“The Bear.” “The Bay.”

"The Bear." (Hulu.) Comedy-drama. 2 Seasons. The first season received 13 Emmy nominations including Outstanding Comedy Series. A young chef, Carmen "Carmy" Berzatto (played by a wickedly dedicated Jeremy Allen White) inherits his family's Italian beef sandwich shop after the suicide of his older brother. He comes home to Chicago to run it, leaving behind his world of working in a Michelin star restaurant. He is left to deal with his brother's unresolved debts, a rundown kitchen, and an unruly staff, while dealing with his own pain and family trauma.

       Sidebar: The sandwich shop interior is copied from the real-life Chicago shop Mr. Beef on Orleans, in River North. 

       Indeed, that'd be a skillet-hot intense storyline to navigate, which could lose grip, if not handled with care. Didn't happen. Despite the elongated (7 minutes?) Carmy monologue somewhere, this well-modulated, intricately-spiced ensemble performance is remarkable. 

       I don't really dig the overwrought arguments, ah that dinner fight was so hard to swallow. But these happen, right? But still, those actors are stellar. Special mention to Jamie Lee Curtis and Bob Odenkirk, and yes, Jon Bernthal, so good when he's bad. Besides the obvious star Mr Allen White, "The Bear" is where we discover future stars Ebon Moss-Bachrach and Ayo Edibiri. 🎥📺📹

"The Bay." (BritBox via Amazon.) Renewed for a 5th Series/Season. British drama/crime procedural. The name of the series derives from Morecambe Bay, in the county of Lancashire in the north-west of England. The first two series starred Morven Christie as a detective sergeant family liaison officer as DS/DC Lisa Armstrong. Marsha Thomason took over the leading role from series three as DS Jenn Townsend. That’s where my problem lies. 

       I preferred Ms Christie’s tough but emotionally constricted character over Ms Thomason’s soft, undecisive demeanor that verges into implausible sentimentalism. But the series has an in-tact and focused support cast, led by Daniel Ryan as DI Tony Manning, that kept the otherwise by-the-office law enforcement drill. 

       “The Bay” is a fine at-the-moment bother while you wait for next season of your favorite series. 🎥📺📹

SOME that I gave up, midway:

<>“The Righteous Gemstones.” (HBO Max via Amazon.) Dark comedy, which follows a famous and dysfunctional family of televangelists. Cool vehicle for a hilarious farce. And the series has a fine lineup: John Goodman, Walton Goggins, and Danny McBride. But it turned out it is all about Mr McBride, whose redneck antic gets tired and boring as we end Episode 3. Then the male genital frontal frathouse thingy that was masterminded by The Judd Apatow Gang is all over first and two episodes. I am not enamored with those tough. So done! 👎📽👎

<>“Only Murders in the Building.” (Hulu.) 3 Seasons. Mystery comedy-drama, about three strangers, played by Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez, with a shared interest in true crime podcasts who become friends while investigating suspicious deaths in their affluent Upper West Side apartment building, and producing their own podcast about the cases. Season 1 was fine. But honestly, I labored through Season 3 to Episode 2, despite Maryl Streep and Paul Rudd, who talks too much sometimes. 👎📽👎