erichydeman

This episode was thought-provoking, and it's necessary to watch this one over again, like the rest of the series, to learn its full message: such as the Bear's people and their roles as Carmy works out his philosophical addiction to running a restaurant. It's like being with close work friends as they talk about having a baby. After the "Tina" episode, there was no way to have an episode that matched its power, but this episode serves as a good intermediary between the two long (mostly) single-character deep-dives. Like the rest of the series, there's lots of yelling, and to exemplify the main internal conflict of this season, Sydney does not get to cook, which obviously is her passion. Not every restaurant is the same, and Sydney may well be contemplating such a fact. Examining her role as chef at the Bear versus her potential role as CDC with Shapiro. Sugar states that there are enablers, heroes, scapegoats, mascots, and lost children who surround addicts. This season has illustrated how the enabler may be Uncle Jimmy, how the hero may be Natalie or even Tina, how the scapegoat is routinely Richie, how the mascot is Marcus, and how the lost child is clearly Sydney. People who can understand the deeper meanings to life and the people who live it will love this episode.

I had to write this because I've seen another review talking about the episode being unrealistic because this takes place in an "American city." Bro, this is a fictional town on the border of Mexico. Look at California's border. It's going to be a small town that probably is already looking the other way when it comes to gun fights. Some people will create the most ridiculous reasons to hate on something.

Anyway, the pace of the episode wasn't the best, as the lull in combat later on seems to come out of nowhere. If anything negative, they may have just written themselves in a corner with how they ended season 3, or maybe they always planned on keeping Canche alive.

The show benefits from the presence of Carla Baratta and her storyline, and unfortunately this episode did not feature her at all.

I don't know how or why Marcus Alvarez ended up at the clubhouse. But he stopped what should've been a show-ending massacre of the Santo Padre crew. However, it's clear he will have a much bigger presence in the club's culture going forward.