Chuck Season 3, Episode 5 "Chuck Versus First Class"

Well, since I am sure you all ready read my "Chuck Season 3 Primer" and saw me get all wordy about this show, I am going to assume you've watched this awesome episode and you just want me to list all the great things that happened in it with hilarious commentary and then list some stuff I would have like to see changed with even MORE hilarious comments. So that's what I'ma gonna do.

Things that were as awesome as Captain Awesome include:

-Casey being worried about Chuck! Come on that shit was adorable. This was a great Casey episode all around I think.

-Shaw questioning Sarah about where she was on those lost days after her meeting in Prague with Chuck. Shows us that her plan never would have worked, so maybe she can work on forgiving Chuck for not going with her!

-Casey, again! Loves: rules. Hates: insurgents.

-Chuck being totally grossed out to have to touch a dead guy. Super spy or not, he's still our Chuck.

-His line to the Ring operative (um, Stone Cold Steve Austin.) "I sincerely hope that's, not your father."

-Being on the fence about Shaw...I mean is he right about Sarah and Casey babying Chuck and not allowing him to be a real spy? We KNOW he's not right about spy love though...I want those spies to be together and in love dammit!!! (Don't fall in love at the CIA. It is like the Jersey Shore that way.)

-Um, Lieutenant Assistant Manager Casey. There are no words. (My Bodyguard!!
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0081207/)

-"Unfortunately I did not get to use my nunchucks." That is always a bummer.

-Adam Baldwin said "Bored now." like Vampire Willow! More Whedon alums on this show now! Please! I mean, what is Sean Maher doing these days anyway? He could totally come back and play a "back from the dead" Bryce, because he and Matthew Bomer look exactly alike anyway.

-Chuck telling Hannah about The Buy More and her asking "Is this real? Is it an insane asylum?" These are the very same questions people ask me when I tell them about working at the library.


Questions, Comments, Things that bugged me:

-Don't just instantly bond with every hot girl who happens to be in IT, from Burbank and looking for a job Chuck! You're in love with SARAH, remember?!!

-And he just looked SO happy to see her when she came into The Buy More. GAH!

-Why is The Ring still using CD-ROMS to store information? And after having such weird/cool phones in the last episode!

-Is Bryce for real dead? That makes me sad.

-Chuck missed Paris. That was sad. Is this setting us up for more job related angst? Because I kind of like Chuck being excited about his job for once!

-Team review. Stop reviewing the damn team CIA/NSA/whoever. They are not breaking up.

-I didn't even notice that the flight attendant/Ring operative was Josie Davis, the gawky daughter on Charles in Charge! Shame on me.

-Chuck, don't drink so much on your first mission. That is dumb.

-Um, he didn't get to use his nunchucks!

All in all I think creator Chris Fedak did a great job showing us how Chuck can gain new spy skills while still being the same old relatable Chuck. A hardened spy would never be so excited about seeing Paris, or getting a first class ticket! He is still the same sweet Chuck we have learned to love, but sometimes, he can kick some ass.

Next week: Hannah's at The Buy More. Ugh. I hope she doesn't turn out to be a spy or something.

Chuck Season 3! A Primer!

Well you may have noticed (nor not!) the dearth of Heroes posts around here lately. I can give you a myriad of reasons for my neglectfulness (busyness, I was sick, it was my birthday, every time I try to get someone to watch Heroes with me they are like "um, yeah sure, I guess we can do that, if we have time or whatever.") but to be honest, I just don't feel the need to make time to watch Heroes the way I used to. What show do I feel the need to watch, even during the busiest of weeks? That's right people! CHUCK!!! So in the interest of making sure that everyone is right there with me on the whole "Watching Chuck on NBC every Monday at 8" thing, I decided that a primer on the show would be in order! If you keep this handy while you are watching Chuck, it will be just like watching it with me, which as anyone who knows me will tell you, is a sacred and life-changing experience! So let's get started! Once you read this you can definitely jump into Season 3, already in progress! Watch it tonight!!


Let's meet our characters!

Chuck Bartowski- The titular character of the show, played by Zachary Levi. (Remember him from Less than Perfect?! Me neither! He's adorable in this though. And OMG that show was on for 4 years?!! Wow, I had no idea.) Former student at Stanford, Chuck was kicked out when his roommate and best friend, Bryce Larkin, accused him of cheating. Chuck used his computer skills to get a job as part of the "Nerd Herd" at the Burbank, CA Buy More, where he toiled away until receiving an email from Bryce, which contained the CIA's supercomputer, the Intersect. Now that he has the Intersect in his brain, Chuck can access any information that CIA has. It's a goofy premise, but it works people, just trust me on this. Important bits of backstory that you might miss diving into this season are:

-Bryce accused Chuck of cheating to try and save Chuck from joining to the CIA. He only sent Chuck the Intersect as a last resort.
-Bryce is currently (presumed) dead.
-Chuck's long missing father created the Intersect, which is why it works so well in his son's brain.
-Chuck's college girlfriend, Jill, was part of an evil organization of double agents that Bryce was fighting.
-Chuck's mother died when he was a teenager, and his sister took care of him after that.
-Before the Intersect, Chuck felt like a total failure because he gotten kicked out of Stanford and worked at the Buy More.
-The Buy More is now Chuck's cover job.

