The Bear season 4 finale, "Goodbye," picks up after service. After learning that Carmy gave her and Sugar control of The Bear in episode 9, Sydney is having a hard time processing what is happening.
Carmy (Jeremy Allen White) meets her outside, and they finally have a long overdue conversation. Sydney (Ayo Edebiri) thinks Carmy is leaving her at the restaurant and bailing on their future. Carmy tries to explain that it is not actually the case, but you know how he is with words, feelings, and all of that. Things don't come out right sometimes, but usually, when he opens up, he gets his point across.
It blows up in a huge argument. Sydney tries to smoke a cigarette because she's so mad, but she doesn't even know how to light it. Honestly, I don't really know what Carmy is trying to do here. He even has a cigarette to cool off. None of this is making sense.
Carmy explains that the restaurant has always been an escape for him, and that's a problem. His heart isn't in it as much as it once was. He doesn't love it anymore. He doesn't have the creativity anymore to do the job the right way.
Then, Carmy brings up that Shapiro actually called him and let him know that she was leaving. Sydney apologizes for trying to leave, but she says the restaurant is just too chaotic for her sometimes. That's why Carmy said he needs to leave. He knows that Sydney is going to be better than him. And, he knows that The Bear is only going to survive with Sydney in charge. Carmy tells her that he believes in her more than he believes in himself. He tells her that she's really "The Bear."
When the argument boils over, Richie (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) comes outside to stop them, and Sydney tells him that Carmy is quitting. Carmy corrects her and claims that he is "retiring." At first, Richie just laughs.
Finally, this is the big argument we've been waiting for. Carmy tries to apologize, but Richie won't listen. He tries to go back inside, but Carmy tells him that he was actually at Mikey's funeral. Richie gets really mad, obviously. Carmy tries to tell him how sorry he is, over and over and over. Sydney just stands there and watches as Carmy pours it all out for the first time. He finally realizes that other people were hurting, too. He didn't know that other people cared about Mikey the way that he cared about Mikey, and he didn't know what to do with all that anger and pain. He tells Richie how he resented him for being so close to Mikey and for being so much closer to the family than he was.
For the first time, Richie feels like he's responsible for Mikey's death. He thought Carmy thought it was his fault, and that's why he skipped the funeral. He had a lot of resentment for Carmy, too, for being part of the family in a way that he would never be.
Then, Richie says that he really missed Carmy while he was gone. He tells a story about a road trip with Mikey, and he thought that was what Carmy's life was like. Obviously, it wasn't, but Richie was so jealous of Carmy that he even bought a French Library cookbook to learn how to cook.
Finally, Richie asks Carmy if he thinks it is fine to walk away from it all. Carmy doesn't know, but he tells him that the restaurant will be fine. Richie says he knows that, as long as Sydney stays.
Sydney has other plans. She wants Richie to take Carmy's place with Sugar and her on the other side of the ownership. Richie turns it down at first, but then Richie accepts the offer. He's officially a partner in this whole thing.
Richie asks the question we've all been wondering. Uncle Jimmy's money just ran out, so how do they keep The Bear open?
Right then, Sugar (Abby Elliott) comes outside and knows something is up. Sydney tells her that Carmy is leaving the restaurant. Richie tells her that he was actually at Mikey's funeral, too. Instead of getting mad, Sugar just hugs her brother.
In the middle of the night, Uncle Jimmy's clock runs out, and that's when the episode and season come to an end. The full episode took place in the alley at the back of the restaurant.
I have a lot of thoughts and feelings about The Bear season 4, overall. It felt different than the first three seasons, but it felt good in a way that this show never has. Like, it was healing for me as a viewer to watch these characters handle their pain in a somewhat healthy way for the first time in the series. We saw genuine apologies and personal growth on a level that we don't normally see on TV, not like this.
In the same way Walter White sank further and further into the gutter ethically and morally in Breaking Bad, Carmy is trying to pull himself out by owning up to his mistakes, apologizing for the pain he caused, and healing old wounds.
It was a lot, but I have really high hopes for The Bear season 5. I can't wait to see what Christopher Storer and his team are able to come up with.
Now, I need a cigarette, too, and I don't even smoke.
More recaps on Show Snob: