Viewers have turned on The Bear as the critically acclaimed drama returned to Disney Plus for its fourth season, amid the continued presence of one particular character.
As the third episode of the latest series played out, Carmen ‘Carmy’ Berzatto (Jeremy Allen White) issued an apology to old flame Claire Dunlap (Molly Gordon).
In this moment, the show revisited one of its more memorable episodes – Carmy being locked in the fridge during a nightmare shift at the restaurant.
In scenes which first aired in Series Two, Carmy had driven away Claire (on the outside of the fridge), by ranting that his relationship with her was distracting him from his restaurant duties.
It took two more seasons after that, but Carmy finally apologised to Claire for his behaviour in the fridge, albeit very clumsily.
However, the decision to revisit the events of this episode has alienated some fans, many of whom have reached their limit with Carmy and Claire.
Writing on X as these scenes aired, some viewers shared their dismay at the emphasis on the star-crossed lovers.
‘I can’t bring myself to watch season 4 of The Bear. Claire ruined the show for me,’ wrote kimseokjinsday1.
‘Honestly, they could’ve never written another word about Claire in the script of the bear and I would have been totally okay with that,’ said draft_x_.
‘Why is claire still on s4 of the bear like wrap it up,’ begged bloodrinkcheri.
‘I turned off the bear szn 4 as soon as i saw claire,’ said mags_pdf.
This backlash marks a continued downward trend for the once universally beloved drama – Series One of which still holds a 100% ‘fresh’ rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
The second series, by contrast, remains nearly as highly-rated, at 99%. This was followed by a respectable 89% for Series Three, and a lower 82% for Series Four.
While most still recognised it as ‘the best series on television,’ its detractors have called out its lack of focus and slow pacing – especially compared to the more breakneck, panic-inducing earlier seasons.
‘The Bear’s failure to pick up the pace in a meaningful way this season has soured things,’ wrote The Ringer, while Digital Mafia Talkies described it as ‘really bad.’
Metro.co.uk’s own Sabrina Barr was more positive, praising its character progression and, in particular, an episode co-written by star Ayo Edebiri.
With all ten episodes of the show now streaming, viewers have been tuning in (and out) to make up their own minds, contributing to a 70% positive audience score on the review aggregator.
The complicated relationship between Carmy and Claire may have proved controversial onscreen but, behind the scenes, their chemistry is going from strength to strength.
Last year, Carmy and Claire stars Jeremy and Molly were spotted in a steamy clinch on the street – seemingly confirming rumours that they had begun dating.
This came in the wake of his split from Spanish singer-songwriter Rosalia, who he is believed to have dated from 2023 to 2024.
The Bear season 4 is available to stream on Disney Plus.
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