Did Our Latest Meal At The Bear Give Us Gas?

Dave: [0:09] This is the Extra Extra Hot Gray Podcast, episode 360 for the June 28th, 2025 weekend. I am color-coded doom chart david t cole and i'm here with champagne problem sarah d bunting chin chin motherfuckers and brand new baby tari ariano hey. Tara: [0:36] I was just born but can you all just Shut up! Tara: [0:44] Welcome to Extra Extra Hot Great for another weekend. Thank you so much for your support. Welcome new members. We're delighted to have you here, of course. We are here to talk about season four of The Bear. And you know what The Bear is because we've covered it every single season it's been on. Carmi, Jeremy Allen White, is a highly trained and, we're told, very gifted chef. He's also kind of a mess for some reasons that aren't his fault and some reasons that are. In season three, he achieved his dream of opening a restaurant on the former site of his family's sandwich shop, but it wasn't exactly what he hoped. And the season closed on him reading a review of the restaurant and imagining all the different ways it could go. As season four begins, we find out what that review said, and Carmi finds out what we already knew. Uncle Jimmy and computer aren't going to bankroll this place forever. In fact, there's a literal clock on it that's counting down the two months the money men are giving Carmi and his team to turn things around. All 10 episodes dropped on Hulu June 25th. We may talk about events from any of them, although we got it the same time as everyone else. So I doubt anyone has finished it. I got up at 6.30am to try. Still got two episodes to go, But let's do the Chen check-in. Sarah, should our listeners watch season four of The Bear? Sarah: [2:04] If you were still in after the last season, then yes. And if you quit at any point, then no. Like, wherever you are with it, season four is not really, I think, going to shift you, nor should it. So that's my qualified maybe. Tara: [2:25] Dave. Dave: [2:26] Yeah, 100% concur. Tara: [2:27] Mm-hmm. Last night, my editor at Cracked was like, is it good? After I'd watched this, the first one, I was like, uh, it's the same. Dave: [2:36] Yeah, nothing here that's going to change your mind. But also, to his credit, it didn't start with the episode that started season three. That was very divisive. Even among us three. Tara: [2:46] Even among us three. Dave: [2:47] So, yeah, I'll give it credit for that. Although I have to say, are we out of 10 seconds? Tara: [2:52] Yes, let's get into it. Dave: [2:54] Is this show suffering from Silicon Valley cycle syndrome? I feel like everything that's happening here in season four and a bit of season three is something that is just a repeat of a lower level stakes run that we've already had. Tara: [3:12] Yeah. Dave: [3:12] And yes, we've gone from the beef to the bear and we've gone from this blue collar store to this fancy dude restaurant, but it seems the same. So when people are going through a whole new set of doubts and reconciliation and all the things that go up and down in the bear, it starts to feel very familiar. Tara: [3:34] Yeah. Dave: [3:34] I've said this before, so excuse me for being a broken record, but it was much more interesting when it was the beef than it is with the bear, because there is a certain inherent route for the small team of the beef that you don't really get when it's like, oh, gee, I hope the really fancy restaurant that serves the Chicago elite really can succeed. Tara: [3:55] Yes. Dave: [3:55] You know, it's all speaking to why we're saying like nothing's changed. But also I feel like, yeah, nothing's changed, but they're serving us the same dish. And I kind of feel like the show could have been so much better if they didn't serve us the same dish. Tara: [4:07] Yeah. And if I'm Christopher Storer, the creator of the show, what I'm not doing is putting a clip of Groundhog Day in the cold open of the season four premiere. They're like, okay, you know, we know, you know, but could you not do that? Maybe like that's also an option. Sarah: [4:24] Yeah. Yeah. I feel like part of what was appealing about season one was a certain level of process. And that even though season two was more meditative or whatever, which was not everyone's jam. First of all, what you feel about the show right now comes down to how willing you are to put up with what Dave said. Like, oh, we're not even at the final boss yet. That in order to spend time with these people, you're going to put up with that. Mm-hmm. The other thing is like a lot of what was compelling to me was the, in some cases, extremely familiar process of like, oh, my God, the machine is spewing tickets and there's three of us. I mean, it was, you know, just a pizza joint in Jersey, but still they have opportunities to do that here. Forks, they did it. I think the closing of ever they they did a good job was sort of like behind the scenes stuff. And they're not really doing it. It's like Dave said, they're just sort of like, well, these are the same stakes and the same issues and the same sort of like weird one third profile shots of Jeremy Allen White. Looking sad. And it's like, we know that he can do this. And he has a couple moments in the first few episodes where it's like he just wrote a novella with an eye twitch. He's good at this, but asked and answered. Tara: [5:49] Yeah. Dave: [5:49] I always rail against characters going to see therapists as a shorthand to deliver meaningful change. But in this case, I'm going to make an exception because I would really like him to get on with it. Tara: [6:01] Well, he's got his Al-Anon meetings. I think that stands in for it. He's getting something out of him. I agree he's a good actor and it's a good performance, but he's also a bit hamstrung by the writing a lot of the time where it's like, I cannot count how many scenes there are when he like tries to have a breakthrough or like apologize to someone for some for something and they're like what and he's like i'm trying to be better like at least 10 times like stop telling start showing like just