(S01E02) "No matter how stressed you are, it's never OK to murder a woman's souffle."
If you read my first review or my Early Look post, you know that I love Chuck. I gushed more than a Yellowstone geyser. However, I am going to be very honest about the second episode.
It was a disappointment.
After the hip, sleek, funny, action-packed pilot episode, this episode fell flat. It was kind of boring, nonsensical, and didn't advance the plot in any way shape or form. OK, now I am being a little harsh -- it really wasn't terrible -- but it could have been better.
My first major gripe is with the intro sequence. I thought the flashbacks to the pilot episode were unnecessary and disrupted the flow of what was happening on screen. They actually flashed back a couple of times and it was more annoying than helpful. The only flashing that I want to see going on is what goes on in Chuck's little image-packed noggin.
Speaking of Chuck's head, the plot of this episode introduced (and disposed of) a new character by the name of Dr. Zarnow, the man who faked his own death to kidnap and sell Chuck. From the moment we met the doctor it was very clear that he was evil and would betray Team Bartowski. He was slimy and had that very typical I-am-a-greedy-evil-genius-that-will-sell-North-Koreans-government-secrets flair. And that voice! That snake like voice was a dead give away.
Also, something I didn't really get is why Zarnow faked his own death (explain it to me in the comments section if you can). He had no reason to believe that a faked death by NSA incinerator would cause Casey and Sarah to fight each other. The good doctor could have easily just came back around later and drugged Agent Walker like he did. If he was really smart, he would have brought the tranquilizer gun to the Buy More and shot both of the agents there. Maybe that would have just been way too ... obvious?
That also brings up the question of how the hell he also knew where Sarah's location was when he ambushed her at Chuck's house. If he was tracking her, he probably would have figured out that Chuck was his very valuable Patient X. Zarnow was typical evil genius ... right down to not simply destroying his enemies at the most practical moment. Now it could be that Schwartz was doing this on purpose -- another one of his subtle spy-genre parodies -- but it just felt sloppy to me.
The Casey-Morgan Ramones scene was hilarious. I seriously almost spit out some Mountain Dew Game Fuel I was imbibing at the time. Just on a side note, never ever ever ever drink Mountain Dew Game Fuel. I think i might have left out an ever there. It would not be the worst thing in the world if there were more Casey-Morgan interactions in the future.
In the first episode, the multiple fight scenes were very, as Captain Awesome might say, awesome. The fight scene between Casey and Sarah was pretty intense. Good use of props, space, fighting styles. However, the fight scene was really unmotivated. Maybe in the first episode, when it was slightly understandable that both agencies wanted Chuck for themselves, you could expect the two to throwdown, but now that they made a truce it would make sense for them to talk out the situation. You could argue that they were both on edge and non-trusting, but it just kind of came out of nowhere. Although, I definitely wouldn't complain about watching Sarah fight in that Weinerlicious sausage maiden outfit all day long. Bloomers!
There were some positive changes between the screener version and the on-air version. Chuck had some on-helicopter banter that was absolutely dreadful. For those who saw the leaked screener online, I will say, "B Button, B Button, B Button."
We didn't learn why Chuck got kicked out of Stanford yet, but I would like to hear your wildest theories on what it could be. We DID learn that Sarah Walker's name isn't actually Sarah Walker (it was very quickly thrown out there, so you may have missed it). This makes me think that Sarah may be Chuck's girlfriend from college ... revamped. I know it is really far out there, but I want to be credited with think of it first if it is true.
There is a lot more I could compliment or complain about, but I will leave that 'til next week. This episode wasn't the best follow up to such a strong opener, but I will give Chuck a couple more episodes before I give up hope on a show with such great potential. I know for a fact (love the screeners) that next week's episode is a good one.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
10-02-2007 @ 12:05AM
byeazell said...
It wasn't bad, but it wasn't as cool as last week. I'll keep watching it for now.
Nice LOST reference in the ep, too.
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10-02-2007 @ 12:06AM
Ryan S. said...
This episode seemed out of place to me, like I missed an episode or perhaps I just missed something at the end of the Pilot, but how did Casey get a job at Buy More? And Chuck all of a sudden is working with both agents, I think that Chuck would have been more hesitate to believe them; i don't know, it just seemed like an awkward episode to me, something was just missing for me.
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10-02-2007 @ 12:11AM
Steve said...
I think Zarnow faked his own death because nobody ever suspects the dead guy and it would make everyone think that there is a double agent somewhere, which causes chaos and makes it easier for Zarnow to do his job and slip away
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10-02-2007 @ 12:15AM
Adam said...
@ Ryan S., you CLEARLY missed something because Casey got the job at the end of the pilot episode to watch over Chuck... you do realise this show is an hour long--not 30 minutes? :D jk
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10-02-2007 @ 1:08AM
RN said...
I would have to 100% agree with ya... 'Sarah' is definitely part of Chuck's past somehow. I love the idea of her being the new-and-improved ex-girlfriend.
LOL... that would make for some great episodes. I mean let's not forget... she was 'partners' (wink-wink) with his ex-college roommate!
Look forward to seeing more..
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10-02-2007 @ 1:12AM
Walt said...