Sarah Walker (fake name!)-Sarah is Chuck's CIA handler/sometime fake girlfriend. Oh but she is so much more than that, because she and Chuck are totally in love. I'm not gonna lie, there is A LOT of talk about Chuck and her being in love, but not really being able to make it work because they are spies. Some people (my dad!) think that the show focuses a bit too much on all of that, but I am cool with it because a) they are cute and b) Yvonne Strahovski is so damn good at playing the love story stuff that I can't look away whenever she does. It is her specialty. Well, that, and kicking ass and looking hot. At the beginning of Season 3 it was revealed that she wanted Chuck to leave the CIA and run away with her, but he couldn't bear the thought of leaving his family forever and not taking his chance to do something great with his life and work for the CIA. She was pretty pissed. I mean look at her. I would think most any man would run away with her! Chuck is seriously that sweet and good-hearted though, so it kinda makes her love him more.
- Not much of her backstory is known, other than that she had a con-artist father who taught her many skills that helped her become a spy.
-She used to work with and be in love with Bryce Larkin, so she has a history of falling in love on the job!
-Her cover job is working at a yogurt shop near The Buy More. Beneath this yogurt shop is "The Castle", a sweet CIA lair.
Colonel John Casey- played by Adam Baldwin, the king of "gruff with a heart of gold" characters, Colonel John Casey is Chuck's NSA handler. Things Casey loves: guns, Ronald Reagan, patriots. Things Casey hates: feelings, communism, traitors. Even though sometimes Sarah and Casey drive him insane, he is loyal and deep down inside he knows he luurves them! (He does!) This is a dude you want to have on your side if you ever get pinned down by gunfire anywhere.


Eleanor Bartowski-Woodcomb-Chuck's sister, played by Sarah Lancaster. Chuck and Ellie have a really sweet brother/sister relationship! I hope that the writers start using Ellie a little better than they have so far this season, because she has just had to act sort of silly and/or annoyed. Lancaster does a great job when the character really has to open up and be vulnerable, as she did last season when she asked Chuck to find their dad for her wedding. She has no idea about Chuck's secret CIA life and feels that he is just wasting his potential! She is a doctor and is also married to a doctor, a guy who does everything right, and a guy who Chuck has always wanted to live up to:


Captain Awesome! A.K.A. Devon Woodcomb- Captain Awesome really does live up to his name, as he is good looking, a great friend, husband and doctor, while also being pretty tough. Awesome has some idea of Chuck's secret identity as a CIA operative (no idea about the whole Intersect thing) and now sees Chuck through different eyes. The last few episodes involved Awesome in some of Chuck's missions, and it was pretty great to see him so impressed with Chuck and confident in his skills. (Even when Chuck wasn't so confident in himself!) I really love the role reversal that has come about with Awesome finding out about Chuck being in the CIA.


Agent Shaw- Played by Brandon Routh, we don't know much about this character so far, (except for that, according to my boyfriend he was "genetically engineered to impersonate Tom Cruise.") but he is taking charge of the team as they try to take out "The Ring" a CIA shadow operation trying to work within the CIA to take it down. (So much taking down!) He seems a little harsh on Chuck so far, but he was super lonely after he gave a speech about how friends and families suck and then no one invited him to the nice friend and family dinner they all had at the end of last night's episode. Bummer for you Agent Shaw.



Chuck has a few cohorts at the Buy More that are important to know, and we'll go through them too! I have been a little iffy on The Buy More stuff since day one, and this season things have the same kind of hit or miss quality so far. I see the Buy More as completely necessary to the premise of the show, and sometimes the goofy characters can be really hilarious (Jeffster, anyone?!! YES.) But other times you feel like you just want to get back to the A story and out of the Buy More. I actually think the budget cuts for this season, meaning every cast member will not be in every episode, might actually help that this season, because the Buy More stories are going to be cut down a bit. There was already one ep this season with no Buy More, and I think it worked great. HOWEVER, sometimes The Buy More guys are just sublime, absurdist comedy, so let's meet them!

