Writer: Phil Klemmer
Director: Robert Duncan McNeill
Cast: Zachary Levi (Chuck Bartowski), Yvonne Strahovski (Sarah Walker), Sarah Lancaster (Ellie Bartowski), Adam Baldwin (Major John Casey), Joshua Gomez (Morgan Grimes), C.S. Lee (Harry Tang), Bonita Friedericy (General Beckman), Ryan McPartlin (Captain Awesome), Mark Christopher Lawrence (Big Mike), Vik Sahay (Lester), Scott Krinsky (Jeff), Julia Ling (Anna Wu), Creagen Dow (Teenage Boy), Greg Baine (Special Agent Ben Katz), Rick Hoffman (Agent Scary), Jonathan Sadowski (Lazslo Mahnovski), Jesse Heiman (Fernando) & David Burke (HR Manager)
Director: Robert Duncan McNeill
Cast: Zachary Levi (Chuck Bartowski), Yvonne Strahovski (Sarah Walker), Sarah Lancaster (Ellie Bartowski), Adam Baldwin (Major John Casey), Joshua Gomez (Morgan Grimes), C.S. Lee (Harry Tang), Bonita Friedericy (General Beckman), Ryan McPartlin (Captain Awesome), Mark Christopher Lawrence (Big Mike), Vik Sahay (Lester), Scott Krinsky (Jeff), Julia Ling (Anna Wu), Creagen Dow (Teenage Boy), Greg Baine (Special Agent Ben Katz), Rick Hoffman (Agent Scary), Jonathan Sadowski (Lazslo Mahnovski), Jesse Heiman (Fernando) & David Burke (HR Manager)
Chuck meets another geek whose brain is important to national security, and isn't sure if he should turn the man over to his handlers..."Would you like to play a nice game of Thermonuclear War?"
-- Lazslo (Jonathan Sadowski)
I've read lots of reviews that hold Chuck in very high esteem, written above comments from fans that extol its hilarity and general brilliance. I'm glad it has fans, but I still can't see what's so damned funny. It's amusing in ways that stem from its performances (great cast), but it's lethargic when it comes to quantity and quality of jokes. Chuck Versus The Sandworm did nothing to turn the tide after the week-by-week improvements stopped at episode 4.
Once again, we have a so-so storyline that's stretched to breaking point. Seriously, Chuck would be improved immeasurably if it was a breezy half-hour. Is there a precedent for hourlong US comedy-dramas evolving into half-hours on US TV? Here, Chuck (Zachary Levi) discovers another geek whose mind is the "property" of the government – a genius called Lazslo Mahnovski (Jonathan Sadowski), responsible for designing a wide variety of gadgets, but now wanted by his superiors after he escaped and killed his handlers.
Chuck sees echoes of his own situation in Lazslo and wonders if he's destined to become him. He therefore decides to hide Lazslo from Casey (Adam Baldwin) and Sarah (Yvonne Strahovski), and isn't too happy when he realizes his own handlers justify Lazslo's paranoia – when Chuck finds his room has been bugged.
As usual, there's a parallel plot at the Buy More store with Morgan (Joshua Gomez), who undergoes a makeover at the hands of Captain Awesome (Ryan McPartlin) designed to make him look more like "a man". Comb your hair and tuck in your shirt, basically. Chuck is also due to take his interview for the Assistant Manager position, with hateable Harry Tang (C.S. Lee) as his only competitor, but finds his spy life once again scuppers his chances.
There's also a vague attempt for this to be a Halloween episode, as Chuck's sister Ellie (Sarah Lancaster) organizes a spooky fancy dress party – with Morgan hoping Chuck will agree to reprise their popular Sandworm costume from the movie Dune. It's all a bit unnecessary, really – although it does require Lancaster to appear naked covered in leaves (as the biblical Eve) and Strahovski causes a billion geek-gasms by dressing as slave-girl Princess Leia. It's just a shame both don't appear on-screen for long in their get-up. I suppose that's what the pause button's for. Seriously, is there anyone cuter on TV than Yvonne Strahovski right now? She's like a little blonde bunny. Too hot.
This episode focuses more heavily on Chuck and Morgan in their respective storylines, with Casey and Sarah pushed into the background a fair bit. It's fortunate that Levi is more than capable of shouldering an episode on his own, and having a story where he's not being pulled from pillar to post, or getting in the way of Casey and Sarah, is very welcome. But of course, without as much guidance, Chuck makes the unwise decision to trust Lazslo – before it's revealed he's a dangerous sociopath intent on blowing up a pier full of partygoers. Still, at least Chuck disarmed a bad-guy and deactivates a car-bomb without any help, so that was nice to see...
But I'm growing tired. None of it's funny or dramatic enough. If Chuck were a light and breezy 30-minutes, it would wash over you quick enough for only the good stuff to lodge in your brain. And there is some good stuff here: the premise is sound, the lead is appealing, the supporting cast are fine, and the women are red-hot. But the stories are ham-fisted, there's always a B-story that just distracts you, the laughs are few and far between (and not madcap enough given the zany concept), and I've yet to see an episode that sustains (or required) a 43-minute runtime.
I know I've mentioned these problems many times before, but they're still holding true after 6 weeks. And it's frustrating me -- because the cast deserve better and the ingredients are there for a worthwhile spy spoof that isn't a simple Bond parody (a la Austin Powers or Get Smart). Chuck's in desperate need of a Head Chef to make an omelette out of these broken eggs. Until then, let's just ogle Chuck's Chicks...
12 May 2008
Virgin1, 10.00 pm
