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    ‘The Bear’ Is Back, but Where’s the Beef?

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    The restaurant’s business challenge in Season 4 — balancing comfort food and haute cuisine — is also a metaphor for the show’s creative issues.This article discusses events through Season 4 of “The Bear,” now available on Hulu.The new season of “The Bear” is the story of a struggling restaurant and a successful restaurant. They are both the same restaurant.The struggling restaurant is, of course, the title establishment. Season 3 ended with the chef Carmy Berzatto (Jeremy Allen White) speed-reading a crucial newspaper write-up. (There is no better way to flatter critics than to make your cliffhanger about the contents of a review.) Season 4 reveals that it was mostly a pan, and not the nice, carbon-steel kind. Now the Bear is on a ticking clock — an actual, physical clock — counting the seconds until the “parachute” of investment cash runs out.Bustling happily alongside is the beef-sandwich window, a legacy of the restaurant’s origins as the humble neighborhood joint the Original Beef of Chicagoland. Overseen by Ebraheim (Edwin Lee Gibson), an eager, soft-spoken culinary-school dropout, it hands out dripping Italian beef sandwiches to an endless line of customers.Unlike the Bear, the Beef (if we can call it that) is not fancy. It does not change its menu daily. It does not serve flavored steam or desserts that double as magic tricks. It is not trying to dazzle you with technique. It does one satisfying thing, then comes back and does it again. And, Season 4 suggests, it could be the salvation of the foundering business, as Ebraheim’s new consigliere (Rob Reiner) steers it toward becoming a local franchise.When is a sandwich not just a sandwich? “The Bear,” like many shows about creativity, seems to contain its own critique. The dichotomy of the Bear vs. the Beef embodies an argument over how to make art, one that very much applies to this show — and one that is to some extent the show’s subject.It’s about ambition vs. accessibility, change vs. repetition, consistency vs. risk, complexity vs. simplicity. What do you want when you watch TV — a good sandwich or a challenging tasting menu? Beef or Bear?We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      ‘Tour de France: Unchained,’ Plus 9 Things to Watch on TV this Week

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      Netflix airs the documentary series on the bike race and various networks release shark stories.Between streaming and cable, there is a seemingly endless variety of things to watch. Here is a selection of TV shows and specials that are airing or streaming this week, June 30-July 6. Details and times are subject to change.Wide-ranging documentaries.On July 7, 2005, London’s public transportation system was targeted in an attack that involved four suicide bombings during morning rush hour. The terrorist attack killed 52 people and nearly 800 were injured. The new four-part documentary series “Attack on London: Hunting the 7/7 Bombers” shares unseen footage and features interviews with politicians, emergency workers and relatives of the victims to tell the story of the attack and the aftermath. Streaming Tuesday on Netflix.The summer Olympics happen once every four years, but if you are looking for a yearly sport to get invested in, the Tour de France might be for you. Airing on NBC and streaming on Peacock this month, the annual men’s race, with multiple stages over the course of approximately 2,000 miles and 23 days, not only tests the endurance of athletes but also provides scenic views around France. A new season of the documentary series “Tour de France: Unchained” gives an in-depth look at the 2024 race, following several different teams and athletes. Streaming Wednesday on Netflix.In 1971, Ms. magazine was co-founded by Gloria Steinem and was first published as an insert in New York magazine. By January 1972, the first stand-alone issue was released on a monthly basis. The three-part series “Dear Ms.: A Revolution in Print” looks at the magazine’s founding and its history as a publication that focuses on women-centered issues, including abortion, work balance and sexual politics in a primarily male-dominated space. The documentary also features interviews with Steinem, her co-founders Letty Cottin Pogrebin and Pat Carbine, and the first editor of the magazine, Suzanne Braun Levine. Wednesday at 9 p.m. on HBO and streaming on Max.Reality check-in.If you thought we had seen enough of this group of Swig-sipping, drama-creating ladies of MomTok, you were sorely mistaken. Nearly two months since the second season aired, the women of “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” are back for a reunion this week, hosted by Nick Viall of “The Bachelor” fame. Lots of fights, feuds and snarky quips have continued with the group after the show has aired, so there is lots left to discuss. Let’s just hope that no one makes them play another round of pregnancy test roulette. Streaming Tuesday on Hulu.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      For South Koreans,‘Squid Game’ Was More Than Just Entertainment

