It’s time for another round of anxiety-ridden setpieces, gratuitous swearing, and the best-looking food around.The Bear, one of the greatest shows of the young decade, is finally returning for its third season on Thursday, June 27. Even though FX is keeping this season’s secrets tightly under wraps (the trailers crucially feature almost no plot giveaways), it’s safe for viewers to expect another stellar batch of episodes, which will all be dropped on the same day, to the delight of binge-viewers everywhere.
A large part of what’s helpedThe Bearstand out from countless other dramedies on air is how effortlessly itblends dark humorwith personal drama and how perfectly the two halves complement each other. Helping matters is one of television’s best ensemble casts, as the show features breakout performances from Jeremy Allen White, Ayo Edebiri (who will also be directing one of this season’s episodes), and Ebon Moss-Bachrach. Last year, we gave welcome spotlights to pastry chef Marcus and scene-stealing guest spots from Will Poulter and Olivia Colman. That said,we’d like to see one member of the cast get featured more this year.
One of season one’smost underrated characterarcs came from Tina Marrero (Liza Colon-Zayas), a veteran chef at The Original Beef (later renamed The Bear).Her development functioned as a mirror image to Richie’s; both were initially resistant to Carmy’s attempts to modernize his late brother’s restaurant, as his experience in fine-dining establishments clashed with the Beef’s blue-collar, hectic work environment.
However, in contrast to Richie’s stubbornness (he didn’t display much emotional growthuntil the end of Season 2), Tina adapted to Carmy and Sydney’s new expectations surprisingly quickly. This change manifests most clearly in Tina’s relationship with Sydney; their dynamic first proves particularly contentious, as Sydney arguably represents the younger, newer blood coming into the establishment, and Tina fears she may no longer have a place there. And having said newer, younger, blood as a boss only makes things harder, asTina knows all too well that her more old-fashioned ways of working might not cut it anymore.
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But one of the season’s most poignant scenes shows Sydney taste-testing one of Tina’s dishes. Bracing herself for the worst, she retorts, “Tell me it sucks,” but Sydney, in fact, loves her meal, and this proves a turning point for their relationship. Having experienced first-hand that change isn’t inherently a death sentence for the old guard and seeing that Carmy and Sydney want to help her do the best work she can,Tina throws herself into helping better the restaurant with rekindled passion.
When we reunite with herinThe BearSeason 2, she’s as much of a team player as we’ve ever seen her. She respects her bosses, following their suggestion to return to culinary school and refresh her skills without a moment’s hesitation. Her arc continues when her longtime partner Ebraheim, who stops joining her in class, finds himself struggling as the restaurant rebrands itself as a higher-end establishment. Having been forced to adapt to change, Tina now imparts her newfound wisdom to her friend. Yet, as poignant as this arc was, it can’t help but feel like the creative team could’ve given us more than they did.
The Bear Could Utilize Tina Even More
To be clear, our minor disappointment with Tina’s lack of much to do inThe Bearis more a matter of quantity than quality. It’s because the episodes that have largely featured her thus far have beensogood and feature absolutelystellar work from Colon-Zayas that we feel the show could use even more of her.
Consider her storyline in “Pop,” Season 2’s fifth episode. As Tina thrives in culinary school, her classmates invite her out for drinks and karaoke. Despite her nerves about bonding with a new social circle, she accepts, goes out, and has a great night. The episode’s climax shows her performing a karaoke rendition of “Before the Next Teardrop Falls,” displaying her growing confidence and internal validation. It’s an incredibly touching moment,but it’s one of the few true standout scenes she got that year(her promotion to sous chefwas another highlight).
Everything to Remember From The Bear Before Watching Season 3
With a soft opening, emotionally draining Fishes episode, and a devastating break-up, it’s worth looking back at The Bear’s pivotal season 2 moments.
So, how could Season 3 ofThe Bearutilize her more? It’s hard to say definitively at the moment, as all released promo material for the season has been vague about the directions the story will take. But as for potential directions, they could take the character, it’s possible they couldcontinue using Tina as a foil for Richie, who finally came into his own inSeason 2’s best episode, “Forks.” While he’d been the member of the original team most resistant to change, she adapted fairly quickly, and it’d be fun to explore how their dynamic has evolved.
But we’d also like to see the show explore her past more. As opposed to Richie and Marcus, who each got a spotlight episode in Season 2 that explored their lives outside the job,The Bearhas yet to truly explore Tina’s backstory. The most we know about her at the moment is that she’s a single mother, that her son Louie is in high school and regularly gets into trouble, and that she presumably works at the restaurant to make ends meet. Delving deeper into her personal life could help shed further light on why she was initially so resistant to change or how her newfound confidence at the restaurant could impact her relationship with her son.
We Hope Tina Gets a Spotlight Episode in The Bear Season 3
Of course, this is mostly speculation at this point. But especially sinceThe Bearhas recently started delving into more self-contained, character-driven episodes, we think that format is the perfect way to give Tina more to do in Season 3. It’s a testament to how effective Colon-Zayas is in the role that we want even more from her, and considering much ofthe rest of the ensemblehas been so well-defined, we think it’s finally Tina’s turn for a spotlight this year.The BearSeason 3 starts streaming onHuluon Thursday, June 27.
