Five Chunks of CHUCK

Versus The Bullet Train




1. Sarah's "flashes" of brilliance

Seeing how Sarah has put boots to asses in previous 88 episodes it is hard to imagine her being any more amazing when handing out a beatdown even with the intersect. But boy oh boy did they do a great job with it; I also love the fact Sarah put on a show for Chuck when she gave Quinn's goons a kicking on the train. I welcome back the intersect-flirting that was one of the brighter points in early season 3 like Chuck's wink & parkour/gymnastics combo in Three Words or his dancing with Sarah in Angel de la Muerte.

But to me the best part of Sarah downloading the intersect was that now she truly knows what it was like for Chuck. The scene where Chuck and Sarah "geek out" over the intersect abilities was touching indeed was so great. What a journey for these two, they really have know shared everything together and these shared experiences only strengthen the ties binding our favourite spy couple. Could anybody argue that these two together don't form the whole much greater than the sum of their parts.

Strip-Kick is in the intersect...yes!

2. Nicholas Quinn: Part Doctor Doom, part Wile E. Coyote

Nicholas Quinn, what a piece of work he is! The jaded ex-CIA super-spy is hugely driven and quite resilient; and whilst he may not look a great threat not many can come up against an intersected Sarah, brilliant Chuck and BAMF-tastic Casey and survive... let alone triumph!

Chuck's individual enemies have seemed to resemble classic comic book villains in their relationship to our hero Chuck. Where Volkoff was like a Lex Luthor to Chuck's Superman and Daniel Shaw was perhaps the Sinestro to Chuck's Hal Jordan (Green Lantern); Nicholas Quinn seems to me the Doctor Doom to Chuck's Mr. Fantastic (Reed Richards).

Quinn is crazed, vengeful and full of anger towards Chuck for taking what he considered to be his god-given right to the Intersect. Much like Victor von Doom this jealousy has festered and infected his psyche to the point where he is legitimately crazy but still maintaining the ability to be a great strategist who can keep Chuck on his toes.

May I add his resilience, tenacity and unwillingness to die (or go away) has a certain Wile E. Coyote feel too. Maybe not the best villain we have seen on CHUCK but my intense wish for Casey to eviscerate him with a soup spoon means he has me feeling the hate...a good sign for any baddie.


3. Jeffster: A new kind of spy duo

You never know when your calling will come... but CHUCK has always been about the ordinary guy who has greatness thrust upon them and is required to rise to the challenge and be awesome.

But what happens when those called are not ordinary... but weirdos with a taste for 80's power ballads?  The answer is they can be just as awesome, which is reason one of the many reason CHUCK is such a great show. It doesn't matter who you are or what you do; you will get a chance to shine! Which is what makes the show so great for the actors playing the roles too.  The show's leads are more than happy to defer the spotlight to their support cast to let them shine; CHUCK is a close family off and on screen.

Alex in danger from Quinn's forces and Morgan and Devon thwarted in their attempt to free her; it seemed Team Bartowski was out of options.  But often the most surprising heroes arise in times of crisis; cometh the hour of need...Jeffster answered the call!

It was was great to see Chuck tell Casey he believed Jeffster to be up for the task; but after all that is what Chuck does; he sees the best in everyone. That is why Chuck is such an inspirational leader and it is the belief of others (in particular those we respect) which often spurs a person on to greater heights. Much as how the belief of Ellie, Sarah and Casey has boosted Chuck in the past.

Ok so maybe Jeffster is not the best American-Canadian military/spy duo ever (that honour falls to Captain America and Wolverine) but fueled on by the flames of destiny they did the job and saved Alex, Morgan and Devon. Will this earn them a spot on the Carmichael Industries regular roster...who knows?




Carmichael Industries would like to welcome... JEFFSTER!



4. Chuck & Sarah: Drawing on their love

Chuck and Sarah steaming it up on a train...WOW!! We should have known sexytime...I mean practice would be part of the deal; I mean I will NEVER forget Honeymooners. A little sweetness was added to the steamy train journey with the couple sitting in bed and talking about the future whilst Chuck drew that picture of him and Sarah together in front of their dream house. I have no doubt this little item will have further relevance as we head into the home stretch.

On a side note how awesome has Sarah's choice of sleepwear been? Chuck has mentioned before that red (and in particular salmon) is not his favourite colour but her recent forays into red clothing must have changed Chuck's mind. All I can say is... HOLY SMOKES I abso-Freaking-lutely love red; from what she picked up the newspaper in from The Bo to what she wore under her mission gear on the train in this episode.




Mrs. Bartowski...domo arigato indeed!!


My Chuck-senses were tingling a little when I saw the quality time Sarah and Chuck (sexytime) were sharing early in the episode; as it usually means the angst and pain is soon to follow. The episode starts with Chuck in the clutches of Quinn and ends with Sarah seemingly under the control of the same rogue spy.

In true CHUCK fashion we have the frequent swapping and interchanging of gender-roles between Chuck and Sarah. From the beginning of the series we have seen Sarah as the protector of Chuck's physical well-being; in contrast Chuck established early on he would be her "personal baggage handler" and supreme protector of her emotional well-being (The end of DeLorean with his Buy More Jacket is such a great example).

Over time Sarah has become THE emotional rock which anchors Chuck from losing himself in the world of spies, lies, intersects (malfunctioning & removed), tragedy and loss. From her wedding vows to the support she provided to her husband through the Morgansect debacle; Chuck knows that he can count on Sarah to be his partner and protector in mind, body and spirit.

Sarah could always count on Chuck being there for her emotionally and always trying to protect her from physical harm, even though it wasn't his job and he wasn't very good at it. Sarah did respect his fearless and heroic heart but it often caused her just as many problems by having to save herself AND the intersect from danger. As the depth of Chuck's love and affection and love for Sarah grew so did the lengths he would go to protect the girl of his dreams. He downloaded Intersect 2.0 and added physical talents to his impressive strategic ingenuity and planning. Even without the intersect Sarah knows that if required Chuck would not only fight to his dying breath to save Sarah but thanks to his training he would be a pretty formidable force for any foe and she can count on him in a fight just as much as she can Casey. Heck Chuck has proven NOTHING matters more than Sarah, he was willing to kill to save her and we know just how principled Chuck is... and how much he hates guns.

I have said it before and I will say it again Chuck and Sarah are awesome individuals but together they are so much more. CHUCK is such a great show layered with many great relationships but it is the evolving relationship of Chuck and Sarah that is the fundamentally inescapable foundation upon which the show is built.

You can have Snakes on a Plane... just give me Charah on a Train

5. Sarah: She tows the line

Holy crap, watching the scene of Sarah tied up by Quinn and his goons and forced into intersect flashes is cruel, heartbreaking and even thinking about it in brings a tear to my eye (actually more like uncontrollable sobbing). I thought after seeing Casey pull a gun on Chuck and Sarah nothing the episode would be as difficult to watch, boy was I ever wrong! That felt like torture to watch, I mean this isn't some random character we see tortured by the bad guy in the first act...this is Sarah Bartowski, the character we have grown to love and respect over the last five years and do see her previously indomitable will being broken down like that is just such an intense experience.

The use of "She tows the line" by Crooked Fingers is an inspired musical choice and I have heard the song so many times of the past week and it always brings me back to Sarah in the warehouse and the tears just flow!

For me the absolute only saving grace was Chuck didn't see it happening, it may well of broken his heart and spirit especially as he is powerless to stop it from happening and now she has lost her memories. This is the life she and Chuck have built over the last 5 years and all may be lost...if that is not cruel and unusual punishment I don't know what is.

But in the words of Bloc Party "The Pioneers" If it can be broke then it can be fixed... If it can be lost then it can be won, if it can touched then it can be turned, All you need is time. There is nobody Sarah would rather have in her corner against insurmountable odds then her husband and soul-mate Chuck. She trusts in their love and so should we...C'mon Chuck it is time to be awesome not because you want to but because you NEED to!!

So close you can taste it... this is it Chuck, this is what you fight for!

Five Chunks of CHUCK

Versus the Bo




1. Carmichael Industries: New Directions?

So it seems as though Chuck and Sarah began the episode with idea to shift Carmichael Industries in different direction but seems as though the Intersect (and Jeffster and Buy More) will continue to follow Chuck, Sarah and the rest of team around like a bud luck penny.

