I am going to start right off by saying this was a fantastic episode. It wasn't as amusing as some of the others, but it made up for that with a tight story and some really great information that explained so much. It wasn't just another bad guy of the week, it was a solid piece of the whole "Chuck as Intersect" premise.Chuck learned that the professor who booted him from Stanford is actually an operative, and Chuck was assigned to "bring him in" for protection from an Icelandic assassin with some wicked crossbow skills. That part of the mission didn't go so well, but the road trip to Stanford proved to be very successful in more ways than Chuck imagined. There he found a disc that contained all the intel on the students recruited to the agency, including an entry on himself. Back home he opened his file and learned that Bryce got Chuck expelled to save him from becoming a agent.I absolutely loved the way this episode tied up some plot points. Turns out it wasn't a random act to sen...
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Poor Chuck: he thought he found a kindred spirit. Instead, the guy turns out to be a psychotic weapons expert on the lam from his handlers. Go figure.Tonight Chuck discovered a rogue operative, Lazslo, in, of all places, a video arcade, where he and Morgan were having a video-game war. Lazslo made Chuck as an agent because of his watch (which Lazslo invented) and eventually won Chuck to his side by telling him the sad story of how he was kept in an underground facility since the tender age of 11, making high-tech gadgets and weaponry. The poor guy didn't even know about James Bond! Disgusted with Morgan's juvenile behavior, Chuck started to connect with Lazslo. That is, until the guy's twisted desire to blow things up came out. In the end Chuck learned how to disable the bomb and figure out who his real friends were.Once again Chuck ran into trust issues, and managed to get everything all wrong. He was too eager to believe Lazslo, probably because he saw a bit of himself in the guy....
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Zachary Levi, Chuck
Question: I absolutely adore Chuck. I think it's phenomenally funny and has bags of charm. It also resonates with me on a personal level. (No, I'm not a spy.) It seems to handle twentysomething life situations in a very realistic way (like not really moving on since college, having partially realized romantic feelings and not fitting in). I think it has the potential to be to people in their twenties and thirties what Buffy was to so many a while back: meaningful and entertaining! But the ratings worry me — a lot. How strange that it seemed to gain a million viewers last week then lost them again. Do you have the inside scoop on how the show is faring at NBC? Considering its slot and that it often beats the well-established Prison Break, are the ratings all that bad? How do DVR stats factor in? Should we start a campaign to save the show now? This might just be the new show with the most devoted Internet fans — I'd hate to think it was time to mobilize already!
Answer: Take a breath.
...
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So far Chuck has been pretty good about keeping his secret spy life from interfering too much with his regular life, but tonight the two collided, and his friends and family lost. Ironically it was Chuck's own personal code of trying to help everyone that got him in trouble. Talk about no good deed going unpunished! So how many different directions was Chuck being pulled in? Ellie wanted him to spend time with her and celebrate their special family "October Mother's Day," and Morgan wanted Chuck to help him with the sales contest. But Casey and Sarah needed him to check out a Chinese spy, who insisted Chuck help her rescue her brother after he botched her attempt (while being helpful to the wrong person, no less!). Chuck felt so bad about getting the intel wrong that he was compelled to help the spy... which pretty much messed up everything for everyone. He wasn't there for Morgan or Ellie, while Casey and Sarah got captured on the mission he forced them to take. Of course, he came...
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Question: Before I begin what will seem like a tirade, I want to let you know that I have respected and enjoyed your column for many years. Unlike what I've heard from a lot of critics (including you), I have been extremely pleased with the new fall season. Chuck, Bionic Woman, Dirty Sexy Money, Moonlight and Gossip Girl I loved right off the bat. Cane, Private Practice and Reaper have improved and I now love them as well. Life had a mind-blowingly good pilot but wasn't as sharp in its second outing. And Journeyman had a clever and touching premiere, though it also struggled to keep up the momentum in subsequent episodes. But what I was really excited about was Pushing Daisies. It sounded smart and original and was, of course, a critics' darling. Wow. Um, original? I'm sorry to disagree. Maybe for television, but not for the entertainment business in general. It feels like a melding of Tim Burton's far-superior movies and Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events. The characters act ...
