Summary
The Bearseason 3 has revealed that Carmy didn’t go to Mikey’s funeral – and not only that, it also reveals why he decided to skip his brother’s memorial service. AfterThe Bearseason 2 saw Carmy and co. facing the many challenges that come with opening a restaurant, season 3 sees them facing an even bigger challenge: keeping that restaurant open. But it’s also taken a look into the past to explore Mikey’s death and the fallout surrounding it in more depth than the previous seasons.
With its third-season premiere – season 3, episode 1, “Tomorrow” –The Bearcompletely upends expectations by replacing its usual shouty, sweary kitchen chaos with quiet contemplation. The premiere episode sees Carmy reflecting on all the pain and trauma that made him who he is today. A big part of that pain is the devastating loss that kicked off the series: the death ofCarm’s beloved brother Mikey. But season 3 reveals that Carmy skipped Mikey’s funeral for a heartbreaking personal reason.
Carmy Going Into Mikey’s Funeral Would Make His Brother’s Death (& Everything That Goes With It) Real
Carmy wasn’t ready to accept that Mikey was gone
A flashback sequence inThe Bear’s season 3 premierereveals thatCarmy observed Mikey’s funeral from his car, but he didn’t actually go inside. This is becausehe wasn’t ready to accept that his brother was gone. If he went into the funeral, then it would make Mikey’s death real. And not only would it make Mikey’s death real; it would make Carmy’s obligation to keep Mikey’s restaurant afloat, and his obligation to keep this dysfunctional family together, all the more real, too.
InThe Bearseason 1, when someone calls The Beef and asks for Mikey, it suddenly hits Carmy like a ton of bricks. Carmy had buried his grief over losing Mikey under a thick layer of denial. He’d thrown himself into his work at The Beef, trying to make it a smoother operation and a more profitable business, so that he wouldn’t have to face that grief. When he drove to Mikey’s funeral and refused to go inside, he was still living in denial.
Carmy Skipping Mikey’s Funeral Aligns With The Bear Season 3’s Theme About Pain
This season is all about pain
Thematically,The Bearseason 3 is all about pain. Carmy’s reflections on his past traumas throughout the premiere episode are punctuated by a recurring image of Carmy stroking a nasty scar on the palm of his hand. This scar perfectly symbolizes the pain that Carmy had previously tried to run from and is now trying to confront and overcome. Claire’s line about the girl in the hospital who felt fine because “it didn’t hurt yet” bothties into the season’s overall theme of pain and explains why Carmy skipped his brother’s funeral.
