Production
Writing
The title refers to a type of semi-sentient naturalistic cyborg called a replicant that was introduced into popular culture by Blade Runner . [1] Richie has a long-standing interest in science fiction generally and the works of Philip K. Dick specifically. [2] In season three Richie called Carmy a "baby replicant who's not self-actualized." [3]
Richie mentions Sylvester and the Magic Pebble , a children's book by William Steig.
In this episode, Carmy tries twice to tell Sydney about the changes to the partnership agreement (which later trigger the crisis of "Goodbye") but he is interrupted twice, once by the arrival of baby Sophie, and once by the news of Sydney's dad's cardiac incident. [4]
Costuming
Natalie wears Sophie in an Ergo-brand baby carrier. Carmy wore Nike Cortez shoes to the Al-Anon meeting. [8]
Casting
Kate Berlant guest stars as Georgie, a participant in Carmy's Al-Anon group who shares about an alocasia houseplant and/or living with her brother's addiction. [9] Berlant's story mirrors the struggles of more familiar characters as they confront "the complicated relationships they have with those who are closest to them: the broken trust, the bitterness, and the self-destructiveness that festers owed to those things." [9] The Bear creator Christopher Storer was an executive producer on Berlant's FX comedy special Cinnamon on the Wind. [10]
Music
The songs featured in the episode are "Let Me Live In Your City (Work In Progress)" by Paul Simon, "Slip Away (A Warning)" by Lou Reed and John Cale, "Hope the High Road" by Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit, "Looking Into You" by Jackson Browne, and "Pull the Cup" by Shellac. [11] About the use of "Let Me Live in Your City," The Hollywood Reporter wrote that "Some of the show's richest moments happen when the characters step away from the kitchen. Paul Simon's [song] plays as Carmy drives alone, the camera catching the undersides of bridges and blurred city scenes—like seeing the world through a dirty windshield. He visits the Frank Lloyd Wright Home & Studio, a sequence that flirts with travelogue territory but ultimately pulls us closer to him. With no dialogue, Simon's warm, conversational vocals overlaying Carmy's quiet wandering makes the scene feel unusually intimate." [12]
Critical reviews
The Daily Beast called Berlant's four-minute monologue a "highlight of the season." [9]
Richie's line "Who wants to melt some provolone on a fuckin' baby right now?" was deemed especially memorable by The A.V. Club. [13] Vulture felt that the episode simultaneously highlighted that although Richie is hilarious he also nurses an ongoing bitterness: "...Richie doesn't know how to have an adult conversation with a male he's related(ish) to. He seems to only know how to throw syllabic grenades, dropping lines about Carmy's supposed fear of refrigerators..." [14]
The pairing of Rob Reiner and Edwin Lee Gibson was called a "comedy dream team." [13]
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