The bear just dropped its entire third season on June 26, giving fans 10 new episodes that chronicle the goings-on at the show’s titular restaurant, including the relationship between two main characters.
The intimate friendship and collaborative dynamic between chefs Carmy and Sydney is a core part of it The bear, but some viewers vehemently disagree on whether it’s meant to be romantic or platonic. Their bond has generated so much speculation in recent years, actors Jeremy Allen White And Hello Edebiri had to blatantly squash rumors that things were getting romantic between their characters.
“There was no discussion in the rooms about any romantic implications” between Carmy and Sydney, White said at a June 24 press conference ahead of the Season 3 premiere. They’re not the only ones to shut down the speculation, either. Showrunner Christopher Storer told Esquire just a month after the show premiered in 2022 that the characters’ “friendship” and creative collaboration comes first. According to Vulture, writers and actors on the show have told the media at least eight times that “SydCarmy” is simply not happening.
What is shipping?
Encouraging a romance between people or characters is known online as “shipping.” The concept has influenced the way viewers interact with content for years, with “endgame” characters getting together (like Ross and Rachel on Friends) and those who don’t (like Jo and Laurie in Pride and prejudice).
Shipping can increase engagement and create a community among viewers, especially since the internet makes it easier to discuss our favorite things with other fans around the world. But it can also lead to disappointment.
The suitcase for Sydney and Carmy’s shipping
Considering the number of people involved in The bear have said that shipping Sydney and Carmy is a waste of time, their involvement with the show will almost certainly end in dismay. Still, some fans remain steadfast.
There’s a scene in the second season of it The bear in which Carmy and Sydney share an intimate (but platonic) moment under a table. When they take a break from the chaos of opening their remodeled, upscale restaurant to reassemble a defective piece of furniture, Sydney assures Carmy that he could open the restaurant without her.
“I couldn’t do it without you,” Carmy replies. “I wouldn’t even want to do it without you. You know, you make me better at this.”
Sydney and Carmy’s shippers find this romantic, but it could also be portrayed as a meaningful collaboration between colleagues, like Peggy Olson and Don Draper in Mad men, or Liz Lemon and Jack Donaghy in 30 Rock.
But there are also a whole host of will-they-or-won’t-they office romances between characters from TV history that could give these shippers hope, like Jim and Pam on The office, or more recently, Gregory and Janine on Abbott Primary School. Such storylines often involve false starts, the disappearance of romantic tensions in favor of relationships and the subversion of expectations.
“When they talk to each other under the table in Episode 9, it’s such a beautiful scene, and it’s a scene about partnership, but not about a romantic partner,” White told Variety of the 2023 scene.
Danny Heifetz of The Ringer wrote that if the writers suddenly changed their minds and decided that Carmy and Sydney were romantically compatible, it wouldn’t feel “shoved in” because they had been laying down “breadcrumbs” from the start.
Fans on social media have noticed the breadcrumbs: Carmy is sensitive to Sydney’s emotions, and Sydney keeps Carmy steady. They exchange thoughtful gifts and develop their own language. The first episode of Season 3 reveals that Sydney’s favorite meal ever was one Carmy cooked before they even met.
I’m supposed to believe sydcarmy is platonic when Carmy literally served her his very first dish, which she says is the best meal she’s ever had. Sorry, but that’s soulmate #the bear
— Jessa 🌱🪬 (@directedbyrian) June 27, 2024
While the show has created a new love interest for Carmy in his childhood friend, the well-adjusted Claire, some fans just don’t feel the chemistry between them the way they do for Carmy and Sydney.
The case against shipping Sydney and Carmy
For some fans, the intimacy and apparent soulmate bond between the two chefs is best served as a very close platonic bond. Much of Carmy’s journey through the third season involves crippling grief that damages his friendships and work relationships.
The show’s premise is inherently tragic: Carmy leaves his job as a chef to take over the sandwich shop his brother left to him after he committed suicide. What he needs more than anything is the unconditional care of a friend.
Huffpost’s Marina Fang wrote that platonic intimacy between multiple characters is explored The bear, between old friends and new colleagues, or new friends and old colleagues. Colleagues and friends-of-friends guide each other. As the show progresses, more of those dynamics are explored. Sydney and Carmy’s relationship happens to be the one that takes center stage.
although The bear‘s co-showrunner Joanna Calo told The Hollywood Reporter after Season 2 aired that she was surprised by how eager fans online were to see the duo get together. She admitted she was even tempted to encourage a “hookup,” but Storer quickly shut her down.
“He was absolutely right, but I think what I meant was that these relationships are complicated,” she said. “I’ve heard people use the term ‘work wife’ — there are relationships in our lives that have all sorts of different meanings, and sometimes we rush to characterize everything very neatly and there’s something beautiful about acknowledging how messy our lives really are and how intertwined so many of our relationships are.”
All signs indicate that fans longing for Sydney and Carmy to get together will be disappointed with what plays out on the show, but even the show’s own showrunners promise that the relationship will be “messy,” just like in real life.
