Ice Chips (The Bear)

"Ice Chips" is the eighth episode of the third season of the American television comedy-drama The Bear. It is the 26th overall episode of the series and was written by executive producer Joanna Calo, and directed by series creator Christopher Storer. It was released on Hulu on June 26, 2024, along with the rest of the season.

The series follows Carmen "Carmy" Berzatto, an award-winning New York City chef de cuisine, who returns to his hometown of Chicago to run his late brother Michael's failing Italian beef sandwich shop. In the episode, Natalie goes into labor, and she is forced to call Donna to help her. This is the first episode where Ebon Moss-Bachrach does not appear, although he is still credited. With this, no main cast member appeared in all episodes of the series.

The episode received critical acclaim, with Abby Elliott and Jamie Lee Curtis receiving high praise for their performances in the episode.

Plot
Stuck in the traffic, an agitated Natalie (Abby Elliott) calls Pete, Sydney, Carmy, Marcus and Richie, but no one is able to respond due to the start of service. Fed up and after being yelled at by another car driver, she pulls up the car next to the highway. With no other contacts, she is forced to call Donna (Jamie Lee Curtis).

Natalie meets with Donna at the hospital's parking lot, and she is frustrated by her mother's attempts to calm her down. At her hospital room, Donna successfully helps calm Natalie down during her contractions. She then talks about her experience during the births of Mikey and Carmy. Natalie's obstetrician, Dr. Kevin (Keith Kupferer), explains the process and gives Natalie the option of either Oxytocin or Pitocin, with Donna suggesting the latter. As they await for further instructions, Natalie reveals she did not tell Donna about her pregnancy due to fear over spreading the family's dysfunction to her child.

As Natalie laments the predicament she placed on Donna, Donna states she will be a good mother, also telling her she is trying to do better as a mother to Natalie and Carmy. She then talks about the day of Natalie's birth, in which "Baby, I Love You" was playing. Pete (Chris Witaske) finally arrives, and thanks Donna for staying with Natalie. As Pete comforts Natalie, Donna quietly exits and stays in the waiting room. Fak (Matty Matheson) and Theodore (Ricky Staffieri) arrive to console an emotionally drained Donna, who is overjoyed to become a grandmother.

Development
In May 2024, Hulu confirmed that the eighth episode of the season would be titled "Ice Chips", and was to be written by executive producer Joanna Calo, and directed by series creator Christopher Storer. It was Calo's sixth writing credit and Storer's 17th directing credit.

Music
The episode featured many songs, including "New Noise" by Refused, "13 Ghosts II" by Nine Inch Nails, and "Baby, I Love You" by The Ronettes.

Release
The episode, along with the rest of the season, premiered on June 26, 2024, on Hulu. Originally, the season was scheduled to premiere on June 27, 2024.

Critical reviews
"Ice Chips" received critical acclaim. Jenna Scherer of The A.V. Club gave the episode an "A" grade and wrote, "I expected “Ice Chips” to start out bad and only get worse, like “Fishes.” (I don't know about you, but I was so sure that Donna was lying when she assured Nat that she'd called Pete.) But Callo and episode writer Christopher Storer give us something far more cathartic — and far more surprising."

Marah Eakin of Vulture gave the episode a 4 star out of 5 rating and wrote, "The episode does a great job getting that across, timing out Natalie's contractions in what feels like real-time. We're not there for the whole birth — that would be an hours-long episode — but the direction and cinematography of the run-up feel real. Jamie Lee Curtis and Abby Elliott look how they look, crying and mussed hair, and there's no over-the-top comedic screaming or wacko water breaking." A.J. Daulerio of Decider wrote, "This season's Big Panic comes from Sugar's impending childbirth. And unlike the constant YELLING of those other episodes, “Ice Chips” relies on uncomfortable silences and unspoken trauma to ramp up the anxiety."

Brady Langmann of Esquire wrote, "I'll spare the details, but Mrs. Berzatto recalls seeing a beautiful fish tank. She was sad to walk away from it but found solace in the fact that other people would experience and enjoy the sight, too. Take from that what you will, but maybe Mrs. Berzatto feels that—between Michael, Carmy, and Sugar — she ultimately raised a generation of Berzattos that'll leave the world better than she did." Natalie Zamora of Show Snob wrote, ""Ice Chips" is certainly one of the more emotional episodes of The Bear season 3, giving us much-needed moments between Natalie and Donna. There are only two episodes of the season left of the season, and I can't wait to see where it goes next."

Accolades
TVLine named Abby Elliott and Jamie Lee Curtis as the "Performers of the Week" for the week of July 6, 2024, for their performances in the episode. The site wrote, "After all that psychological turmoil, Nat and Donna reached something of a truce in a heartwarming moment at the end when Donna played the Ronettes' “Baby I Love You” and stared into her daughter's eyes, their grievances melting away to reveal a fresh understanding. It was complicated, and messy, and it didn’t all get neatly resolved in the end. But it felt achingly real throughout, thanks to Elliott and Curtis' astonishingly intimate work."