#nat and syd

[thoughtfulchaos773]

Now You Have Them Too

There's something simultaneously humorous and anxiety-inducing about this scene. I think we are experiencing Sydney's anxiety through the close camera angles and the cuts between Natalie, Carmy, and Sydney. It's disorienting as Carmy and Natalie assert Sydney's inclusion in their family without question. They are pointing out the obvious: the computer, Nicholas marshall – you know you have a family lawyer, right? While for Sydney, this season, it feels unclear about being officially part of The Berzattos- even her okay in this scene is a little reluctant.

Richie really meant it when he told her, "You have them too." Who knew there could also be some horror in Natalie and Carmy considering Sydney as part of the family?

Honestly, while watching this season leading up to episode 5, it is clear that Sydney is very much a part already imprinted as a Berzatto. The computer doesn't really say hello its very casual when he walks in - and the newly introduced Fak brother includes himself in the conversation if he knows her, and Jimmy reminds Sydney that they're past using last names.

Even though Sydney doubts it, the Berzattos and even their family friends consider her as part of their them, which makes it even harder for her to leave.

There is something chilling later on this season about Natalie firmly telling Sydney to sign the agreement.

[tvgremlin]

We don’t talk about this moment enough. An entire conversation, playing out in a single glance.

[purposechef]

syd & carm's day off

[kyloknightren]

i need sydney to encourage carmy to make a painting for the bear after seeing his sketches cause he hated the look of the one that nat got for the front of the house and i feel like carmen’s drawings will just have more importance in the next season

or if nat sees carmy’s stuff and tells him “bro. you should hang something at the restaurant!”

[conceived-angel]

i fear the sydney "honey" adamu thing is gonna be in every fic of mine from now on 🥲 it's so fun and cutesy to me, and i love how it compliments carmy's "bear" and nat's "sugar"

[ciaomarie]

GIF by @thoughtfulchaos773

I woke up this morning thinking about The Bear as one does. The Donna and Claire parallels were on my mind. In S2E10, Carmy was pushing them both to the back of his mind/bottom of his priorities. It was Nat who wanted her there. That night, Donna learned that Natalie was pregnant. That bit of info was her final nudge not to enter the restaurant. Claire came inside, but it was Richie and Neil who were excited to see her. Later, she learned that Carmy (who was spiraling in a vat of self-loathing) didn't think he could be in a relationship, and it was a distraction. That was her nudge to leave and cut him off. Then, in S3E8, about 30ish years after his birth, there's Donna talking crap about Carmy's arrival like he got himself stuck and how terrible her relationship was with his father. In S3E7or9(?) we have Tiff relaying the ish, Claire is saying about Carmy, who is at fault, but she's miscontruing his meaning and has no empathy for him. So, the woman who saw his mother drive into their home and said she loved him is dragging his name through their mutual friend/family group?! Idk...if Claire is endgame imma throw up. Tbh, I don't want a whole S4 episode of Donna either. Two scenes and wrap it up.

[currymanganese]

Legacy. You think about it?

And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof; And the rib, which the Lord God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man. And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. Genesis 2:21-23~

"Wait, so what was the best one?"

"Best what? "

"Best meal you ever had."

"Yeah, it was, it was Carmy's."

"I knew it. I knew it, yeah."

"Sydney: Hmm. He is really, really... really good."

"High praise."

"Yeah, but he's still a little bitch."

Inspired by my add-on to @espumado's thread here on the supernatural and mythological references in The Bear. @thoughtfulchaos773 @glitterslag @moodyeucalyptus @vacationship @ambeauty @lecham1644 @tinfishlove @whenmemorydies @brokenwinebox @glitterslag @tvfantic87 @augustmonsooning @devisrina @imliterallyjustablackgirl @angelica4equity @outmakingmoonshine @blackjack-15

[g3othermal3scapism]

hc after they start dating syd mentions she wants a dog and carmy tells her its a waste of money but after she gets one he comes over to play with it so much that it basically becomes their shared dog

[outmakingmoonshine]

Why does it kinda lowkey feel like Claire is to Sydney what Francie Fak is to Nat?

