Nightmare alert! Syd is trapped in a similar eerie dreamscape that Carmy was back in Season 1 of The Bear. She’s hosting the cooking segment on a nondescript morning talk show amidst an indoor rainstorm and what appears to be an apocalyptic riot overtaking the studio. Then she’s deposited somewhere dark and mysterious, walking alone to an unsafe place. My armchair analysis points to the uncertainty in her life: the burdens of responsibility, career decisions, ailing fathers, struggling restaurants, and poor credit scores. 

Given how emotionally invested she is in all this, I’m surprised it’s taken this long for the nightmares to take hold. 

However, she takes action and eliminates one significant stress: She finally calls Shapiro and respectfully declines his offer to take the head chef job at his new restaurant. Shapiro takes the news poorly and pathetically, sulking and stewing, reminding her that she’s passing over a great opportunity to stay on at The Bear – “a ship that is literally sinking.” He also says her skill set will “stay just above the middle,” so fuck you, Shapiro. It’s an unsurprising heel-turn – Shapiro’s seams were destined to burst; better for Syd that it happened now than while she was working for him. 

What can’t be extrapolated from this is her confidence level: is she insecure about her ability? Did she get the ick from Shapiro? I’m sure both played a part. However, one thing that isn’t clear is her confidence in the long-term financial viability of The Bear. She knows the economics are bad, but is there an overwhelming faith that can’t be measured? 

Here’s a lightning round of subplots: Sugar and Pete lay in bed, tired and joyful, with baby Sophie between them. Syd is at her dad’s filling up pill cases, but he seems and promises he’s fine. He asks her how she’s doing but where to begin? Marcus and Luca are in the pastry lab, concocting crazy-looking desserts with flowers, interspersed with Marcus loitering outside a diner where he’s supposed to meet up with his estranged father. He takes one look inside but decides to walk away. Tina is still trying to become the Usain Bolt of cavatelli. Richie and Syd stare at the ominous Doomsday Clock, which reads 17 hours and 39 minutes until failure. Sweeps is working on his wine nose with Neil and Teddy Fak. Neil Fak is learning how to be on stage and struggles with walking like a serious person and not a stooge.

One significant development for Marcus is that while he’s concocting desserts with Luca in the pastry lab, he wonders if his work is suffering because everything in his personal life is a mess. Luca samples one of his desserts and offers another perspective: “You could also say that our work tastes the way it does because we go through that mess to get there.”  Then he tells Marcus that his dessert is delicious. 

Richie is practicing his pre-dinner motivational speech at the front of the house. He and Jess are having a tougher time not making moony eyes at each other whenever they’re alone together. He continues to open up to her – about his job insecurity, his unresolved grief about Mikey, his shame, Frank. He asks her if it’s too much, but she encourages him to keep going. “Honesty is sanity,” she says. Then he straightens her tie. 

Yeah, he’s toast. 

Meanwhile, Sug receives a visit from Computer to review the recent numbers. Although there has been an improvement, the income is still insufficient to keep pace with the rising costs. Sug insists they can continue to be operational in the short term. Computer continues to press her as to why she wants to keep going. She has to think about it but scans the wall full of Bear family and employees, and the answer becomes obvious to her. 

The major breakthrough of this episode is when Carmy decides to finally visit his mother’s house to drop off a box of old photo albums. This sort of chore makes him uneasy – even though that brief interaction he had with DD at the wedding was mercifully drama-free, he still doesn’t trust her. Plus, he doesn’t trust himself. This is a family that has historically struggled with feelings and communication – screaming and throwing kitchenware is the Berzatto family’s love language. As he sits out in front of Donna’s house – the house he grew up in – he calls Claire and gets some assurance that this is something he needs to do. 

The episode closes with him knocking at her door, Elton John’s “Western Ford Getaway” needle-dropping while he waits. 

THE BEAR SEASON 4 EPISODE 8: LEFTOVERS

QUESTIONS I STILL HAVE: This is directed at me – why did I enjoy this episode? Was it because I was so furious with the wedding episode that I am grateful for something dull and relatively calm and Fak-free? Bear-holm Syndrome? 

MIDDLE-AGED DAD NEEDLE DROP: The Elton John track is excellent, but I’m picking “Long Ride Home” by Patty Griffin. Every 40-and-old guy loves Waxahatchee, and I love Waxahatchee, and that’s why this song is an instant add on my “I HEART WAXAHATCHEE” Spotify playlist. 

CARMY ARM PORN: At ease

THE BEAR – SEASON 4: WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

Can’t get enough of The Bear Season 4? For more insight, analysis, GIFs, and close-ups of Carmy’s arms, check out some highlights of Decider’s coverage:

A.J. Daulerio is a Los Angeles-based writer and editor. He is also the founder of The Small Bow, a recovery newsletter.