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I have to admit, ironically enough, that I can't wait for the weekend to be over so Monday night can roll around. The Chuck/Heroes one-two punch is a winning combination, and tonight's episode is a worthy addition to the series. So what was Chuck up to this time? He got involved with a diamond heist and a sexy, sneaky DEA agent. It was great to see Chuck using his own expertise (spotting all the security tech) instead of simply relying on the Intersect info in his head. Despite the lack of training in fieldwork, he didn't do too badly, slipping through the door before it sealed shut, navigating through the pool area... and throwing the plate at Corina when she tried to swipe the gem from him at his home. But he also got tripped up with his own insecurities (and thankfully it wasn't Morgan's fault this time!). Chuck had more trust issues to work out when he realized that even though he and Sarah did pretty well playing that game of guessing each other's answers, he really doesn't kno...
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So, who out there wants to reach into the screen, grab Morgan by the neck and...? It seems tonight he was working overtime to make up for the lack of annoying behavior in last week's episode. And here I thought they were going to ease up on poor Morgan. I like the character, really I do! He just can't be used for every situation where something needs to go wrong! But wait, I am getting ahead of myself.... Instead of accidentally bumbling into a situation, Chuck was actually sent on his very first mission: The case involved a painting, plutonium and a dangerous arms dealer. Chuck literally framed himself while trying to act cool undercover, and under pressure, at the art auction; he really needs to learn how to keep his mouth shut. He ended up in the hands of a killer but managed to get away, mainly by demonstrating his incredible powers of computer repair to prove he was who he claimed to be, leaving Casey and Sarah to save the day, which they did with style. Despite the overuse o...
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Question: I couldn't agree more with your review of Chuck! I absolutely love this new series. I love that a guy I know — because who doesn't know a guy like Chuck? — is able to save the day. Zachary Levi is a complete revelation. He is so wonderful in this role! I love the supporting cast as well. I find myself completely amused by the whole story, which is rare in today's television landscape. Looking forward to hearing good news about Chuck.
Answer: The really good news about Chuck is that tonight's third episode is the best yet. After a few episodes of setup that appear to have underwhelmed some early viewers (but which made sense to me, as Chuck adjusts to a world gone topsy-turvy and wonders whom if anyone he can trust), this caper really lets Zach Levi shine. And Adam Baldwin is hilarious, especially whenever he's forced to play "trainee" at the Buy More store. But like most shows so far this season, it's not what you'd call a breakout hit. Still, it's holding its own in a ver ...
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After that powerhouse pilot, I was a bit anxious the writing would not be able to hold up to that standard. This episode wasn't on the same level, but it had enough going for it that it was still a fun hour. I'll get the two not-so-fun moments out of the way first. The dinner party scene was almost painful to watch. I am not a big fan of awkward situational humor, so in that respect it was well done because it made me antsy. I was also a bit disappointed with the helicopter situation. Chuck should have figured out the computer-game angle on his own. Now for the good stuff, and there was plenty. The fight between Sarah and Casey was great. It was so over the top, but that's what made it so much fun to watch. She really handed him his butt, so his ego had to be bruised more than his body, which can clearly take a licking and keep on ticking. There was a good deal of humor based on Casey's tough guy status, such as chasing down the shoplifter, his stealth fighter comment and shrugging...
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Michelle Ryan, Skeet Ulrich, Masi Oka and Matt Dallas by Sean Smith/jpistudios.com
At the 38th Annual Comic-Con International, fans of the sci-fi and fantasy genres proved they're no longer on the fringe. The mammoth convention, held this past weekend at the San Diego Convention Center, attracted more than 125,000 people, and in a nod to the fact that the event has gone far beyond comic books, it has billed itself as "celebrating the popular arts." Movie studios and TV networks packed huge rooms with rabid fans eager for exclusive scoop and swag.On the first day it was officially confirmed that Zachary Quinto, Heroes' slithery villain Sylar, will indeed be playing Spock in the next Star Trek movie (opening Dec. 25, 2008). Director J.J. Abrams made the announcement during a Paramount Pictures panel, and in a symbolic passing of the ears, Leonard Nimoy, who originated the role on TV and in previous movies and will play an elder Spock in Abrams’ movie, joined the discussion. "People have been asking me why I’m doing this movie," Nimoy said. "We have a great...
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