avatar_reso

[avatarreso]

Syd was a Bear all along

Before Season 5 completely shatters my heart, I've always argued that The Bear was meant to be a romantic comedy all along. It's a love story in three parts, and one of the greatest joys of watching the show, at least for me, has been finding and analysing all the TV tropes Storer uses to convey his messaging.

Meet the Bears

The first time we meet the Bear, Carmy is walking on a bridge and suddenly comes across a cage in the middle of said bridge. He opens the latch, a bear walks out and roars, and he wakes up at the Beef, where the show begins.

From the onset, the bear is presented as something Carmy is afraid of. What I found particularly interesting is that once the bear is out of its cage, the scene is re-framed such that the bridge becomes a bigger cage that now traps Carmy as well as the bear. We see both of them through the bars, with Carmy poised for a fight against the much bigger, stronger and wild/dangerous monster.

The motif of the bear, while not entirely negative given the link to his family, is, nonetheless, an antagonistic theme that we know Carmy has to confront at some point. The only question is when will this happen? And how will Carmy handle it? Can he even handle it? Is he capable of beating his demons, both real and imagined? These questions hang over him all through Season 1.

The second time we meet the Bear, Carmy is home for Christmas and his family is having dinner at his mother's house. Cousin Michelle tells the story of a woman who told her that not all bears are aggressive. There are rare breeds that are gentle and nurturing. I could be wrong, but this is the first time in the show the bear motif is presented as something to seek instead of fear. It's the first time we're explicitly told that not all bears are aggressive and chaotic, that sometimes they can be peaceful and calming, and it's a good and beautiful thing.

The third time we meet the Bear, Tiff is getting married and everyone is sitting under a table trying to help Eva through her emotions. They all list their fears, with most people fearing something material like bees, disease, heights, etc. Syd is one of few who name concepts as their fears, for her it's failure. After some nudging, Carmy follows suit by admitting his biggest fears are peace and calm, i.e., the opposite of chaos. Thematically, this makes sense for various reasons:

throughout the show, we see him constantly and consistently create chaos;

we also see him crave peace, even though it keeps eluding him (due to his own terrible choices and habits);

most importantly, just from this scene alone, we now know what the bear in the premiere embodies, i.e., when he opens the cage in his nightmare, the big monster he finds hidden inside, is peace. This is reversed, and somewhat emphasised in the Season 4 premiere, which opens with Carmy having a good dream this time. He's sitting with Mikey in the kitchen and we finally unlock the memory of the two of them coming up with the restaurant. Most importantly, we finally get to see how Carmy came up with the name - it was Mikey's wish. Carmy wakes up, and we get Season 4, the structure and framing of which, is why I view the show as a love story in three acts.

Act I: Chaos as Trauma

While Season 1 functions as a meet-cute for SydCarmy, it can also be taken as a prologue to their story. We get to meet baseline-Carmy and see just how traumatised he is. He's got a dysfunctional family, he's running a failing business, and he's running away from both his past and his desires. He doesn't think he deserves to be happy or to have good things because he didn't go to his brother's funeral. He feels guilty, but also trapped, so he punishes himself by staying at the Beef because that's what Mikey wanted. He's drowning and potentially headed the same way as Mikey.

And then Sydney came along. It seems significant, at least to me, that on the same day Carmy dreams about setting loose a caged bear, Sydney walked into the Beef.

Act II: An Imperfect Marriage

I've previously talked about the Season 1 finale being a "you had me at hello" moment for the show. If this were a film, this is where the story would end. The Boy has finally made the big gesture by giving the girl a restaurant, The Girl has accepted (Danish design and a window for sandwiches), and they lived happily ever after.

Only, they didn't live happily ever after. Up until now, the show has only highlighted Carmy's issues. It hasn't dealt with them because Carmy himself hasn't reflected or grown. He's still the same character we met in the premiere. The only difference is that he functions better now because Sydney is here.

But Carmy is still the same and there's no way these two people would ever live happily ever after. They'd probably end up like Tiff and Richie. For them to have any kind of longevity, Carmy needs to be a better person. Unlike everyone else, he has already reached the very top of the culinary world. He's got the raw talent and credentials to back it up. There's nothing left for him to conquer, but at his core, Carmy is far from being the best version of himself.

Being the best has cost Carmy everything else in his life. He was so disconnected from everyone, even the people who lived with him (Stevie and Michelle) didn't see him. He was completely isolated and overworked. And even though he met people like Chef Terry and Luca along the way, he was still bullied, stiffled and ultimately traumatised by his experience. While Syd creates a better environment for him and therefore makes him better, Carmy's natural instinct is still chaos. This is demonstrated throughout Season 2, ultimately culminating in an ill-advised relationship with Claire, which leads to the fridge and the aftermath of that.

