Chuck Me Baby One More Time (2010)!

I thought it would fun to compare my “Chuck” post from last year with the perspective I now possess after the third season. For those who are interested in such things, here is the original post.

According to NBC’s website, “Chuck” is about a regular guy working at a Buy More electronics store, who becomes the government’s most vital secret agent. The ever stoic Colonel John Casey and partner Sarah Walker (one of the CIA's top agents and Chuck's dream girl) need to protect him but also help him become the agent he is destined to be.

Even after several missteps this year (Chuck-Hanna anyone?), I am still not the harshest critic of the show, and remain willing to wait out the mediocre episodes in order to watch the truly great ones. And yes -- “Chuck” is the most hysterically funny, romantically sweet, hyper violent family show on TV today! I still stick by my family show assertion.

Despite having low viewer ratings for much of the year, NBC has renewed “Chuck” for a fourth season. Despite what people may say, the internet campaign for a fourth season renewal did not sway the network. It was network blunders and core viewers that brought “Chuck” back. NBC has nothing else to offer that can do as well as “Chuck” in the ultra-tough Monday 8 pm slot. Unfortunately, since only more viewers will now ensure a fifth season, I do believe the fourth season will be the last.

And believe it or not, the summer hiatus is now is suitable time to acquaint new people with “Chuck.” Lending your DVDs is a good place to start, and thewb.com, hulu and nbc.com are still streaming episodes. I know the “You’ll like it” response isn’t enough to satisfy your family and friends’ curiosity, but you can still inform them that “Chuck” is a great show and the following are still very good reasons as to why.

1. “Chuck” is fun. It still has a feel good quality. What other show on television that can have a major fight with a tone-deaf cover of Bon Jovi’s “Blaze of Glory” as background music or have stripper/nurse clad character fight machine gun toting guards with nothing but her fists? “Chuck” can be improbable and ridiculous (note the World War II references during "Chuck versus The Beard."), but a lot is forgiven simply because it is funny.

2. Chuck has ingenuity. Chuck Bartowski is no ordinary agent. Chuck (Zachary Levi) comes up with solutions that top agents Casey or Sarah would never dream of having. Who else could stop a bomb with a computer porn virus? Or save the nation by using video conference equipment? To their credit, the writers never used Chuck’s newfound Intersect skills as a crutch to get him out of a predicament.

3. Sarah’s bodyguard crush. Yvonne Strahovski (Sarah) is an actress who’s incredibly good looking -- not the other way around! Her Sarah is still tough, funny and vulnerable, sometimes in the same scene! Strahovski has been completely believable as an agent who can kick major butt and fall in love with the “asset” she is supposed to protect. Now that Chuck and Sarah are an item, the storylines have actually opened up the show in new directions! (Yes, her pic is large, but a thumbnail doesn’t do it justice.)

4. The music. This show has used songs as diverse as jazz singer/songwriter Nina Simone to indie artists Polyphonic Spree. The music fits well with the action, especially when songs from the 1980s are used. I especially enjoyed David Lee Roth’s “Just Like Paradise” when Morgan hooked up with DEA dreamboat Carina. Maybe it was overkill this past year, but the Jeff and Lester’s band Jeffster provided some hysterical (“Fortunate Son”) and poignant (“Leaving On A Jet Plan”) musical moments.

5. Casey unleashed! Colonel John Casey is a man of few words. Even in the most extreme situation, Casey (Adam Baldwin) does more with a grunt than most characters do with entire sentences! He is quite efficient at everything he does, whether it is assassinating rogue agents or selling a barbeque grill at Buy More. A lot of humor comes out of Casey’s cover as a Buy More employee. And it’s fun to find the Ronald Reagan picture in Casey’s apartment! (Notice I only changed one word with this paragraph from last year!)

6. “Chuck” still gets better. There were some mediocre episodes throughout Season Three, but all the episodes after “Chuck versus The Honeymooners” were fun. The last three episodes built on the previous ones, ramped up the tension and gave us a most satisfying season finale! The characters grew, mysteries were solved, and the stakes got higher -- all culminating with Chuck now on a world-wide quest to find his mom! And I thought Sidney Bristow’s family was interesting.

I know I don’t sound optimistic for a fifth season, but I am grateful for the amount of episodes NBC will give us. NBC has done its part. Advertisers such as Subway have done their part. Soon it will be time for us to do ours and watch “Chuck,” even if Morgan is now a member of Team Bartowski, even if Casey now has a daughter, even if the Buy More lies in ruins! I just wish I got to see Sarah wear a Subway employee uniform.