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      The Netflix hit has left a lasting legacy as a major cultural export, but also one that exposed some unsettling aspects of Korean society.Contains spoilers for Season 3 of “Squid Game.”On Friday, fans around the world tuned in for the third and last season of the juggernaut Netflix series “Squid Game.”Since 2021, they’ve watched as hundreds of contestants played deadly versions of children’s games in an attempt to win a cash prize of 45.6 billion won, around $33 million.At the grisly end of Season 3’s six episodes, its beloved protagonist Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae), was dead, and its villains were very much alive and thriving.For some viewers in South Korea, where the show is set, that fell short of delivering the justice they were hoping for.After eagerly waiting half a year since the cliffhanger ending of Season 2, Kim Young Eun, a 24-year-old university student in Seoul, watched the entire season with her boyfriend at a comic book cafe, just hours after its release on Friday night.The Piggy Bank, where prize money is deposited each time a player dies on the show, was part of the fan event in Seoul on Saturday. Jun Michael Park for The New York TimesWe are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Lalo Schifrin, 93, Dies; Composer of ‘Mission: Impossible’ and Much More

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      Lalo Schifrin, the Grammy-winning Argentine-born composer who evoked the ticking, ominous suspense of espionage with his indelible theme to the television series “Mission: Impossible” as well as scored movies like “Cool Hand Luke,” “Bullitt” and “Dirty Harry,” died on Thursday in Los Angeles. He was 93.His wife, Donna, said the cause of his death, in a hospital, was complications of pneumonia.Mr. Schifrin had a startlingly diverse career as a composer, arranger and conductor in a wide range of genres — from classical to jazz to Latin to folk to rock to hip-hop to electronic to the ancient music of the Aztecs.He conducted symphony orchestras in London and Vienna, and philharmonic orchestras in Tel Aviv, Paris and Los Angeles. He arranged music for the Three Tenors. He provided what The Washington Post called the music of “rebellious cool” for Paul Newman, Steve McQueen and Clint Eastwood.When Mr. Schifrin won an honorary Academy Award in 2018, it was given to him by Clint Eastwood, a frequent collaborator.Kevin Winter/Getty ImagesBut the prolific Mr. Schifrin, who wrote more than 100 film and television scores, was best known for “Mission: Impossible.” Interpretations of his propulsive theme have also been featured in the eight movies in the “Mission: Impossible” series, starring Tom Cruise, which began in 1996.Like John Williams, whose many compositions for film include the theme from “Jaws,” Mr. Schifrin was a master of creating jittery unease and peril. Both composers worked with a recognizable style and a distinct purpose.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Stream These Movies and TV Shows Before They Leave Netflix in July

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      A ton of great titles are leaving next month for U.S. subscribers, many of them very soon. Catch them while you can.Several beloved television series are leaving Netflix in the United States this month, so get your binges going. Also departing: an uproarious film version of a classic TV comedy, the prequel to an action movie favorite and the sensational hit movie about a doll and her friends.A ton of the titles this month are leaving on July 1, so we’ve rounded up those at the bottom. But as a result, the list will be a little tighter — and shorter lived — than usual. (Dates reflect the first day titles are unavailable and are subject to change.)‘Insecure’ Seasons 1-5 (July 3)Stream it here.The funny and talented Issa Rae broke out from niche online personality to mainstream juggernaut with this acclaimed and popular HBO comedy series, on which she was co-creator, showrunner and star. Her character (also named Issa) spends the series struggling with her unsatisfying career, continuing romantic woes and roller-coaster relationship with her longtime best friend, Molly (the endlessly entertaining Yvonne Orji). What could have easily been a Black “Sex and the City” is lent nuance, texture and richness by Rae and her writers’ deft intermingling of serious social, sexual and racial themes, turning this half-hour comedy into a pointed portrait of the American Black experience in the late Obama and early Trump eras.‘The Addams Family’ (July 5)Stream it here.Barry Sonnenfeld graduated from being one of the best cinematographers on the scene — he shot such distinctive and stylish efforts as “Raising Arizona” and “When Harry Met Sally” — to one of our quirkiest directors with this hit adaptation of the beloved ’60s television series, itself culled from the cult comic strips of Charles Addams. His whirling cameras, striking angles and rapid-fire pacing prove an ideal match for Addams’s weird world, but this isn’t just an exercise in aesthetics; the casting is the key to bringing these characters to life. Raul Julia and Anjelica Huston find the perfect mixture of cheerful darkness and playful romance as Gomez and Morticia Addams, Christopher Lloyd gives Uncle Fester a delightful innocence, and Christina Ricci found her breakthrough role as the deadpan daughter Wednesday.‘This Is Us’ Seasons 1-6 (July 8)Stream it here.When “This Is Us” debuted in 2016, The New York Times described it as “skillful, shameless tear jerking,” and that description was apt throughout its six-season run. Its creator, Dan Fogelman, borrows its setup from films like “Short Cuts” and “Magnolia”: interwoven stories of seemingly unrelated strangers, bound together by random chance (in this case, four characters who share a date of birth). The show isn’t exactly subtle — the tragedies and troubles come down like the sheets of rain that seems to accompany every emotional moment — but it delivers what it promises, and the stellar cast (including Sterling K. Brown, Justin Hartley, Chrissy Metz, Mandy Moore, Chris Sullivan and Milo Ventimiglia) elevates many of the cornier moments.‘Barbie’ (July 15)Stream it here.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      ‘The Bear’ Season 4: Here Are the Cameos