Morgan Grimes-Chuck's bff since grade school, Morgan is our most down to earth Buy More employee. Chuck has been taking care of him and trying to save him from getting beat up since they were kids. Having just gotten a promotion to Assistant Manager, he turns to Chuck more than ever for advice on life! He used to be in love with Ellie, but since her marriage seems to be just as happy with their platonic friendship. Morgan's dream to become a Benihana chef died quickly, when he realized he just didn't have the knife skills.





Jeff and Lester. Apart they are creepy man-children who will never get girlfriends and who think Chuck is some kind of god. Together, they are Jeffster, whose covers of Styx will make your soul soar. Just don't join their Fight Club. You will regret it.












Big Mike-Tough yet fair manager of The Buy More. Doesn't seem to notice or care that Chuck constantly has to leave work to preform spy missions. Is banging Morgan's mom, which is simultaneously good and bad for Morgan. He's getting a good job but bad images out of it. Big Mike can be very graphic.




So now, when someone asks you if you watch Chuck, you can't be all "Well, I've never seen it, I'm not sure I can just jump right in blah blah blah..." You CAN! Stop talking crazy man, and saying blah blah at the end of a sentence! That's weird! Just watch it! Jump right it in! You won't regret it! Mondays! 8pm. Right before....Heroes. (I'm working on the Heroes thing, I swear.)

The 10 best things on television this year, that I can recall.

10. Liam. - Sigh. Modern day Dylan McKay, complete with boat building skills and poor-little-rich-boy problems? I'll take it. When is 90210 coming back on again?!!

It's cool everybody, he's 26!

9. The knowledge that if you're dancing to House Music, it isn't cheating. -Now it might seem crazy for me to find something that could be labeled "best" in the "so awful you can only watch silently with your mouth agape" Jersey Shore, but it was pretty damn amazing watching Snooki explain to J-Woww's (Yes those are their names. Feel free to call her Snickers though, everybody does.) boyfriend that since J-Woww was dancing to House Music and not R&B, the fact that she was rubbing herself all over Pauly D. was actually some kind of dance "battling" and not cheating. Or even flirting! The best part? He totally accepted it as true and correct. Thank you Snooki, you have added so much to my life.


8. Dexter's Season 4 Finale "The Getaway"
-In a season that seemed determined to at least rearrange the show's premise a bit, making Dexter less of a monster a more of a family man, the season finale not only gave us hope that Dexter might become something better, it also showed us the price he pays for giving into his "dark passenger". After a beautiful scene with his sister (Jennifer Carpenter) that helps him realize that he actually CAN connect with other people, Dexter (Michael C. Hall) goes home to find that his wife Rita, murdered by the man he just killed. "The Getaway" gave us everything we could ask for in a season finale: great work by the cast, excitement, suspense, tender moments and a shocking twist.

7. Torchwood: Children of Earth America, this is how you do great sci-fi. This 10 hour miniseries left me speechless, a little depressed and hungry for more. After a couple of fun but uneven seasons, creator Russell T. Davies fearlessly made sure that Torchwood would not be remembered as a some goofy Doctor Who spin-off, but as a gut-wrenching, unforgettable series of it's own.


6. JAMES FRANCO ON GENERAL HOSPITAL. - Confession time: I watch soap operas. When I got Soapnet on my cable system, I physically jumped for joy. Sometimes they get so terrible, I can't even watch them for months at a time. But sometimes, amazing things happen on them, and this was one of those times.I don't know how this happened, if it was performance art, a practical joke or a lost bet, but whatever it was, it was awesome.



5. Lost, Season 5 -Time travel? Love triangles? Nuclear bomb detonation? Sign me up. This season Lost got back to what it does best, showing us the humanity (and inhumanity) of these characters while putting them through twisty, turny suspenseful hell. (The actual best thing I saw on TV this year? Kate's hair in this episode.)

4. Jim and Pam's Wedding, The Office -If The Office's "Niagara Falls" didn't bring a tear to your eye, you are not human, man. You must be nothing more than an incredibly realistic looking human style robot or something. I mean Kevin was wearing tissue boxes as shoes! It was great.

3.Chuck, Season 2
-If a smart, adorable show about a nerd whose brain accidentally becomes the CIA's most important super computer doesn't sound like your cup of tea, get a new cup. Chuck has the most like-able cast on television, great music, an only deepening mythology, more laughs per hour than most comedies and more real, raw moments per hour than most dramas. Season 3 is coming in January, and if you're smart, which I think you are, you'll be watching.




2. Modern Family
-Ask anyone who knows me, I cannot say enough good things about this show. It is hilarious, has an amazing cast, including some incredibly gifted child actors, and kinda warms your heart sometimes too! Also, a giant clown named Fizbo threatening to kick a jerk's ass if he doesn't apologize to his boyfriend. Welcome to awesometown people.


