Yahoo News The Bear Season 3 Premiere Recap: The Calm After the Storm — Grade It!
After the whirlwind of chaos that was The Bear’s Season 2 finale, Hulu’s Emmy-winning dramedy returns on a subdued note, as Carmy reflects on the path that led him here.
Tuesday’s Season 3 premiere is light on dialogue and heavy on atmosphere (with a lush ambient score from Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross), following Carmy as he heads back into the kitchen after his restaurant’s opening night, his mind flooding with memories of his culinary training. He gets up at dawn and enters his restaurant’s dining room alone, meticulously cleaning up and putting things back in order. Along the way, he remembers plucking herbs with tweezers in the kitchen of Olivia Colman’s Chef Terry, getting hands-on instruction from legendary chef Daniel Boulud — and getting chewed out by Joel McHale’s abusive head chef, who tells him his dish has too many ingredients and leaves him a piece of bright green tape with “SUBTRACT” written on it.
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Back in present day, Sydney brings Carmy a cup of coffee, and he starts jotting down a list of “non-negotiables” for his restaurant. We flash back to him working in Chef Terry’s kitchen, harvesting vegetables in the French Laundry’s famous garden and saying goodbye to his sister Nat before moving to New York. “Maybe I’m never gonna see you again,” she worries, but he assures her: “You’ll see me again.” As he cooks, he has visions of the awful Christmas family fight from last season — and of happier times with Claire, before he went and ruined things with her in the Season 2 finale.
Carmy apologizes to Sydney for leaving her alone on opening night, but she tells him, “We made it,” adding: “Don’t let it happen again.” When she advises him to go home, he asks, “You think she wants to hear from me right now?” But “that’s not what I was talking about,” Sydney says. Carmy does leave a heartfelt voicemail, saying he didn’t mean it and professing his love — but we see he actually left that message for Richie. While Marcus sits in the hospital, seemingly keeping watch over his mom, Carmy writes down more non-negotiables: “Less is more.” “Vibrant collaboration.” He prepares a new set of dishes as he remembers working in Chef Terry’s kitchen and sketching out recipe ideas in his notebook. In a flashback, he tells Nat: “I’m good at this.” She replies: “I know you are, honey.”
Sydney leaves a message for Marcus, offering her sympathies and telling him to take all the time he needs. (So his mother must’ve passed away the night before.) We see Claire washing off her makeup and going to bed before heading back to work at the hospital. She checks her phone, too — but no message from Carmy. He remembers texting a photo of a fancy dish to his brother Mikey, and also turning down a wad of cash from Nat before flying to New York. Joel McHale’s chef is bullying him again about one of his dishes when his phone buzzes with a bunch of messages. When he calls Nat back, she’s sobbing: “It’s Mikey.”
As Carmy writes down more non-negotiables like “Pursuit of excellence,” he remembers Mikey’s funeral, with Richie, Nat and Tina walking out of the church in tears. Carmy watches them from a car across the street — and then drives off without going in. He remembers Chef Terry sending him off to Copenahgen to broaden his culinary palate, and Nat telling him to “Let it rip, Bear” before slipping that wad of cash into his pocket. In a flashback, he plates an exquisite dish of hamachi with a blood orange sauce and sends it out — and Sydney is the diner. She’s impressed, taking a photo of it and smiling. And back in present day, Carmy surveys the new dishes he’s created and looks up at the clock. It’s a new day.
How’d you like that first taste of The Bear Season 3? Give the premiere a grade in our poll, and then hit the comments to share your thoughts.
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