Monday, March 22, 2010

The secret of Chuck must be exposed

NBC's third year action-comedy CHUCK has finally hit its stride, and when it's moving like this it is a pleasure to watch.
The CHUCK experience has evolved from an awkward novelty to a well balanced ensemble piece that provides the right amount of action, comedy and romance. And by romance i mean Brandon Routh's sex appeal and the will they/won't they tension between Chuck and Sarah.
I'm writing in defense of CHUCK to help spread the word for a show that is constantly under the threat of cancellation. Last year it took an aggressive campaign from ardent fans and some SUBWAY sponsoring to bring back CHUCK for a third season. Now they might actually need more viewers to make their decision, unless Hi-Roc Bowling wants to come on board as a sponsor.
In CHUCK's favor is the additional hours of programing that NBC has to fill since eliminating that awful comedy show with Jay Leno at ten.
But why should you watch Chuck?
1. CHUCK is funny. The cast at the Buy More represent a zany group of characters. They're what happened if you combined the BIG BANG guys with the most committed freaks on the Office and added a killer musical duo. The staff of the BUY MORE routinely take over the store, have cage fights and a male musical duo that was once described as: Sam Kinison and an Indian lesbian.
2. Agent Sarah Walker is hot. Like insanely hot.

right????
3. CHUCK has good action. Some network television shows try and fail when it comes to action. They rely on lame gimmicks or really bad CGI, since tv shows don't work with the same budgets of movies. CHUCK relies heavily on hand to hand combat, but every once in the while they pull out all the stops in a very successful execution. In between those episodes, they rely on fun little stunts like Sarah hiding underneath a car or utilizing the BUY MORE as a creative set for destruction.
4. This one is for the ladies and ab enthusiast. Devon is really hot.

He makes me feel funny...
5. Adam Baldwin's portrayal of Jon Casey. Remember when i said this show was funny? I didn't even begin to tell you about the gruff exterior of Casey, who Baldwin plays with a comedic genius that the serious cops in buddy comedies strive for and usually don't pull off. Plus, he provides a commentary on the Chuck and Sarah dynamic that sometimes voices the viewers complaints.
6. Stunt casting. CHUCK does a great job blending in characters for arcs on the show. Currently they're enjoying an extended from Brandon Routh, who fit in so well that he was asked to stay on. Even Scott Bakula fit in as Chuck's dad, as he captured Chuck's absent mindedness and still represented Chuck's potential as a spy. Chevy Case was great last season too, playing an evil rival of Chuck's dad. The show also does a great job of rolling in a horde of girls for Chuck, who aren't bad on the eyes.
7. The music on CHUCK is original and exciting. Many scenes are heavily augmented by the songs they utilize, which are usually old pop standards or unknown indie songs that i buy on itunes that day. I learned about Phantom Planet and Edward Sharpe through Chuck.
Anyway, I hope I convinced you to try CHUCK or at the very least turn your tvs onto NBC while it's on so the audience will increase. Look at this way: I watch way too much tv, and still find time for CHUCK. Couldn't you?

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