‘The Bear’ Tackles Themes On Alcoholism, Anxiety & Suicide

TV WORTH WATCHING –

June 3, 2024 – “The Bear” is so harrowing that one of the two best episodes of the season, “Fishes,” covers a past holiday dinner with Carmy and his dysfunctional family, including his brother (Jon Bernthal), five years before his death. Its comic relief is a pre-dinner prayer from guest comedy actor contender John Mulaney.

It’s rare to see a TV comedy finding humor in suicide and addiction. The other most impressive episode is “Forks,” which follows Richie (Ebon MossBachrach) as he’s trained at everything — from cleaning forks to working a kitchen — at an upscale restaurant. And the most powerful scene may just be when the executive chef opens up about her own battles with depression. Again, not exactly laugh-out-loud material.

According to multiple industry sources, networks and strategists have been attempting to trigger a TV Academy review of “The Bear” to shift it to the drama series race, where it will face off against its network sibling, “Shōgun.” This is highly unlikely to find traction. While it can be argued that “The Bear” is less humorous than last year’s actual drama series winner “Succession,” this has been a long-debated topic that has also poured into the film space, especially surrounding the Golden Globes.