start doing start doing and he is in a way but. Sarah: [6:31] Also he's a chef like. Tara: [6:33] Yeah a. Sarah: [6:33] Lot of the times they're twats. Tara: [6:35] Like i don't know i mean well yeah a lot of people in a lot of feels hard to watch. I don't think we can limit that. Sarah: [6:41] Yes, 90%, I would say. Tara: [6:43] The other problem with this show at this point is that I feel like it's gotten to a level with some critics. It's got succession syndrome. I'm sure I said this last year, too, that it barely matters if it's good or bad or if they say it's good or bad. It's now the thing that everyone, air quotes, has decided is important, which makes it untouchable. I don't know how useful it is when a show gets to that elevation for a viewer. He's like, okay, should I watch it or not? Like, stop geeing up your ass about this. But that's part of the problem is like the show is kind of up its ass too. Dave: [7:18] But it's also meta because I feel like fancy restaurants get that same boost, right? Like, why is it good? Well, because everybody's going there. Tara: [7:26] Right. Dave: [7:27] Okay. Yeah. Sarah: [7:28] Why is there a line? Because there's a line. Tara: [7:30] It's also meta in the sense of uh everyone is spinning out about this bad review you know what i mean like i think they did shoot these back to back catherine told us that they did or she believed they did i'll tell you when we see john mulaney who sure has his old jaw so this was shot at least a year ago you know i don't think that they can they are really necessarily responding to the reaction to season three with the reaction to the review in season four also because like if the review was good that would be the end of the show like obviously the review had to be bad or they would have nothing to react to build on etc the other thing that i couldn't help noticing because like dave i enjoyed the show more when it was about a sandwich shop yeah everyone else keeps saying is the part of this business that is working great is the sandwich shop like it's the part that operates with three guys they are open for like two hours a day because like as soon as they run out they close There's an interesting thread with that where Ebrahim seeks out a mentor from a business class that he took who is played by Rob Reiner, which is fun. This guy is like, I'm going to meet with you every single day. We're going to tell you everything I know, and we're going to help you build more opportunities for the window, basically. And so every time they cut back to them, I'm like, make the whole restaurant out of the window. Sarah: [8:54] How do I keep telling you this? Tara: [8:56] Yes. And that's also, by the way, the only funny part of this show that keeps winning fucking Emmys as a comedy, which like I don't think it's a bad show. I did not love season three, but I'm still like Sarah said, I enjoy spending time with these characters. The problem is the category fraud for me. Like, it's just let's stop being disingenuous. Just because an episode is 31 minutes doesn't mean it's necessarily funny. But if the show were more about the window, it would be because those are the funny guys. Dave: [9:25] Weird how long it's taking to turn that ship around. Thank you. Yeah. What are we, the Democratic establishment? Tara: [9:32] Whoa! What about those clowns in Congress? Dave: [9:37] I remembered what I wanted to say about Uncle Jimmy's finances. There is a scene early on in season three where they make it very apparent that this restaurant is packed. Tara: [9:46] Yeah. Dave: [9:47] How much money are they losing on buying the really good onions versus the regular onions? Like, If that is the case, that they have an absolutely packed house and they're still losing gobs of money, it smells like gross incompetence, just not like learning the ropes in confidence. Sarah: [10:04] Well, also, aren't like eight-year-olds able to tell you that at any echelon of fine dining, the money's getting made in the wine cellar? Tara: [10:15] Right. Sarah: [10:15] That guy's like going and asking people about tannins and stuff and taking notes in his little lays flat notebook, my spiritual sibling. Okay, how incompetent then is that part of the business? Like, it's the markup on the red wine. everybody knows this yeah do better have something else and i mean i don't know how much more of that we get but i feel like what we had seen of mikey was an advised amount, and they're about to hit the ceiling of that i thought the. Tara: [10:51] Same thing like this is really starting to be like how many emmy nominations can we get this guy for a four minute performance like I like John. Sarah: [10:59] Bernthal but. Tara: [10:59] They really are getting greedy. Sarah: [11:01] Yeah yeah. Dave: [11:03] The one good payoff for all the we're buying the expensive onion storyline is that cousin Richie is blowing the flower budget so he's on a call where he's getting called out for spending so much money on flowers and he just sort of like pauses for a moment like I blame myself I blame it on my elegance I think is the actual quote okay that was really good I mean, Cousin Richie is still the heart of this show for me. Tara: [11:29] Totally. Dave: [11:30] He is the most blue collar of the lead characters. And he's in here trying to make himself fit in. And he's still on the original trajectory he was on rather than figuring it all out and then being reset. So I feel like his journey is making more narrative sense than a lot of the others here. Tara: [11:47] He also is trying to be better and is just being better, not constantly telling people I am trying to be better. The other thing is there was a time when I would have said Sydney was my favorite character, but I can't anymore because she has spent like a season and a half jerking Chef Adam around. And it's so unprofessional and it makes me dislike her. Dave: [12:07] At what point do you as Chef Adam just say, this is done because you're a real flake and I don't want that energy in my new business? Like, are we not there yet? How many scenes have we seen