#it HAS to be you sammy

[trialssam]

"do I have to?"

2x21 - 4x21 - 5x03 - 15x03

[currymanganese]

GUYS, I CAN'T ACTUALLY BELIEVE I'M SAYING THIS, BUT WHAT IF THEY ACTUALLY HAD A GOOD REASON FOR JOHN CENA BEING CAST AS SAMMY FAK?

please bear with me (pun intended) and let me know what you think of my speculation under the cut~

In a mind-boggling case of a seemingly big-lipped alligator moment in season 3 - John Cena appears in a bizarrely over the top (even by the tonal comedic standards set previously by The Bear e.g. Ecto Cooler punch at a kid's birthday party getting spiked with Xanax in Season One) and jarring scene that stretches on and on as he obnoxiously squabbles, blathers and exchanges nonsensical rapid-fire quips with his brothers Neil and Ted Fak as they buff polish The Bear's dining area before a food photographer from The Chicago Tribune arrives to take a photo for a review of The Bear.

In this scene, he also intimidates and threatens to 'haunt' (in a Fak family tradition ( that even the Faks find annoying) - that involves pranking and being an unrestrained nuisance to their loved ones especially when they least expect it) his brother Ted for, "stealing his SD cards"......

This scene and the increased screen presence of the seemingly plot-irrelevant Faks this season is currently being eviscerated by plenty of fans and critics alike.

Edit:

I now strongly suspect that John Cena's role was always in the works ever since S1

..................................

But what if there's a (debatable, but) really good reason for this scene and the increased involvement in Seasons 2 and 3 of the massive numbered siblings family of Carmy's pseudo cousins, the Faks?

See Exhibit A:

In season 2, episode 3, Sundae - after Carmy has already asked Sydney out to Kasama, a husband and wife owned restaurant run by Tim Flores, and Genie Kwon*, ostensibly just to brainstorm and gain inspiration for planning for the new menu, and after Sydney has already gone home and freshened up and changed her clothes, then arrived to Kasama early, despite the meeting only being scheduled for an hour after she last spoke to Carmy at his apartment, Claire calls and interrupts the whole hypothetical shebang with Syd and Carmy at Kasama (the Tagalog WORD FOR TOGETHER) with the words,

"Did you mean to give me a fake number? You do know that I know your entire family [translation: she must know Donna too and Claire assumes that Carmy's folks approve of her - and she's proven to be technically right throughout Seasons 2 and 3 ], right? And I know ALL the Faks! [translation: tee hee! they're bigger than you - to quote Neil and Ted with their Uncle, "We Faks do have a particular shape, don't we?😇" - and they outnumber you, you scrawny punk, slay!😉✨]"

Claire then proceeds to playfully threaten to have said "massive numbered siblings" Faks, which includes Sammy Fak, played by John Cena (a professional wrestler, from an industry that is mixes both bawdy over the top theatre, a performance art that values Kayfabe (legerdemain/slight of hand anyone?) and comedy, and an athletic discipline) that is TALL. BUILT. HENCH. AND BUFF AF.....Claire 'playfully' threatens to have THESE FAKS, beat up Carmy, who is short in stature and cannot fight well from all the previous physical confrontations we've seen him be involved in, despite supposedly being a former high-school wrestler, and who has already been seriously physically abused thrice in the series run thus far (not counting him play fighting or trying to fight with Richie) after being JUMPED by a GROUP of assailants, not once, but TWICE in season one, by the Ballbreaker nerds in the pilot, and the Bachelor Party attendees in the season finale (the first season started and ended with Carmy being beaten tf up, Holy Shit! 🤯); AND AFTER BEING SLAPPED IN THE FACE IN SEASON 2 BY HIS OWN MOTHER, DONNA.

Notice the way Carmy goes from being lost in his thoughts but being completely relaxed after his menu planning session with Sydney, and in anticipation of seeing her on their would be inspiration seeking meet-up (definitely not a date, no Sir! 👀) at Kasama, to being tense and jittery and apprehensive when Claire calls him (after going behind his back and getting his number from Fak).

Notice the way Carmy's voice shakes when he asks Claire if she really knows all of the Faks.....

Notice Carmy's defeated and annoyed reaction after he hangs up the phone.

No wonder Carmy is being so avoidant and conflict averse in his handling of Claire in both Season Two and Three, he has absolutely no faith in himself or his loved ones at present to defend himself should he assert the type of boundaries he may have been desiring to have with them for these past two seasons, after all - who can he count on to fully have his back even to the point of physically intervening for him if he gets into a scrape or is genuinely attacked, by the Faks on account of Claire taking offense at or misrepresenting his words and actions to them, e.g. Claire apparently twisting Carmy's self loathing stream of consciousness confession (that she eavesdropped on) and telling Tiff that they broke up because Carmy said that "Claire will ruin everything good for him?" while he was trapped in the fridge?

What if Carmy knows he has to rip the band-aid and call Claire and apologize for his part in the superficiality and disintegration of their dalliance, but is afraid to do so because he knows in so doing, if he is being fully honest with himself and with Claire, he never truly wanted to be with her in the first place?

And who knows how Claire will take that revelation - it probably won't be pretty will it?

And.....

to quote Neil Fak,

"Claire's the best."

"We love Claire."

"I did that." [setting Carmy and Claire up in Pop)

And.....

Claire. knows. all. the. Faks.....

TL;DR

They cast John Cena as Sammy Fak, and the Faks had a lot of screen-time this season because they are the physical manifestation of being haunted in their family's sense of the word:

and a satirical visualization of Carmy's desire for Syd being cock-blocked ; plus Claire is a Love-able Alpha Bitch, and Carmy is ambivalent towards her, and even a little scared to face her, because her henchmen are the Faks!

If you enjoyed this post, then thank you for reading and I'd recommend that you check out the following meta on the way Christopher Storer and Company have seemingly (and controversially) committed to sticking to the bit of lying to the audience and breaking the fourth wall throughout this entire season:

Richie and the viewer - by @whenmemorydies with my add-on in the reblogs about Richie, not Carmy, potentially being Christopher Storer's author avatar in this series (from a post originally written before season 3 premiered.

Fourth Wall being broken - by @brokenwinebox and @thoughtfulchaos773

Claire being a possible representation of addiction, being a habit that is hard to kick - by @thoughtfulchaos773 and my and @devisrina 's add-on speculating that Claire may also be meant to be interpreted or revealed as a bit of a mean girl, to reference TVTropes, she (and by extension Season 3) may be a deconstruction/ mashup /send-up / subversion of the: Girl Next Door, the Cute Bookworm, Nerds Are Sexy, MPDG, Yandere, Alpha Bitch, Loveable Apha Bitch, Childhood Friend Romance, High-School Sweethearts, Sickeningly Sweethearts, Getting Crap Past The Radar, Freeze Frame Bonus, Parental Bonus, Viewers Are Geniuses, Give Geeks A Chance, Even Nerds Have Standards, Beauty Equals Goodness, Face-Heel Turn, Cerebus Syndrome tropes etc.....and a subtler mirror version of Donna Berzatto.

Edit: See my reblog add on to @espumado 's thread on the recurrent 'haunting' theme this season and the possibility of the Claire x Carmy x Sydney love triangle being a Lilith x Adam x Eve allegory, and my webweaving about Syd x Carmy's Adam and Eve parallels. sidenote: Lilith is Adam's first wife apocryphally and in Jewish mysticism that left him, and became a she-demon / mother of demons after being impregnated by the archangel Samael - wait is 'Sammy' Fak a Samael allegory?!!

and another reblog add-on of mine to the thread linked above - on The Faks as the living embodiment of all that is fake in Carmy's life, C Storer's handy dandy tools for slight of hand,

you can't spell fake without FAK.

and please see

Clairecarmy as Ann Veal x GOB from Arrested Development

and with Richie's frustrated refrain of, "Who cares?!" whenever Claire and Claire and Carmy's breakup is brought up in 3 -

see the running gag of George Michael Bluth's (from Arrested Development) family's disdain for Ann and his relationship with her.

