Monsters of Television

“I love this woman.”

A new way for Sarah to be naked and/or wet every week. Who says this show can’t innovate?

I was kind of hoping Dave Thomas and Charlize Theron would be surprise guest stars. And then I realized that was “Mr F” and there was a distinct reason why my search for “Mr X” was coming up with bupkis.

So here we are, into the final three episodes of the season and we’re ready to escalate into the end. This is where Chuck is Chuck, the part of the season that helps us fall right back in love with the show, at its most endearing when no one is watching. It’s also why, when Chuck hurts us so bad later and people start to ask we we’re still in this relationship, we tell them they don’t understand and they don’t really know Chuck the way we do. “You don’t understand OUR LOVE!”

From the title, you can tell we’re being plated with this “Agent X” thing, the condensation of the vapors of a storyline we’ve been sniffing in the latter half of this season as it’s been mentioned by Ellie and the Volkoffs in passing. The search for “Agent X” finally brings about some storylines they’ve been desperately staving off for weeks and weeks. I mean, really, how long could we have Ellie sitting in front of the computer, whining about her dad’s research? This is the episode that sets the table for the rest of the season (kinda) but how the table is set isn’t really as shocking to me as how early the table is set.

And it’s all contained in a little picture of cottage in the English countryside.

As soon as you see that photo, it’s almost like you have your own Intersect except your brain has filed away how Chuck works, the themes it likes to use, and puts puzzles together based on historical evidence. Once you see Ellie’s picture of the cottage and Ellie setting everything up as the image being the endgame for all the data, you know she’s gone as far as she can go. “Image” and “data” should make your face go all weird and you put it together that Chuck needs to flash on the image. That leads to the exercise set up by Orion to be a team activity for the siblings (though probably more for Mary and Steve to share data). And then that leads to? Welcome to Castle, Ellie.

Yes, yes, the last of Chuck’s family is finally implicated into the dangerous spy world. And just after bringing a little baby into the world! Hooray! It was really the next obvious step for Chuck since they barely have enough material to keep the Buy More B-story interesting let alone the boring domestic life of the Family Awesome in C-story. Ellie riding the couch just staved off the inevitable and we’ll end the season with Chuck and Ellie, two geniuses oft overwhelmed by emotion, probably getting everyone into trouble.

Because if Chuck himself wasn’t enough to destroy everyone (and he is), adding Ellie into the mix (possibly the only person that’s not blonde to make Chuck all weepy anymore) can only increase the chances for all the evils of the world to come crashing down. Just in time for the wedding.

Oh. I just thought of that. Are we going to have another crime syndicate crash another wedding? Has this season been about setting up ramps and chumming the water?

I complain but there was a lot of good in this episode, too. It had its endearing moments like Big Mike, Jeff, and Lester singing Billy Ocean’s “Get Outta My Dreams (Get into My Car)” (an episode where it felt like they were ready to blow that music budget after being so good for most of the season). Sarah’s been given a few good comedy beats lately (my favorite still being impression of a flash) and dealing with the strippers should go on her reel. Casey and Volkoff’s mom: adorable. And I’m glad to see Ray Wise in anything.

What’s really important from this episode, though, is the death of Chuck’s alter ego. Sure, Ellie’s known he was a spy (though she thought he was retired) but there is no semblance of that kid we met four years ago left on this show. Who does he have to hide from anymore? Jeffster? Try to think to a recent scene where Chuck is even in the same room with Jeff and Lester for longer than five minutes? Three minutes? Morgan has taken over Chuck’s role at the Buy More and Chuck has brought his family into his spy world so he no longer has a “normal” life. This may be a question with an obvious answer but: isn’t that what the show was supposed to be about?

At some point (you would have to say at the beginning of season 3 when Chuck decides to be a spy), it stops being about Chuck maintaining a normal life and becoming more about the elements of that normal life persevering in Chuck against all odds. At least, that was what a major thread of season 3 was. You know, before “vs The Honeymooners” ruined our innocence.

With Ellie being not only privy to Chuck’s continuance as a spy but to the entirety of Castle and the fact that Chuck is the world’s only Intersect, we should probably ask what is normal now? If this show were to get picked up (a miracle by TVByTheNumbers’s estimation), what would this show be about? Are we only around for the characters, the spy-adventure-of-the-week, the relationships? We’ve watched Chuck grow from a main desperate to keep a safe place for himself separate from the spy life to making his entire world built around espionage. He works with his (soon-to-be) wife. His family are now all willing participants in the CIA. His best friends are operatives. He gets married and — then what?

We started watching this show because we identified with this guy who was saddled with an amazing gift he was reluctant to receive. He eventually accepted it. With everything getting tied up, where are the conflicts outside of the missions? Trouble with the newlyweds?

Some might argue that these are characters we want to stick around for. We want to see what happens to these people every week. What I’m saying: I’m not sure that we do. The ratings don’t really seem to support it and, fervent as the fans are (they’re fanatical even), is that small base enough for Chuck to get a half season for a cool 100 episodes — so they can sell into syndication a show that struggled in first-run?

Clearly, I don’t know these answers but I’m looking forward to these final two episodes and hope they knock my socks off. Much as I malign it every chance I get, I do love this show. I love the characters, I love their growth, I love looking back at how far they’ve come. What’s another 12 to really wrap this thing up? I’m already so used to telling people I fell down the stairs.

Other things:

• Did you see that picture at the end? That Timothy Dalton was one handsome fella. I guess he still is a handsome fella.
• Good to see some balance to Sarah’s blatant fan-service bathtub scene with some ripped-up strippers. Also: Ellie, four strippers? You ravenous minx.
• When Casey flashed the picture of bin Laden, did you get a twinge of “I know something you don’t know, Phil Klemmer and Craig DiGregorio from the past!”?
• They might’ve gone a little overboard with Casey’s night recon look. Give him straw hat and he could’ve sung at Roger Sterling’s wedding.
• The demise of “normal” Chuck and the implication of all his family members into doom aside, Ellie realizing she was right all along about Chuck being so special puts a smile on my jaded face. Morgan’s excitement for him to show it off might be even better.
• Did they just now look at the back of Yvonne Strahovski’s headshot and see that she can do (well, attempt) different accents? Seems like every week she’s trying something else. I’m fine with it as long as we stay away from Texan.
• One of these days, people really should at least consider listening to Casey. Guy’s no slouch.