1. Mad Men, Season 3 Finale, "Shut the Door, Have a Seat" -Part fun and jaunty caper flick, part heart wrenching family drama, there was nothing better this year than the season ender of this great show. As usual, creator Matthew Weiner made sure that everything, from the cast to the clothes, was perfect. This was Don Draper's hour, and Jon Hamm did beautiful work as always. The look of pride and triumph that he has as he surveys that tiny Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce office just made the episode for me. He is ready to value the people he works with, and he is ready to build something that is his. You can tell from the look in his eyes that he can't wait to see how it all turns out, and I can't either.

The premise has been completely dismantled--Chuck.

So I really really really want Chuck to get renewed. I don't want this season to be it's last! But damn, it could be huh? I mean the Intersect is out of Chuck's head, he and Sarah have openly acknowledged their feelings and almost slept together, and it seems like the general is going to let him live instead of making Casey kill him (which I do not think Colonel Casey would do anyway...) so other than having a world class asshole on their tail (Damn you Chevy Chase!), their problems are pretty much solved! And you can't have a show without problems! What is going to be next? I don't know! But if it is anything like this episode, what's going to be next will be, well, AWESOME.

Great moments of this ep:

Sarah and I have the same t-shirt! Now if only I looked like that in it...

Chuck and Sarah almost doing it! It is weird how much I want two TV characters to sleep together. I don't know what this says about me...

Casey being a total ass, and then completely redeeming himself! I heart John Casey. Also, the fact that he tore that radiator from the wall was pretty great.

Discussion of torque in regards to killing Chuck with said radiator.

Ellie getting reunited with her Dad and Chuck! Totally sweet.

Awesome being awesome for Chuck and Ellie! The scene where he told her everything was going to be okay was so good. And now he knows about Chuck's secret life!!!

Live the dream Morgan!

Could this be the end of the Buy More? I'll miss Tony Hale, but I could be okay with it.

The team got back together and defeated Fulcrum!

So many hysterical quotes, such as:

“You don’t think I could kill you with my thumb or my elbow?”
“From one stalker to another, I am impressed.”
“I hate this whole family.”
“Want to be my Ass-man?”
"Do all your friends give your mother urinary tract infections?"
“Bro, take another step and I will drop you!”
“Can you be awesome?”
“I’m involved in a major conglomerate of bad guys. Few details escape me.”
“Morgan out.”

and of course this exchange:
Awesome: Look, I know what it's like to be stuck in a dead end job without a girl.
Casey: Really?
Awesome: Well no, but...


Anyway, if this were the way Chuck had to end, I would be satisfied. But fingers crossed, we will be getting a third season! How will it play out? I have no idea, but I already can't wait to see! But hold on, we still have the season finale which has: Bryce Larkin!!! Roark, the world class asshole himself!!! A wedding!!!!
I can already tell, it's going to be great.

I WAS RIGHT!!!! Chuck

You guys! I was right! Chuck's Dad is Orion! They threw me off by having him fake his death, but I was right!! I can't believe I just found this out last night! Stupid preemption!!!

So I watched kind of a Chuck Movie last night, since I saw Chuck Vs. the Dream Job and Chuck Vs. The First Kill right in a row, and there was lots of action to be had! There was also lots of awesome to be had, including:

Chuck gets his dream job! Even though it wasn't real, it was great to see Chuck realize that he can go somewhere with his life. And it made him want to get that Intersect out even more!

Sarah in glasses. So cute.

Scott Bakula as Chuck's Dad/Orion! I thought he did a great job seeming crazy, likable , genius and tough. The years have been kind Roark!

Chevy Chase playing a world class asshole. Sounds about right to me!

Captain Awesome. Can he please be real? And call me?

I don't want to be this kind of person, but I thought Chuck looked pretty hot all suited up wielding his tranq guns. Also I liked it when he was yelling. So I am that person then.

I loved seeing Chuck use all the skills and information he has gotten from the CIA/NSA for his own ends.

I kind of liked Jill's return/redemption. It was so sad to see them playing engaged with her family!

"I didn't realize the Morgan was so lethal!"

Chuck's awesome arm-up no cheating move on Casey.

This exchange between Casey and Sarah "Miss me?" "Yeah, immensely." Because she meant it!!

I really liked Chuck vs. The First Kill and I LOVED Chuck Vs. the Dream Job. Dream Job touched on a lot of themes that have been running through the entire show, such as Chuck not believing in himself/selling his life short, Chuck not seeing his job with the CIA as something worthy or worthwhile, Chuck's real life and his spy life bleeding together in ways that he can't control, and Chuck's fear that his spy life will eventually obliterate his old life, which the situation with his Dad really brings home. The First Kill was really all about trust and betrayal, from Morgan betraying Big Mike (and getting betrayed by Emmet! Sneaky bastard!) to Sarah refusing to betray Chuck's trust. At the end, I think I captured the essence when I wrote in my notes, Chuck and Sarah on the run = AWESOME.

