed by Ayo Edebiri in her debut behind the camera, rivals last season’s much lauded Richie-centered episode “Forks.”

Even though the laughs in subsequent episodes are expertly achieved, the start of Season Three is more dramatic and melancholy than comedic. The stakes are set high as Carmy aims to attain his fine dining glory. The camera work is unrivaled, and the cast is swiftly and impeccably reintroduced when the new shift starts. The latter is in keeping with the sitcom conventions of yore, but this series defies easy categorization. The Bear continues to make viewers laugh, dab tears and watch ravenously as the most lived-in characters on TV ply their trades and shake off setbacks. Whether they’re chatty or contemplative, you won’t be able to take your eyes off this unmatched cast and the gorgeous dishes they prepare. (www.hulu.com/series/the-bear)

Author rating: 9/10