Season two of The Bear began with Marcus sitting next to his ailing mother and letting her know about his daily routines. This is who Marcus is. A quiet man who takes care of his mother a lot and loves his job to bits. Marcus is a dessert connoisseur, and he loves playing with the ingredients, which was the highlight of the last season. In this season as well, Carmy retains him to be their dessert guy because he is exceptional at his job. Sydney and Marcus have developed a friendship, and they seem to understand each other’s dilemmas. Marcus has always remained low on confidence and silent in the kitchen, surrounded by only noise and chaos.
To improve his dessert-making skills and give him the freedom to choose any dessert for the menu at The Bear, Sydney and Carmy decide to send him to Copenhagen to work with Luca, a pastry chef. Marcus has so far been happy to help Richie and Fak with the renovation work. The Copenhagen trip came as a surprise because he did not expect Sydney and Carmy to take his love for the skill this seriously. They are opening a fine dining restaurant, so they would want a dessert that would be a class apart. They know only Marcus has the talent, and their confidence in him allows him to work harder towards his goal, which is to create a perfect desert.
His only concern happens to be his mother, who is ailing, but thankfully he has people around him who offer to help take care of her while he is away. The man is aware of the fact that this is not a vacation but a culinary trip, which can be termed educational, and Marcus is sound enough to know he cannot be taking advantage. All in all, Marcus is the quintessential good guy who has seen struggles and poverty, and slowly he is coming out with just off the back of his hard work.
He begins his work with Luca, and there is no small talk or long scenes between the two. There are only two people who are good at their jobs and are trying to learn and unlearn things from each other in the process of becoming better. Luca is the mentor here, and Marcus has been impressed with his skills from day one. Marcus’ eagerness to learn day in and day out from Luca is the highlight of the trip, and the man never stops asking questions of him. At one point, Luca and Marcus talk about how the former chose to be a pastry chef, his struggles, and being second to one of the best chefs he knows. Luca also talks about accepting the fact that the other chef will always be better. It imparts the knowledge of humility in Marcus to be accepting of the fact that there might be people out there who are better at his job than him, and he will just have to accept it.
Their conversation is the highlight of the show because it showcases how much the two of them learn from each other. Marcus explores the places around the city to understand the nuances he can use in his desserts. It shows his intuitive nature. He also helps a cyclist avoid getting severely injured after a small accident. Without knowing the local language, Marcus manages to save him. A few seconds of a hug between the two shows the impact he has made on this person by saving him.
Marcus comes back to the States with plenty of information in his head and hopes to create something magnificent for the menu. He is back by the time the renovation work is almost complete, and there is now time to work on his job. Carmy and Sydney are impressed with his work, and this time around, he is confident enough to present the dessert because all these things, along with his time in Copenhagen and his work with Luca, allowed him to grow as an individual.
Everyone on the team is happy for Marcus because they know his journey has been strenuous, but he has finally found a foothold for himself. He and Sydney always had a kind of vibe with each other for the love of food that they share. But their working relationships never went beyond being colleagues. It was obvious from their conversation that there was some fondness growing, but since they had their own ambitions to work on, dating took a backseat. It is only understandable to do that because they are young and need to establish themselves and be independent first.
Marcus has his mother to take care of, while Sydney has a dream of making The Bear a destination spot. Their friendship was never affected because they are mature individuals. He finally asks her out right in the middle of the work, which comes across as a surprise to her. Her unexpected reaction puts him on the back foot. He confronts her right in the middle of a chaotic first night of The Bear, but things between them cool down quickly. This awkward interaction was a result of Marcus feeling guilty for asking her out and explaining his stance.
This behavior of Marcus is very unlike him. Maybe he is fond of her, and that’s why he wanted to do some damage control, but the time he chose was wrong. The chaotic evening led to him not picking up his phone. Many missed calls from the nurse would either mean there is some bad news coming for Marcus regarding his mother or viewers can only hope his mother does not pass away because that might deeply affect him as an individual. We will get to see more of that in the next season. The entire Marcus chapter can be referred to as a person who is good at his job but works hard to be better because he does not know any other way to survive.