Next week:
Chuck and Sarah on the run! Chuck and Sarah making out! Casey saying "I would never betray my team!" I think, and you can quote me on this, I think, that this is going to be AWESOME.

Chuck! Before the next one airs! Good job me! (Do not even ask about Dollhouse. I'm like 3 episodes behind at this point.)

Click on those ads people! That would be awesome for me. Please? Also, if you're getting this update on your email, come to the actual blog to read it!



I want to live in a world where dudes like Captain Awesome and Chuck live. Do I need to move to Burbank California? Because I will do that, no problem.



So basically, Chuck's spy life and his personal life are so intertwined at this point that there really is no difference! Parties are actually missions, co-workers are actually friends. Poor Ellie feels betrayed by Awesome and by Chuck, even though they were both trying to do right by her. It was actually kind of a sad episode to me because of that. Awesome and Ellie always seem like such a solid couple, and you know it kills Chuck that his secret spy life is coming between them. AND Awesome almost discovers the General talking to Chuck through his TV (Wha?! Can the government talk to me through my TV?) TWICE. She is not being that careful if she was almost discovered twice!



Things I loved:



Awesome. I loved his reaction to all the dorky dudes throwing a bachelor party, I loved his reaction to the first strippers, and I loved that he had no interest in Alex (more on her later) when she was trying to seduce him/steal his keycard.



Chuck. Obviously. Trying to so hard to keep Sarah with him, and to keep Awesome and Ellie out of the crazy world he's living in! Also, he was pretty hilarious stoned. As what that other dude. (That was Yinsen from Iron Man right? I just saw him on an old episode of Lost the other day too. He is your go-to actor if your looking for a "smart Arab guy" type apparently. )



Sarah. Way to thwart the rules and save the day! As many of you might know, I hate rules, so I am always all for thwarting them in the interest of love, or fun, or finding long lost dads.



Casey! It made me so happy to see Casey stand up to Alex and tell her she was wrong! He called Sarah the best partner he's ever had! So great.



Things I was a little more eh...about include:



Jeff and Lester are so gross sometimes. This was one of those times.


No Emmet! I need all the Buster Bluth I can get, thank you very much.



The 49B. I mean I kind of like the concept, but I just didn't like the execution of the actual person. I've never seen Battlestar Galactica, so I am not attached to Tricia Helfer in any way. I've seen her on Burn Notice as well, and as far as I can tell, she plays the same character: bitch with absolutely no layers whatsoever. Ready to do what it takes no matter what the cost. I just pretty much wanted her off my screen, which is how Chuck felt too I guess!




I was on board with the ending because even though we got ANOTHER one of those "interrupted right before a kiss" moments with Sarah and Chuck, I am really looking forward to next week's episode. The promo spoiled the guest stars (Chevy Chase, a world class asshole, so I'm told.) and Scott Bakula! Who will be Chuck's dad? Here's a clue, "his only guide on this journey is Al, an observer from his own time..." YES! I can't even wait.

Finally, I'm posting about last week's Chuck!

Sorry! I am slow! I'm a busy gal, what can I say? I will be illustrating this post with adorable photos of the cast, because I couldn't find any screencaps. Finding adorable photos of the cast is infinitely easier.

So over the week I've heard some mixed reviews about last week's Chuck vs. the Predator. They pretty much boiled down to this: loved the spy stuff, not so much with the Buy More stuff. I'm actually not inclined to agree, for a couple of reasons. One is because I actually really like it when the Buy More stuff actually literally relates to the A-story, instead of just having it relate in more metaphorical terms. Two, is that despite myself, I kind of like our Buy More friends, even Jeff and Lester! I really liked the little character touches we got in this one, especially seeing Morgan step up to the role Chuck has vacated by being the voice of reason and trying to make sure Big Mike didn't do anything illegal. Also, I loved the Beverly Hills Buy More slogan. Buy More.....Because You Can! Pretty funny.

But as usual the spy stuff is the meat of the episode, as it should be. I read a review complaining about the fact that Chuck came clean about his secret search so quickly to Casey and Sarah, but though I can see how it drains the show of that particular kind of drama, I think that it stays true to the character, because Chuck is a nice guy who really appreciates truth. He doesn't want to lie to his friends, because that is how he sees Sarah and Casey first and foremost, as his friends. This is why I love Chuck, and I actually really like that the show takes a different tact to create and maintain drama.

So Chuck found Orion, (who looks like he's from the eighties in every way, but maybe it's just because he's made of binary code.) thereby proving his worth to the government and making sure that the General does not want to get that Intersect out of his head. Speaking of manufactered drama/secrets, I really want someone to find out that Casey has to kill Chuck as soon as he is Intersect-free! Maybe as he gets closer to his goal, he'll find out and that will lead to another crisis.

