The Bear Season 4 Is Repeating the Show’s Worst Mistake

Sharpen your knives and heat up those stovetops because The Bear returns this June for its fourth (and potentially final) season. The stress and drama continue in the fourth season as Carmy (Jeremy Allen-White), Sydney (Ayo Edebiri), Cousin (Ebon Moss-Bachrach), and the rest of the staff at The Bear eagerly await their first review, which will be make-or-break for the revamped restaurant. Even with the divisive third season, The Bear remains one of the best new shows on TV. But the upcoming fourth season appears to be repeating one of the series’ biggest mistakes, which led to the downfall of Season 3.

Season 3, released in June 2024, opened to mixed reviews from critics and fans. Many immediately fell back in love with the new season, as Carmy and the gang settled into life at The Bear following a stressful renovation period throughout Season 2. But, as well as some issues with the overarching narrative throughout Season 3, the third season promoted one of the show’s brief cameos to a full-on supporting role, and almost everyone agreed it was the wrong move.

The Bear‘s Most Frustrating Character Is Back in Season 4

The latest trailer for The Bear gave fans a lot to look forward to. But one scene revealed that the show’s most irritating character is set to return in the upcoming season. The Fak family plays a big part in the show as the endlessly endearing and loving support blanket for the dysfunctional Berzattos. But most fans agree that the Fak brothers, especially Theodore (Ricky Staffieri), are only good in small doses.

Season 3 made the bold decision to make Teddy Fak a full supporting character after his cameo in the Season 2 episode, “Fishes.” His pairing with Neil Fak (Matty Matheson) resulted in Fak overload, especially as the pair was given far greater screen time in the second season. The comic relief character became too much for some viewers, who dubbed Teddy the worst character in the show so far. The Bear‘s new trailer has teased that Teddy will be back in a similar quantity in Season 4, and fans are already gritting their teeth in preparation.

As well as stressing audiences out with its frenetic and unrelenting pace, and inspiring viewers with its gorgeous food and motivating character arcs, The Bear also has a reputation for making viewers hate a character in one episode, only to give them a tremendous redemption arc and transform them into a fan favorite. So far, Tina (Liza Colon-Zayas) and Richie have undergone this process. Even Donna (Jaime Lee-Curtis) and Pete (Chris Witaske) have been somewhat redeemed and transformed in the eyes of fans after the latest season. Season 4 needs to do the same with Teddy and Neil Fak. If the duo is going to move up the kitchen hierarchy to become more established characters, then something needs to change to make their extended screen time more bearable. The other option is to scale back their scenes.

[RELATED – The Bear: FX Boss Addresses Possible Season 5]

Is The Bear Coming to an End?

The new trailer for The Bear was released alongside a spreading rumor that FX’s hit culinary drama, created by Christopher Storer, will come to an end after its fourth season. The rumor stems from Storer initially signing on to create three seasons of the show, with the series being extended for a fourth.

However, at the time of publication, the rumor surrounding The Bear ending is just that: a rumor. The Bear‘s future remains uncertain, and FX hasn’t unveiled any plans to prolong the series beyond the fourth season. Additionally, neither the studio nor Christopher Storer has revealed that Season 4 will be the final one.

Like The Bear‘s review, the show’s future remains in culinary limbo. Fans are hoping that FX renews the series for at least one more season, although few would complain if the show continued for a lot longer (providing it maintained the same quality). Following the ending of Season 3, with Sydney considering a position as Head Chef at another restaurant, it feels like there are too many open plots for the show to end this season. There are also several other supporting characters that deserve more time in the spotlight.

The Bear Season 4 releases on Hulu on June 25.