Act III: Redemption

PART 1: SEASON 3

This is my favourite of all the acts. It's also the longest, as it starts in Season 3 and continues into Season 5. After Carmy is rescued from the fridge, he comes face to face with a disturbing reality. The Bear can survive without him. We know this because while he was stuck in the fridge, the restaurant ran, if not perfectly, then well enough for a first night of service.

Based on this, Carmy correctly deduces that he's superfluous. However, instead of dealing with this revelation in a healthy way and evolving, or even folding into an ancillary need (like Ebrahim did with the sandwich window), Carmy pushes himself even deeper into toxicity. We get Season 3 as a result, where, for example, he's constantly changing the menu just to challenge himself. While this is selfish and unfair to everyone he works with, WHY he's doing this, is just as important as the how.

I think to some degree, Carmy was okay with the Beef. It was Mikey's dream as far as he knew. It gave him the perfect excuse to escape the toxicity of New York. Additionally, he didn't have to be trapped in the pressure of living up to his own reputation. He didn't have to try so hard anymore; he got to hold up his end of making Mikey's wish come true, and he can conveniently blame the chaos for why the rest of his life has come to a screeching halt. But Sydney came along and gradually, he wanted to do and be better. If she wanted a star, of course he was going to give it to her or die trying.

What Carmy doesn't realise is that HOW Sydney wants a star is just as important as the why. She wants a safe and calm environment. Peace. The very opposite of chaos. The harder Carmy pushes himself, the further Sydney drifts away from him. Even worse, he's driving the restaurant into the ground and making everyone around him miserable. And the worse this gets, he slowly starts to lose Sydney, which makes the initial problem worse, and on and on until finally, they get the review and Jimmy puts a clock on everything, which leads to Season 4.

PART 2: SEASON 4

Full disclosure, Season 4 is my favourite of all the seasons thus far. I've previously posted about Sydney always choosing Carmy; in Season 4, we finally get to see and understand why. So far he's been withholding, inconsistent and unreliable; it doesn't make sense that she's still here. I think everyone else has always been aware of this. (Shapiro wouldn't have tried to poach her if he didn't believe she COULD be poached). So why IS she still here?

If this is supposed to be a partnership and SydCarmy are supposed to work together, how can she justify being steamrolled by him on everything? More importantly, if we assume their story is romantic, why are we supposed to root for this couple to end up together?

That's where Season 4 comes in. The show stops lampshading Carmy's issues, and actually deals with them. We see him go to meetings, make amends with people (Claire included), tour the city in hopes of finding inspiration, attend a friend's wedding, appreciate and encourage his staff, visit museums, etc. We even see him go home for the first time in years and talk to his mother. In short, we watch Carmy actively confront his demons and try to be better, as opposed to simply knowing that he needs to do it. Slowly but surely, Carmy learns how to overcome his greatest fear. Thus, when at last he faces the bear, it will be as an equal.

Welcome to Carmy's Heart

The last time we meet the Bear is in the finale. But before we get to that, we get a really pivotal moment at the very end of E4.08. After Natalie analyses the numbers, it turns out that the restaurant is doing better than expected. This is confirmed by The Computer. However, running costs are still way too high and profit margins too thin. As Computer puts it, even though the team can technically carry on, why would they want to? Natalie doesn't answer him, and instead, looks at the pictures on the wall.

A few things immediately stand out to me:

the picture of Jesus and the lamb;

Mikey and the Original Beef of Chicagoland are a core part of the story;

the illustration of two bears in the top-left corner with the caption, "Bear, your heart;"

Sydney is all over these pictures;

Claire is nowhere to be seen. Pete is present, so it shouldn't matter that she doesn't work there.

There's a whole analysis I'm working on for the Jesus-lamb reference, for now I want to focus solely on the bear motif aka Carmy's heart.

The last time we meet the Bear, thus far, is in the finale, when Carmy tells Sydney:

You're considerate, you allow yourself to feel things right, you allow yourself to care, you're a natural leader, and teacher, and you're doing this stuff for the right fucking reasons.

Thematically, this takes us back to "Fishes," when Cousin Michelle told the family about the rare breed of gentle bears. The Berzattos have always been the chaotic kind. Donna was mean, their father was absent, and everyone eventually grew apart and collapsed into their own isolated, personal silos of hell.

But we know that things don't have to be this way, we know it's possible for bears to be gentle, nurturing, and even safe. We see this with Cousin Michelle and Natalie and the lives they've managed to build, despite their origins. We know that happy, healthy, un-chaotic bears are possible, and slowly but surely, through healing, self-reflection and accountability, Carmy realises it too. Before telling Sydney that she's the Bear, he starts by admitting that he doesn't want to be "this way" anymore.

He doesn't want to be an asshole, or selfish, or any of the many toxic things we've watched him descend into across the seasons. He wants to do and be better. But if he stays at the Bear, nothing will change. Both the restaurant and its founding ideals stand a better chance with Sydney at the helm.