where there is a disconnect literally between these two? I'm guessing a seven so far between season three and season four. What they needed to do is to have that character have a secret twin sister so she could be partners in both the restaurants at the same time. That would be wacky. I got one more thing on my list of things that bother me about this. There was a point in time. Here we go. I'm going to bring Star Wars into this. There was a point in time with Star Wars. Tara: [12:50] Yes. Dave: [12:50] Before we had to start calling Star Wars A New Hope when it was just Star Wars. And that brought in the word hope into the star wars lexicon that's fine and then suddenly during the disney era they decided that every star wars film had to use the word hope in dialogue seven times it became like this trope rebellions are built on hope something something hope hope hope hope hope hope hope hope all right the bear equivalent is every second counts i feel like Like they brought it in just to demonstrate that the kitchen needs to work in a certain way in order to be efficient and get the food out there. But I absolutely don't believe the central conceit that you have to run a kitchen as a strict military effort in order to actually make a restaurant work. Like to the degree that the bear makes it seem like this is like we're measuring shit down to the nanosecond. And if we don't get that played out within a tolerance of two tenths of a second, the restaurant itself will explode. Literally, there'll be a big explosion. There'll be 37 people dead. I feel like they've hoped that whole conceit where it's now like part of the show every 10 minutes. And I'm like, OK, I know you like your quick cut swoosh swoosh swoosh scenes that you have in every episode. Sarah: [14:09] But. Dave: [14:10] Like you gotta come back on that because it. Sarah: [14:12] Feels tropey. Dave: [14:14] And unreal now and it takes me out of it every time they do it. Sarah: [14:17] Especially since that is from the forks episode and was introduced so elegantly and not done in dialogue then it's like people responded to it so they just started hitting the bar to get to get the pellets and it's like but that's not that's not why we responded to it We responded to it because you showed us instead of telling. Tara: [14:39] Yeah. Dave: [14:39] I like the show too. And again, like it's a good character study when it wants to be, you know, I have a lot of goodwill for a lot of these characters, but I also feel like maybe the show has passed this expert is no, sorry. Maybe the show has passed this best buy date. Tara: [14:53] Hey. Dave: [15:02] Well, well, well, it's time for Ask EHG, the segment in which you ask EHG things. Tara: [15:11] Oh. Dave: [15:24] All right, let's get into our Ask Ask EHG judgment. I am the judge. Our question came from Eric, who asked, who is the most unfairly shat-upon character in TV history? And he's referring to shat-upon by the show, the writers, not by the fandom. So, Tara Arianna, what's your answer here? Tara: [15:43] It's Dave from AP Bio. Dave is a classic victim character. This is played by Dave Neer. in the last episode that we inducted into the canon that that that he's the one who shows up at the end like with a cast on and no one wants to talk to him about what he did because i'm more interested in jack so yeah he's like you know the jerry or whatever of ap bio i'm sure people said jerry too but i decided to go off model for uh poor poor dave but. Dave: [16:11] Can i ask a question Is this question who got dumped on the most or whose dumping was the most unwarranted? Tara: [16:20] Oh, I interpreted it as like who is victimized for unclear reasons. Dave: [16:25] OK. Tara: [16:26] Like basically who's a bully victim. Dave: [16:28] OK, that's not how I interpret it. But I mean, OK, all is valid. But I was just curious what your methodology was. All right, Sarah, what is your answer here? Sarah: [16:36] Valerie Malone from Beverly Hills 90210. The writers could not decide what kind of antagonist they wanted her to be. And as a result, they made her a shitty schemer and saddled her with complex trauma and never let her have a win. It just always struck us as really unfair, inconsistent, tough on the actor, Tiffany Thiessen, who had to play Valerie and all for the benefit basically of Kelly and Donna, who were played by a couple of real pieces of work. And yeah, so justice for Valerie, always. I'm shocked she agreed to come back for the series finale and throw more turkeys at the door. Do it. Dave: [17:19] First reply from Seekent was Jerry from Parks and Rec. And I think that got the most upvotes. And I think that was the most obvious answer. It certainly was my first thought on this. The reason why I would say Jerry is because I never really found the Jerry bashing funny on the show. Like, I don't think the jokes hit like the writer's room thought they were. So they seemed mean-spirited, just not in-universe, but out-universe. Like, it didn't seem like they were hitting quite right. So the comedy value wasn't there. And then at the end of the show I think they realized that and they were trying to like sweep it under the rug with oh Jerry's life's actually really great and he has a giant dick and I don't think that really landed that well either so that's why my pick was Jerry not that he was constantly shat upon in Pawnee is that the writer's room didn't really nail the comedy there so it seemed like an unforced error. Meredith I realize that I shouldn't expect more from an 80s sitcom but the way Growing Pains treated Carol Sieber was just plain gross. She was a smart teenage girl, so of course she was just a nerd asking for ridicule. Always the butt of the joke, while a smarmy brother was the golden boy. The constant jabs at her weight are even more upsetting now that we know Tracy Gold developed an eating disorder while on the show. So that's a good answer. Sister Knight said both Faith and Buffy from Buffy, which, yep, they were sort of like, you're a slayer, but also do all these other things for us and no help