But, in getting one step closer to getting the Intersect out of his head, he gets one step further away from the woman he loves. I love that Sarah wants for Chuck to be free of the Intersect because she knows that is what he wants, even though she knows that she can't really be with him in any way once he is freed. I think she would much rather this limited/weird work way then nothing, and it kind of kills her that Chuck is so hell-bent on getting the thing out of his head!

Just in case you are not totally excited about the back half of the season, here's what I've heard we have to look forward to! Weddings (plural!) and Chuck's dad! (Who is obviously not Orion, I admit it, I was wrong, but still that was a pretty good guess, right?) I'll write up this week's Chuck before another one airs, I swear it!

Chuck- Two Episodes, One Theme.

Hey did you guys know that Chuck and Sarah love each other?  But they can't be together because of the Intersect, the fact that she's a spy and he doesn't even know her real name and because it would probably be illegal? Well, if you didn't have any idea about that, good for you, because that is what both these episodes were about.  I am not trying to say that I didn't enjoy these two episodes, because I really did, and I know I always say that I appreciate how the show accepts the reality of the Chuck/Sarah situation, but I just feel like I need them to move forward somehow. If Sarah just told Chuck that she loved him and that they would somehow find a way to make that work it would have been such a shock that I feel like the unreality of it all would have worked for me.  Instead they had the same conversation where he tells her he's crazy about her, she says nothing and then looks sad that she can't reciprocate.  I get it people, they are star-crossed!  Star-crossed I tell you!  

Chuck Vs. The Beefcake and Chuck Vs.

The Lethal Weapon both featured the very hot and too awesome to be true Agent Cole, hanging around, taking bullets for people, lusting after Sarah and just generally making Chuck feel completely inadequate.  I really like this character for a few reasons, only one

 of them being hot Britishness. He was actually the awesome guy that he seemed to be, which is pretty much almost a twist on this show.  He seemed to really care not just about Sarah, but also about Chuck and Casey.  He was good at his job yet seemed to understand that sometimes, you have throw away duty for your own happiness.  He was a pretty cool dude.  Even Chuck had to admit it, and he was totally jealous of him.  I thought Sarah's attraction to him was pretty understandable, and liked that she seemed just a little bit tempted when he tried to convince her to run away with him, despite her love for Chuck.  Even Casey liked this guy!

The thing that I am really excited about is the forward movement on the Intersect story!  Who is Orion?  Crazy theory time:  Orion is Chuck's Dad!!!!  Here's why.  Obviously one reason is because he was mentioned in the same episode as this mysterious creator of the Intersect. Another is that he has been suspiciously absent from Chuck and Ellie's lives for years.  He had two incredibly smart children, so logic goes that he must be pretty smart as well.  He is hard to find, the way a spy might be.  EVERYONE in Chuck's life turns out to be a spy, which sometimes seems lame, but maybe not so much if his Dad created the Intersect to be placed in his head.  He could have been working with Bryce, Jill, and others at Stanford to ready Chuck for the implantation when Bryce felt guilty and got him kicked out.  Also, all of Chuck's info about the Intersect etc. is written on the back of his Tron poster GIVEN TO HIM BY HIS DAD.  So that's my theory, and I'm sticking to it.  

I love that Chuck is doing his own gathering of info to try and help himself by the way.  Way to be proactive, Chuck!  I also thought that Adam Baldwin did a great job of looking sad and uncomfortable just for a moment when Chuck mentioned getting the Intersect out of his head.  

Lest we forget that Casey is supposed to kill Chuck as soon as he is Intersect-free.  I kind of wish Sarah would figure that out, because I'm not sure I can ever imagine John Casey spilling, no matter what.  All of the spy plot stuff was pretty great in these past two episodes, really ramping up the tension in the show.  

I just wish we could find some way to change the Chuck/Sarah story up for good instead of just temporarily.  Moving in together actually seemed liked a great idea to me because it would do that, but we would probably lose Awesome and Ellie to that, which would be sad.  Sarah having real feelings for Cole doesn't matter when she has more for Chuck, just like when Chuck was with Jill.  I mean poor Sarah didn't even get to sleep with him or anything.  I think the actors have great chemistry and the dynamic is great, we just need a away to freshen it up a bit.  Maybe the way is to ignore it a little and not build TWO episodes around it.  Maybe.  

Next week:

It is actually like I have some sort of block when it comes to previews....Oooh the general doesn't want the Intersect out of Chuck's head (neither do I, by the way) so Chuck is going rogue!  Holy crap, how unChucklike!!!