I'm sorry but this season told me Sydney could not care less about Claire or her having a place in Carmy's life whatsoever and I can only imagine if she did voice her opinions out loud it would sound a lot like how Nat speaks about Francie Fak.

Gif credit

The face Syd made and her response when Carmy mentioned Claire in 3x01 spoke volumes and It's absolutely reasonable that Syd thinks Carmy's so messed up this season bc he misses Claire but she doesn't ask him about it once.

She asked about Chef Terry twice, was very sympathetic in 3x05 and even tried to comfort him and make put a positive light on it when she saw he was down about Ever's funeral in 3x09. But she didn't say anything about Claire all season. She asked if he was ok a few times in regards to his mental state in S3 but she wouldn't go near the subject of Claire with a 10-foot pole!

This story is obviously going to end with Syd & Carmy finding some kind of deep lasting connection with each other, what would be the point of all the miscommunication and struggle to connect between them that's been a central part of their story for 3 seasons if it's not? And as it stands in the story right now, that wont be happening as long as Claire is around. If they wanted a Carmy&Claire with Syd as the platonic partner ending, Claire and Syd needed to be besties and that needed to happen when she was introduced in S2. But obviously Claire and her presence in Carmy's life is a big issue for Syd and I don't think that's gonna miraculously change anytime soon. Even if it did happen next season it's wont feel genuine or earned like every other real friendship in this show anyway.

Sidenote: While writing this I just read this amazing post by @thoughtfulchaos773 with some great observations and discussion by @currymanganese & @vacationship, please go check it out. Thank you to all of them!

Even Cicero seemed surprised by Syd's sage wisdom in 3x05. Whether she's never been in a relationship or not she could definitely give Carmy some kinda advice on Claire, even just to ask if he's ok after what happened or wants to talk about it. Especially bc the way he's acting this season seems like it's because of her and it's making their relationship and Syd's work-life harder...but she doesn't bring it up. Not one single time. It's interesting that she checked in with him and asked if he was ok about almost everything else that was clearly wrong all season, except Claire. But apparantly they have a "platonic intimate friendship" right? So why wont she talk to him about the thing that's clearly bothering him??!

Syd doesn't care about that relationship or want it to work out. And now I've read that post above, despite her obvious personal feelings for Carmy I think Syd clocked Claire's mean girl vibe in 2x05, the same way Claire clocked the vibe between Carmy & Syd. She knows Claire isn't good for Carmy otherwise even despite her feelings, I think she'd at least ask if he was ok after everything that happened and everyone hounding him about it. But all season she basically acted like Claire never even existed.

Syd should've put a stop to Carmy's nonsense in 3x02 when she was all the way done with him over the non-negotiables, she knew he was going way overboard then but she didn't stop him because that's how he was coping and it meant he'd be in the kitchen spending time with her which is how she's been trying to help him since the beginning. "Being there" like she told Cicero. It was slowly starting to work in 2x02 as well, Carmy was in a much better place mentally. If only Claire hadn't come along.

[thegirlwhowatchedeverything]

Pete In S3

(previous post: Pete In S1 and S2)

There's not enough screen time for Pete in S3 (a sad reality for many of our faves due to Cl*ire), but I love he was frequently referenced - a constant offscreen presence which mirrors how much of a reliable partner he is to Nat and the most loyal and psyched to be an honorary Berzatto. Since we still don't know his last name, my unserious head canon is that he took Nat's last name because he was so psyched to marry Nat and be part of her family. I mean we got Cl*ire's last name before Pete's so it's not out of the realm of possibility. Another head canon that I've had since S1 is that Pete's an only child affected to the Berzatto family. Like Syd and Richie canonically, I suspect cousin Stevie based on his I don't have family like this in 2x6, and apparently now Marcus because the writers retconned the brother he mentioned in S2 during S3?

Nat and Carmy simultaneously remind Syd Pete's a lawyer who can look over the partnership agreement for her in 3x2.

Nat knows the meaning of Philosopher's Walk in Kyoto because Pete's a Friedkan fan like Richie in 3x4.

Nat knows violets are the state flower of Illinois because Pete loves flowers in 3x5.

Nat respects Computer specifically because he's one of the few who is nice to Pete 3x5.

