The Bear Is a Drama Wearing a Comedian’s Fake Mustache

Entertainment’s favorite trick is calling a show a comedy because it contains one depressed guy making a face. This brings us to The Bear, a superb series that should immediately stop pretending it belongs in the comedy aisle. I love it. I also laugh at it about as often as I laugh during jury duty.

Benny’s Picks

The Bear — Hulu/FX
Watch it for the performances, the panic, and Jamie Lee Curtis turning family trauma into an Olympic sport. But the comedy label is nonsense; this is a pressure cooker with occasional sarcasm. The “Fishes” episode remains one of television’s great acts of psychological warfare, and I mean that as a compliment.

Hacks — Max
This is what an actual comedy looks like: jokes, timing, ridiculous people, and Jean Smart weaponizing a purse. It can get sentimental, but it earns the sentiment instead of smearing it over the screen like artisanal mayonnaise.

Somebody Somewhere — Max
Quiet, weird, and sneakily devastating, this show understands that grown-up friendship is mostly making plans, canceling plans, and then eating something standing up. Bridget Everett gives one of the year’s most human performances. It doesn’t shout for your attention, which is precisely why it deserves it.

Fleabag — Prime Video
If you somehow missed it, stop behaving like you’re too busy. Two seasons, no wasted motion, and a love story that makes every other “complicated situationship” look like a group project. The priest’s fox is still the most emotionally intelligent character on television.

Skip It

The Idol — Max
It promised danger and delivered expensive-looking boredom. Every episode feels like someone whispering “this is provocative” while checking whether the lighting is flattering. Save your time for anything with a pulse.

Sleeper Pick

Colin From Accounts — Paramount+
A messy Australian romantic comedy about two strangers, one dog, and several catastrophically bad decisions. It’s raunchy, tender, genuinely funny, and proof that a show can be about damaged adults without making you feel like you’re trapped in a therapy waiting room.