Five (+2) Chunks of CHUCK

Versus Sarah and The Goodbye


1. Sarah Bartowski doesn't live here anymore

Oh boy did Quinn do a number on Sarah, I didn't think it could get any worse than Sarah being forced to flash but seeing this Sarah like this was so freaking hard to watch!! This is a Sarah we have never seen before, even at the very start Chuck had melted her icy spy heart about 14 minutes and 2 seconds into the Pilot, not that I was counting.

No wonder Sarah turned into "Sarah Walker, scary wild card enforcer"; Sarah lost her memories and Quinn convinced her Chuck was responsible for the death of Bryce and Graham, the two most important people in Sarah's life 5 years ago. That was heart-breaking enough but then seeing Chuck realise that his best friend, wife and soul mate was for all intents and purposes gone was perhaps the saddest I ever felt watching the show. The distance in Sarah's voice calling Chuck "Bartowski" and saying she did "her job too well"...I never thought CHUCK could take me to such a deep, dark place, but it did.

What it showed me next was that even when things look darkest, the truest souls still shine the brightest. Chuck took Quinn's bullet for Sarah despite knowing that his wife wasn't really his wife any longer, yeah he had a bullet-proof vest but we all know Chuck would take that bullet for Sarah with or without the vest. Then he told Sarah to escape while she still could, even when the love of his life of his life was willing to kill him Chuck being Chuck still put her safety and well-being above his own.  A week on I am still in tears thinking about it.


2. The Sarah Diaries

Speaking of tears...Sarah watching the "Project Bartowski mission logs", now that was intense! Up until this point Sarah could not really believe should could fall for an asset but seeing herself on the mission logs Sarah could see how over the journey Agent Walker became compromised and fell in love with Chuck. You could see Sarah being heart-warmed by her obvious love for Chuck but at the same time feeling heart-broken that she doesn't "feel it" and then Sarah tells Chuck at the fountain that she believes him but doesn't have have those feelings. Holy crap to see Chuck's heart rise and fall within the space of ten seconds...so intense and spirit-crushing.

Sarah then heads off after Quinn alone, some fans believe Chuck never should have let Sarah go at the fountain...but seriously get into Chuck's head space; in one day he was dealt so many physical and emotional hammer-blows I am surprised he could stand. You could forgive him for wanting to crawl into a corner and slowly die, even a man as heroic and selfless as Chuck has a breaking point.

I Love Chuck Bartowski and I don't know what to do about it...

3. Goodbye old friends

All good (and great) things must come to an end; it is time to say goodbye and move on because all of our characters have come so far. Casey is making his way to Dresden to be with Gertrude and build a life for HIMSELF after serving his country with distinction for decades.

Morgan is now responsible, thoughtful and far more courageous than I thought he could ever be. Now he and Alex are moving in together and to have won Casey's friendship and approval speaks volumes to how far the little beared man has come.

Ellie and Devon have got new jobs in Chicago and with Clara they have a family of their own to look after now. Despite the painful ending, Ellie now has faith in Chuck's strength and is willing to let him find his own way in the way in the world. The protective older sister will still be there, just a phone call away but knowing Chuck has gone through so much and is still standing is a comfort to the elder Bartowski. Whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger...

So where does this leave our two main characters? Well they are the beach talking about what has come to pass and what the future holds...HANG ON A SEC!!!  Isn't that where we left them 90 episodes ago when the pilot ended?!?!...Well yes and no.
Chuck knows he has a soul-mate in Sarah, whilst right now her memories may be a little hazy...his place is by her side, forever. Chuck would not trade these 5 years with Sarah for anything. Life may not make much sense right now, but with Sarah... Chuck can be the man he has always wanted to be.  Sarah is slowly getting her memories back and she is willing to take a leap of faith with Chuck. The guy took a bullet for her and values her happiness and well-being far above his own, she can't think of anyone in her life now or previously who would be willing to do this. The spark is there and the memories will be back, plus that kiss at the end just proves their love is timeless and hope springs eternal for better days.

Five years on on our screens and  yet forver in our hearts

4. Callbacks

Nice to see Chuck and Sarah retracing some of their earlier steps through the Weinerlicious and the Mexican restaurant plus defusing the bomb under Beckman with the Demova virus (Sarah remembered it!!). The pilot was such a great episode and so was the finale, I appreciated and enjoyed the symmetry of it all, I mean did name the Blog "Cheerful Symmetry" after all; the way the Pilot and the Finale mesh together is quite remarkable. You really can appreciate how far we have come but also just how similar things are 5 years on...

Plus I know a few of you guys out there enjoyed seeing a certain leggy blonde spy back in the Wiernerlicious outfit. Personally I loved seeing Sarah in the Orange Orange uniform more (thank you Sarah video diaries)...I love the colour orange, especially how it looks on her plus the sky blue OO hoodie makes those beautiful blue eyes of Sarah sparkle and pop even more than usual!