Syd loves taking care of people, a core guiding principle of restaurants and the hospitality industry as a whole. She's doing this for the right reasons. Carmy, on the other hand, did it out of spite, and later, obligation. "I don't know who I am outside of the restaurant," he tells Richie. This is tragic for so many reasons. From the outside looking in, he's the perfect image of someone who's living their wildest dreams. But from the inside looking out, we know Carmy is trapped in a cage of guilt, self-loathing, shame, obligation, childhood trauma, family trauma, arrested emotional development, etc., and he's using the dream to mask all of this pain. Just like Chef Terry, he reaches a point where he asks himself, what is all of this for?

Chef Terry's answer is simple: "People don't remember the food, unfortunately. They remember people." She looks around and realises she doesn't even know her customers, a far cry from her earliest memories in the industry. When she started out, she got to feed friends and neighbours, and be part of their fondest memories, a sentiment that is repeated by various characters throughout the show. Restaurants are supposed to happy, wholesome places where people come to celebrate, to feel good about themselves, etc. Chef Terry doesn't have that anymore. She's been swallowed by the cold and sterile machine of rigid systems, snobbish reviews and Michelin stars.

Carmy's answer is a little more complicated since he doesn't even know who he is outside of being a chef. He doesn't have the same nurturing motivation as Syd and Chef Terry.

When given the chance time and time again, he reverts to chaos and aggression, the natural/ubiquitous state of the culinary world, which eerily resembles everything he learnt from his family. For example, when Donna makes the seven fishes, no logical, sentimental or even cultural significance is offered to explain the dish. Instead, she weaponises it, and her hospitality to control, punish, shame, abuse and belittle her family. No one else is allowed to bring a fish dish, for instance, as Donna insists on being in charge of every minute step of the whole process, despite clearly needing help. Donna is the typical bear. Aggressive, chaotic, mean and ultimately dangerous. But according to Cousin Michelle, not all bears are like this. Some can be gentle and nurturing, which brings me back to cage on the bridge.

The only reason we think the bear is antagonistic and/or malevolent, is because we enter the scene from Carmy's perspective. He's the one who looks ready for a fight. HIS stance is one of aggression, not the alleged monster before him. And because he's facing off a bear, we immediately think he's the one in danger.

But what if we're wrong, what if Carmy was wrong and the the bear was peace - the opposite of chaos? What if the bear was Syd?

[freedelusionshere]

It’s still so wild to me that Storer literally spelled out the entire concept of legerdemain in S3 and compared it to cinema, and even made it more accessible as “sleight of hand” by explaining the fundamentals of a basic magic trick, to the entire audience.

And, whatever with the R/ddit bros, but media critics, people whose job it literally is to interrogate themes and messaging, didn’t widely comment on this and still refuse to.

It exposed them for what they are and the pay-for-play and AI-driven system they work in (which, they’re running low on options for themselves as well).

I see this as a positive, not a negative, btw.

Like the convo Syd has with Luca in the office in S5, there is a silver lining, because they ended The Bear on their own terms.

[gingergofastboatsmojito]

I think these 2 Qs realigned him with his truth

"So, you're really leaving?"

"Have any ideas of what you wanna achieve or explore?"

His truth:

Related note: Hot take

I think Sugar asked him the right question by reframing it. Because it wasn't about what he wanted to do, or thought he had to do, or about what anyone else expected from him or was asking him to do, or not.

It was about what he was really capable of doing if he was being honest with himself.

So, that question set off a thought process that remained operating in his unconscious till Sue asked the right triggering question during the interview, which BTW he completely misinterpreted because of that unconscious bias that created a cognitive dissonance, where what Sue was actually inquiring about was his plans for the intership he was applying for, if he got it, his hopes about getting that JOB in particular, and joining the company, etc, but what he actually understood was: what he wanted to achieve/explore IN LIFE.

That was his truth; what he wanted in life was to feel how he felt during that service, that love, that lifting each other up, and he could only do it with his family-family, because of his family-family and ofc, by Syd's side. After all, he wouldn't have been there if it wasn't because of her, because let's not forget that despite the fight the night before, that same AM he had made himself available for her, he wanted to help HER.

And even before, during the fight, he already knew exactly what he wanted. But at that point, he thought it didn't include him.

When Starman told him that they had won the 🌟🌟2 months prior, he knew that that success was hers, but it could include him, and so when Sue asked the magic question, it all finally clicked in his head, and he was finally able to lead with his ❤️.

Thanks @avatarreso for the Nike reference that made me look into Sugar's lines more in depth and find this.

[avatarreso]

SydCarmy is canon: pt. 2

First things first, Richie is the Sandman, not the sand, man. He's the ultimate meta, i.e., the Scandinavian folk hero who sprinkles magical dream dust in the eyes of children.

