Chuck Episode Recap: "Chuck vs. the Gravitron"
The search for Chuck continues, as Chuck and Jill are off-grid in a hotel enjoying each other. We see in previews that Jill has a gun pointed at Chuck's head so at some point kisses don't solve the problem. Who does the kissing off? How much damage will this be to the Chuck/Sarah relationship? Or will it bring them closer together? More importantly, will Thanksgiving be saved? Oink oink!
As Chuck and Jill enjoy each other's uninterrupted company Chuck doesn't answer his phone despite 14 messages. Jill's phone gets a text message and Chuck, alone with it, picks it up and flashes on the message. He knows this is bad news so he makes up an excuse to get them both coffee and takes off. Suddenly, Casey and Sarah pull him into a spa room. The minds meet and they decide to get back at Fulcrum and not let on. They hand him 2 coffees and he goes back to Jill as if nothing is wrong. They both sip their brewed beverages masterminding their individual secret plans.
The bigger news is that Captain Awesome's parents are coming for Thanksgiving! What a treat this will be. Ellie is furiously cleaning and arranging the apartment to perfection. She's as stressed as I get making sure the cushions sit just right on the couch! Morgan drops by via Chuck's bedroom window and as Chuck lies again about his involvement with Jill, Morgan smells Ellie's test cooking. He walks out to see what's going on and has a slow motion moment as a gentle breeze blows through Ellie's hair. Hello cleavage! I'm sure his heart skipped as few beats as she asks him to test her turkey. Too dry she exclaims as she tosses it in the trash.
Do you remember what happened last Thanksgiving? That was the big night Morgan brought Anna Wu to dinner. After Morgan almost orgasmed over Ellie's potatoes, Anna became extremely jealous and fisticuffs almost came about. Also, Chuck and Sarah broke up because of Bryce. Needless to say, Ellie's dinner did not go off well. That being said, she decided to disinvite Morgan.
Back at Buy More, Morgan is distraught over having nowhere to go for Thanksgiving. Hearing this, Big Mike brings all of his lost duckling workers — Jeff and Lester included — and tells them they have to man the store over Thanksgiving to protect it for preparation for Black Friday. Did you see the flock of turkeys playing on the TV screens?
Chuck gets a phone call from Jill to go on a date to the music center. He's having a hard time accepting her as a spy so he runs to Sarah to get some advice. Sarah gives Chuck some practice in the art of deceptive kissing and for a moment Chuck and Sarah look like they're about to lock lips until Sarah breaks their momentum. He's had enough practice!
Jill has taken Chuck to the same Ferris wheel and carnival circa 2002 that Chuck did years ago when he was smitten with Jill. Only this time, as they kiss and Chuck gives into his apprehension, she pulls a gun on him. Having broke his heart already; does he have to shoot it as well, he asks? Jill confesses she works for Fulcrum and she has to deliver him to an awaiting van. Chuck convinces her that she doesn't have to do this to him. She agrees except that Leader is waiting for her. As they rendezvous, Leader tells Jill this is a test and she should eliminate Chuck. She can't and points the gun at him. Chuck takes off running and Jill gets a punch right in the face.
Chuck tries to hide in the good old-fashioned Gravitron, a centrifugal force ride. Have you ever ridden one of those? Of course, Leader has found Chuck but Chuck hits the start button catapulting them against the walls as it spins furiously faster and faster. Just as Leader grabs onto Chuck, the ride stops and their weight propels them to the floor luckily incapacitating Leader.
Chuck takes off again, this time for the fun house. Did he ever think of running to the first aid station where all the other lost kids go? He stumbles into the hall of mirrors where Jill is. If you read some of the comments last week, many of you theorized about when Jill became a Fulcrum agent and why she broke up with Chuck. So your theorizing was right. She tells him that she was recruited back in the Stanford University days. The CIA sponsored a leadership seminar. Now they control every aspect of her life. She has to do what they say. Suddenly, Leader walks in and tries to apprehend Chuck. He's finally cornered Chuck by gunpoint when Jill shoots Leader. She grabs Chuck's hand and they run out. Finally, Sarah and Casey find them and arrest Jill.
