Writer: Phil Klemmer
Director: Frederick E.O Toye
Cast: Zachary Levi (Chuck), Yvonne Strahovski (Sarah), Adam Baldwin (Casey), Joshua Gomez (Morgan), Sarah Lancaster (Ellie), Tony Todd (CIA Director Graham), Bonita Friedericy (General Beckman), Scott Krinsky (Jeff), Vik Sahay (Lester), Ryan McPartlin (Captain Awesome), Igor Korosec (Russian Creep), Vahe Bejan (Fat Drunk Russian), Cutter Garcia (Hostile Customer), Pavel Lychnikoff (Victor Federov) & Ivana Milicevic (Ilsa Trinchina)
Director: Frederick E.O Toye
Cast: Zachary Levi (Chuck), Yvonne Strahovski (Sarah), Adam Baldwin (Casey), Joshua Gomez (Morgan), Sarah Lancaster (Ellie), Tony Todd (CIA Director Graham), Bonita Friedericy (General Beckman), Scott Krinsky (Jeff), Vik Sahay (Lester), Ryan McPartlin (Captain Awesome), Igor Korosec (Russian Creep), Vahe Bejan (Fat Drunk Russian), Cutter Garcia (Hostile Customer), Pavel Lychnikoff (Victor Federov) & Ivana Milicevic (Ilsa Trinchina)
Casey discovers his dead ex-girlfriend is still alive, and about to marry a Russian gangster..."I'm glad Casey had someone at least once in his life. I was
beginning to think, downstairs, he was built like a Ken doll."
-- Chuck (Zachary Levi)
A welcome tweak to the Chuck formula, "... Versus The Undercover Lover" is a Casablanca-style storyline that focuses on ball-breaking protector John Casey (Adam Baldwin). For the past 11 episodes Baldwin's played a fairly two-dimensional parody of a humourless field agent, so it was great to see him have a few other notes to hit. We open with a teaser that's dramatic and serious, as Casey's beautiful photo-journalist lover Ilsa Trinchina (Ivana Milicevic) leaves his hotel bedroom and is inexplicably killed in a bomb blast. Jumping forward 3 years, Chuck (Zachary Levi) "flashes" on names of Russian criminals, listed on the hard-drive of a hotel computer in for repair -- which includes "Ilsa Trinchina"...
Chuck is excited to discover Casey has a romantic history, as it shows there's a softer side to his unflappable gruffness. Casey's not so pleased about Chuck uncovering something from his secretive personal life, but is admittedly confused about why his photo-journalist cheated death and didn't get in touch. And why is she hanging around in a hotel full of Russian villains? Fortunately, a mission to investigate the hotel gathering with Sarah (Yvonne Strahovski) soon reveals Ilsa is engaged to crimelord Victor Federov (Pavel Lychnikoff).
Elsewhere, the B plot isn't particularly exciting, as Ellie (Sarah Lancaster) and Captain Awesome (Ryan McPartlin) clash over how to celebrate their anniversary: Ellie wants a big-screen TV to bring them closer together after work, while neat-freak Awesome would prefer a washer and dryer. Morgan (Joshua Gomez) is thrown into the tiff, after deciding to mediate as a "therapist" -- a role that brings him closer to Ellie as a shoulder for her to cry on. It might even have been interesting if there was the slightest chance of a Ellie/Morgan/Awesome love-triangle, but even writer Phil Klemmer pokes fun at the fact Morgan has zero chance of being "the other man" who comes between them.
Typically, the subplot is a distraction that doesn't really affect the A story, and comes across as distracting and superfluous in most regards. The series is becoming a bit laborious in how it balances the two halves of its identity: fish-out-of-water espionage comedy-drama, and grassroots slacker comedy. It can, and has, worked well in the past, but as much as I've grown to like Lancaster, McPartlin and Gomez, they just can't compete with the Chuck/Sarah/Casey triptych.
But this is Baldwin's story, and he equips himself well -- making Casey less of a cartoon and more human in his pursuit of true love. I've always thought of Casey as a 12-year-old kid who spent his life idolizing James Bond and found himself immersed in espionage, and endowed with the training in adulthood to live out his childhood fantasy -- but at the expense of everything normal people hold dear. "... Versus The Undercover" shows that's not wholly accurate, and Casey's just naturally stunted in how he deals with everyday emotions. Or maybe he's just created himself a façade to hide behind when on long-haul missions like the one to protect Chuck/the Intersect?
I was disappointed the storyline didn't follow on from episode 11's exciting climax, but this benefited from doing something a little different. I'd like to see more stories with the emphasis away from Chuck, although not every supporting character is weighty enough to handle a proper back-story just yet. The Buy More characters are particularly strained; acting like they're in a crossbreed of Office Space/The 40-Year-Old Virgin, with an eye on auditioning for The Office.
Overall, "... Versus The Undercover Lover" features the increasingly enjoyable duo of Chuck and Casey, and excellent support from guest-star Ivana Milicevic as Casey's sexy beau. An undertone of Casablanca is a big cliché, but works quite well, and there's an agreeable amount of physical fun. Later scenes set in the hotel almost build to classic farce, with people hiding under beds and falling out of high-rise windows into a swimming pool. Oh yes, and Yvonne Strahovski gets to wear a few figure-hugging dresses and a locker-room change is squeezed into the narrative to satisfy her fans.
It's a decent episode that breathed freshness into Casey's character and provided a lot of fun, but the subplot was a slog and it's a disappointing penultimate episode -- particularly after episode 11 set-up the audience for something far more exciting.
23 June 2008
Virgin1, 10.00 pm