Okay, this clearly falls into my category of shows I call "High Burn Out Rate" -- shows that run through all the possible (obvious) plots in about five episodes. If that's the case, by the end of the first five episodes, it'll be apparent to all that the writers don't have a way of writing themselves out of the situation they've gotten themselves into, and this will devolve into one silly reason for a Nerd Herd car chase sequence after another.
I mean, you could have a contest here on TVSquad for possible story plotlines and you'd end up with better stuff that actually ends up on the air.
What's next week's show? A scientist being chased by international spies brings his iPod in because the screen broke, and our hero figures out the scientist is actually Sarah's long lost father? And then Jayne is told to kill the scientist and Sarah has to save him?
I'll give this another week, but that'll be it, I'm afraid.
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10-02-2007 @ 1:37AM
Chester said...
Saw the pilot....didn't feel this was going to be around much longer than Oct.
So I didn't watch tonight's episode.
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10-02-2007 @ 3:11AM
teevee said...
I thought Chuck is really good so far and tonight's episode was not a disappointment. Remember, because last episode focused on telling about how Chuck got in this mess in the first place, it didn't have a chance to lay out the relationship of each character. Tonights episode did just that and now we know some things: Chuck is beginning to like Sarah and Sarah and Casey don't trust each other. You can just feel there is going to be this whole Lost feel to the series. There's something bigger here and that alone will get me watching every week.
I like what I'm seeing so far.
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10-02-2007 @ 4:39AM
Ryan said...
You remember the super kickass sequence of Bryce being all superspy running out of the building trying to escape last episode? Well I thought the producers did that to be funny (and cool). So I thought the same attitude and thought went into the Casey-Sarah mano-o-mano duel. To me it looked so silly in practice (like Bryce's superhuman escape) that it had to be intentional.
Anyways, I liked the episode.
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10-02-2007 @ 5:19AM
KateGee said...
Chuck is the hottest. Silly.
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10-02-2007 @ 8:30AM
laura nason said...
Thats it for me two episodes and i am gone. Its a dumb show. As my hubby put it "its that type of show that you watch for a few and are kinda amused but you quickly lose interest" and i agree.
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10-02-2007 @ 9:44AM
Kate Green said...
Did you notice when Chuck was downloading the secrets and mentioned "Oceanic Flight 815 was shot down by..."
I thought it was an amusing Lost reference.
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10-02-2007 @ 10:02AM
mh said...
I didn't think the episode was bad... i thought it had the same fun vibe and sarcastic attitude... gotta love a restaurant called wienerlicious. I'm glad i'm not the only one who caught the Lost reference (Oceanic flight 815!!). So far I'm still hooked.
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10-02-2007 @ 10:15AM
Grover said...
MH - ditto to your comment... was about to write exactly the same things
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10-02-2007 @ 11:43AM
horsenbuggy said...
No show that gives me comedy and action sequences from Adam Baldwin will ever fall off my watch list. I definitely need to see more interaction of Casey with the Buy More guys - that stuff is "awesome." I thought the fight between Sarah and Casey was silly, but part of the fun. I saw the "flying a helicopter is just like a video game" thing coming pretty much as soon as I saw the title. I hope they don't overdo that. I think the doctor was an obvious plot device that they had to dispense with. You can't have viewers asking "Why don't they just get a doctor to fix his brain?" Now they can say, "Tried that, it didn't work." (Even though the whole premise is ridiculous.) But really, does anyone take a show seriously that uses a title like "Chuck vs the Wookie?" You should be able to tell by the title alone that it's a farce and just enjoy it as such.
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10-02-2007 @ 1:14PM
Diana said...
Just "eh" for me, but I'll continue to watch. I get more of a kick from the little things in this show (the downloading sequence from the pilot, the Oceanic reference) than the whole show itself. Agree with the "kinda amused but lose interest quickly" comment from laura nason.
Sarah sucks as the kick-ass spy. I disagree with Ryan: there is no way that fight scene with Casey was for camp value. No way it was intentionally made to look that bad.
I have a new appreciation for Jennifer Garner.
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10-02-2007 @ 2:01PM
vacelts said...
I agreed with Steve for the reason the doctor faked his own death to take suspicion off himself. And by using the NSA gadget, he could cause a rift between Casey and Sarah, who will probably always not trust each other completely.
Adam Baldwin makes me laugh so hard.
Loved the Lost reference. Also heard that Rachel Bilson will be joining the cast.
http://redlightnaps.wordpress.com/2007/10/02/chuck-vs-helicopter/
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10-02-2007 @ 2:15PM
Nick said...
This is the first time I caught this show and I must say it didnt do much for me, I dont think Ill watch another episode.
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10-02-2007 @ 2:45PM
Aberdeen said...
The worst part of the the ep for me was the whole helicopter thing - it was just a bit boring. Pretty much had fun with everything else, including the Flight 815...
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10-02-2007 @ 4:25PM
Brian said...
Loved the Trainspotting spoof intro. I'm surprised noone pointed that out yet.
Overall I'm enjoying the show... its got plenty of good laughs. "I'm an IT *artist*!" The Oceanic 815 thing, with action scenes that I think are designed to come off a little cheesy. It makes for good entertainment.
Prison Break still gets the coveted LiveWatch, though.
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