I like the fact that both at the beginning and the end of the show the sense of hope but also a desire of wanting to know what's next  for the couple, they face much uncertainty but knowing Chuck and Sarah will face it together is comforting...Chuck AND Sarah versus The Future!

The more things change... the more they stay the same

5. The endpoint and the true meaning of a hero

The continuing theme I have been focusing on for most of Season 5 is Chuck and Sarah's hope to build a life of their own away from the spyworld. By the end of the finale you could say that Chuck and Sarah are well on the way to doing this.

With Sarah's memories slowly coming back it will take some time to get to know her husband again but now our favourite couple have seemingly retired from active duty they have plenty of time.

Time is such a precious commodity, it is something Chuck and Sarah have never had a lot of...until now!! There are no upcoming missions no "big bads" to stop...just a boy and girl, a nerd and kick-ass beauty...a husband and a wife who can just be with one another without the interference of the rest of the world and the entanglements that accompany it. I don't want to speak for the rest of you but this may just be my favourite thing from the finale and the thing which fills me with the most hope.

Sure the ending could have been a lot more fluffy; a Chuck and Sarah pregnancy or Sarah getting every memory back straight away. But CHUCK has always been about the checks and balances in life from love & loss to happiness & despair... just look at Chuck's journey to rise above hate and embrace the good in the world despite all the terrible things that have happened to him.

CHUCK has always shown us that everything worth fighting for in this life often comes at a price. So to get out of the dangerous life of the spyworld was never going to be easy and it was always going to cost something. In this case is was the temporary loss of Sarah's memories.

But such is the life of the hero, every day you go out try to make the world better mainly for those you love but also for people you may have never met... often at a great personal cost! From the spies fighting Fulcrum and The Ring to the Doctor saving lives in the ER to the Police Officer on the beat to the Firefighter/Paramedic/Emergency Services worker each rising to the challenges they face on a daily basis, never knowing what price they will be forced to pay for their actions.

Look at the personal toll the spy life has taken on Chuck, Sarah and Casey...more than any three people should have to lose or give up. But each and everyday they still show up ready to fight knowing that they may lose even more just so others don't have to...that is the true selfless nature of heroism.

I am glad that Chuck and Sarah (and Casey) made it out alive and these heroes can begin to live a life of their own together; they have paid the price and deserve to enjoy happier times now!




This is the future for Chuck & Sarah...love, laughs and happiness



Bonus Chunks


6. Rivers and Roads

Man I truly love this song...there have been so very many great songs on CHUCK and whilst I am not saying this is the best song ever to be on the show; I just think it was the perfect song for the show to bow out to... the mix of melancholy, hope and devotion in the song was perfectly matched by the Zach and Yvonne emotional tour de force... right place and right song!




Who are we kidding?  Every kiss is magic with these two!!

I find myself riding the emotional roller coaster with Chuck and Sarah... laughing, crying and being heart-warmed. I am filled with the pangs of sorrow knowing this may be the last time I see Sarah and Chuck but I am also just so thankful to have been on the journey. This song seems to encapsulate the mixed bag of emotions brilliantly, and all I can say is that it's such a great song and thank you CHUCK!!

I have also come across a few great videos for the song online, firstly to Dren_lla cheers for pointing me in the directions of the Doe Bay Sessions performance of this song by The Head and The Heart... if this doesn't have you thumping the ground and kicking the dirt, I don't know what will!

Then there is also this awesome video...man I love the CHUCK fandom!!!



7. One song reviews

Those of you who follow my CHUCKed up rambling on twitter might be aware of group of us CHUCK fans that submitted "One Word Reviews" for many of the Season 5 CHUCK episodes, the one word review crew are a great bunch of people who love the show and it is my absolute honour to talk about the show with them.

Watching the last two episodes and thinking of just one word per episode to convey how I felt was so very difficult but thinking of a song for each was easier...funnily enough both were by the same band... the supremely awesome BLOC PARTY!!

Chuck vs. Sarah was definitely  "The Pioneers" a song of such intensity and urgency matched by the seemingly insurmountable odds facing Chuck to get the wife and love of his life back to being her old self before it is too late.  My review word was "Despair" but I think these lyrics describe the struggle better.

If it can be broke then it can be fixed,
If it can be fused then it can be split...
If it can be lost then it can be won,
If it can be touched then it can be turned.
All you need is time...

Chuck vs. The Goodbye was always also a thrilling ride but was also about re-tracing Chuck and Sarah steps and looking for the "Signs" of Sarah's memory and love of Chuck returning and why I feel that their connection, love and bond is "Eternal"...

The last time we slept together
There was something that was not there
You never wanted to alarm me
But I'm the one that's drowning now...


I see signs now all the time
That you're not dead, you're sleeping
I believe in anything
That brings you back home to me





Bloggers note: I am in the midst of doing a longer piece with more thoughts on the CHUCK finale and in particular how I felt about it... so look out for that in the next day or so!!

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.