5. The parallels between The Bear and Burnt by @ambeauty - a post Season 2 post which was proven to be prescient and insightful given the Easter Egg inclusion of Bradley Cooper's character from Burnt on the photo wall of chefs at Ever in the Funeral dinner in the finale.

6. The parallels between The Bear and Boiling Point - a gritty film and mini-series set in a restaurant which features several plot elements and characters reminiscent of certain character archetypes and subplots present in The Bear - seriously think of this IP as The Bear's cynical, dramatic, older British cousin.

Decision to leave by @anderwater

This anon that recommended Boiling Point to me and wrote about its connections to The Bear.

The difference between The Bear and Boiling Point by @theblvckvenus

The similarities between The Bear and Boiling Point in this reblog add-on to @happylikeasadsong et. al's thread.

7. Claire/Carmy and the Walk In - my old post on the parallels between Strange Days (1995), Can't Hardly Wait (1998, and The Bear.

and @ambeauty 's meta on Claire as a representation of the fridge

8. My post on the possible connection between The Bear Season 3 and Andrei Tarkovsky's experimental, semi-autobiographical, psychological Oedipal drama film The Mirror (1975) - a film which was incredibly divisive upon its initial release, but has since gained wide acclaim and re-evaluation as a masterpiece, and that has had a legacy of subsequently inspiring multiple renowned filmmakers.

9. The Bear series' lead actress, and the director of Napkins, one of the only episodes of The Bear Season 3 to receive almost universal acclaim - Ayo Edebiri's trollish sense of humour and assertion that lying is the pinnacle of comedy.

10. And last but certainly not least with the inclusion of a Genie Kwon*'s, of Kasama fame, cameo in the season finale and the prominence of Kasama being key to Syd and Carmy's stymied relationship progression, courtesy Claire, see

The Kasama of it all by @gingerylangylang1979

@mod-doodles @lunasink @vacationship @chansoooo1-blog

@bioloyg @msmoiraine @nerdyblerd @ripley-stark @uncriticalbunny @prowitchazel @msmoiraine @mswyrr @anxietycroissant @turbulenthandholding @tvfantic87 @laryssamedeirss @tejidaepoque @angelica4equity @inalltheirgorgeouscolors @houseofevangelista @glitterslag

@uncriticalbunny @imliterallyjustablackgirl

@bioloyg and @ambeauty please don't say I told you so or welcome back, I'm flabbergasted that I wrote this, but I want to believe! 😭

P.S. If you're still reading this, do yourself a favour and read @brokenwinebox 's post

New Paradigm

and this follow up

Mocktail is a dirty word

and check out her #the magic trick tag!

and also check out these Sydcarmy and Rosalind x Orlando from Shakespeare's As You Like It parallels:

The Bear as a pastoral comedy

First Meetings

Fumbling with your crush

Separation, keepsakes and lovesickness

and also C Storer really did tell us in the music that this season would inspire

Mixed Emotions 🥴

[jae-in-a-trenchcoat]

Okay time to get sappy up in this joint.

I just wanna thank this fandom for being so awesome.

I started getting into jwcc at the end of last year, and I was a little nervous, but it feels like I’ve been here forever. There’s so many cool people I’ve met that have made me feel so welcomed.

I love creating and sharing my art with you. Whether it’s silly or serious. I have so much fun creating fanart for myself and you guys of these characters that I love so much. And even seeing what everyone create because there’s so many talented people here.

JWCC and JWCT means a lot to me. The characters mean a lot to me. This is also a thanks to anyone who worked on the shows. Cast, crew, anyone. They truly are amazing and you’ve made something special.

Uh yeah, idk why I’m doing this, but you guys are awesome. I’m so excited to get to experience s2 of chaos theory with you guys. Decided to draw the n6 as appreciation.