Just how will Chuck and Sarah ever get that dream house and life away from the spyworld they have been talking about for all of this season? The journey so far has been long and winding and there seems to be still a few twists and turns to come. I mean we have a seemly unstable jaded ex-CIA agent Quinn hounding down Chuck for the intersect glasses and definitely unstable Jeff and Lester turning up everywhere our favourite spy team goes... life is never dull for the Bartowski clan and it is never easy either.

Despite how it may look, nothing comes easy to Carmichael Industries

2. The Return of the Frosted Tips

Funny to see Morgan return to his douche chic wardrobe and of course the frosted tips in his hair, it was also a good indication of how remorseful Morgan was for his actions as the intersect, he also showed great restraint with Bo Derek and her request for more rainbows. It appears Chuck's little bearded buddy has come a long way!


3. Sarah versus the Bo

In an episode that delved into both the funniest and emotionally intense side of CHUCK I really enjoyed the humour Chuck and Sarah brought to the Bo Derek situation. The way Chuck was all timid around his childhood crush Bo was gold; and even better was Sarah busting his balls about it! I have watched that phone call scene between Chuck and Sarah over and over just to hear Sarah say boobies! Then when Sarah knocks Bo out with the pistol butt; her retort of "Sorry I had to do that to your girlfriend" was said with just enough malice, venom and sarcasm to tease Chuck but also to remind him what's a perfect 10 when you are married to an irrefutable 12!?!




Uh-oh Chuck, I think Sarah caught you staring at Bo Derek


Kudos to Zach and Yvonne as always the banter between these two actors is brilliant, you can tell how much they enjoy working together.



4. Never say "one last mission"

Sarah had to say it didn't she...maybe Chuck needs to write her a pop culture reference list of what not to say, remember Vs The Last Details?!

We know by now nothing ever goes smoothly for Chuck, Sarah and the rest of the team and if they are going to get out the complex spy world it will take every single fibre of resilience, skill and chutzpah Team Bartowski has especially considering Quinn has taken Chuck.

If the last mission involves this many guns...chance are it won't end well

5. Walker...NO!!!

So now Sarah has the intersect, what we know it is a flawed intersect like Morgan's which caused him memory loss and augmented douche-ery. So my initial thoughts on this plot twist were wow this is freaking awesome!

No sooner has the words come out of my mouth then the sense of fear and foreboding set in... what will this do to Sarah's memory? Can her brain handle the toll flashing requires? How will Chuck feel?  The truth to Sarah is that in that exact moment all that matters is getting Chuck back to her safe.




People kidnapping Chuck makes Sarah angry... just ask Thailand


Chuck is no longer the CIA & NSA's greatest secret and intelligence weapon and Sarah is no longer his handler. This is all about a wife, protector and soul-mate pulling out all the stops to get her husband back no matter the personal or professional cost. Strap yourselves in Chucksters the Bullet Train is about to leave the station...next stops Actionville and Angst City.

Five Chunks of CHUCK

Vs. The Hack-off

Bloggers note: This is posted a little earlier this week... maybe not as good as my usual stuff but my excuse is that I have been a little under the weather this week! Nothing like a new episode of CHUCK to get you feeling better. Those of you on twitter remember to tweet your #OneWordReviews for what you thought of Chuck versus The Curse once you've seen it tomorrow.

1.Piranha is 1337


It is always great to seeing Chuck put his skills to work, especially when it is all him and not from the intersect. Chuck was 1337 before he downloaded the intersect and it was truly awesome to see him as "The Piranha" (and his routine) pwning the other hackers like they were n00bz! Seeing Chuck in his element can be just as much fun as watching Sarah fight or Casey shoot; you just gotta respect an artist and his (or her) craft be it bullet, blade or...binary code!

It was also great to see how much Sarah enjoys nerdy, confident Chuck; it seems she finds Chuck ability with code both sexy and disconcerting...much the same as Chuck views her wicked knife skills.





Sarah never knew a piranha could be so cute...or nerdy!!




2. In the right direction with Zach Levi

 This is the third episode of CHUCK directed by Zach (the others being The Beard & The Leftovers) and I believe he did a great job! I had a whole lot of fun with this episode, probably my favourite of the season so far. Seeing as he spent some of the episode el buffo next to a similarly el buffo Yvonne; he definitely has a lot of focus. The episode also carried along plot of the season well, it was definitely not a filler and it added some new mythology to CHUCK as well.

