Warning: Contains minor spoilers for The Bear season 3FX’s The Bear ranks among the most highly-rated TV series in recent memory, yet while anticipation for season 3 is understandably high, there’s a very good reason why you should avoid watching it all in one go. Like many fans, I was desperate to find out what happened to Carmy and the crew after The Bear season 2’s cliffhanger ending. On this front, no one will be disappointed by season 3’s story. However, while The Bear remains as propulsive and engaging as ever, the show’s unique tone and atmosphere mean that it’s best enjoyed in moderation.

Following the explosive season 2 finale, The Bear season 3 centers on Sydney and Carmy’s quest to earn a star for their fledgling restaurant. True to life, this mission requires commitment, focus, and no small amount of sacrifice – cranking up the tension in the show’s pressure cooker of a kitchen. The intensity of the drama is nothing new for the series – something I and millions of others around the world still find masochistically enjoyable. However, while this particular serving of The Bear is a continuation of what’s come before, aspects of the series require caution.

The Bear Season 3 Is Too Heavy To Binge

It’s Too Emotionally Draining To Be Watched In One Go

The Bear has always been a particularly intense show. However, season 3 takes things to a whole new level with character arcs that are not just painful, but variously poignant, heartbreaking, and brutally heavy. Carmy struggles to reconcile his ambition for the restaurant with his emotional fragility, Sydney finds herself questioning whether she’s really willing to do what it takes to succeed, and Richie’s life is plunged back into turmoil after his redemptive season 2 arc. In essence, everyone in The Bear season 3 is made to suffer. Even as a massive The Bear fan, this was too much for me after 10 grueling episodes.

Part of the problem is familiarity. In previous seasons, the trauma could be somewhat mitigated by the fact that we as viewers were still getting to know these characters. We didn’t fully appreciate the unique family dynamics at the heart of the Berzatto family (at least, before The Bear‘s legendary “Fishes” episode), and only had tantalizing glimpses of Carmie’s inner conflict. Now, however, three seasons in, there is no hiding place. We have become familiar with these characters, and as such are better able to empathize with their pain. The result is that when things go wrong, it’s too much to bear.

The Bear Continues To Prove That It’s Better To Watch At A Slower Pace

It Benefits From Being Properly Savored

On one level, The Bear is incredibly compelling television that’s very tempting to binge. This remains the case in season 3, with multiple episodes teasing unresolved plot threads and hidden details. However, as has always been the case throughout the show’s history, consuming everything in one sitting makes it difficult to digest the full scale of what’s unfolding on screen.

Although the fate of the restaurant and specific plot points are important, the real power of The Bear is in its emotional depth. The extent of what particular characters are experiencing needs time to settle before being swept up in the wider story. I found that, having watched multiple season 3 episodes back-to-back, I needed to go back and watch them again in order to fully grasp the implications of what was happening. This means that The Bear is not just too emotionally weighty for sustained viewing, but that its story needs space to breathe in order to live up to its potential.