The Bear Trap

A season that just can't move forward-like its protagonist.

- KATHRYN VANARENDONK

CARMY BERZATTO, the protagonist of The Bear and head chef of the titular new Chicago restaurant, is miserable. For much of the series' first two seasons, Carmy (Jeremy Allen White) has been unhappy, but in season three, his attempts at excellence only make him feel worse. He cannot stop changing the menu: First the duck goes with apricot, then cherry, then maybe back to apricot, except now everything has to get in thrown out and be reconceived from the jump. He's so anxious at the idea of not innovating and refining that he just keeps fiddling, and The Bear does not stop to signal whether the dish is getting better or worse while Carmy ignores his business partner, Sydney Adamu (Ayo Edebiri); the restaurant's budget; the fully booked tables; and his friends and family. He's so terrified of losing this thing he has built that it's hard to tell how many of his decisions are honest attempts at creativity and how many amount to self-sabotage.

The Bear was always going to find itself in this tricky place. The show's initial breakout success was followed by an even more beloved and acclaimed second season. Continuing the trend of extending and elevating what came before was a tall order. Seasons one and two were driven by desperation and forward momentum.

While the Original Beef of Chicagoland fell down around Carmy and the gang in season one, every slightly functional adjustment became an enormous victory. Season two centered the drama of building something from the ground up, an are with enough inherent buoyancy and promise to counteract the show's heavier emotional themes. In season three, the drama is about how hard it is to hold on to something-not to build it up or tear it down but just to keep something stable.

And more often than not, especially in narrative storytelling, stability looks a lot like being stuck.