Back at Buy More Big Mike, Lester, Jeff and Morgan figure out the Thanksgiving plan. Did you catch Jeff's turkey pig t-shirt? So the plan is to protect the store by locking the boys in. Despite Morgan's lukewarm protest, Big Mike, off to fish, locks them in.
Meanwhile, Jill begins her lie detection interrogation with Sarah and Casey. She tells them where to find Leader, who is recuperating in a mobile medical unit in downtown Los Angeles. Still having feelings, Chuck asks Sarah about Jill. Sarah tells Chuck he just can't trust her. She admitted she was a Fulcrum agent.
Back at Buy More, Morgan laments about his lost Thanksgiving and not being able to eat real turkey. He hatches a plan to escape from Buy More and bring back holiday fun. Jeff hotwires the security system and unlocks the door. Morgan narrowly escapes but Jeff has accidentally tripped the security alarm. Big Mike, just about to start his fishing escapades, gets a mobile phone security breach alert and heads back to Buy More.
Meanwhile, Ellie, frantic over cooking for Awesome's parents, is happily informed that the parents are cancelling. This frees both of them to enjoy their dysfunctional rag tag family without having to worry about impressing the soon-to-be in-laws. The best line was Awesome's when he tells Ellie they can now enjoy Morgan 'o-facing' over her dish. Unfortunately, she disinvited Morgan.
Cut to Morgan digging through the trash outside the apartment building. Ellie and Awesome find him pulling out her discarded turkey. Amends are made and as he's re-invited to Thanksgiving he spills the beans about Chuck and Jill. Ellie, being the overprotective sibling, must know everything.
At the Castle, the secret underground hideaway, Jill is still tied to the lie detector machine. Now is Chuck's opportunity to ask her a few of his own. He wants the real truth about how she felt about him and why she slept with Bryce. It turns out she didn't sleep with Bryce after all. Apparently, when Chuck got expelled, Fulcrum told her she had to dump him. She never wanted to hurt him. She was his first love. All is forgiven so Chuck releases Jill. Still unknowingly tied to the machine, he asks her if they can start again. She passionately says yes but turns out to be lying. As Sarah and Casey apprehend Leader, Jill has got Chuck as a hostage.
Sarah and Casey bring back Leader to the Castle only to be held at gunpoint by Jill. Forced to release him, they are taken to the backroom holding cell. Leader forces Chuck to open the Fulcrum encoded files so Leader can look for Bryce who they believe is the
Intersect. Chuck is taken to another holding cell but he grabs the Castle manual, which he has read cover to cover in his spare time. Remotely, Chuck takes the computer system off line and temporarily stops them. Leader ups the anti by placing a bomb timer on Sarah and Casey's holding cell that will kill them unless Chuck brings the computers back online. Damn those bad guys and their gadgets!
Of course, Chuck complies, not wanting to hurt his friends. All isn't lost as Chuck has secretly unlocked Sarah and Casey's holding cell. He takes Leader and Jill to Buy More via the underground tunnel. As Chuck and Leader walk the Buy More aisles, Chuck avoids Jeff's trip wire but Leader doesn't, falling flat on his face. This gives Sarah and Casey just enough time to jump in to apprehend the evil duo. The sexes split up, Sarah chasing Jill and Casey dukes it out with Leader. As Chuck stops Jill from shooting Sarah, Casey is losing his fight with Leader.
This has been the best use of storylines organically coming together. The Buy More and Chuck's spy storyline usually run in tandem and inconsequentially cross. In this episode, many of the set ups in the Buy More storyline pay off in the Chuck spy storyline. So just as Casey is about to be shot by Leader, Big Mike, now back to stop the eminent security breach, tosses Leader, who he thinks is a thief, into a stack of tech boxes, knocking him out.
Chuck, now leading Jill off to a Nerd Herd car, tells her to drive as far as she can and he won't tell anyone. She tells him they can still be together and to come with her. He tells her he can't. He pulls out a remote key and locks down the car handcuffing her to the wheel. She is taken by surprise as he tells her despite everything he's tried to do for her; she was ready to shoot Sarah. As Sarah looks on, he arrests Jill. How far our Chuck has come!
What did you think of the episode? What does this mean for Chuck and Sarah?
