i was originally gonna make a super long post about some of the things i noticed that point to sydcarmy in season 1, but that was getting too long so i'm gonna break down a single scene in one post:
so season 1 is kind of scant in sydcarmy in comparision to season 2, but one scene that did catch my attention upon rewatch is this one where syd and carmy are making a seafood boil together.
The scene is very quiet, calm, not chaotic like we're used to in The Bear. Syd and Carm are alone in the kitchen, already making this a bit more personal and intimate. Syd is telling him about Sheridan, how it fucked her over financially. One thing I wanna point at is the song playing in the background, Impossible Germany by Wilco
"The fundamental problem
We all need to face
This is important
But I know you're not listening
Oh, I know you're not listening
If this was still new to me
I wouldn't understand
Impossible Germany
Unlikely Japan
But this is what love is for
To be out of place
Gorgeous and alone
Face to face
With no larger problems
That need to be erased
Nothing more important than to know
Someone's listening
Now I know
You'll be listening"
So the lyrics are very literal to the scene, it explicitly mentions listening to someone's problems. The first verse plays when Syd is going on about her failed catering business. The lines "But I know you're not listening/ Oh, I know you're not listening" are heard on a long shot of Sydney, but we cut to Carm and see that he has his head turned slightly, paying attention. This placement makes me wonder if Sydney is thinking he's not listening, but we as a viewer can see that that isn't true. Carmy also says "Heard, chef," further reinforcing this point.
When Carm enters the frame with Syd, the line "This is what love is for" plays. Not only that, it plays specifically when they both hold onto the same strainer, and the music actually grows in volume right at this point. It's very clear they want the audience to hear this lyric in particular.
Carmy exits the scene after the line "Face to face." The camera holds on Sydney for the line "With no larger problems." Then it cuts to a shot of Marcus for the line "That needs to be erased" and continues with shots of Marcus through the end of the song.
This placement is interesting. It almost seems to be implying that Marcus is a problem that needs to be erased for Sydney by juxtaposing them with the lines "With no larger problems" and "That need to be erased." With the inclusion of a one-sided (?) romance between them in the second season, I feel like that's exactly what this line is foreshadowing.
The inclusion of "Someone's listening" might make you think that it's actually Marcus that will listen to Sydney, however, it's important to note that the scene shows Marcus specifically cutting green tape with a knife-- you know, the thing Carmen tells him to do earlier on. So the person Marcus is listening to is actually Carmen, not Syd. Which can also alternatively mean that the "problem" is literally the uneven edges on the green tape.
The singer's meaning here can perhaps apply to The Beef- Carmen and Sydney have been through the ringer and running their own successful restaurant may seem too good to be true. But seeing as Carmen and Sydney are both very ambitious and confident in their cooking ability, it makes me wonder if this could be about their romance too. I think they have both resigned themselves to the fate of never having a life outside of work, which includes not having time for love. They didn't think it was ever going to happen, and they are suddenly catching feelings out of no where.
This song is not diegetic, so the excuse of "it's just a song that happens to be playing in the kitchen" does not apply here, though, even if it was, the production team still put it in completely intentionally.
idk. much to think about here.
90 notes
·
View notes