The Bear: Best Moments From Season 1, Ranked

As soon as The Bear was released, it became an instant hit with both critics and audiences around the world. The fast-paced story of a Chicago steak-sandwich joint that expands into more with its complex, entertaining characters has made this show one of the most highly appraised shows in recent memory. Mainly following Carmen (Jeremy Allen White), every character in the show delivers unique, impactful performances that bounce off of each other perfectly. With Season 2 recently being released, here's a look back on the best moments of the first season that took the TV world by storm.

The opening sequence for the show instantly sets the stage for what is in store for the rest of the season. Starting off with Carmen in a nightmare, he wakes up in the restaurant that preparing for service. As soon as he wakes up, the pace immediately picks up with Carmen rushing around getting everything ready as quickly as he possibly can.

Related: The Bear Cast: Other Roles You've Seen the Actors Play

This sequence is one of the best in the show, perfectly portraying both the lives of the chefs in the restaurant and the dynamic of the place itself. Each film or show set in a restaurant has its own unique feel, and The Bear's opening sequence sets up what to expect in the coming episodes in the best way for such an intense environment.

As soon as we're introduced to Richard or Ritchie (Ebon Moss-Bachrach), it's clear that he's a pretty hot-headed character full of sometimes unwanted energy. He usually finds himself in some sort of conflict, especially with Carmen early on as he doesn't approve of the direction he wants to take the restaurant, as he takes over from his late brother, who was also Richard's best friend.

Dealing with the loss of his best friend is without question one of the reasons Richard has such a short temper. Another part of his life that we get an insight into is that his daughter is having a rough time at school. He isn't with his daughter's Mom anymore, which also doesn't help him. With him and Sydney (Ayo Edebiri) bickering, he gets a call from his ex-wife, which then goes to his daughter where he has a heartfelt, emotional moment comforting her as she's scared to go to school. A massive contrast to what we're used to seeing from him, this moment added so much more depth to his character.

From the get-go, there's clearly something going on with Carmen causing him a lot of struggles at the moment. Losing his brother so recently and suddenly is obviously something that he's having a tough time grieving, but there always seemed to be something else that was underlying alongside the grief.

A few episodes in, we see Carmen flashing back to his time at what seems to be his old workplace The French Laundry, in another super intense environment. His head chef is extremely brutal with him, getting way too personal with him as he tries to handle the pressure. Finally, seeing what was adding to the stress of Carmen is one of the most important moments for the character, giving us the missing piece in the puzzle for his backstory.

It wasn't only Carmen and Richard who went through the loss of Mike, Carmen's sister Natalie or "Sugar" (Abby Elliot) was also hit hard by the loss of her brother. Alongside going through the grief of losing her brother, she also lovingly puts so much of her focus on making sure Carmen was doing okay.

Knowing that Carmen is clearly struggling with all sorts of things along with losing Mike, she messages him with a link to a support group for him to go to, which would be a massive step for Carmen. When the two meet again after the restaurant short circuits, Carmen tells Sugar that he goes to the meetings three times a week. With all the stress that she's under, hearing that he goes to the support group she sent to him was not only a warm moment for her, but for the audience who want nothing more than Carmen to try and improve his situation.

With Sydney coming onto the scene in a pretty explosive fashion, she and Carmen have a somewhat clear vision of where they want to take the restaurant, to make it as good as it can possibly be. However, amid the change, the chefs that have been there for a long time, specifically Tina (Liza Colón-Zayas) has a hard time keeping the confidence that she can still perform to the new standard.

Tina has a kind of resentment towards Sydney, with the two often butting heads after Sydney gets her new hierarchal position. When Tina isn't confident with her food, she hands it to Sydney expecting her to tell her it's not good enough. But Sydney does the opposite, loving the food. The instant relief and joy that lights up Tina's face is such a feel-good moment in the show for everyone as we continuously warm up to Colón-Zayas's character, definitely earning a spot on the list.

In the third episode, the new plan for the future of the restaurant called The Brigade gets off to a rocky start. Sydney is put in charge of the kitchen with Carmen trying to sort out the ever-growing problems behind the scenes. Sydney gains a reputation for being a calm character, but her first day in her new role really takes a toll on her, with her boss Carmen not being around for her to talk to.

At the end of the episode, Carmen finds Sydney sitting outside, clearly with not much left to give. He sits with her and listens to her, which definitely gives her a huge sense of relief. Carmen feels comfortable enough to tell Sydney that he was at a therapy group, Sydney jokes that he's getting too personal which is a pretty big icebreaker for the two moving forward working together in the restaurant. A heartfelt moment is never unwanted in an intense show with a focus on the character's struggles.