He starts off as the ghost of Mikey (haunting the restaurant through fire supression, faulty electricity, falling walls, etc.). But after almost killing a man and spending a night in jail (his personal fall into the abyss), Richie is reborn with a need and desire for purpose. Carmy, acting as Richie's first supernatural aid, sends him to Ever, which functions as a temple of atonement for the three main characters.

Having now received the gift of the goddess (the "every second counts" motto and plaque from Chef Terry), Richie returns back to the known world with greater knowledge and wisdom, and restarts his hero's journey with the purpose he once desired, but could not attain. He is transformed in every aspect: his look, personal philosophies demeanour, and how he views/treats people. The ghost of Mikey is projected, at this point, from him to the Faks, who will continue to stand in SydCarmy's way, even going as far is introducing an alternative romance for Carmy (in the form of Red Flag). Notice how the building always gets worse when they're involved.

After Carmy introduces the non-negotiables in early-mid Season 3, Richie introduces his own list, which, unlike Carmy's, includes such "soft" goals as joy. Richard calls his version of the non-negotiatiables, "the dream weave." The practical plan includes surprises for guests, especially if they're celebrating a special occasion like a birthday or anniversary. But while he operates in the dream weave, the owners aka Cicero operates in the capitalist world, so he guts the restaurant's surprise budget, leaving Richie very little to work with.

But having witnessed firsthand the importance of the dream weave at Ever, Richie repurposes the Faks and makes them useful. On the day Syd gets her stars, they don't have a surprise budget, but Richie, with the help of the Faks, create snow for an out-of-town family. We watch him watch everyone else experience the magical dust of out-of-season snow, and we watch the star man watch all of them.

The scene is a reversal of when he hits the ceiling to prove there's no mould in the building, and mould falls on him.

From this episode on, I started watching Richie as the ultimate meta of the show, i.e., almost everything he says is direct commentary on the show and its fandom. Going back to the premiere, Carmy's sad-boy tortured artist trope leads him to invite Ballbreaker fans/players to the restaurant because he thinks all big crowds are automatically good for business. He gets a crash course into reality very fast when the crowd becomes a mob and things get violent. Richie goes out with his gun and delivers, in my humble opinion, his most salient commentary:

Any of you incel, Q-Anon, 4chan, Snyder Cut motherfuckers wanna get out of line now?

From the very beginning, the showrunners knew they were going to attract the wrong crowd simply based on Carmy's gender, race, trauma and overall sad-boy-tortured-artist persona. And so, from the beginning too, they've been telling us a story within a story. The incel Qanon 4chan snydercut motherfuckers can cry all they want, but SydCarmy have never been platonic.

I'm on a rewatch and Richie and Natalie (who represents the goddes Nike, the mother of victory) break the fourth wall in nearly all of their lines and scenes. In the next part, I'll be analysing how their season 5 arcs confirm not only a SydCarmy canon, but criticism of much of the show's fanbase and so-called critics.

[unladyboss]

CHRISTOPHER STORER WANTED TO LET US KNOW THAT SYDNEY NOTICES WHEN CARMY'S LOOKING AT HER. THE BEAR

We kinda wondered, though we always knew that Sydney knows that Carmy was staring at her all this time

She told him

Clear as day

Then he stared some more because she let him know basically that she was seeing him all those times

There's a thunderous noise during their silence after that

I guess it's a big realization to Carmy that she was looking while he was looking and she never told him to stop

SYDNEY WAS REALLY ALL ABOUT OPENING UP TO CARMY IN SEASON 5.

I wonder if she thought she would not see him again if he left, so she wanted him to know she was as deep in it as he seems to be

[unladyboss]

AFTER SYDNEY ADMITS TO CARMY THAT SHE WAS LOOKING AT HIM WHILE HE WAS LOOKING AT HER. THE BEAR

After Sydney admits all of that to Carmy

That all these years/seasons she's been looking at him as much as he was looking at her

And she wanted him to know that

There was a pause

Then she asks if he's done with everything

He said yes but he had a head start

Yes he was finished letting Sydney know he was there for her

Yes he's finished with his mom issues

Yes he was finished with his Claire issues

Yes he was finished needing burners

Yes he was finished hiding from Sydney

Yes he's wrapping up wanting approval from Mikey

And he did have a head start over Sydney who is catching up after he tells her he's going to leave (and season 5 is her getting over her insecurities and all the issues they brought up in her dream and the basketball court)

But overall it's actually Sydney who had a head start

Because she found him in NYC

And she went looking for him in Chicago

He just slowed her progress because of his human burners like Claire

And he's going to know all that if they ever bring more episodes

But I guess they don't need to

[avatarreso]

Season 5 happens entirely in the meta, or as Richie calls it, the dream weave. They're so canon it's insane. I need a better understanding of the Hays Codes before analysing everything but thanks so much for this cipher. Completely missed it on my first watch.

