Bear and Friends (TV Series)

***Bear and Friends*** is an American comedy television series created for YouTube by Gabriel Combs. The series premiered on YouTube on June 5, 2020. Set in the fictional town of Pet City, the series focuses on the adventures of Bear, Dog, and Unicorn as they make new friends, have crazy adventures, and fight Principal Steinbeck, their arch nemesis. The series cast includes Gabriel Combs, Kadence Lovett, Kamden Lovett, and Niko Lovett.

The series’ first season began on June 5, 2020, and ended on June 13, 2020. The second season began on August 11, 2020, and ended on September 6, 2020. The third season began on October 4, 2020, and ended on October 31, 2020. The fourth season began on March 23, 2021, and ended on April 7, 2021. A fifth season is in development. The series’ growing popularity spawned the development of four films and two short films, spawning a franchise. The series ranges from positive to negative responses.

## Premise

The adventures of Bear, Dog, and Unicorn.

## Cast and Characters

 Officer Babby |  | Gabriel Combs
 Jack the Astronaut | Cameo
 Kylo Ren |  | Gabriel Combs

## Episodes

 1 | 8
 2 | August 11, 2020
 3 | October 4, 2020
 4 | March 23, 2021

## Reception

 4 | 36% (1,430 views)

The first season was met with a generally positive response for its episode plots, casting, performances, humor, and charm, though some criticized the pacing. The season received an 88% Like vs. Dislike Score, based on 1,777 reviews, with an average score of 8.87 out of 10. The YouTube Algorithm reads, "A fresh new comedy with a fun direction by Gabriel Combs, *Bear and Friends* is a fun, funny delight for viewers with nothing to do during quarantine."

The second season was met with positive reviews, with praise for its episode plots, casting, humor, performances, and heart, with many considering it to be “even better than the first season”. The season received a 91% Like Vs. Dislike Score, based on 1,295 views, with an average score of 9.021 out of 10. The YouTube Algorithm reads, "*Bear and Friends*' sophomore season ramps up the charm and humor to a whole new level and, in some ways, even improves on its first season."

The third season received a mixed response, with praise for its episode plots, casting, performances, Halloween themes, humor, and heart, though the pacing and finale received criticism. On the Like Vs. Dislike Scale, the series received a 52% score, based on 1,120 views, with an average score of 4.961 out of 10. The YouTube Algorithm reads, "*Bear and Friends*' third season suffers from pacing, but the humor and charm keep this uneven season above mediocrity."

The fourth season received a mixed-to-negative response, with praise for its casting, performances, and humor, though the pacing, episode plots and inconsistent tone was criticized. It is widely considered the worst season of the series. On the Like Vs. Dislike Scale, the season received a 36% score, based on 1,430 views, with an average score of 2.99 out of 10. The YouTube Algorithm reads, "*Bear and Friends* officially hits an all time low in a highly uneven fourth season that plunges the series into mediocrity."

## Other media

### Films

*Main article: Bear and Friends (film series)*

In May 2020, the cast of Bear and Friends kept it secret that YouTube secretly announced the making of a feature film based on *Bear and Friends*, with the cast reprising their roles for the film. Titled *Bear and Friends: The Movie*, it was filmed secretly through August of 2020 and the film ended up being the longest Bear and Friends project ever made. In November 2020, YouTube made the decision to release the film publicly for the many fans who were quarantined. Combs also created a countdown for the film to celebrate its release. The film was written by Combs, directed by Niko Lovett, and released on YouTube on December 4, 2020.

*Unicorn: A Bear and Friends Story* was officially announced in early January 2021, with Combs announcing that the film would center around the origin story of Unicorn, setting up how she met Bear and Dog. Eventually, the script was changed and Unicorn’s backstory was shown through flashback sequences in the first five minutes of the film. It was announced that the film would center around Unicorn while Bear and Dog are on a vacation as Unicorn goes to see her family and putting an end to her dark past. Filming began on January 20, 2021, and ended on February 4, 2021, with a trailer scheduled for February 5, 2021. The trailer was originally scheduled to be released on February 1, but was delayed due to filming issues. He also announced that the film would be shorter than *Bear and Friends: The Movie*, but still over an hour. The trailer was officially released on February 4, 2021, to a generally positive response. The film was written and directed by Combs (in his feature directorial debut), and released on February 10, 2021.

*Bear and Friends: A New Adventure* was announced by Gabriel Combs shortly after the release of the first film. He said that due to the film’s success, he would be working on a sequel, but it wouldn’t come out until 2021. On March 28, 2021, it was announced that the film is rescheduled to be released in December 2021, with a teaser and a poster being released via the Bear and Friends Instagram account. The official title was also announced on the same day as the teaser and the poster released. Filming began on April 18, 2021, and is expected to take place at the BAF house, and ended in May. The film was written and directed by Combs and released on August 6, 2021.

Since the release of *A New Adventure*, plans were made for future installments in the *Bear and Friends*franchise, but eventually all plans were scrapped due to a frustrating "lack of ideas". On January 1, 2023, it was announced that a new film under the title *The Bear and Friends Movie* was in the works, serving as a soft reboot that starts a new canon for the series, ignoring the events of the previous films. The only canon film would be *Unicorn: A Bear and Friends Story*. On June 21, 2023, Combs stated during a livestream that "we have quite a plan for it. We were initially gonna do Season 5 before it, but we haven't really had any ideas, but for the movie we had a really good one, so we wanna go for that. The movie's gonna be, like, a return to the show, so if people like it, we're gonna continue the show moving forward off of that. If they don't, we're just gonna ignore every *Bear and Friends* movie. Every single one. Except... the Unicorn movie. That one's staying. That one's good." The same day the film was announced, Gabriel Combs, Kadence Lovett, Niko Lovett, and Kamden Lovett were confirmed to be reprising their roles from the series. It was also announced that some new actors would be possibly be joining the film in cameo appearances, respectively. Filming began on May 30, 2023 and is wrapped on September 7. The film is directed by Combs alongside Kadence Lovett (in her directorial debut), and was released on November 3, 2023.

### *BAF Shorts*

On September 9, 2020, an unannounced short film titled "BAF Short: Ungrateful Bear!" was released. The short was followed up by "BAF Short: Dog the Rapper!" on September 26, 2020. The shorts were set to be the beginning of a series, titled *BAF Shorts*, but the series was ultimately cancelled due to a generally negative response to both shorts from fans.

## Notes

* The series is Combs' first original project, while *Bear and Friends: The Movie* is his first feature-length film to be produced.