In the penultimate episode of the season, the whole episode is focused on the most chaotic shift imaginable. It starts with Sydney accidentally leaving the pre-order slots open, leading to a huge wave of incoming orders that's next to impossible for the group to manage. After this, almost everyone in the restaurant reached a boiling point, making the situation worse and worse. At the end of the shift, Sydney is the one who just can't take any more of the chaos.

In episodes prior to this one, it was clear that Sydney was struggling to keep up with her role as she had to practically run the place, and finally threw the towel into a situation that she did not have in mind when she applied to work in her childhood favorite restaurant. Sydney quitting was without a doubt one of the most jaw-dropping moments in the show, in an episode that already had hearts pumping. Alongside Sydney, Carmen also reaches breaking point, where all he can end up doing is laughing at how good a donut tastes that he smashed on the floor. Yes, it's that chaotic.

Among all the chaos, one chef in the kitchen, Marcus (Lionel Boyce), is always super chill, just keeping in his space and doing his own thing. As the season progresses, Marcus becomes obsessed with desserts, first off starting to make a chocolate cake. Taking his time to perfect it, it comes out at the perfect time.

In another light-hearted, happier moment in the show, the whole restaurant sits down before the restaurant closes to enjoy the cake he crafted with all his skill and passion. The episode was less drama filled than others, leading to the chefs being able to bare each other for a moment. Seeing everyone together with a smile on their face alone makes this a highlight of the show, but seeing one of the most likable characters in Marcus watching people enjoy the cake is the cherry on top.

Richard and Carmen have easily one of the most complex relationships in the entire show. With both of them going through constant up and downs with each other, mainly due to both of them going through the same loss of Mike but handling it in different ways, seeing the two share a moment with one of the most impactful quotes in the show easily gives this moment a place on this list.

After a party takes place in the restaurant, a fight breaks out with Carmen and Ritchie rushing in to break it up. Ritchie punches one of them who smacks his head off of the counter, putting him in the ICU. With Ritchie being so nervous that he might get sent to prison for manslaughter, the relief he felt seemed to have calmed him down, realizing that he still has someone who will do anything for him, even after losing his best friend. Having that person be his best friend's brother makes it all the sweeter, and makes this moment all the more emotional.

Earlier on in the season, Ritchie finds a letter from Mike addressed to Carmen. Not being sure what to do with it, he leaves it tucked behind the shelf on the floor where he found it, for the reason of Ritchie seeing it as a way of accepting that Mike is really gone (his reason that he reveals to Carmen when he hands him the letter).

Carmen takes the letter outside, instantly breaking down into tears as he finally comes to terms with the fact that his brother is gone, overwhelmed with emotions that hit us just as hard. On the back of the letter is the recipe for the family spaghetti, which means the world to Carmen as he got closure by knowing that his brother looked out for him, even though their relationship wasn't amazing towards the end. As he opens the soup to make the spaghetti, Carmen finds a stack of cash inside, which ends up being in almost every can of the soup, making the moment all the more moving.

Perhaps the most impactful moment that White delivers as his character Carmen is when we see him attend one of the support sessions that his sister recommended to him. This moment comes near the beginning of the final episode, right after the chaos of the shift in the episode beforehand. With emotions high for both Carmen and the audience, this entire monologue was perfectly written and executed by White.

Related: The Bear: How the FX Show Turns Cooking Into Fiery Drama

Carmen finally lets out all his feelings that have been bottling up, which without question lifts a massive weight off of his shoulders. Explaining the reasons behind why he became such a good chef, that being resentment for his brother for not letting him in his restaurant and how rejected Mike made him feel. Seeing Carmen so vulnerable in this moment cemented how expertly crafted of a character Carmen is, and made us all so happy to see him finally open up to the things that have been causing him so much pain.

The most feel-good moment throughout the entire season came at the very end, with all the main characters gathering around a table in the restaurant, enjoying the family Spaghetti with each other. Seeing everyone laughing and smiling with each other after all the conflict they went through, which not just each other, but by themselves. With so many standout moments throughout the season, seeing all the characters in a moment with no stress or worry had to be at the top of the list.

It comes as no surprise that the series received a Season 2, which is now streaming on FX and Hulu in the United States and Disney+ in the United Kingdom.