One of the hottest shows of the decade is back with 10 new episodes already streaming on Hulu, as The Bear: Season 4 attempts to confirm its relevance. Following its less-lauded third season, the first reviews of the fourth are mixed on whether it’s a return to form. Out of the gate, its Tomatometer score is the show’s lowest yet. But most of the reviews still say it’s worth watching if you’ve been here from the start and still care about its characters.
Here’s what critics are saying about The Bear: Season 4:
Is this still one of the best shows on television?
Season 4 is an absolute triumph, right up there with Season 2 in terms of quality… The Bear is one of TV’s best shows, in any genre, and this season reaffirms that.
— Dave Nemetz, TV Line
I still think of The Bear as a great show. Why quibble? What more can you ask for?
— Bill Goodykoontz, Arizona Republic
Even if The Bear still isn’t cooking like it once was, to ignore the show’s positive attributes would be disingenuous.
— Nicole Gallucci, Decider
It all still mostly works, but also feels a bit much, and at times too much.
— Verne Gay, Newsday
Maybe it’s time to acknowledge The Bear not for what it promised to be — a TV classic — but for what it is: a small, pandemic-era miracle not built for longevity.
— Carla Meyer, San Francisco Chronicle
The Bear is not the show it used to be. The relentless drama you were stunned by in season two is not coming back.
— Jack Seale, Guardian
Does it make up for Season 3?
Yes, The Bear Season 4 is better than Season 3… It finds some moments that feel like the best of Seasons 1 and 2.
— Liam Mathews, TheWrap
I was worried that the overstuffed and half-baked nature of the third season would only be exacerbated in Season 4, but this chapter of the story sees a rise not only in quality but also a rounding out of existing storylines.
— Therese Lacson, Collider
Thankfully, The Bear is cooking again with season 4. At times, this new season almost feels like an apology for season 3.
— Chris Evangelista, Slashfilm
There’s a spark here that we didn’t see in Season 3.
— Dave Nemetz, TV Line
The good news is that Season 4 marks an improvement over its predecessor…[but] “better” isn’t quite the same as “enough to make the payoff worth the slog.”
— Alison Herman, Variety
Its fourth season so exacerbates the stagnation that set in during Season 3 that it’s bound to make all but the least demanding fans impatient.
— Judy Berman, TIME Magazine
What makes this season worth watching?
The heart and soul of The Bear and its return-to-form fourth season are the people. The characters keep you coming back for more.
— Kelly Lawler, USA Today
Much like in the unsurpassed second season, the joy of The Bear comes in watching these dedicated co-workers set challenges, find their passion and grow in their jobs as artistes.
— Matt Roush, TV Insider
What ultimately makes the series so affecting are stellar dramatic performances.
— Nicole Gallucci, Decider
Each time the show revisits an earlier scene, it adds a layer that deepens the group’s (and the show’s, and the audience’s) sense of shared meaning. It’s a very beautiful thing to watch all those separate elements, and their associated dreams and nightmares, start to link up.
— Lili Loofbourow, Washington Post
Not every moment of The Bear Season 4 is perfect. But, with its message that you can’t save someone else until you save yourself, it might be the most honest one yet.
— Whitney Friedlander, Paste Magazine
Does it still give fans what they love?
A lot of it feels familiar, because it is… I have loved almost all of these elements in previous seasons. I like them just fine in Season 4. They work, still.
— Bill Goodykoontz, Arizona Republic
Technically speaking, The Bear is still a bold stunner. Carefully curated shots of food prep are delectable as ever, while anxiety-fueled montages palpably boost adrenaline.
— Nicole Gallucci, Decider
Season 4 is a reminder of why so many people fell for this show in the first place: it’s funny, it’s dramatic, it’s raw, and it’s highly watchable. It’s also surprisingly sweet.
— Chris Evangelista, Slashfilm
Season 4 thrives in almost all the expected places.
— Ben Travers, IndieWire
Dare I say The Bear, pitched at a low simmer instead of a full boil, is almost becoming comfort-food TV?
— Matt Roush, TV Insider
The most exhausting thing about this fourth is exactly the same thing, along with a sense — also ineradicable — that we’ve all been down this road once or twice before.
— Verne Gay, Newsday
The show we loved is still in there… but if you eat the same dish every day, no matter how delicious it is, you’ll grow tired of it eventually.
— Chris Bennion, Daily Telegraph
Are there any standout episodes this season?
The seventh episode. The best of the season, it’s a cleverly structured hourlong series of two-handers, with prominent characters unpacking their emotional baggage at the wedding of Tiffany and Frank.
— Verne Gay, Newsday
If the wedding episode is a classic, so is the painfully fraught, stunningly acted finale.
— Jack Seale, Guardian
Season 4’s best episode… follows Syd on a day off spent getting her hair braided at the home of a stylist pal, Chantel, played by Danielle Deadwyler.
— Judy Berman, TIME Magazine
The standout is the fourth episode… It’s a beautiful vignette, but one that adds almost nothing to the story, beyond yet more soul-searching.
— Chris Bennion, Daily Telegraph
Another installment finds Carmy, Sydney, and Richie yapping for a full 33-minute run time. While some are bound to find the big swing insufferable, to me, it’s brilliant.
