Ayo Edebiri's Directorial Debut Is The Best Episode Of The Bear Season 3
Spoiler alert: the following contains spoilers for "The Bear" season 3.
Ayo Edebiri can do it all. Not only is she a talented writer and performer, but Edebiri can now add director to her list of accomplishments. Edebiri makes her directorial debut on the new season of "The Bear," a show she also stars in. It was apparently a long time coming. Speaking with Vogue, Edebiri said: "The first time I met ['The Bear' creator] Chris [Storer], I was 21, and he was like, 'You're a director.' I was like, Mind your business, bro ... But then last season, he said, 'Come to set, just come to set, see what happens.' " After taking Storer's advice and doing just that, Edebiri said: "And I was like, Oh, okay. Yeah. I think I want to do this."
Speaking with ET (the publication, not the alien from the Steven Spielberg movie), Edebiri said of her directing debut: "I love the crew, I love our cast, but getting to work with them on that level and in that way was like really moving."
So how does Edebiri's first stab at directing stack up? In my humble opinion, it's the best episode of "The Bear" season 3.
The best episodes of The Bear so far
"The Bear" is one of the best shows on TV right now, and every season has a big standout episode; the type of episode everyone will be talking about after they finish their binge-watch. For season 1, it was episode 7, titled "Review." That episode, helmed by Christopher Storer, is short — it only clocks in at 20 minutes. And 18 of those minutes are designed to look like one long, continuous take. It's also probably the most stressful episode of the season as the staff of The Original Beef of Chicagoland comes undone when their new online ordering system starts spitting out an endless stream of orders in the wake of a positive review of the restaurant. There's lots of yelling and screaming, and watching the episode is sure to put you on edge.
Season 2's big standout episode is arguably episode 6 of that season, "Fishes," also directed by Storer. This flashback episode is a star-studded affair set during the Feast of the Seven Fishes around Christmas time. Here we're introduced to the extended family of main character Carmy (Jeremy Allen White), including his volatile mother Donna, played brilliantly by Jamie Lee Curtis. Like "Review," "Fishes" is another extremely intense, anxiety-inducing episode.
With these precedents in place, you might assume that season 3's big standout episode will be another loud, shouty, anxiety-inducing affair. But that's not the case. Instead, the third season's sixth episode, "Napkins," directed by Edebiri, is a less hectic affair. It's another flashback episode, and it delivers some of the most emotionally powerful moments of "The Bear" to date.
Napkins is the best episode of The Bear season 3
I suppose you could argue that every episode of "The Bear" I'm highlighting here has a gimmick. Season 1's "Review" — it's shot (mostly) in one take! Season 2's "Fishes" — there are a lot of guest stars! And now "Napkins." What's the gimmick? It's another flashback episode, but in a change of pace, the main focus isn't on Carmy, nor is it on Edebiri's character Sydney. Instead, "Napkins" is all about Tina, a line cook played by Liza Colón-Zayas. Tina is one of the best characters on the show, and part of the fun of the character is the way she's evolved. In season 1, she was resistant to the changes Carmy and especially Sydney wanted to make at the Beef. But as the season progressed, she began to see things their way, and even bonded with Sydney, someone she initially had an antagonistic relationship with. In season 2, Tina grew even more, attending culinary school a the Beef was transformed into the fine-dining establishment The Bear.
"Napkins" jumps back in time to show us how Tina ended up where she is. In this flashback episode, we get to see Tina's homelife for the first time, including her husband, a doorman named David (played by "Dexter" actor David Zayas). Tina's life seems warm, but there are signs of stress. The rent on their apartment has just gone up, and David is still waiting for a promotion that never seems to come. And then the rug gets pulled out: Tina loses the job she's had for the last 15 years. She proceeds to hit the ground running, applying seemingly everywhere — and getting nowhere.
Tina's job hunt takes up the bulk of the episode, as director Edebiri and episode writer Catherine Schetina follow her from one dead end after another. Colón-Zayas is electric here, truly shining in her chance to carry an entire episode. Tina starts off hopeful — she's determined to get a new job, damn it! But the job hunt is frustrating. In one maddening scene, she ends up interviewing at a new company for the same position she just spent 15 years performing. In other words, she's perfect for the job — but because she doesn't have a college degree, they show her the door. We watch as she grows more and more disheartened and defeated, and it's heartbreaking.
'I can't remember the last time I went to bed'
The centerpiece of the episode arrives when Tina, having faced yet another rejection, ends up in the Beef. She orders only a coffee, but is given a free sandwich by Richie (Ebon Moss-Bachrach). Heading to a table in the back of the restaurant, the nature of everything she's been going through finally becomes too much. Overwhelmed, she breaks down, crying — and is noticed by Mikey (Jon Bernthal), the owner of the Beef.
When "The Bear" began, Mikey was gone — having died by suicide. It was his death that resulted in his brother Carmy taking over the Beef. We've seen Mikey in flashbacks before — most prominently in "Fishes," where the character's distraught mental state is on full display. Here, in "Napkins," he seems a bit more stable. He and Tina have a long, heartfelt conversation. It's a conversation about their lives, and their dreams, and their hopes, and how life itself seemed to pass them by. "I can't remember the last time I went to bed," he tells Tina as he runs down a list of things that bother him. Tina offers her own list of troubles, and the these two strangers connect on a deep, emotional level. They both know what it's like to end up at the bottom.
As a director, Edebiri doesn't do anything overly flashy here. She simply lets her actors talk, and Bernthal and Colón-Zayas are wonderful bouncing off each other, sharing their stories, growing closer by the second. "I feel like I got a master class in acting from Liza and from the other actors who got to grace the screen," Edebiri told Variety. "I feel like I learned so much from our crew, from our camera department ... just from everybody. It was really a blast and an honor to get to helm an episode that showcases everything that Liza can do. I mean, not even everything, like a fraction of the things that she can do. She's such a powerhouse."
There's a light at the end of the tunnel: Mikey offers Tina a job. When talking to Carmy about Mikey in season 1, Tina mentioned she loved Mikey, and it's easy to see why in this moment; he gave her a chance when no one else would. In some ways, he saved her life. It's a quiet moment compared to all the shouting and screaming that goes on in "The Bear," but it hits hard. And it's ultimately a showcase for how confident Ayo Edebiri is as a director.
"The Bear" season 3 is now streaming on Hulu.