Thank you ♥️

[shanastoryteller]

it would make dean fucking furious, but i actually love the idea that jack sometimes calls sam "sammy" and that sam lets him. he's the only one besides dean that doesn't get "it's sam"

jack is always watching dean, and while part of that is search for dean's approval, the rest is because it teaches him how to interpret and be loved by sam

he calls him sammy when he's scared, or worried, or even relieved (seeing sam after lucifer brought him back would definitely elicit a sammy)

dean says it and it's sammy (protected)

jack says it and it's sammy (protector)

i also think he's seen dean and sam hug each other, sees how sam scrunches himself up so dean can still get his arms over his shoulders and folds beneath his brother. and when sam hugs jack, he hugs him sort of like dean hugs him, like how jack thinks dean used to hug sam twenty years ago

being enveloped, sam hunching over to keep him tucked into him, and for a moment jack feels like nothing can get to him

(sam used to feel this way too)

[swan2swan]

Yasammy: "We're gonna have a slowburn relationship that'll be SO GOOD, when we say 'I love you', it'll be beautiful."

Brookenji: "Ha, but we're gonna snipe you both, we're gonna go on actual dates and have awkward flirting before you, even with a three-season head start! We'll say how much we love--"

Benrius, for no reason, before Season 3 is even over:

[thatiranianphantom]

I'VE ONLY HAD MR. OBISANYA FOR ONE EPISODE BUT IF ANYTHING HAPPENED TO HIM I WOULD KILL EVERYONE AND THEN MYSELF.

[extoriuse]

I’m feeling like very VERY nostalgic for batim rn have some doodles I did!!! :D

[bloodydeanwinchester]

jesus christ man. season 7 dean just. loses cas. loses bobby. gets tricked into having a daughter and immediately loses her too. poor guy cannot catch a friggin break.

[ticklethentopple]

I need to speak out about this:

I am sorry but, if you have a blog about this it is more than just a normal interest.

I spend about 3 hours today reading studies and looking up termology and I am ready to break this down for people who are not into reading scientific papers and doing research for hours.

The way people like tickling in this community can be boiled into two different points:

-A fetish (something that is necessary to archive orgasm)

-A kink/nonsexual kink (something that you enjoy in a sexual/sensual context that is different from the norm)

Even tho you might not want to call it kink or fetish due to it making you feel uncomfortable, it is stil important to be aware of what you are expiriencing.

It also is important in the context of who you interact with and especially consent when it comes to people who might not know about/understand this.

At the bottom line tickling is giving you a physical reactions (blushing/being flustered/getting into a lee/ler mood) that isn't always acompanied by a groin reaction (being turned on/horny). But the reaction of being flustered/blushy is a form of sexual arousal. Even if you don't have any other body responses.

To boil it down the main nerve/your nervoussystem sees the thing you are attracted to and gives you a fuckton of good hormones. This also happens when you are anxious about something (like a rollercoaster). The response of adrenaline can make you feel similary, hense why fear and arousal are so close to each other.

But this still means you are having a physical reaction to the topic of tickling.

Your body is reacting to it. The butterflies and blushing is not just a mental thing, your body is actually getting into a state of mind that is similar to seeing a person you are attracted to.

Just like how the thought of kissing or hugging, or being close with your crush makes you feel this way, tickling does too. Because it is the same kind of mental reaction.

It's attraction.

You are arttracted to tickling. It makes you feel arousal.

And yes hyperfixations and special interests might make you feel happy and giddy, just like tickling. Your hyperfixation won't make you blush or flustered. Except if they are on a person/character, who you are attracted to.

Kink attraction is a huge thing too, people refer to it mostly as lee or ler crushes, but it is a form of attraction. You blush get flustered, fantasize about it etc. the same way someone would with a sexual or romantic crush.

To me tickling is both a love language and a kink, despite me not getting aroused by it. I know that I am by all means attracted to tickling. TIckling can be a cuddly comfort thing for me, but it can also be a more intamite thing for me.

But just because I am looking at/wanting more soft cuddly tickles doesn't mean I am less attracted to tickling. The same way a lot of kinks can be more sensual, or sex can be more sensual.