[raspberrytoupee]

Ebra’s repeated bit on not being fazed by Carmy’s intense blue eyes was a not-so-subtle hint for the audience to pay attention to what or who Carmy’s eyes are always on, especially on those close ups

[chefkids]

My Sydcarmy Bible

The Most Damning Evidence

Carmy took Claire to Sheridan Road*

Carmy made Sydney's Pasta for Claire*

Claire is Carmy's projection of Sydney*

Claire was the Cold Prep*

Strange Currencies was never Claire's song

Claire is the physical manifestation of Carmy's avoidance*

Carmy gave Syd an I love you

The Bear is A Midsummer Night's Dream and Marcus is making the Violet love potion for Syd and Carmy*

The food that ties them together

She’s still thinking about that short rib risotto*

He’s also still thinking about that short rib risotto*

Radicchio and Fennel – Carmy gets emotional remembering Syd*

Sydney is the Fennel

Carmy does not know how to do a chaos menu

The Movie References

Sydney is Our Mother of Victory – The Great Outdoors

"Syd is a lesbian." No, she's not – Some Kind of Wonderful

Carmen's Hungry Eyes For Sydney – Dirty Dancing

Carmy is experiencing Vertigo

The Bear's Magic Tricks: From Dreams to Love Stories to Trainwrecks to Alien Motherships

The Symbolisms & Metaphors

A Delicate Fucking Ecosystem*

Sydney is the Muse*

Spoon Fork Knife Theory

Sydney lights a fire for Carmy*

Carmy's Bachelor Party After Syd Dumped Him

Screwing Under The Table*

Carmy left Syd on the table*

Syd & Carmy's Table Settings and Lights*

Emotional Cheating*

The Good Thing*

"Who is your best friend?" Sydney & Fak's Costuming

Syd & Carmy's Tattoos*

Sydney has her own 7 Fishes

Sydney is Carmy's new drive.

Sydney got her mothers car (drive)

Sydney is on the last train home

Richie dropping hints

Claire is not Carmy's future. She's "Wednesday".

The Scrunchie Does Not Fit In, but Carmy is Saving it for Later

Sydney fell in love with Carmy in a train station

[chefkids]

she either clocked it in that last shot why they weren't getting back together or is still living in a river in Egypt

[gingergofastboatsmojito]

Sydcarmy multiverses (they all end in the same way)

3x9 | Apologies

Legerdemain actually means "Saved for later".

Walk with me here. We all know that Legerdemain is French for sleight of hand, magic trick, illusion, etc. And we all jumped to the conclusion that it meant that what happened right after was the illusion, aka: the recycle bin scene where the peace blasphemy happened. Right?

Kinda. I mean... not wrong, just incomplete.

Legerdemain has a mixed origin, later completely changed by the Saxons (which led to the English variant we now know).

Etymologically speaking, "Leger" comes from the German "Lager", that means to store, to save. The word "lager" comes from the German word "(lagern)," which means "to store". This refers to the historical practice of storing beer in cool, underground caves or cellars to condition it at low temperatures before it was ready to drink.

And "demain" means "tomorrow" or "in the morning".

So, saving for later, at a larger scale means saving for a different time and space.

And different times and spaces is what the Strings theory is all about. Summing up:

Multiverses

Here we go!

There´s no scientific application of string theory to human emotions.

BUT

The string theory is a mathematical model with multiple versions derived from quantum physics, a theoretical framework in physics that attempts to unify all fundamental forces, including gravity, by proposing that the universe's basic constituents are tiny, vibrating "strings" rather than point-like particles. It is a complex and still unproven area of theoretical research, requiring extra dimensions that have not been fully observed and thus studied yet. Apparently, none of these versions of physics and math have anything to tell us about the emotion of love.

One could say that the String Theory remains unproven and therefore, to believe in it requires a huge leap of faith, right? Just like love.

Quantum mechanics is a method for investigating ultra-small-scale energetic transactions, and it is necessary because at that small scale, the very act of detection/measurement disturbs the field being investigated so profoundly that a new approach was needed to construct equations that could make accurate predictions, and that is how quantum mechanics came to be, to make the scientific method applicable at this scale.

So, let´s recap: Quantum physics is the field of study of quantum mechanics and as previously mentioned, it´s also the branch of science that encompasses the string theory and the string theory is nothing but a leap of faith, just like love. Cool, so now what?

Now, love. Now my theory.

My theory proposes that Sydcarmy is endgame in all plausible scenarios. In string theory these scenarios are called: vibrating strings.

Furthermore, in string theory, it is said that different vibration modes of fundamental strings (forces of nature, thermomechanics, and all principles that constitute our physical reality) produce different particles, which is to say, produce different scenarios.

