Curly

Carl Richard Stemen passed away last month, and it’s taken me a month to find the will to post this. Many people referred to him as Dick, but I always called him Mr. Stemen (although I sometimes called him “Curly” when he was not around). After I turned 40, I started to greet people by his or her first name. I stopped greeting people with “Mister” or “Misses” except Mr. Stemen. I respected him that much.

We had plans, Curly and I. We would have lunch at the care facility where he and his wife lived. He would ask me about my upcoming comic books, and I would ask him about his barbershop quartet. We would call each other after “Chuck” and discuss that night’s episode. And we would attend Dodger games, not to fund the owner’s tight cash flow or his divorce case, but to support the team.

A heart attack on January 28th took away those plans.

Upon word of his passing, accolades for Mr. Stemen began to circulate in e-mails from members of the church that we attend, Shepherd of The Valley Presbyterian Church in Hacienda Heights, CA. I e-mailed a tribute, since Curly’s arrangements would be a family affair. I believed that the congregation would like me to say something about a unique relationship that was somewhere between father-son and best friends.

On the day of Mr. Stemen’s memorial service, my tiny church overflowed with people who wished to pay their respects. Many spoke up during the service. I was tempted myself, but I knew I would break down and not be able to convey how much he meant to me. Yet the pastor knew. She started to read for the mourners some of the e-mails that were sent out. And finally she read mine:

“I don't know why Mr. Stemen ever took a liking to me, but his generosity is something I will always cherish. He was genuinely interested in my activities, and we broke bread often over the 34 years I have known him: lunches at Morningside, refreshments at SOTV and Dodger Dogs at Dodger Stadium. He had a wonderful capacity to get along with everyone, being a person who can state an opinion yet be a bridge between people whenever there was disagreement. I still try to emulate his example…”

 I still do, whether it is serving on session, preparing tax forms or working on my next comic project!

Race To The Middle -- "Chuck" at Season Four's Midpoint

Now that I’m back from the floating fortress of fun, here are some thoughts at the midway point of Season Four…

I wish that NBC would have given “Chuck” a definite 24 episodes when they renewed the show last spring. That way the producers could have planned their story arcs for the entire season rather than only 13 episodes. I don’t mean to sound ungrateful, yet I think that the season so far has felt rushed. That being said, I really did enjoy the three episodes after “Chuck” came back from winter hiatus.

The Volkoff storyline wrapped up with Chuck (Zac Levi) defeating Volkoff (the amazing Timothy Dalton), Dark Sarah rising (Yvonne Strahovski channeling her inner Emma Peel), and reuniting Chuck’s mom with Ellie (Sarah Lancaster) as the latter gives birth to Jeffster's redition of Salt ‘N’ Pepa’s “Push It”.

Saving the budget for episode 13 (Chuck vs. The Push Mix) did lead to some awkward effects moments for the two episodes that proceeded it (like the green screen mimicing France in Chuck vs. The Balcony), but the acting by Levi, Strahovski and Adam Baldwin (Casey!) always overcomes any reservations I have.

And as I’ve mentioned before, I do like that the action is less dependent on special effects. The last three episodes have given us some great action scenes: the Casey/Sarah fake real fight (Chuck vs. The Gobbler), Chuck fighting French terrorists while not spilling a drop of wine in his glass, and Casey cobblering Volkoff’s assassin with a bonsai plant. Even Morgan (Joshua Gomez) got into the act when he navigated deadly laser beams using nothing but yoga!

With every plot end tied up neatly (as the producers didn’t know at the time about the additional episodes), “Chuck” is reverting back to reusing characters from previous seasons as the next two episodes deal with the return of the legendary debonair spy Roan Montgomery and Sarah’s best friend/enemy Carina. While I do enjoy certain stand-alone episodes (Season 2’s Chuck vs. Tom Sawyer being my favorite), “Chuck” works better when it is moving through a story arc. The producers have promised a big storyline with Ellie, so I’m looking forward to that. And since “Chuck” is reusing characters, could they please bring back Mary Bartowski (Linda Hamilton) and Volkoff?

As for my feelings regarding a fifth season, they still haven’t changed. “Chuck” always manages to have great episodes despite the odds against it, and I’m willing to bet this time that NBC will continue to renew it!

My Favorite Episode (so far): Chuck vs. The Couch Lock. Yes, it is a stand-alone episode, but paralyzed Casey was so cool!

My Favorite Line (so far): “After all, I am my father’s son, aren’t I?” I liked the biblical tone Chuck used when he said it.

Best Greta: I don’t know what happened to the Gretas. I hope the producers bring them back.

My Coolest Moment (so far): Chuck taking down Volkoff with his computer knowledge and the overwhelming non-violent support of the US Military. Honorable Mention: Jeffster! performing “Push It” in the maternity ward – almost as good as their performance in Ellie and Awesome’s first wedding.

Charah Scene (so far): Chuck proposing to Sarah in the hallway of a hospital. The way the focus in this scene centered on the floor cleaner and not Chuck and Sarah was wonderfully done, and the perfect Aw… moment!