The following review contains spoilers for The Bear, The Summer I Turned Pretty, and Squid Game.
I, for one, will admit that growing up in a generation tailored to short-form content has seriously withered my attention span.
My movie-watching habits have, unfortunately, dwindled into something I might describe as pathetic. Oftentimes, I catch myself reaching for a quick glance on TikTok whilst I’m movie-watching, and the next thing I know, I’ve been scrolling on social media for an hour. In order to rekindle my dismantled viewer-entertainment relationship, I have been more lenient in watching television shows to ease my way back into becoming a connoisseur of more tasteful content. As I began my search for series that would reignite my cognitive enthrallment with medians of film rather than insipid Instagram reels, I landed upon a select few that have been able to open my eyes to the very horizons of television that lay before us this upcoming year. And, if I do say so myself, we should not be taking for granted the cornucopia of entertainment that is to come in the next few months. Here are only a select few of the upcoming television shows that I am most patiently awaiting this summer.
The Bear, Season 4
At face value, the concept of The Bear itself can seem a bit mundane. Most of those whom I consult about this series have a narrow view on its premise, falsely assuming it is simply a “cooking show featuring the guy from that one Calvin Klein ad.” And, yes, this is a direct quote.
While there is some truth to this narrative, FX’s The Bear is exceptionally more profound than this. A jarring exploration of grief, anxiety, triumph, and healing, Jeremy Allen White’s depiction of the main protagonist, Carmen “Carmy” Berzatto, is consistently vulnerable and poignant. Shaken by the devastating circumstances of a family loss that occurred prior to the show’s chronological advent, White’s portrayal of Carmy accomplishes a reserved, withdrawn, and dismissive outward character that simultaneously encompasses a wide array of complex layers and emotions through subtle glances and quiet mannerisms, the nature of such revealing themselves as the show progresses. After taking over and revitalizing his late brother’s sandwich shop in prior seasons, the third season sees Carmy—a seasoned professional chef with aspirations of building a Michelin-Star restaurant—witness his long-sought-after dreams come to life, rather chaotically, however.
After a cataclysmic opening marred by the lingering threat of financial worry, staff and kitchen dysfunction, and the hazard of foreclosure, Carmy is able to turn his defective, bankrupt family business into a restaurant that exemplifies perfect culinary craftsmanship—which, to be noted, proves to be almost equally as dysfunctional as past ventures. For a large portion of the third season, the guise of a possible poor review from critics hangs over the heads of Carmy and his fellow chefs, staff members, and supporters. An inferior piece of criticism from an acclaimed critic would be almost certainly a death wish for an up-and-coming restaurant. In the final glimpses of the season, viewers are left on a cliffhanger as he receives a notification that would seal the fate of the restaurant going forward—whether this news is positive or negative is up for question going into the fourth season, which will begin airing on June 25.
The Summer I Turned Pretty, Season 3
I would be lying if I said I don’t appreciate some cringy young adult romance from time to time. And, in my personal opinion, there is no better place to tune into such a genre than The Summer I Turned Pretty, Amazon Prime’s highly lauded series based on the literature trilogy of the same name. This series follows Isabel “Belly” Conklin (Lola Tung), a high schooler who finds herself at a romantic crossroads between two love interests: Conrad (Christopher Briney) and Jeremiah Fisher (Gavin Casalegno), who, to make matters more tumultuous, are brothers. While seemingly a superficial plotline at first glance, the series cannot simply be constrained into binary categories of “Team Jeremiah” and “Team Conrad.” Belly, Conrad, and Jeremiah endure hardship beyond just the dramas of teenage love, including the tectonic, devastating loss of a beloved character, racial and social strife, and identifiable, familiar internal struggles that extend through the screen and towards the sentiment of the viewers tuning in.
While considering that the third and final season of this series will likely follow a similar story to the literary installments, it is important to note that special creative liberties may still appear to differentiate the book from the show. In the second season, this can be dually noted with the edition of Julia (Kyra Sedgwick) and Skye (Elsie Fisher), a mother-daughter duo unbeknownst to the books, who were included in the television version. The upcoming third season, which presents potentially the most turbulent plot yet in reference to the novels, could possibly integrate its own idiosyncratic spin on the beloved books that has yet to be anticipated. On July 16, all will be revealed in the culminating final episodes, all of which will most definitely have viewers on the edge of their seats.
Squid Game, Season 3
When I finished the second season of Korean thriller series Squid Game, I was fully prepared to patiently wait another few years for the third installment, considering the span of time that lay between the first and second seasons. Unbeknownst to me at the time, I would not be required to delay my viewing for long—only six months after the most recent season dropped, the harrowing horrors will return in full effect on June 27.
Based in present-day Seoul, South Korea, the series reflects the narratives of a select group of destitute, bankrupt citizens and the circumstances that drive them to gamble their lives for a life-altering, substantial cash prize. While the contestants enter ignorant of the fatal facets that the game entails, they soon learn of this through a series of brutal, gory, and ghastly mini-games in which the price of losing is their life. While the first season ended with a definitive winner, protagonist Seong Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae), the results of the second season adjourn without closure. Seong Gi-hun, hoping to dismantle the torturous system that he barely escaped only a year prior, returns with the intention of staging a rebellion against the Front Man (Lee Byung-hun), the dubious leader and orchestrator of the games. Seeking justice for the friends he lost in his first games and pining to find an escape for those who would fall victim after him, he facilitates a coup against the guards alongside his allies with the ultimate objective of identifying the Front Man and ending his sovereignty over the innocent competitors once and for all. In the galling season finale, it is revealed that one of Seong Gi-hun’s close, revered allies, Hwang Jun-ho (Wi Ha-joon), was the man behind the mask all along, posing as a player in hopes of controlling Gi-hun and manipulating his plans of sabotage. While the season comes to a close without consolation, the post-credit scenes ensure the continuation of the games and the ultimate failure of the coup by incorporating a nod to the most distinguishable mini-game of the series, “Red Light, Green Light.”
Going towards the third season, it is most probable to assume that there will be a major character death. For Seong Gi-hun, his valiance will be tested in ways never seen before, and, while he has defied death in prior seasons, his future becomes increasingly grim and uncertain amidst his current situation. While viewers are all accustomed to the melodramatic violence that former seasons have presented, we have yet to see a thorough dissection of the origins of the Squid Games. In my discernment, I would expect that the third season will be less centered on the theatrical essence of the challenges and will instead take a step towards the inner operations of the games themselves. And, just like prior seasons, it can be assured that every episode will be jaw-droppingly enthralling.
As someone striving to rewire my brain for long-form storytelling, these three series have reminded me why I ever fell in love with television in the first place. Whether it’s the aching realism of The Bear, the emotional coming-of-age turbulence in The Summer I Turned Pretty, or the high-stakes psychological warfare of Squid Game, each show offers a different kind of depth that makes swiping through social media feel a little more hollow. In a digital world that constantly urges us to scroll faster, these stories ask us to slow down and pay attention. And with their upcoming seasons just around the corner, there’s never been a better time to pause, hit play, and let yourself get swept up in something longer than a 30-second clip.
