The Bear Season 3 has been celebrated by critics, echoing its predecessors’ success with another fresh Rotten Tomatoes score — but fans aren’t so sure.
The Bear has been a critical darling since premiering in 2022, going on to sweep the Emmys, Golden Globes, and earn even greater plaudits for its second season (we even crowned it the best TV show of 2023).
Season 3 finally arrived this week, catching up with Carmy and co. in the immediate aftermath of the restaurant’s opening. Across 10 stressful, emotional episodes (packed with new guest stars) we see the crew’s strained efforts to elevate The Bear’s culinary experience (to a fault) and deal with near-constant anxiety.
The reviews have been broadly positive — you can read our four-star review — so it’s unsurprising that it’s received a 94% score on Rotten Tomatoes. However, we should note that this isn’t necessarily reflective of the wider sentiment, with many praising the new season while also sharing fans’ criticisms.
For example, The Guardian noted a “circular feel to the season overall… that makes for another bind: dogged repetition is the enemy of convincing storytelling. It needs to move.”
Variety also honed in on the finale, pointing out how it “affords so much screen time” to one-and-done guest stars “that most protagonists get short shrift, just as the show should be planting the seeds for next season or at least tying off the one we’ve just watched.”
This has been echoed by the show’s subreddit, with one viewer believing Season 3 should have come with a Part 1 subtitle. “If you know you’re not gonna be wrapping up a single plot thread introduced you REALLY gotta signal that beforehand,” they wrote.
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While we won’t get into spoilers, the third season ends on a “to be continued” cliffhanger without any sort of resolution for Carmy, Sydney, or Richie.
Another fan argued it should have taken the Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul approach to splitting its seasons. “Seasons 3A and 3B. Like other shows have done before,” they wrote.
“I think it was an amazing season, that will only improve when all of the loose narratives threads are tied up. But this definitely didn’t feel like a stand alone thought, even proven further by the ‘to be continued’ at the end,” they added.
“It’s a filler season, but it’s a damn good filler season. If they communicated that up top I think it’d be easier to appreciate it for what it is,” another commented.
Make sure you check out our recap of The Bear Season 3, our breakdown of Season 3’s soundtrack, and other new TV shows streaming in June.