And here´s why:

String theory describes how these strings propagate through space and time and interact with each other. On distance scales larger than the string scale (for instance, a city), a string acts like a particle, with its mass, charge, and other properties determined by its own vibrational state. In other words: when this string vibrates, it not only causes an effect on itself but around it, and these effect affects other strings that do the same. A whole field can be altered by the vibration of just one string. And all strings are constantly vibrating, and their vibrations are interacting with each other all the time, creating different realities; that is why the string theory proposes there are multiple realities created by these exponential vibrations (multiverses), and if I consider the multiple variations of when and how Syd and Carmy could have met, in all of them the fact that being who they are they could have end up together sooner or later doesn´t seem completely impossible, due to their profiles.

Let´s say they could have potentially met when they were children, on a Sunday at The Beef, while Carmy was just a lil autistic kid (undiagnosed because this was in the 90s), coloring in the office while his mother and older siblings, maybe even Richie too, were either in the BOH or FOH or at the counter making sandwiches and caring for the customers, and Carmy wasn´t alowed in the front or the kitchen because he was baby bear, and it was soooo loud:

So little Syd, only child, curious mind, suddenly felt drawn to this kid whose sketches were fucking Sixty Chappel level with shading and all, right?

And he was 4 years her senior, but they were both too little to have any romantic mutual interest, so they just became friends who hung out every Sunday, talked about food, and she became his favorite person outside his fucked up family. There was Mikey, and then came Syd, and then food, and then this overwhelming urge to get away from it all as he grew older and a stranger to his family, and wanted to prove them wrong so he left Chicago and Syd behind, but since they both made similar career choices because they both communicated through food and loved to push themselves further and wanted to be the best in their fields (all things we know are cannonically true bc Storer already showed us all that throughout these 4 seasons), then their paths crossed again when they were adults and they persued at some point a romatic relationship, when they were both available at the same time.

OR

Let´s say Carmy and Syd met at the CIA, as they both studied to become cooks, or that they coincided at one of the many restaurants they staged at different points in their careers.

OR

They ran into each other at one of the many awards ceremonies they were invited to at some points, such as the JB Awards or the Michelin Guide Awards, etc. I´m pretty sure Carmy, being the opposite of a social butterfly he is, he probably skipped most of these events, but it´s not crazy to think that maybe there was this one he didn´t miss and BOOM! That´s when they met or reunited and:

And I could go on ad infinitum.

Basically, what I´m saying is that in all potential scenarios where we put Syd and Carmy, the canonic characters we have been given and we know and love, they have what it takes to end up together, without it being a total stretch. The only things that vary are time and space, but not the essence of each character, not what makes them who they are, not their unique strings, and how they vibrate and affect each other and create certain effects in each other´s fields/realities. Always tending to the same results:

3x1 | Tomorrow

If you take an introvert, workaholic, talented POS, who loves communicating through food and proving others wrong, and an overachiever, crazy talented and curious little Miss type A with the desire to make people happy through food and win a Michelin star, that are almost the same age, both grew up in Chicago in the 90s and struggled with loneliness and being the black sheep of the family, who had to fly away from the nest to prove themselves, then the fact that they may end up crossing paths at some point and even falling for each other, feeling mutual admiration and even clashing at times, doesn´t seem that crazy at all. It seems almost expected. It´s a potential scenario, in each of the multiverses you test that same formula with those same characters.

It´s practically like writing an AU FF but without changing the characterization, like I do, I stick to canon characters and change the settings to write a "fix fic" every time. Only that in this case, I´m not using imagination or creativity only, also quantum physics to prove that these characters belong together because in each string they vibrate alike and their vibrations will gravitate towards each other without any effort from my part, it´s almost a logical progression.

That´s why other scenarios feel forced, because Syd´s and Carmy´s strings vibrate at a certain frequency that is not compatible with other strings but with each other. They affect each other intensely because they always gravitate towards the same field, not apart.

Bonus track: FANTASY VS REALITIES How will the endgame come about in any multiverse where it occurs when it does? As previously explained, the idea that the universe is built from vibrating strings and that there could be multiple dimensions is a concept that can feel almost magical, but it is based on advanced mathematics and theoretical physics.

So how will Sydcarmy endgame, in whichever multiverse it occurs, come about?

Magic happens. It will be magical. It will be spontaneous, a "magical moment that will just happen", like narrator 2 foreshadowed in 3x9:

3x9 was a huge foreshadowing episode. It wasn´t the magic trick itself; it was Storer telling us how the magic was going to be performed.

IMO the sydcarmy endgame will have something to do with the star because it all started with the "main couple" falling from the stars:

"The fantasy is what we´re doing now, right here in this room, with these lights and cameras and mirrors." The fantasy (the trap as Syd called it in 3x2) was the star; what´s real is Sydcarmy, reaching out for the stars and falling in love in the process. True love, no fantasy, no mirages.