Though Nat confesses she's scared Pete might leave her one day (and the overall insecurities she developed in childhood because of her mom), we know he never would. He proves he's her ultimate partner by turning the tables in asking Nat if she's okay instead of her having to ask as she's done her whole life in 3x8.

He and Syd in 3x9 - give me more of these two in S4! They are two of the kindest, most thoughtful characters. Him just fully not knowing how cooking food works, but it coming from a place of not wanting to wake his wife and newborn. Him thanking Syd for making Nat's favorite burnt edges lasagne (also Syd knowing that's Nat's favorite AND taking the time to cook food for her in laws not partner's family, including her pasta and bolognese from 2x2). His response to Syd asking how he's feeling as a new dad: I'm just so grateful. It reminded me of his Thank you for letting me be a part of this family in 1x4. And his words are reinforced by him wearing a Beef t shirt. And him ofc doing what Nat asks by reading over the partnership agreement and sharing the terms for the first time with us and Syd.

[bearsinpotatosacks]

Carmy saying “You don’t think I can do it” so Syd about the non-negotiables really just solidifies how his mindset was changed into a solo one. He thinks it’s all on him to make it succeed, whether that’s because he has the most experience, or because he’s got guilt over leaving his family, or is angry because Mickey didn’t let him work at the Beef or listen to his ideas for a restaurant, or all of them, he puts the pressure solely on him. But to deal with this pressure he has to make himself “New York Carmy” the one who’s excellent and deals with the pressure but does so at the sacrifice of literally everything around him.

It’s also interesting how Syd came to Carmy to because he served her the best dish she ever had when he was at Noma, in this mindset, and now she’s considering leaving because she’s meeting the other side of it. She’s meeting the person who made that dish and she doesn’t recognise him. It’s like some version of never meet your idols. It’s also interesting how the only person who’s considering bailing is the newest one to the group, she’s known Carmy a year, I think, and she’s considering leaving, but people like Richie who’ve grown up with the Berzattos don’t even consider leaving, like it’s never something he openly asks about in season 3 at least.

[sydcarmyfan]

Besides every Carmy, there is a Syd and a Nat

When did Syd and Nat come up with ‘CP’? I need answers.

All their reactions in this is so funny to me. Syd looks so over it while Carmy is like so my sister and my wife have created an alliance and this is how it is now?! Richie, what are you doing back there?

[miredball]

THE BEAR social media part 11: community love

[kyloknightren]

richie and nat seeing carmy being a tad inappropriate with sydney and being like

she's your coworker.

[prettythrills]

lottie would so call natalie “natty” sometimes. maybe while theyre FUCKING. anyways.

[nevermindirah]

I'm a lucky duck who lives in one of the markets getting the limited release of Dandelion! Per Nat's request here are my thoughts to tide you over until it's more widely accessible.

As I said in my immediate reaction post, KiKi Layne was built for the big screen. This movie is full of gorgeous closeups of her. And medium-sized shots, and distance shots, and ok maybe it's just me, but bless this movie for making her a singer-songwriter-guitarist, because this means there are so many lingering closeups of her hands, and oh mY GOD NOT TO BE A LESBIAN (gender-neutral) BUT >:)))))))))

I could look at KiKi Layne all day, and now I could also listen to her sing all day. Her voice is beautiful and so expressive. She said in press leading up to it that she was nervous to share her singing voice and maybe that had something to do with just how expressive she is as a singer. Maybe sharing that is more intimate for her than the on-screen nudity this movie also has, and which is also compelling as hell.

This pro review notes that KiKi contributed to the music writing, which is so cool! It also acknowledges that much of the dialogue isn't quite right, often a little too like an essay or a headline to be organic for these characters, while getting at how forgivable that is in a movie whose soul is in the music and the visuals and the chemistry.

Somewhat miraculously for a movie with a white writer-director whose skill isn't primarily in dialogue, about a Black lead in a mostly-white place, it's conscious about race without being didactic. Dandelion is wary of going to white redneck territory for a music competition, and there's a sequence where microaggressions turn into shitty petty crime, but she's also not the only Black person in the sea of likely [redacted] voters. The movie does get a touch didactic about the struggles of women in creative industries, so maybe it wasn't a product of careful effort so much as Nicole Reigel's limited perspective, but the result works. Antiblackness isn't The Conflict of The Movie, simply a shitty part of the background radiation of Dandelion's life.

