In The Bear, Carmy and Sydney are colleagues, not lovers. Will fans begging for romance be satisfied?

The bear just released its entire third season on June 26, offering fans ten new episodes documenting the events at the series’ titular restaurant, including the relationship between two main characters.

The close friendship and collaboration between chefs Carmy and Sydney is a central part of The bear, but some viewers are vehemently divided as to whether it is romantic or platonic. Their connection has sparked so much speculation in recent years that actors Jeremy Allen White And Ayo Edebiri had to firmly counter rumors that a romantic relationship would develop between their characters.

“There was no talk in the rooms about any romantic intimations” between Carmy and Sydney, White said at a June 24 press conference ahead of the Season 3 premiere. They’re not the only ones to put an end to speculation about it, either. Showrunner Christopher Storer spoke out just a month after the show’s 2022 premiere, telling Esquire that the “friendship” and creative partnership between the characters was paramount. According to Vulture, the show’s writers and actors have told the media at least eight times that “SydCarmy” simply isn’t going to happen.

What is shipping?

The act of encouraging a romance between people or characters is known online as “shipping.” This concept has impacted how viewers interact with content for many years. “Endgame” characters who come together (like Ross and Rachel in Friends) and those who don’t (like Jo and Laurie in Pride and Prejudice).

Broadcasting can increase engagement and build community among viewers—especially because the internet makes it easier to discuss our favorite things with other fans around the world—but it can also lead to disappointment.

Arguments for shipping Sydney and Carmy

Given the many people involved The bear have said that trying to pair Sydney and Carmy up is a waste of time, and their involvement on the show will almost certainly end in disappointment. Still, some fans remain adamant.

There is a scene in the second season of The bear in which Carmy and Sydney share an intimate (but platonic) moment under a table. When they take a break from the chaos of the opening of their newly remodeled high-end restaurant to repair a broken piece of furniture together, Sydney assures Carmy that he could open the restaurant without her.

“I couldn’t do it without you,” Carmy replies. “I wouldn’t even want to do it without you. You know, you make me better at it.”

The shippers of Sydney and Carmy find this romantic – but it could also be portrayed as a meaningful partnership between colleagues, like Peggy Olson and Don Draper in Mad Men, or Liz Lemon and Jack Donaghy in 30 rocks.

But there are also a lot of office romances between characters throughout television history that could give these shippers hope, like Jim and Pam in The office, or recently Gregory and Janine on Abbott Elementary School. These storylines often involve false starts, the resolution of romantic tensions in favor of relationships, and subverted expectations.

“When they talk to each other under the table in Episode 9, it’s such a beautiful scene, and it’s a scene about partnership, but not about a romantic partner,” White told Variety of the scene in 2023.

Danny Heifetz of The Ringer wrote that if the writers suddenly changed their minds and decided that Carmy and Sydney should enter into a romantic relationship, it wouldn’t feel “forced” because they would have “laid out breadcrumbs from the beginning.”

Fans on social media have noticed these breadcrumbs – Carmy is sensitive to Sydney’s feelings and Sydney keeps Carmy stable. They give each other thoughtful gifts and develop their own language. The first episode of season three reveals that Sydney’s favorite meal is one that Carmy made before they even knew each other.

Although the series introduces another love interest for Carmy in the form of his childhood friend, the even-tempered Claire, some fans just don’t feel the chemistry between them like they do between Carmy and Sydney.

The case against the shipment of Sydney and Carmy

For some fans, the intimacy and apparent soul mate connection between the two chefs is best understood as a truly close platonic relationship. Carmy’s journey through season three largely revolves around crippling grief, which damages his friendships and work relationships.

The series’ plot is tragic in nature: Carmy gives up his job as a high-profile chef to take over the sandwich bar his brother left him after his suicide. What he needs more than anything is the unconditional care of a friend.

Marina Fang of Huffpost wrote that platonic intimacy between multiple characters is explored in The bear, between old friends and new colleagues, or new friends and old colleagues. Colleagues and friends of friends mentor each other. As the show progresses, more of these dynamics are explored. The focus, coincidentally, is the relationship between Sydney and Carmy.

Although The bearJoanna Calo, co-showrunner of The Hollywood Reporter, told The Hollywood Reporter after the release of Season 2 that she was surprised by how much fans online wanted the duo to get together. She admitted she was even tempted to encourage a “meeting,” but Storer quickly rebuffed her.

“He was absolutely right, but I think what I was trying to say is that these relationships are complicated,” she said. “I’ve heard people use the term ‘work wife’ – there are relationships in our lives that have all sorts of meanings, and sometimes we really rush to characterize everything very clearly, and there’s something beautiful about acknowledging how messy our lives really are and how tangled so many of our relationships are.”

All indications are that fans who want Sydney and Carmy to get together will be disappointed by what happens in the series, but even the showrunners of the series promise that the relationship will be “messy,” just like in real life.