sometimes. So, yeah. Dave: [18:47] Eric, answering his own question, says the long-suffering Jack Boomer Morrison on St. Elsewhere. That is the David Morris character. Sarah: [18:55] Oh, yeah. Dave: [18:56] So he had a lot of shit going down. Tara: [18:58] He sure did. Sarah: [18:58] Yeah, he did. Dave: [18:59] Yeah. His wife died, became a single father, co-workers committing suicide, best friend turns out to be a rapist, lots of bad stuff happening there. And that's just half of what he wrote. Monty nominees, they always shat upon Meg from Family Guy. Take your word for it. And our winner this week is Kevin, who said Miles O'Brien as seen in Deep Space Nine. And he linked to a very persuasive Reddit post listing to 13 episodes dedicated to the O'Brien must suffer movement the writers seem to have over there at Deep Space Nine. 13 episodes, too much to get into now, but we'll link to it so you can read it. But it's long and it's good. And after you're like, oh, damn, those writers really hated that guy. So Kevin, hit me up on Discord, DM me and give me your address. So I can send you some stickers. All right. Shall we get into the questions for us? Sarah: [19:54] Yeah. Dave: [19:55] First one is a fuck, marry, kill for Rinzi. Regular human bartender, Jackie Daytona. Beloved character actress, Margo Martindale. Reference sideshow, Luke Perry. Fuck, marry, kill turn. Tara: [20:08] Fuck Jackie Daytona. canonically laszlo is good at sex and has had a lot of time to hone his skills as it were mary margo martindale yes i would like to spend the rest of my life with her and kill sideshoe luke perry his face is all fucked up anyway sarah i. Sarah: [20:27] Had fuck perry kill daytona no offense daytona but i think that margo martindale. Sarah: [20:33] Is even more unkillable than an actual vampire and also we would have so much fucking fun during car talk in my opinion so i'm absolutely marrying margo martindale dave. Dave: [20:43] I didn't want to marry jackie daytona because i think the logistics of living with a vampire would be too annoying keeping separate hours you know they open the drapes close the drapes too much so yeah fuck luke perry marry martindale and uh kill jackie daytona, Next question comes from Damon with the loomy, but yet unconfirmed sinking of Dr. Fuckboat, which characters managed to flee the sinking fuckboat and join crews of another series that features a ship or boat of some kind? So they escaped Dr. Odyssey. They're on another ship show. Where are they going, Sarah? Sarah: [21:19] At first, I would just like to say that I prepped this a couple of days ago and started at one point humming, flee the sinking fuckboat, flee the sinking fuck boat with little hand claps in my office. And then I just started giggling hysterically and couldn't stop. And my husband asked me why, and I could not explain because I would like to stay married. Here's my actual answer. I literally do not remember a single character on Dr. Fuck Boat except Dr. Pacey. So I am hoping that he gets pulled into a space time wormhole created by a trench of some sort in the ocean and pops out into the terror with giant sideburns and treatable gout. Dave. Dave: [22:02] Don Johnson joins Strange New Worlds as co-captain of the Enterprise. Sarah: [22:07] Yes. Tara: [22:08] I'm glad somebody thought ship could be spaceship. We already said on the main show that the waterfront should have starred Joshua Jackson. And if he has to be on it as Max Banks with amnesia who kills their crappy son and replaces him that's fine with me. Dave: [22:23] Mill snack if by the way this question made me laugh out loud. Tara: [22:28] When i first read it can confirm yelled it down the hall. Dave: [22:30] Mill snack if i say smell you later what will you smell like later the answer here is curry rice cauliflower farts. Tara: [22:43] Mango that's the uh scent of my dove body wash mango sarah. Dave: [22:49] Rye whiskey jovial gent what's the best food to eat in your car. Tara: [22:55] Fries there's never been a faster answer fries are the best food to eat in your car yeah i. Dave: [22:59] Just put non-sloppy burger and fries yeah. Tara: [23:02] Fry fries in particular because, Even by the time you get them home, like it doesn't matter how close the restaurant could be next door. By the time you get them home. Dave: [23:13] Spitting out on fries here. Tara: [23:14] They're cold. I'm just saying. Fries. Runner up hash browns, Sarah. Sarah: [23:21] Fries, but they have to be a kind of fry that is like bigger than your classic shoestring because they stay more coherent and you don't get little fry chips that live in your car seat for two months in theory. Dave: [23:34] Mm-hmm it's. Tara: [23:36] Happened to someone probably. Dave: [23:38] Darren the dire straight song brothers in arms is featured in two canon worthy episodes of tv although two cathedrals isn't in the canon the other one he's talking about is the finale of americans yes right yes. Tara: [23:51] Two cathedrals is from the west wing. Dave: [23:52] Right what is another great episode of television that could feature this song either earnestly or ironically sarah. Sarah: [24:00] Well this was a tough one because the use of it to date means that it comes in with that baggage already, and it might feel on the nose. But I think the Sopranos season 6A premiere, which opened with a montage bringing us up to date on the passage of time since season five, might be a good spot for it, either in the beginning of the episode or at the end, because this is the episode in which Uncle June shoots Tony. A little on the nose, but I think it's just going to be on the nose. And if it works, it works. Tara? Tara: [24:30] Yeah, I agree with you that I don't want to hear it in any other episode. In fact, I didn't remember that it was in Two Cathedrals because it's not a show that I revisit very much, but I still think that The Americans is the canonical use of it and it's burnt now. But that said, since we can't say that, I'm going to say series finale of Justified, a show about two brothers in arms who dug coal together. Sarah: [24:53] I considered that one. Good answer. Tara: [24:56] Dave? Dave: [24:56] Yeah, I kind of agree with when you use it so well, You should have dibs on it for like a couple of decades or something like that. Do you remember the scourge in the early 2000s where somebody decided to use Hallelujah? Tara: [25:09] Of course. Sarah: [25:09] Oh, my God. It's still fucking happening. Tara: [25:12] It is. Sarah: [25:12] And people are still not listening to the lyrics. Dave: [25:15] I agree with you, Tara, there. If I had to, I would either pick taking out Yakety Sax and Benny Hill and putting in Brothers in Arms or see what the Brady Bunch hour could do with it to jazz it up a bit. Tara: [25:28] See a charro cover. Dave: [25:30] Yep vandy what would picky look like if they were a real person that is the person in control choosing initiative that we hear in game time i think would either be lenny from the simpsons deep in film festival thought but with a single 50s style robot antenna sticking out of the top of his head that's. Tara: [25:51] Not the film festival he's at the monty burns uh awards for. Dave: [25:55] Outstanding achievement. Tara: [25:56] In the field of excellence. Dave: [25:57] Thank you. Thank you for the correction. Sarah. Sarah: [25:59] ABC weather presenter, Sam Champion. Tara. Tara: [26:03] Someone who's good at putting things in order, Marie Kondo. Dave: [26:08] DPOV16. I need suggestions for my two favorite Canadians, and Sarah D. Bunting should, of course, also chime in. My monthly movie challenge this month is an ode to Canada to watch movies I haven't seen yet that are either set in, just not filmed, Canada, directed by a Canadian, or lead actor is Canadian. What are your faves or suggestions, Tara? Tara: [26:32] Well, this is a threefer. It's Take This Waltz. It is set in Canada, specifically in Toronto, and I think part of it is in Quebec, if I recall correctly. It's been a while since I watched it. It is directed by a Canadian, Sarah Pauly, and it stars two Canadians in lead roles, Seth Rogen and Luke Kirby. Take this, Waltz. Sarah. Sarah: [26:51] I am leaving The Sweet Hereafter for others, and I assume that you have heard of it and watched it before, D-Pove. I'm going with Under the Bridge, which was undersung, in my opinion, when it came out last year. It is about a Canadian case based on a book by a Canadian writer. Dave. Dave: [27:07] The start and end of my list is Strange Brew. I love Strangeroo. Nora, what show that premiered after the death of Quibi should have been a Quibi? Sir. Sarah: [27:22] Just like Control-A on Oxygen's entire lineup, but for my real answer is the Forensic Files reboot, which actually probably should have just been a TikTok channel, but failing that, should have been a Quibi. Here in the 21st century, there is no reason to drag out this reveal for 23 minutes when you can do it in eight. And if you don't have Peter Thomas narrating, what are you even doing? Dave? Dave: [27:45] Unremarkable show, but it's Florida, man. Could have been five minutes long instead of whatever it was, half hour, an hour. Tara: [27:54] The quiz with balls. Dave: [27:56] Oh my God, yeah. No snacks back. What is the most pleasant part of your job? Sleeping in, Tara. Tara: [28:03] Well, I spent most of Tuesday afternoon cutting and arranging screenshots of Clem Fandango, watching super cuts of Clem Fandango and writing about Clem Fandango from Toast of London. You know, pretty good. But speaking generally, it's getting screeners, not this week, the bear, but most of the time. Sarah. Sarah: [28:21] Realizing during a canon pitch or whatever presentation for a Patreon episode of Again with Again with This in the Zoom window that I'm hitting it on the sweet spot and my co-hosts are laughing because even after literally half a lifetime, I like you guys. Dave: [28:38] Gross david star trek draft moderator and runner snyder is our last question this week what other 90s era tv star should come back with a new take on that same genre show a la noah wiley on the pit how would the show distinguish itself from the original. Tara: [28:58] I want to see L.A. Law star Jimmy Smits back in a courtroom show, but this time he's a retired attorney who's now working as a guardian ad litem. This is someone in a court system who represents or, you know, sort of sits in with children or other people who need responsible adults to make sure that their rights are being protected in court proceedings. I had a prof who did this after he retired. So shout out to guardians ad litem. I'm sure that's a challenging job. Dave. Dave: [29:25] Scott Bakula joins forces with Mark Singer to power the spiritual successor to both Quantum Leap and Beastmaster called Endangered, in which they team up to time travel into the past and save now extinct animals, including the dodo, the Tasmanian tiger and pterodactyls for some reason, which cause a little trouble in the present day. But people generally think they're neat. Sarah. Sarah: [29:54] I wouldn't mind seeing Ted Danson return to the comedy set in a bar slash restaurant space, but in a more filmic show, something more like The Bear, no studio audience or laugh track, something a little more processy. We know he has the chops. We've seen them on Man on the Inside and Good Place, and I would totally watch that and either of the other shows we mentioned. Dave: [30:16] All right, here is your Ask Ask ESG question. Keep in mind that we are going into a couple weeks of pre-tapes and specials so the judgment will come in the future but is yours to answer in our discord jovial gent real housewives of beverly hills is making me rediscover my love of jennifer tilly what is the recent tv show that has made you rediscover your love for an old favorite actor got a candidate go to our discord there is a channel called ask ask esg where you put your answers and we'll be back in the future to declare a winner, Dave: [30:53] it is time for the tiny canon presenting is tara hello. Tara: [30:57] The great joy of food is that with the right spirit appreciation can be distinct from appropriation