[gingergofastboatsmojito]

GIF by @keikomivra

💅

[slowburnsucker]

really obsessed with syd asking for some more space and carmy being like “oh yeah of course” but only moving over two inches LMAO

[notthebear]

first she didn’t talk to him all service then she asked for space. worst 24 hours ever.

[waywardangel-wilds]

What’s next??? ‘Stop texting me every 22 seconds???’ ‘Stop saying I’m the bestest ever to ever???’ Death???

[notthebear]

syd puts on do not disturb and he always always always chooses to notify her anyway

if she SAID stop texting so much?

rest in peace

[lightlyotherworldlycreator]

AND SHE ASKS HIM TO MAYBE NOT STARE AT HER. So she can think 😩

he is not okay. Totally not okay.

[basicjetsetter]

Caramel was the definition of poetry in motion. The cycle of the restaurant crew's trauma was not only subverted, but healed in such a loving and fulfilling way that it just pierced my entire soul.

S5e7 "Caramel" is a direct mirror of S1e7 "Review." The Beef faced the same issues The Bear faced: overwhelmed with orders to fill, lack of ingredients to complete all the dishes, the tablet (that was initially introduced by Sydney in S1e7) bugging out, tensions tight between two members of the crew that inevitably leads to a confrontation. Unlike season 1, The Bear crew in season 7 is level-headed and calm in the face of adversity. No one is blaming anyone for shortcomings, they all buckle down and move through a service that would have decimated The Beef crew. Through the trials and strife and utter lack of faith they at one point had in the future, The Bear moved as a unit in love with their passion, in love with serving a good meal instead of just getting through the day.

I know my thoughts aren't exactly coherent but I needed to point out how the mirror between these two episodes is one of the best and most well-handled portrayals of growth I have ever seen in television.

Each character is able to meet these essentially similar challenges differently, and the way they handle it distinctly highlights their own individual struggles within the crew. Sydney does not falter and flail under pressure, she is now calm and clearly vocalizes what she needs. She leads the team with poise and precision, never backing down when others tried to overstep. She is now able to command the crew and they listen and collaborate as a team.

Carmy breathes through the chaos. He is no longer a whirlwind of anxiety that lashes out at anyone within striking distance. He listens to the needs of others and provides unwavering support. When emotions are running high, he's regulated enough to pivot and find solutions to de-escalate disaster.

There's so much more to point out, but the main reason I wrote this post was for Sydney's Cola Braised Short Ribs. In S1e7, her short ribs undermined Carmy's authority. Her ideas were not accepted and any changes she tried to implement were met with vigorous backlash. Syd's short ribs is the mirror to Carmy's Blood Orange Hamachi. Two dishes born out of pure passion and love on opposite sides of the coin. Both pushed out against the wishes of the head chef. Both instantly becoming the best dish of either of them have ever eaten. And in S5e7, Sydney's dish is not only appreciated by Carmy, but actively pushed to the forefront to someone they believed to be a Michelin food critic. Season 1 Carmy would never take that risk, but all of Season 5 Carmy's trust and belief is in Sydney.

[avatarreso]

Season 5 as a whole is a perfect mirror of season 1. Probably why they have the same number or episodes, watching them back to back was kind of eerie but beautiful.

[sublimepeachtriumph]

To the Bear writers' room,

Since we know you are here and quietly listening to us eating up what you made for us just as Richie spies on diners at the Bear, thank you for such a delicious portrayal of a loving, supportive, progressive partnership between a man and a woman. If that portrayal isn't romantic, I don't know what is and don't want to know. You've set a new standard for what romance might look like in 2026. Nothing less will satisfy us now that we've tasted this sumptuous meal.

Thank you for the beautiful character of Sydney Adamu, who represents so many young women brimming with ideas and potential and kindness who never get the chance to shine. You let her shine for everyone to see. You gave Ayo to us and we'll always cherish that. You also made space for characters like Tina, Ebra, Marcus and Sweeps. We wanted more Manny and Angel, we wanted an episode set in the South Side that would be the black version of Fishes, but this is a tasting menu and you've inspired us plenty. We were nourished by the meal you made us in some of the darkest times of our collective lives when feeling hopeful about anything is difficult.

So many other shows fumbled their last seasons or gave in to the pressures of fascism to produce deeply malevolent content. They've whitewashed their casts, they've erased queer characters, they have pushed regressive plot points to the forefront. Not you. You stood firm and it's obvious the pressure on you was intense. You have pulled off a heist in real time against one of the largest corporations on the planet. We salute you. Congratulations and may all your meals be seasoned with the love that you put out in the world.

Thank you for this meal we will be eating/re-watching again and again. We will be following the trail of delicious breadcrumbs you left us. We'll track down all the treats you hid for us to find in the subtext. We own the subtext and now, after the finale, it's clear we own the whole house.