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      “The Bear” returned for its fourth season this week with high-stakes restaurant drama and high-wattage cameos.“The Bear” returned for its fourth season this week, including plenty of high-stakes restaurant drama along with another series trademark: high-wattage cameos.The 10 episodes are packed with surprise guests from both the food world and Hollywood. There is a master sommelier who appears to offer advice about wine pairings. There is an Oscar winner who stirs up chaos at a wedding.These celebrities drop in amid the continuing story of the tormented wunderkind chef Carmy Berzatto (Jeremy Allen White) and his fine dining restaurant in his hometown Chicago. The new season opens with Carmy and his crew — including his professional partner, Sydney (Ayo Edebiri), and family friend-turned-colleague Richie (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) — reeling from a mediocre review. There is a new ticking clock indicating how long before the Bear’s money runs out. There is also a big wedding and emotional reconciliations.Here’s who pops up throughout the journey.Alpana SinghIn the second episode, the Bear’s sommelier, Gary (Corey Hendrix), heads to the Chicago restaurant Alpana to meet with the proprietor, Alpana Singh. If you want to learn about wine, she is a good person to consult: Singh is the youngest woman ever to pass the master sommelier exam. Gary is having trouble figuring out pairings because Carmy constantly changes the menu. Singh tells him Pinot Noir is a “sommelier’s best friend.” She also offers the handy tip that you can drink red wine with fish, explaining that it’s not the redness that gets in the way, it’s the tannins. If you can see through a red wine, it should go well with fish. (Something to keep in mind for your next dinner party.)Rob Reiner plays a business consultant who could expand the sandwich operations.FXRob ReinerThe only stable part of the Bear’s business is the sandwich window. (Maybe Carmy should have just focused on serving great Italian beef instead of opening up a wildly ambitious fine dining restaurant!) Ebraheim (Edwin Lee Gibson), who runs the sandwich operation, has big ideas for expansion and a new mentor to help him: Albert, played by Rob Reiner, the director of classics like “When Harry Met Sally …” and “A Few Good Men.” (Reiner is also a TV veteran, as the former Meathead from “All in the Family.”) Albert, who appears throughout the season, is a tough talker who wants to franchise out the beef operation — hopefully he’s as good of a businessman as he makes himself out to be.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Brianne Howey Feels a Presence Through Her Bracelet

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      Brianne Howey has a supernatural connection with her late grandmother, who’s “come through” by way of mediums, and a one-time séance that used her grandmother’s bracelet to guide otherworldly energy into the room.The star of Netflix’s hit show “Ginny & Georgia,” currently in its third season and remains one of the network’s top 10 shows after two weeks, wears a gold serpentine heirloom most days. “It just makes me feel like I’m with my grandma,” she said of the transcendental link. In an interview, Ms. Howey reflected on the bracelet that is, as she put it, “a physical manifestation” of her memories and her love.This interview has been edited and condensed.How did this bracelet find its way to you?After my grandma passed in 2022, one of my aunts told me that she had left it for me with my name on it, on a Post-it with the bracelet. It’s so, so special to me.Did your grandma wear lots of other jewelry, or was this her main piece?Not that much, actually. She was kind of a minimalist. My grandma was a really practical woman. She had eight kids. She was a nurse, very Catholic, not a lot of bells and whistles. So that makes this even more sentimental. My grandma was also the kind of person who, anytime she lost something, she would whip out her St. Christopher beads. She had a lot of rosaries. That was more her jewelry. There would be a rosary around her neck, in every pocket, and she would know exactly who to pray to if you lost something, if you were sick, if I was nervous about a test, anything.Do you wear it every day?It’s like a wedding band, almost: I feel kind of naked without it on, and it’s so delicate and comfortable and it lays so flat, and it makes me feel so close to my grandma because my parents had me super young. I was really raised so much by my grandparents, so it’s just extra special.I have sort of a roller coaster of a past with my jewelry collection. Twice in my life I’ve been robbed. And all my jewelry got stolen. So I’ve sort of been rebuilding. But both times, my grandma’s bracelet, I’ve always had it. It never got stolen, so that’s why it’s extra sentimental.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Captain Nemo Is Indian? ‘Nautilus’ Helps Correct the Record.