enthusiasts with adventurous palates can become proficient in cuisines that aren't part of their own heritage flavors spices and traditions of food preparation can travel far beyond their origins and you'll know my repetition of the word can here, because all that can happen, but it's not going to happen in a 30-second commercial. If you only have half a minute to explain why your brand is more authentic than another, you can throw out nuance and lean hard into tribalism. What do I mean? Well, let's go to the Cowboys campfire and listen. In New York City? New York City. Get a rope. Pick up the original. Sarah: [32:01] Pick up the base. Tara: [32:03] The most hilarious part of this pitch, other than get a rope, and I'll get to it, is that no one in this ad for salsa is being presented as coming from a Latinx background. No one is saying the salsa is made in Guadalajara. It's made in San Antonio. So the commercial for it does the two Texas-iest things that you can do, which are take credit for Mexican food and shit on New York City. Lots of other places like to shit on New York as well, which is why this commercial has residents all over this great land, probably including New York City. And honestly, if anyone tries to feed you that northeastern swill, you don't have to lynch them, but you can make them think that you might. And it's a fair cop, by the way. New York has a lot of great ethnic food, but the Mexican you're going to get there is never better than OK. Dave: [32:49] Thank you, Tara. I remember a lot about this ad, and it is, of course, famous. Yes, we have used New York City a lot on Listen to Sassy, for example. But in my mind, this commercial was all about New York City. I had totally forgot about the capper. Get a rope. Tara: [33:06] Get a rope. Dave: [33:07] Fucking yikes, but also fucking here for it. Jesus Christ. Poor Cookie. Tara: [33:13] Are you serious about flavor or aren't you? Dave: [33:16] I mean, Cookie, as presented in this commercial, the camp cook, he's an old guy. He's living his life. But still, I mean, I think he would like the remaining butts. We don't need to hang him just for serving New York City salsa. Do we? Maybe we do. I don't know how bad it is. But I also know Pace Picanti is terrible. So poor Cookie. Sarah, what are you thinking here? Sarah: [33:38] I mean, my notes literally say, get a rope. Dang, that got dark. And I love it. I mean, it is really like, did someone ever film the follow up to this? Dave: [33:49] Which is. Sarah: [33:50] Just like a slow pan across to the one tree in that part of montana and the. Dave: [33:56] Rope creaking oh my god creaking if there was a storyboard in the pitch for this where like you know they storyboard the commercial for the execs at pace the last frame it's just hanging feet, or them digging a grave for cookie you know we he deserves this much, oh my. Sarah: [34:21] God this was a real time capsule and the fact that we had all forgotten get a rope so i mean flawless timing no notes. Dave: [34:32] All right let's put this to the vote sarah d bunting what say you for the tiny commercial canon yes absolutely yeah me too so 1992's pace bacanti ad you are hereby inducted into the extra hot great tiny commercial cannon, Dave: [34:51] Americans love a winner. Yep. And will not tolerate a loser. Nope. It is time to discover who are our not-quite-winners and not-quite-losers of the week. I will go first with my not-quite-winner, the London Olympics Comedy 2012. It's getting a sequel. Instead of about the Olympics, it's going to be about the next World Cup. I remember liking this show. It was a tight workplace comedy. Six episodes or so, then they were out. Hugh Bonneville. That's my winner. Not quite loser. Apple TV is still untitled. Matthew McConaughey, Harrelson show pausing production after filming eight of 10 episodes because of a disagreement over how they were going to do the finale. The showrunner quit again after 80% of the show had been filmed. So now they're hunting for a new showrunner. They sent a whole bunch of people home. Like, this is not just we have to pause. It seems like maybe some contracts will be over if they don't turn this around really quick. Yeah. What a clusterfuck. Tara: [35:51] I keep hearing about how the industry is collapsing since the strikes, particularly in television. But it's good to know that some people can still be a real little fucking bitch about things. I mean, I'm just speculating. I don't know who this guy is who created the show or at least wrote it. Dave: [36:07] And to be clear, the showrunner and the creator are the same person. So obviously, he was very invested in whatever his vision for the finale was, and it wasn't going his way. So he just took his ball and went home. Tara: [36:17] Yes, his name is David West Reed. Dave: [36:20] All right, Sarah, who's your not quite winner? Sarah: [36:22] My not quite winner is Dark Winds, and not just because that's a fun title for maintaining a master list of show titles that are farty. That's a great one. I keep meaning to check that show out, actually. And now veteran Titus Welliver has been cast in a guest role for season four. And my not-quite-loser is Sherlock, as Mark Gaddis dampens any theoretical hopes about a revival, but also my other losers are anyone who actually thought that was going to happen. Tara: [36:55] Seriously. Sarah: [36:56] Wasn't the last episode in the before time? And why would you... Yeah, sometimes dead is better. Come on. Dave: [37:02] Do people not remember the Sherlock sister episode from the last season? Tara: [37:07] Yeah. Sarah: [37:07] Oh, terrible. Dave: [37:09] That felt like it was from a different show entirely. Sarah: [37:11] Yeah leave it leave it alone. Tara: [37:13] I appreciate though people who work in the field coming out and saying we will not try to yeah tap this vein again because a bunch of different people from everybody loves raymond in the past month have come out and been like we're never going to do it again the parents died shut up and stop asking which like yeah fair yeah. Dave: [37:32] But what