[freedelusionshere]

What grows together, goes together.

[unladyboss]

WHO HAD THEORIES ABOUT SYDCARMY. THE BEAR

Donna Berzatto suspected but doesn't know them well enough

Richie. Knows everything, says nothing

Natalie. Tells Pete. Gets info from Faks who spy on what carmy does

Marcus. Sydney let him know about the best meal and he figured the rest out. He watches them from his station

Cicero. Who thought Carmy meant Sydney at first but switched up when they tried to show horn the Claire actress into the show

ALL THE SERVERS

This guy after he tried to dry flirt

Luca who got the heck outta there once he saw what was up

Plus Marcus probably let him know

Everyone in the group chat to include sweeps, who doesn't care

Who knows but are always minding their own business, Angel and Manny

Who knows but doesn't want it FAKS

Who doesn't know Sydney and Carmy

Ebra who is always trying to avoid Carmy's blue eyes

I actually just want to know WHAT THE THEORIES ARE!

[avatarreso]

Tina also has theories. Syd is distracted in the beginning of Season 5 (she can't think straight with Carmy hanging around her making heart eyes, she suddenly can't do math either) and Tina takes on the CDC role before she officially gets the job. But even in Season 1 she was watching them, especially the scene where he says, "You're dressed like Syd."

But the biggest clue for me is when Carmy was stuck in the fridge and trying to explain his feelings, he asks Tina if Syd is still there and she says, "Always, Chef." He wasn't making that speech to Claire, but Syd. He was reassuring HER, and that's why a lot of it is about focus.

[aerishey]

I cut the music track from snippets of the party and the very end of the episode, added volume, and did my best to add some subtitles where I felt they were relevant to Sydcarmy.

I honestly love this. Sydney asking Carmy to help plate the cake, them plating, then I guess Carmy left, because he had to do something with the presents? Then Sydney is complaining about doing this by herself lmao. Also that "I can do real big" and those finger licking noises 👀

If anyone heard something differently or wants to add, please comment/reblog!

[avatarreso]

The candle reference is brilliant because in Ep.2, Richie comes up with a plan to sell the restaurant's oils to some company that will turn it into candles. When he presents the pitch to Sydney is when he does the 50/50/50/50 joke and asks "who among us has power of attorney." Luca and Marcus are also working on a candle-based dessert for their main centrepiece, legerdemain gets referenced again. Marcus dramatically slices the candle later to reveal caramel sauce (Richie had lit the candle earlier and said "savoir faire," another French reference). This is when Sydney's ribs are being enjoyed by everyone. The dialogue in each scene heavily hints that the candle is the sleight of hand we're supposed to be paying attention to in the penultimate episode.

In a much earlier season, Eva told Richie that she wanted 100 candles for her birthday, so the reference works on multiple levels.

[sublimepeachtriumph]

Carmy proposing to Syd

Right before this sequence we have had Richie hear from Jess about a couple getting engaged at the Bear, looking for a "wedding box," and instructing the Faks on how the staff will organize the wedding proposal in different spaces within the restaurant. So it logically follows that the framing of this scene is Carm proposing to Syd, almost down on one knee.

In lieu of a restaurant partnership or chef's whites or even more restaurant partnership (as he gifted her in previous proposals), he is now telling her about the 2 Michelin stars that are like their engagement ring. We had a lot of anniversaries, engagements and weddings mentioned this season.

Remember "Strange Currencies," their song?

"Now with love come strange currencies And here is my appeal

I need a chance, a second chance, a third chance, a fourth chance A word, a signal, a nod, a little breath Just to fool myself, to catch myself To make it real, real

These words, "You will be mine" These words, "You will be mine" All the time, oh."

He's finally made it real with Syd and she's accepted with words, signals, their mutual nodding, their breathing together. That's why she is wearing a spiderweb bandana (Made in Japan) which suggests a certain Spiderman franchise owned by a Japanese company, Sony, in which Liza has a role and where a prominent interracial couple are featured (onscreen and off).

[freedelusionshere]

I love this idea that the stars scene is their marriage proposal, their way, and Syd needs a moment and we’ve seen her run before but basically her running back into his arms is her saying yes.

[avatarreso]

In addition, the engagement mentioned by Nat and Richie has a marine twist to it because the woman works at an aquarium. We immediately get a close-up of one of Carmy's tattoos, which is a dolphin. Also also, the scallop is their best dish by each other, tonnato is tuna & mayo based, Syd is associated with water thought-out the show, etc. Storer literally spelled out everything for us. They're canon and you can't tell me different.

[lightlyotherworldlycreator]

Non shippers are stupid when they all love Pete so dearly and how he is good for sugar is grounding for her and brings her happiness but literally cannot see the same thing happening in front of their eyes for sydcarmy because the canon doesn’t explicitly tell them!??