Why is Chuck not a real person and my boyfriend? Chuck Vs. The Best Friend

Okay, if you weren't grinning like a loon during Jeffster's cover of "Africa" at the end, then, you my friend, have no soul. It was pretty much the cutest thing ever, and Lester was looking almost (almost!) attractive rocking out like that! Ellie and Awesome were adorable, and Chuck told Sarah that she did have someone who cares about her in her life, and it was awesome! Considering I am still in the hating-all-people-in-love and stupid-sappy-love-stories mode, it was pretty amazing that I only felt happiness while watching that scene. That's because it was a really good scene of a really good episode!





So what made it so good, you may ask? Well there are a few things actually!







Anna! Yay Anna! I had kind of forgotten that Morgan and Anna had broken up, and I am almost positive that during the Valentine's Day episode Morgan said something about how great it is that he and Chuck have hot girlfriends on V-day. But anyway, she wasn't cheating on him, she totally loves him and Sarah gave her some really good friend advice at the party, all while trying to manage her own spy agenda and Chuck's "make Anna get back with Morgan agenda." I bet we will be seeing more of Anna now that she and Morgan are back together.



Morgan realizing that he is a screw-up and Chuck always has to save him. I thought it was a really cute twist in the plot that Morgan wasn't really mad at Chuck for "betraying" him, he was mad at himself for getting into the situation in the first place. It was actually kind of a mature reaction to things, and I really liked it.



Chuck! I know that no men like Chuck actually exist on Earth, but damn he is cutest guy ever! His speech to Sarah about what Morgan means to him was so sweet, but not in an over the top way, so you really felt it and felt like if a guy like Chuck could be real, he would say those things about his best friend. Also that moment at the end with Sarah was really sweet and genuine, while still underscoring all of the problems there would be if Chuck and Sarah ever tried to be anything more than a cover.



Ellie and Awesome! I like it when we get to see them more, and I loved Awesome letting Jeffster have their moment. I really want to see more about Chuck's promise to Ellie about getting their dad to the wedding to walk her down the aisle. I know the only guy to do it is Chuck, but I would love to see him use the CIA's resources to track down that deadbeat dad of theirs!



The Buy More stuff was actually entertaining! Yay Jeffster!



And of course, the moment when Casey and Sarah thought Chuck had sacrificed himself to save Morgan. The look on both of their faces betrayed how much they really care for the guy. Yvonne Strahovski was amazing in that moment, just shock and pain, no CIA hardening there at all. I think she is one of the best actresses on TV right now, and really underrated.



The Triad plot didn't really grab me (Anna's boyf was cute though!), and the fight between the female leader and Sarah was just so predictable ("Shame to mess up a face like that." Yay hot lesbian girlfight!) and went on way too long for my tastes. Other than that, this was one of my favorite episodes this season. It really hit all the right character notes was totally entertaining and funny. I'll never hear Toto the same way again.










Next week: Um, I watched this pretty late last night and I am completely blanking on the preview. Was there a preview?

This is not my beautiful wife! Chuck vs. The Suburbs

I thought that even though it was a pretty well worn concept (oooh the suburbs are scary!) that this episode really succeeded. Even the scene using "Once in a Lifetime" got me, even though you couldn't come up with a more cliche song for a cliche situation. The direction was part of it, but as usual, I think the cast just really sold me.

Andy Richter and Jenny McCarthy were fun in their roles as FULCRUM agents living in the Valley, though I feel like McCarthy was a little bit too campy. What can you really expect? I do keep getting the feeling that FULCRUM is getting too close and wonder how long can Chuck's identity really be protected. Also, what are the implications going to be now that Chuck has the Intersect and FULCRUM's intersect thing in his head? How much can his brain really take?

Chuck and Sarah were adorable and sad as usual. One thing I like about their will they/won't they thing is that the show has a really good built in barrier for their relationship. I also really like that Chuck tries hard to be realistic about their chances of being together. He seems to know that no matter how much he wants it, the life he desires with her can never be a reality. It is a pretty interesting part of his character that he is not (yet) willing to change his dream of having a normal life to be with her. It changes the dynamic from the hot chick/nerd who wants her cliche into a pretty mature portrait of relationships and the fact that they cannot just overcome every obstacle because two people love each other. Just watching them playact a marriage and the regular life Chuck craves was heartbreaking! It was interesting to see that Sarah desires this kind of life as well, and maybe that will change something between them. It didn't seem so at the end though, when Chuck told Ellie that he and Sarah would never be anything more than they are, and he was okay with that.


-Loved Buster's (I mean Emmett's) toupee, and his line "Where do you find people you don't have to pay for sex?"

-Ahh Big Mike and Morgan's Mom. Poor Morgan.

-Where is Anna? Why do we talk about her but never see her? If we are going to be in the Buy More, I want more Anna!

-Also no Awesome = Sad Krista. I heart Captain Awesome.