about cgi get get the boils and Robert's estates on the. Tara: [37:37] Phone. Dave: [37:38] It won't be creepy. We promise. You seen Rogue One? Great. All right, Tara. Not Quite Winner. Tara: [37:48] My Not Quite Winner is a movie we talked about on the main show, You're Cordially Invited, which has, according to Prime Video, and why would they lie, attracted more than 50 million viewers, ranking among the top three most watched comedy picks on Prime Video, which, you know, that means it's third. If it was number one, they would say that. If they were the second most, they'd probably say that too. As we said at the time, this movie is better than its marketing. It was quite funny. Dave: [38:13] I like the idea that more minutes were spent watching this movie than the Lord of the Rings 10,000 million dollar episodes or what's the other one they spent a gazillion dollars on Citadel Citadel. Yeah. Sarah: [38:27] Oh, shit. Tara: [38:27] It'll my not quite loser of the week is Jamila Jamil, someone who presents herself as a champion of women, feminist icon, blah, blah, blah, went public this week announcing on her Instagram. She will no longer sit for print interviews conducted by women because she claims they're double agents for the patriarchy. So being misogynist because women are saying you're full of shit. All right. Sure. Dave: [38:54] Looking glass here, women. Sarah: [38:55] So single agents are OK, but not the double agents. Tara: [39:00] I don't know. Sarah: [39:01] Does she not have anyone close to her who could take Insta away from her and delete it off her phone? Because it seems like it's time. Dave: [39:10] Looks like she's picked the wrong month to stop sniffing glue. Tara: [39:13] Yeah. Sarah: [39:19] Hi, this is Kim Reid, and welcome to. Dave: [47:50] D-3-F-42. What's your power ranking of Family Feud hosts? Great question. Love it. Tara: [47:57] Oh, do we want to do this formal style? I'll keep track. Dave: [48:00] Yeah, we can rank these officially. Let's do it alphabetically by last name, which means we're going to start with Louis Anderson. Tara: [48:07] I have him in second last place for two points. This is not one of the things that I think of him for when I think about Louis Anderson. I mean, Baskets, I think, rewrote the story on him, but he was fine. Not the worst. Dave: [48:21] Yeah, that's a lot of Louis Anderson voice for half an hour. Tara: [48:25] That's really true. Dave: [48:26] I also had him second to last. Tara: [48:29] Okay. Dave: [48:29] Sarah. Sarah: [48:30] I had him last. Completely the wrong vibe for Feud. Too surrealist and almost creepy with the top note of thinking he was maybe too good for the gig. I just found those episodes deeply uncomfortable to watch for reasons I still can't quite put my finger on and I bailed until he was replaced. So one point. Dave: [48:49] Ray Combs is our next host we're going to talk about. Tara: [48:52] I have him in third place for four points. I think, you know, the end of his career and life are sad, but I watched the show in his era and he was a he was a good host, as I recall. I mean, there's he's certainly been eclipsed by a couple, but he's in the in the top half comfortably, I would say. Dave: [49:14] Yeah, it's unfortunate that he got fired from the show and also everything that happened after. But I thought he was a pretty good Dawson-esque type of Family Feud host. We've had a few different types, but I think he followed Dawson's template the most without feeling like it was forced. So I also put him in the same place there. Sarah: [49:36] As did I. He, I think in this group of six, you have three that you're talking about who are in the top and three who are clearly in the bottom. And the gulf between top three and bottom three is like, these three are really good for different reasons. and these three are really wrong for different reasons. Combs is third. I do think that his death and the sort of his getting fired from the show and all of that is leading to the show, like kind of trying to erase him from its history. And that's a shame. He had a Seacrest way about him that was a good fit for the show, much better than others in the bottom half. So four points for me. Dave: [50:17] It doesn't help when you go to the Wikipedia page for the host list and Ray Combs is not in the list with the photos. Sarah: [50:25] This is what I mean. Dave: [50:25] It's been like disappeared. Sarah: [50:27] What are we? Everyone remembers him. So, yeah. Anyway. Dave: [50:31] All right. Next one up alphabetically is Richard Dawson. Tara: [50:36] Yeah. He's in first place for six points. He set the template. The kissing is not great and it hasn't aged well. And, you know, that's a shame. He was really good running that show. Dave: [50:47] You can't deny it okay but there's richard dawson kissing and feely touches sure and then there's that guy from just like mom kissing and feeling and they're like different like like one is one is bad uncle and one is all right that's enough you know what i mean like they're in different different pools i think. Tara: [51:05] Yeah i agree anyway six six points for dawson he. Dave: [51:08] Kept it moving. Tara: [51:09] In there's a reason that there are super cuts of like his burns he was really funny and quick and that's what you need. Dave: [51:14] To be. Tara: [51:14] For a show like this. Dave: [51:15] He's an all-timer he is not not just for family feud but for game show hosts for sure yeah match game yeah yeah i also put him at first sarah. Sarah: [51:24] Second i mean he originated the job he is a goat in a number of ways but he got slurpy with the guests and you can tell that some of them like some of the times it's a kid and it's gross i know it was a. Dave: [51:40] Okay next up is steve harvey. Tara: [51:43] Well i have him in second place comfortably he is really funny on that show i i with all due respect to sarah i can't defend the kissing and you know you heard me i didn't but no harvey is like the second best he's he's so funny at his like when he'll just do a take to the camera when someone gives a bad