Liking more "Innocent" scenarios doesn't mean you are different from someone who might be into the more kinky type. To me kinky tickles also "just" make me flustered and blushy. But not horny or turned on.

It's okay to be uncomfortable with the label of kink or fetish and just say you like tickling. Having a kink is nothing bad, feeling sexual attraction is nothing bad. It is not icky, it is normal and perfectly fine.

Even if you are ace or sex repulsed like me.

[silverthelovebug]

Brooklyn and Ben definitely convinced Yaz to start smoking with them. Brooklyn pulls Yaz aside and is like “Bro. I think you would benefit from a bit of weed”. and Yaz is mad sus. she couldn't smoke in hs bc of track and just never got into it. but Brooklyn has her hit a joint and Yaz is like “Wow… I love… not being anxious for like five seconds ….”

(Sammy does the minimum dosage on edibles)

[lovealwayssay]

What really gets me is that by the end of the series, Sam had lost everyone. The last 3 episodes of the series are just Sam losing his last 3 remaining family members. He loses Cas, he loses Dean, and he loses Jack. He lost his best friend, his brother, and his child. He’s alone in the world, he has nobody, and that’s basically the worst ending I can think of.

[themintman]

My Zombie-Nurm and @dragonbma 's Drowned-Vos just chilling

just dudes being bros. Might maul someone later idk 😋😋

[sammygender]

spn 7x15 was truly crazy. having the resurgence of the narrative showing us sam’s hallucinations of lucifer in the same episode where we see ex-vessel of a demon, his entire life wrecked by the possession, completely obsessed & in stockholm syndrome-y love w the demon that possessed him. i want to analyse this episode scene by scene. who wrote this one. what did they mean by it

[holdingup-fallingsky]

I am once again thinking about how fucking fantastic of a song Fate of the Faithful is like the lyricism is fucking insane, there’s so many double entendres for each line and each one still matches the themes of the song (y’know being absolutely pissed off at religion and god) and like you can feel the emotion and rage radiating off this song it’s actually insane. And then to top THAT all off, the actual music of the song feels like a powerful summer lightning storm, y’know the type that make you understand why our ancestors used to think storms were god’s wrath. And then there’s this underlying feeling of bitterness; the type you only really experience when someone you were extremely close and devoted to betrays you and your trust it’s just all so UGHHHHHHHH and like even the TITLE of the song is crazy like yeah, the fate of the fiercely faithful is that you will get burned and that you find out it was not worth it and that it meant nothing. Like do you understand

[aristaspark]

JWCT: How I think the love triangle will go down: Kenlynn endgame, Dinostar friendship restored.

So, as I teased in a post I don’t remember how long ago, I’m going to explain my theory on what I think the writers are planning to do with Kenji, Brooklynn and Darius, and what led me to think that. I don’t claim to know what’s going through their heads, I’m only a girl who loves to write and who has taken classes on the process of film-making, narratology and cinematic analysis…and also the biggest Kenlynn shipper, so even though I try to be the least biased possible, it will probably still shine through, I’m human. Oh, and that’s only a theory of course, chances are I’m wrong. It goes without saying, but I had a blast writing this, I love to dissect the stories I love to find meaning in it.

I split my thought process in different parts, so pick and choose what you're interested in reading, I know that's freaking long, but I can't help it, I LOVE TO ANALYZE EVERYTHING OK (especially fiction).

(also don't mind the typos there are a lot of atrocious ones but it was too long to check correctly)

Dinostar is (too much of) a mess:

2: They could have killed Kenlynn, but chose not to:

3: They're putting a suscpisiously large amount of effort into Kenlynn

4: Darius’s arc with Brooklynn is not about romance:

5: Brooklynn was in the wrong: she had everything

6: Kenji has suffered enough:

7: The way she looked at Darius (plane scene):

8: An example of what could happen (purely going off of vibes):

[swan2swan]

I know "Images you can hear" is a thing, but do you ever find images you can feel?