-"I thought you were a Boat Captain!" "Umm Shipping Magnate, but it doesn't matter..."

Next week: Yay Anna! Boo cheating on Morgan. Also, everyone on this show is a spy! That must get so annoying for Chuck.

Chuck Vs. The Third Dimension!

Even the silliness of a 3-D episode cannot keep Chuck down!  I know I am gushing, but I really love this show, and I feel like it is one of the few shows that is funny and emotionally satisfying every single week.  There was a good deal of awesomeness on display in this episode (though not enough Captain Awesome), such as:

-Dominic Monaghan as Tyler Martin, Rock Star!  Fans of Lost can imagine this is the rock star that Charlie was before he got stuck on that damn (or super great?) island.  ("I feel like a daffodil...")

-Not one, but two Arrested Development shout-outs!  Buster Bluth yelling "No touching!" and an awesome use of "The Final Countdown"  (not as awesome as G.O.B.'s though, it was missing the wind machine.)

-Chuck's adorableness when those girls were taking his pants off.  He is so cute and sweet, he is totally my dream man!  

-Captain Awesome's description of Chuck screaming. ("It was so high, babe!")

-Casey's tranquilizer darts.  There are so many times those would come in handy.  I need to get some.

-Okkervil River's "Lost Coastlines" playing in the scene where Chuck and Sarah discuss Chuck's feelngs about her shooting that Fulcrum agent.   Josh Schwartz always has good music in his shows.  I think it's the law.

-Sarah standing by her shooting of the Fulcrum agent.  (I can understand Chuck being disturbed by seeing the woman he loves kill an unarmed man, but she really had no other choice if she wanted to protect Chuck.)

-Yvonne Strahovski is so great as Sarah.  She seems tough and professional while still betraying her feelings for Chuck at just the right moments.  

-Chuck realizing that as much as complains about it, he really loves the excitement of his new life.  And the people in it.  (That includes you, Casey!) Aww.

Things that I still have some issues with, despite the general greatness of this show.

-Buy More hi jinks.  I get that we need to see a contrast to Chuck's insane life, and I like all of the Buy More cast (Where's Anna, by the way?) but sometimes I wish we could spend more time with Awesome and Ellie and less with those nutty Buy More guys.  (Though Jeff eating that urinal cake was truly priceless.)   By the way, I never got the 3-D glasses, and I cannot even imagine the horror of watching Jeff devouring that huge sandwich in 3-D.  Someone owes America an apology for that one.  

-Sarah and Casey getting so annoyed with Chuck and actually telling him that it is his job to be a spy and protect people.  Because, as far as I have seen, it really isn't.  He doesn't get paid, he doesn't get very many benefits from the government (impressing Jill with that restaurant notwithstanding) and he is someone they are supposed to be protecting, not someone with a responsibility to protect others!  Get that man a government paycheck ASAP!

-The fact that this show is till struggling ratings-wise!  Why?!  Someone name me another network show that is this clever and touching and filled with nerdy cuteness and accessibility all at once so I can start recording it!  Oh, wait, there isn't one?  Then maybe people need to get on the Chuck train with me!  This is a fun train!  

Our Shows are Coming Back!

Okay people, I'm back and I promise never to leave you again, unless something REALLY important comes up. So from now on I will be covering the old faves:

Heroes
Gossip Girl
90210

A new show:
Chuck (! HURRAY!)

and I will try to keep up on Fringe, but I make no promises.

Also I'm thinking about watching of Lost from the beginning and covering that experience, but that will be a good project for the future, maybe starting in the summer or something. If anyone has any requests, comment away and let me know.

So since Saturday we had a picture of Chuck Bass, and I will leave you a pic of another awesome Chuck, Chuck Bartowski. He's adorbs. He's also with the awesome Casey and Sarah.


Do yourself a favor and watch Chuck tonight! Here's a quick primer just in case you've never seen it. In a moment of extreme danger Chuck's former best friend (Bryce Larkin), a CIA agent, sent him a message that contained The Intersect, which is basically all of the CIA's info and secrets. Because of the awesomeness of Chuck's brain, just seeing the message makes his brain become the Intersect. So, now, he is being guarded the by the awesome Sarah and Casey. He helps them solve many spy-type cases. He and Sarah are totally in love with each other, but the whole spy thing keeps getting in the way. He doesn't even know her real name! (He thinks he does though) Umm, what else. He works at the Buy More (like Best Buy) as a part of the Nerd Herd (like the Geek Squad), and many hijinks go on there. He has a nerdy BFFF, a pretty sister and a hot brother in law to be. (He is so good at everything Chuck calls him Captain Awesome.) That's all you need to know, so watch it tonight, and if you happen to go to the grocery store, pick up some 3D glasses for tonight's 3D episode. Just do it people, I am doing you a favor here!