answer it's so funny and then the fact that he can still perform being flummoxed by America on this show is a testament to his talents. So second place, five points for me. Dave? Dave: [52:18] Yeah, the main difference, I think, between Harvey's approach and Dawson's approach is that Harvey is much more of a audience surrogate when he is hosting. I feel like he is putting on his face what we're all thinking in the moment. He's never going to see these people again. Who gives a shit? But also the kind of questions they put out there in modern family feud are quite different from what they would put back in the day this is much more dating game studs energy now sometimes yes so it gives him more stupid answers to react to so that is good but he's so good at it when those moments happen he's like right on it with the exact right comment or reaction so i put him number two. Sarah: [52:58] He is my number one. I think that actually hanging out with him would be a real trial, but I don't need to do that except possibly one day on Family Feud when I would happily do it. He is a natural. He mugs a lot, but he isn't gross to women and children. He appears to be sober. He understands the assignment and aces it every time. And he has shepherded the show into a new era and has stayed in the job for a while. And he deserves credit for that because they were really fucking flailing with some of these choices. And he has been in the job for a long time and it's the job he was meant to do. Dave: [53:36] I don't know why, but you're talking about just hanging out with him outside the confines of family feud. But I have a very clear picture on my head that he's the type of person that would not handle Kleenex on his own. So whenever he wanted one, he has somebody around that gives him Kleenex. Not like a Kleenex. They have a whole satchel full of those little Kleenex mini packs. And every time he wants to use one, he gets the unopened pack. He opens it himself, uses the Kleenex and throws away the rest of the pack. That's my Steve Harvey Kleenex theory. Tara: [54:06] Yeah, I could see that. Dave: [54:07] Next up is Richard Karn from Home Improvement. Tara: [54:11] Yeah, I have him in last place with one point. I don't know how it happened that he got this job in the first place. I mean, I think he got the job on Home Improvement by being the guy who is uncharismatic. Like that's the gimmick of his character and he is he's never done anything that's impressed me so one point. Dave: [54:29] Dave yeah i also put him last i watched a few snippets here and there during his tenure he's very bad at vamping he will just like stop the proceedings and say okay sometimes he actually did that he stumbles over things i mean god bless him i do too during game time but but i suck so last place karn. Sarah: [54:50] Yeah, it was close, but I had him in fifth. I get, I think, what they were trying to do here, trying to draft off some kind of home improvement, Jeff Foxworthy plaid shirt dad energy. There's a reason that he's in daytime ads on basic cable for hoses that extend that you can make jokes about them being like dicks. I get what they were trying to do, but it should have been evident from the jump that it was just the completely wrong energy for this show. he can't vamp. He is terrified visibly. He just read so desperate. It seemed like there was a lot of cringing by him and contestants. The play is not bad on paper, but when they tried it, it did not work. Two points. Dave: [55:36] Let me tell you about my compressible 50-foot dick. Last up is John O'Hurley. Tara: [55:47] Well, spoiler, this is the other one where we have achieved unanimity. I have him three points top of the bottom. I think his smarmy vibe is fine. It's not necessarily what I want in a show like this, but I think he did his best and did not humiliate himself. Dave? Dave: [56:05] Yeah. Same spot. He does okay banter. Obviously, he's got a great voice, probably the best voice of these, like the most radio voice. Tara: [56:14] Yeah. Dave: [56:14] But there is something about him because he is jay peterman that makes the whole operation feel like he's acting all the time and not actually being there in the moment yeah which i think keeps him well away from being included in that top tier so same place. Sarah: [56:34] He has a like patrician vibe that is not right for this most basic of shows and its appeal. He, again, clearly tried. It just didn't quite work. That said, he is, even though you get the feeling that he thinks he's in a parody of the show, but it's the actual show or that's just how he's acting, he gave it his best and it was better than Karn and Anderson, but still only good for three points. Tara: [57:01] All right. Here is our official ranking then in last place with four points, Richard Karn in fifth place, five points. We've got Louie Anderson, fourth place with nine. We've got John O'Hurley next after that third place. We've got Ray Combs with 12 points in second place, 16 points. We've got Steve Harvey and so close. we were so close but Richard Dawson in first place just ahead of Harvey by one single point imagine Harvey doing a take to the camera when he hears this news he is so disgusted with us 17 points for Richard Dawson first place. Dave: [57:40] Ah deucin, Dave: [57:46] and that is it for another episode of extra extra hot great we were denied reservations for season four of the bear so we ate in a hurry when we were finally seated, and now we're all farty and angry. Before answering your burning ass EASG questions like, who's jumping ship on Dr. Odyssey, and where are they heading to next? Navally. We decided not to hang Tara for her time. And celebrated those who weren't quite the best and worst of the week. Remember, we're listening. I am David Teekel, and on behalf of Tara Ariano. Tara: [58:24] I also blame it on my elegance. Dave: [58:27] And Sarah D. Bending. Sarah: [58:28] New York City? Dave: [58:30] Thanks for listening, and we'll see you next time right here on Extra, Extra Hot Great. Tara: [58:46] New York City! Sarah: [58:48] Get a rope.