There has been something 'off' with this season of Chuck. It's been hard for me to pin down, but I think last night's episode was a really goo example of it. There was a lot to love about this week's episode. We got to see more of Chuck's mom. There was a considerable amount of action and suspense. We got to see Elle interact with her mother for the first time. And Timothy Dalton as an -awesome- guest star.
There was a lot to like about the episode. And despite my saying that the season feels off, it was a great episode over all. But, it also definitely points out more clearly just what the problems are.
Chuck is a show about delicate balancing acts. Between drama and comedy, romance and action. As a show, Chuck is generally regarded as a straight out comedy. And for most of the time it is. But as a show Chuck has always been willing to go dark, to stop playing for laughs and be serious. Those serious moments have always given the show more weight during it's lighter moments. And I think that is really what has changed here.
Last night is a good example of a show that the show would traditionally play straight in previous seasons. But this season, almost everything is played either as a goofy comedy or a straight action piece. And as good as last night's show was, playing it as a goofy comedy really hurt the emotional ending.
I hate to say this, but the show is simply focusing on two things that are weighing the show down. The first is the Chuck/Sarah relationship struggles...these two work best as a team working together and protecting each other. They do not work nearly as well as squabbling teenagers, which is what they are mostly portrayed as. The second is Morgan Grimes...Morgan's antics are really starting to get on my nerves. He's too goofy to be taken seriously in any way, and I think the writers realize this so they try to overcompensate in ways that are ridiculous. But what is really criminal about this is how much screen time he's getting, and how this is taking away from Sarah and more importantly Casey. It's a shame to, because the character of Morgan is pretty cool...but he's best used in small doses.
On the plus side, the show is definitely experimenting. Chuck's mother is turning into a very compelling character. And while I cannot imagine her truly being 'bad', there is still a chance that she is. And it's becoming more and more interesting to see where this is going (and what her true motives are). And Timothy Dalton was awesome last night. He certainly played against expectations for most of the episode, only to turn things around in the last few moments in a very interesting way. Chuck has always done well with its guest stars, and last night was no exception.
So, we have a 1 week break, so it will be at least two weeks before we find out (perhaps even more). I find it hard to believe that she erased the intersect from Chuck's brain, especially since that was a main plot point from Season 2. And I'm guessing that she's still trying to protect Chuck from Volkov, but, at this point there's not really enough specific information to explain what is going on here exactly. They've done a pretty good job of making Chuck's mother interesting, and it really seems like we are getting to the meat of things now.
Oh, and while we are on the subject of breaks, I know I haven't been keeping up with these reviews. In part because I actually missed the last few episodes, and didn't even see them until last Friday (where I watched them with friends).
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