The music is so damn good. Soundtrack album here! Though the album tragically leaves off two of the movie's best songs: the stunning final number where Tracy Chapman vibes meet Prince, and a cover of 90s white boy song Hey Jealousy that starts off as mere pleasant background track introducing us to KiKi's voice and turns into a sleeper thematic tornado. Once you've seen the movie go look at Hey Jealousy's lyrics and backstory so you can join me in screaming about it and these characters.

Dandelion is a little movie, marvelously so. It's about just a few people in a short time in their lives. I hadn't thought about it like this until now but there are several thematic as hell shots of one or two characters shown tiny and off to the side amid sweeping rocky nature. The artsy shots of flowers superimposed on emotive faces aren't my taste but the overwhelming scale of the landscapes really spoke to me and now I'm realizing this is why.

There's a thing about some side characters wanting to be the biggest band in the world that's kind of an example of the clunky dialogue and kinda perfect for how wonderfully small this movie is. It doesn't matter where Dandelion's career goes after this. These scant few weeks of her life make for such a rich story on their own. This moment in time matters, even if these events don't turn out to have any more effect on the characters' futures than they do on the timeless mountains and prairies of South Dakota.

Fandom people are probably more likely to connect with this movie than the average non-musician viewer because of something that baffled me about a review I wildly disagreed with. Apparently some people can watch this and not understand how fast two people can develop deep intimacy and attachment despite barely knowing each other, just because they make art together. I don't understand how that reviewer didn't understand. You make art with someone and you're in each other's souls. It's intoxicating to collaborate with someone who gets what you're trying to say with your art and helps you make something that best captures the ineffable but crystal clear thing you're trying to say.

Not so intoxicating that you can no longer make rational decisions — but, well, in a way maybe it's the more rational decision to keep chasing the high of drift compatible creation, even when the person you've found to be your musical brain twin is maybe a not great choice in other ways.

Purely for Book of Nile reasons this movie is a damn gift. Tons of shots would be so easy to swap out one scruffy white boy's face for another. (Though Thomas Doherty is the same height as KiKi, which I personally enjoy, it's fun to have variety.) So much of the lyrics are extreme bait for gifsets and fic titles. (Tiny for the movie but very big for the BoNers spoiler: SHE LITERALLY CALLS HIM OLD MAN.) The first two thirds of the movie I kept thinking how perfect this plot would be as a BoN musicians AU — until a twist where I was both so pissed on Dandelion's behalf and internally screaming BOOKER WOULD NEVER.

As I was watching the final scenes I kept waiting for a thing to happen that didn't happen, a certain way of resolving the romance. The ending we do get left me yearning a little. But starting a few hours after leaving the theater the yearning subsided and now a week later my satisfaction with the ending has fermented into a yearning only to listen to that last song on loop forever. (WHY is it not on the soundtrack. I mean, TRACY CHAPMAN MEETS PRINCE.)

One more thing before I go. Dandelion is another thrilling expansion of the repertoire of KiKi's characters in terms of vibes and aesthetics. She looks so different than Nile in a theoretical mirror image outfit of practical boots and jeans and an oversized borrowed button-down thrown over a tee. None of KiKi's other characters, not even gentle Tish, would look so at home in delicate florals, doubly so when they're paired so effortlessly with a comfy denim jacket. And KiKi's physicality here is unique to this person: Dandelion, Theresa, a guitarist. Wholly unlike Margaret the dancer or Nile the warrior. Maybe someday Nile will grow locs like Dandelion's though.

In conclusion: watch Dandelion! I'm as glad I saw this in theaters as I was glad I watched Don't Worry Darling at 1.5x in a small corner of my laptop and only slowed it down for Kiki's scenes. The limited release is real limited, alas, but if you have access to a biggish tv to stream it on I'd strongly recommend making that effort. Both for the landscapes and those gorgeous closeups of Kiki's face.