[SPOILERS are contained below for “The Original Beef of Chicagoland,” the series finale of FX/Hulu’s The Bear.]
ANGIE HAN: So this is the way The Bear ends: not with a bang, but with the pleasantly frivolous chitchat of partygoers deciding who gets what piece of birthday cake.
After a penultimate episode that, as you pointed out in your review, pretty much delivers exactly what you’d want or expect from a finale, the actual finale is mostly an extended victory lap around the world that Christopher Storer has created. It ties up a few barely loose ends, like the identity of the spoon thief, but otherwise is more about giving each of the Bears one last long hug before sending them on their merry way. (While bringing in a bunch of big-name cameos, of course, because that is the Bear way.)
Was it strictly necessary? I wouldn’t say so. I didn’t need further confirmation that Richie and Jess are A Thing, or that Marcus and Luca are parting on good terms, or even that Carmy approves Ebra’s franchising pitch; I’d already assumed all those things.
But you don’t order that last splash of Sauternes because you need it; you order it because it feels nice to linger over something sweet at the end of a satisfying meal. The finale felt like that kind of extra. Especially after a season so ruthlessly focused on a single shift, it was a treat to get to see Syd relax with her dad on her day off, or Tina and her husband giddily discuss her promotion, or even Carmy make an actual joke (!) by pretending to be stuck in the fridge again.
