If you're compiling a list of the most stressful TV shows you could possibly hope to watch, there's absolutely no doubt that The Bear has to appear in the rankings. I'm not quite encyclopaedic to know whether it definitely owns the top spot, but for my money it might well take the crown – it's that heart-pounding to sit through.
So, the knowledge that its fourth season is on the way has been like a blessing and a curse over recent months. It's great that we get more, and that it might have the chance to bounce back after a slightly uneven third season, but that also means more stress. Now the fourth season has its first trailer ahead of a return on 26 June.
If you were wondering whether the newest run of episodes would calm things down a little, it only takes a couple of minutes for the trailer to confirm the opposite. This time around, the kitchen will be dealing with dicey reviews and, what's that? Oh, right – a clock on the wall counting down to the moment when the money runs out and the business has to close.
That's about as stressy as it gets, but this whole time we'll also be juggling the personal trials of each member of the team. Carmy (Jeremy Allen White) is clearly still in the grips of a long-term emotional crisis about his relationship with his work, while Sidney (Ayo Edebiri) is likely still deliberating over whether she wants to actually keep working at The Bear in the first place.
That's quite a melting pot of emotions, and I haven't even turned to any of the other sub-plots still unfolding. We're clearly going to have a wedding episode, based on a couple of glimpses, which could be a truly explosive moment based on previous events in the show.
All of this will be fun to sink into when the show arrives, which it will do in quite a few ways. Here in the UK it's going to be on Disney+, while US viewers can get it through Hulu or Disney+ depending on the bundle they go for. Either way, make sure to strap on a heart rate monitor while you watch – it'll probably give you some eye-opening readings about this unbelievably stressful show.
