Recently, I watched the show season 2 of The Bear(2022) by Christopher Storer on Hulu. This show depicts a world-renowned chef who goes back to his dead brother’s restaurant in order to run it and eventually recreate the restaurant into something new. The element of the show I found most fascinating was the interactions between characters and how they developed throughout the show. One character fans are fascinated over is Richie, played by Ebon Moss-Bachrach. Throughout the season, Storer puts on a masterclass of character development through Richie’s character, shining a light on his emotional distress and allowing the audience to thoroughly empathize with Richie. This effect has brought him from a hated side character to a beloved character with more emotional depth than anyone else in the show. 

Throughout the first season, Richie seems to be a nuisance to the restaurant. He would always find ways to mess things up, fight with each character, and display a negative demeanor and attitude toward his life. His character served as the dead brother’s best friend; a negative motif that served as a reminder of hardship everyone was going through. Then in episodes 6 and 7 of season 2, a total flip. These 2 episodes may be one of the best connections of stories in TV history. Episode 6 titled Fishes was a flashback to the family Christmas before the plot of the show. While I could write a whole essay on the masterful guest performances, we’ll focus on Richie. Richie, who is divorced and was seen as a somewhat deadbeat, was shown with his former wife being extremely supportive, kind, and driven to provide for his family. This is a complete contrast from what we have seen in the show so far. This juxtaposition creates depth in Richie’s character. We see that he’s not a shallow person, but rather a broken one. This empathy puts a greater emphasis on the death of Carmy’s(main character) brother as we see how much Richie has fallen. Furthermore, the brother is alive in this episode and displays his tight friendship with Richie. Then comes episode 7, Forks. The character development in this episode is unmatched as we see Richie’s “comeback” and watch as he ignites his passion for food that he lost. Throughout the episode, Richie stages at a Michelin restaurant primarily being tasked with polishing forks. Throughout this tedious process, he finds a new part of himself. Someone who cares about looks, who understands how important the small details are. After episode 6, we see Richie as an underdog. This makes his development and re-ignition of passion so riveting in episode 7. This development leads to my favorite line in the show which comes in episode 10, “ I wear suits now.” I highly recommend this show. 

https://www.slashfilm.com/1364069/richie-redemption-arc-the-bear-season-2-perfect/