The new second season of “The Bear” is about the only example where I have seen a television series so respected that several known actors wanted to be in the second season. This list includes Robert Townsend, Jamie Lee Curtis, John Mulaney, Will Poulter, Oliver Platt, Olivia Colman, Gillian Jacobs, and Bob Odenkirk.
The second season is much different than the first as the cast tries to build the new restaurant from finding 300 thousand dollars in a wall inside the first restaurant and help from the families Uncle Jimmy, played by Oliver Platt. The grand total to start the new restaurant is 800 thousand dollars, which was barely enough to gut and build the new building, which included nothing but plumbing, electricity, and even mold problems. As always with this outstanding series, seeing what people go through with their jobs in the restaurant industry with conflict and problem after problem – makes you wonder how any restaurant can become successful, considering the many pitfalls and huge costs.
All the original cast members are back from the second season, including Jeremy Allen White as the star of this series Carmen ‘Carmy’ Berzatto, who is equally outstanding in this second series. As with the first season the nonstop problems, conflicts, and huge arguments are always there, this time – especially in the 6th episode about a Thanksgiving dinner with the entire family, including Jamie Lee Curtis as Donna Berzato, Carmen’s mother. The argument involving Carmen’s brother Micheal played again by Jon Bernthal and his uncle Lee played by Bob Odenkirk and Micheal throwing a fork at him 3 times, is one of the high tension angry high points of this entire series. This argument and so many others during this Thanksgiving episode culminate with Donna driving her car through the front of the house. Happy Thanksgiving.
The different direction this first season goes is about using the budget allocated to build the new restaurant to also train the employees in high-level food preparation skills in some of the best restaurants. The best part of this involves Richard Jerimovich, Micheal Berzato’s best friend who after experiencing a few days as an employee of a top restaurant, owned by Chef Terry, played by Olivia Coleman, transitions from a very angry attacking impossible person to work with into someone who wears a suit and is a far better person entirely due to his experience in working with the people of this top restaurant for only a few days. One of the best lines during this episode is when one of the managers of this restaurant says to Richard, “Every day here is treated like it’s the Super Bowl”.
Another standout in this series is actress Abby Elliot, who plays Carmen's sister Natalie and has come from being a cast member of Saturday Night Live over 10 years ago, to a breakout actor in this Hulu series. She should receive an Emmy Award nomination for her performance in this series.
In this new season, Carmen reunites with an old girlfriend Claire, played by Molly Gordon. This relationship also has its share of problems and conflicts due to Carmen’s nonstop working life and the stress he is under trying to kick off a new restaurant in the city of Chicago.
The second season does have fewer scenes of food preparation than the first season, but there are so many other great things about this new season that more than compensate for less showing of food preparation.
Actress Ayo Edebiri once again returns as chef Sydney Adamu, and is once again great in her role. Her best scene is with the simple preparation of an omelet she makes for Natalie, showing the expertise it takes to make something that should be simple into something that is worthy of a top restaurant.
This series did win a Golden Globe and has been nominated for many awards, and should be a shoo-in for best drama series Emmy. This great series should run for at least 5 years, it is that good.
The Rotten Tomatoes rating for both season 1 and season 2 of The Bear are a perfect 100% and I agree with this opinion and give this series my highest recommendation.
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