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      Depictions of the submarine captain from “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea” have almost always been white. An AMC series hews closer to Jules Verne’s intentions.In the 1870 novel “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea,” by Jules Verne, the submarine commander Captain Nemo is an often sullen recluse consumed by rage against the imperialist nation that murdered his wife and children. (That would be Britain.) In the 1954 Disney adaptation, in what is arguably his best-known screen representation, Nemo is still sullen, but the object of his outrage is much less clear.Brought to life by the British actor James Mason, this Nemo plays melancholy tunes on his pipe organ, his anger now directed at a “hated nation” of capitalists and warmongers that seems a lot like Britain, yet goes conspicuously unnamed.There have been dozens of screen adaptations of the adventure classic over the years, from feature films to TV series to radio plays. Despite their differences — and there have been many — a fairly uniform picture of Captain Nemo has emerged: brooding, relatively sedentary (to be fair, this is a guy who spends a good chunk of his time “under the sea”), 50s-ish, taciturn and almost always white.The hero of the AMC series “Nautilus,” which premieres on Sunday, is not that Nemo.He is young, for one, his story beginning with the maiden voyage of the Nautilus, decades before he has had a chance to become jaded and sour. He is also an action hero, battling with swords and cannons and rifles, going mano a mano with a giant squid and riding atop a mammoth harpooned whale swimming at full speed.“I spent most of that day soaking wet on top of this mechanical whale,” said Shazad Latif, who plays Nemo. “They had to ferry my makeup artist over to me on this little paddle board for redos and touch-ups.”We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Lisa Kudrow’s ‘The Comeback’ to Come Back to HBO

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      Lisa Kudrow’s critically beloved cult comedy will return to HBO next year, the network announced on Friday.Valerie Cherish is not finished yet.HBO’s critically beloved comedy, “The Comeback,” starring Lisa Kudrow, will return for a third season next year, more than a decade after its second season concluded, the network announced on Friday.The show centers on the challenges of Valerie Cherish, a former network TV star turned reality show performer (Season 1, which premiered in 2005) and then a premium cable network dramedy actress (Season 2, which premiered in 2014).Over the last two decades, “The Comeback” has become something of a cult classic, and Kudrow’s depiction of Cherish — her big red hair, her earnest demeanor, her totally unique turns-of-phrase — remains a meme in present day. Earlier this year, Variety published a list titled “The 100 Greatest TV Performances of the 21st Century,” and ranked Kudrow in “The Comeback” at No. 4.The show, however, has never been broadly popular. HBO canceled “The Comeback” after it premiered in 2005 because of low ratings, before bringing it back — to the surprise of the industry — for a second season nearly a decade later. The season got a rapturous response from some critics but the result was the same: The ratings were very low.The network gave few details on the premise of the third season, but Kudrow and Michael Patrick King, the “Sex and the City” producer who cocreated the show, said Cherish was gearing up for another turn in show business.“Valerie Cherish has found her way back to the current television landscape,” King and Kudrow said in a joint statement. “Neither of us are surprised she did.” HBO released a one-minute video on Friday in which Cherish declares: “I’ve got a new show.”“The Comeback” will have to navigate its third season without one of its key stars: Robert Michael Morris, the actor who played Valerie Cherish’s loyal hairdresser Mickey, died in 2017.The show will go into production this summer, and the network said this would be the final season.King is also the executive producer of “And Just Like That…,” the “Sex and the City” revival that is currently streaming on Max for its third season. More