The director lead by example when he said he wanted raw performances from his actors

3. Morgan and The Buymorons

Good story-arc for Morgan, the bearded one is still feeling guilty about his intersect meltdown (and probably for the frosted tips in his hair too!!) so attempts to put some good karma in the bank as he plays peacemaker between Jeff and Lester...a reverse Yoko I guess. But the now Sage-like Jeff saw through Morgan's ulterior motive and explained that Morgan really needed to make it up to those he hurt.

We all knew Morgan was desperate to atone for his sins...truth is that Chuck loves him like a brother and despite how he hurt him he could not stay mad at him. As for Sarah; she was the one who convinced the rest that Morgan was sick (and not evil) in Frosted Tips. Whist Morgan has grown on Sarah, I think the reason she was able to forgive him so quickly is because she know just how much the "little man" means to Chuck and if he has forgiven Morgan then she does too.

Now Casey...that one is a little tougher; Semper Fi to the core Casey will have your back in a fire fight no matter what but he expects the same and doesn't suffer fools lightly. This was the mistake Morgan made in Casey's eyes not only was he not loyal to the team, friends and his girlfriend Alex (Casey's daughter) but he also was let slip the secret of the intersect putting all of these people in danger as well.  Since they started teaming together more and more Casey has never questioned Morgan's guts and courage but he was hurt by Morgan's betrayal. Casey let Morgan into his inner circle which made the betrayal even worse.

By backing Verbanski up and breaking him out of jail; Morgan made a small step on the road to redemption with Casey.

On a lighter note...Who would have thought Lester would be protecting Casey from the fellow inmates in Prison...only on CHUCK could a little Hinjew send huge prison yard bullies scurrying with a threat to "pull their plugs"




4.Verbanski plays for keeps as Decker goes to pieces

Wow...Holy smokes I did not expect that from Gertrude Verbanski, I knew spies were meant to be cold...but that right there was as cold as the other side of the pillow; She freaking blew up Decker!!

I was thinking Decker would be the big bad pulling the strings for the whole of season but I guess not...clean up in aisle 12 Verbanski has made a mess!

Some great action and excitement in this episode; when you consider we had Verbanski, Casey, Sarah and Chuck (as the Piranha) in action... there was more BAMFs than a Nightcrawler comic!!!




Too awesome for this caption... I got nothing more to add


Props to Carrie-Anne Moss boy did she hit it out of the park in this episode, Verbanski was a great blend of scary force of nature with just a hint of human frailty. Total hard-ass who only softens in the presence of the "Sugar Bear". It was great of the writers to bring in a strong character like Verbanski who mirrors many of the strong attributes of like loyalty, duty, toughness and even a lack of lady-feelings. Gertrude Verbanski also showed a determination to do anything to protect those she holds (John Casey) and by extension those he holds dear as well (The rest of Team Bartowski/Carmichael Industries). Much like Casey did at the end of Business Trip 

John Casey deserves a love interest and think he is getting to the stage of his life where he has given so much to the country at the expense of many personal privileges others take for granted like a family or a home. What does he have to show for it, a government who throws him in jail? 

At least with Verbanski, Casey has a chance at life away from the spy life...eventually.

Which brings us to...




5. Charah: What does life after the spy life hold continued...?

It seems the replaced the will they-won't they Chuck and Sarah love angst of Seasons 1-3 with Chuck and Sarah will they-won't they quit the spy life angst in Season 5. Whatever happens they will be doing it together with no secrets or lies between the two...I hope!





It is like they are falling for each other, all over again... how sweet!!


At least the powers that be are keeping this theme constant through the season, which is great to see because it is a natural progression for both the characters. Chuck broached the subject of he and Sarah creating a life & business for themselves away from the spy world; this was understandably met with fear from Sarah.  Her only job has been as a CIA operative/spy for her entire adult life; but if she could only see herself how Chuck sees her...as a smart, adaptable, resilient person who has the potential to do whatever she puts her mind on.

But by the end of the episode things got real serious...real fast; maybe it had just a little to do with Verbanski blowing up a group of CIA agents! Like Chuck said they've gotta be the best spies they can be to get out of this alive. Not if but when they make it out of this alive Chuck and Sarah will be able to discuss it further. At least they are communicating on this...which for these two is a big step!

The key to living a life away from the spy world is getting out alive...