The Emmy’s: The Bear is Not a Comedy

The 76th Emmy awards took place in September and behind all the glitz and glamour, I was left with one thought. Why is The Bear in the comedy category?

Season 2 of the show won big in Outstanding Comedy this year with wins in the Guest Actor and Actress category, Supporting Actor and Actress category and Leading Actor Category. Although they missed out on best overall Comedy series, the show did pick up Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series.

Season 1 was crowned Outstanding Comedy Series the year previous.

I do not deny that The Bear is an award-winning show and worthy of praise. But the Comedy category seems less and less applicable to the show as the seasons progress.

The Bear was never really a comedy to begin with. It opens with Carmy taking over his family’s restaurant after his brother committed suicide. The plot then continues in the same fashion with strong themes of mental health, depression and disjointed relationships.

Jeremy Allen White is an impeccable actor but it is not unfair to say that his character Carmy is the least funny in the show. If anything, the show’s humour often directly juxtaposes the hardships Carmy is facing in his professional and personal life.

On the other hand, leading actress Ayo Edebiri is undoubtedly funny. Watching her performance in Bottoms was a laugh-out-loud experience. Her character Syd was one of the funnier characters, stepping in with her relatable charm and witty comments. But, her humorous side dwindles in season 2 and has almost disappeared by season 3. This is not necessarily a bad thing as she is becoming a more nuanced character with flaws and executing it marvellously.

The show tries to push humour through the Fak Brothers. But, honestly, their humour sometimes falls flat and often feels like listening to an annoying inside joke you don’t fully understand.

The third season aired in June so will be eligible for nominations in the 77th Emmys next year. It’s fair to say that I will be seriously disappointed if The Bear appears in the Comedy categories again, and whilst the first episode of season 3 is one of the best openers to a season I’ve ever seen, it is objectively unfunny.

This is the most serious season yet. Carmy is facing some serious psychological battles, Marcus is dealing with the declining health of his mother and the relationships of almost all the central characters are strained to the point of break.

Liza Colón-Zayas’ character, Tina, has her own spotlight episode titled ‘Napkins’ which is a stunning exploration of job-hunting, failure and success. Brilliant television, little comedy.

The worst part of The Bear’s inclusion in the Comedy category is that it overshadows true comedy shows. Whilst Hacks did win for Best Comedy Series this year, The Bear was still a strong favourite to win and the show’s strong fanbase may push the show to success again in upcoming award shows.

I should note that I’m not the first person to have this opinion. Articles about The Bear’s miss-categorisation have been published by the Guardian, Forbes and Rolling Stone Magazine.

However, Forbes argues that “comedy is subjective“. This is a weak argument.

Subjectivity doesn’t trump common sense. We know shows like Succession, The Crown and The Last of Us are not comedies and therefore deserve their place in the Drama category. In fact, I think I laughed more at Succession and The Last of Us than I did at The Bear.

I don’t deny that dark humour exists but The Bear is 90% Drama and 10% Comedy and their award show category should reflect this.

This is also not me saying that a Drama category win holds more weight than Comedy category wins. I simply believe that The Bear explores themes that could make them successful in the Drama category and their Comedy wins will continue to frustrate me.

I wish nothing but success for The Bear and its cast, just hopefully in the Drama category next time!

Forbes Article: https://www.forbes.com/sites/tonifitzgerald/2024/09/15/emmys-2024-why-is-the-bear-counted-as-a-comedy/

Words by Ria Sharma

Cover Image Credit: Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times/Getty Images