— Nicole Gallucci, Decider
Is this a comedy?
Is it a comedy? Based on Season 4, not really — but that’s OK. There are definitely funny elements in each episode.
— Dave Nemetz, TV Line
It’s still most certainly not a comedy.
— Whitney Friedlander, Paste Magazine
Now, it’s not only seldom funny; it also takes itself way too seriously.
— Judy Berman, TIME Magazine
The show has begun, like Carmy, to take itself too seriously.
— Chris Bennion, Daily Telegraph
Will it make us cry?
I will say that there was still a scene that made me tear up.
— Bill Goodykoontz, Arizona Republic
How is Jeremy Allen white’s performance this time around?
White remains inherently watchable — he has a hypnotic, intense quality, and as an actor, he’s very good at conveying deep emotions while saying very little.
— Chris Evangelista, Slashfilm
White does as great a job as is probably possible of making this overly aestheticized archetype into a believable human being. It’s not his fault that Carmy has gotten so boring.
— Judy Berman, TIME Magazine
Though he derives significantly more enjoyment this season than last, White has mastered the portrayal of a tortured chef.
— Nicole Gallucci, Decider
Although White can seem overly morose, he lends emotional depth to scenes that tap Carmy’s inherent empathy.
— Carla Meyer, San Francisco Chronicle
White is very good at being bleary, stringy-haired, aloof yet soulful. But what once played like gripping realism has been reduced in the show’s saucepan to a mere performance of Carmy-ness.
— Richard Lawson, Vanity Fair
Do any of the other actors or characters get to shine?
Syd’s world and thought process gets nicely built out.
— Lili Loofbourow, Washington Post
Edebiri brings more confidence to Syd this season while remaining unaffected and relatable, making a case for being named overall Bear MVP.
— Carla Meyer, San Francisco Chronicle
Ayo Edebiri delivers this season’s standout turn- a beautifully realized portrait of someone holding on to what matters to her. Even in her relatively smaller moments, the actor holds the screen with an intelligence that is lacking in the overall scream of the show.
— Santanu Das, Hindustan Times
Ayo Edebiri stands at the forefront of this season and the show as a whole… [She] has several standout moments.
— Therese Lacson, Collider
Ebon Moss-Bachrach remains the show’s MVP as Richie.
— Chris Evangelista, Slashfilm
At least Edwin Lee Gibson’s Ebraheim gets something like an actual arc this season.
— Richard Lawson, Vanity Fair
Though fans long for Gibson’s time in the spotlight, the stretched storyline barely taps the actor’s potential. The same goes for Corey Hendrix, who gets slightly more screen time to deepen Gary/Sweeps’ knowledge of wine pairings.
— Nicole Gallucci, Decider
Danielle Deadwyler makes the most of a rare comedic role… Deadwyler is one of several notable guest appearances, a Bear trademark.
— Liam Mathews, TheWrap
Are there any major complaints?
If there’s one major flaw in the new season, it’s that the laser focus on Carmy means some members of the great ensemble are left behind.
— Kelly Lawler, USA Today
It’s clear now that The Bear is good at a lot of things, but what it doesn’t succeed in is romance.
— Therese Lacson, Collider
Most of the ingredients that made the first two seasons such thrilling television are still there, but sadly so are most of the ones that made the third season so aimless, pompous and, quite frankly, boring.
— Chris Bennion, Daily Telegraph
The Bear’s issues with timing and narrative pacing haven’t disappeared.
— Nicole Gallucci, Decider
Where Season 4 noticeably falters is, oddly enough, where past seasons thrive.
— Ben Travers, IndieWire
Season 4 mostly doubles down on all the most frustrating aspects of the series—the problems that have plagued it from the very beginning.
— Richard Lawson, Vanity Fair
Should this be our last serving of The Bear?
If the Season 3 finale contained some missteps, the fourth-season finale is a masterpiece that could easily end the series.
— Lili Loofbourow, Washington Post
There couldn’t have been a stronger finish… If this is indeed the final season of The Bear, it will have ended on a high note.
— Therese Lacson, Collider
This could be the end, or it could just be a beginning. Either way, I’m so glad to have dined here.
— Kelly Lawler, USA Today
It’s fair to say the last episode ends in a way that would be satisfying either way.
— Bill Goodykoontz, Arizona Republic
The ending saps so much momentum, it makes you wonder if this was once meant to be the series finale.
— Ben Travers, IndieWire
And what if it’s not?
If the twist that’s teased in the promising finale really does happen, it will be The Bear’s most substantial—and, I think, most inspired—reset to date.
— Judy Berman, TIME Magazine
I went back and forth on how conclusive Season 4 feels, but I honestly hope it’s not the end.
— Alison Herman, Variety
Heading into Season 5… the show will need to follow its protagonist, filter out the bad, and rewrite its recipe for success.
— Nicole Gallucci, Decider
Despite my positive feelings, this is a show that’s reached a natural and strong conclusion. Continuing after this point would be a mistake and risk the show backsliding again.
— Therese Lacson, Collider
The Bear: Season 4 is currently available to stream on Hulu.
