{"id":27218,"date":"2014-11-05T06:30:39","date_gmt":"2014-11-04T17:30:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/?p=27218"},"modified":"2014-11-02T21:28:15","modified_gmt":"2014-11-02T08:28:15","slug":"big-worlds-on-small-screens-rebecca-fisher-discusses-chuck","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/2014\/11\/05\/big-worlds-on-small-screens-rebecca-fisher-discusses-chuck\/","title":{"rendered":"Big Worlds On Small Screens: Rebecca Fisher Discusses “Chuck”"},"content":{"rendered":"

~ by Rebecca Fisher<\/em><\/p>\n

Introduction:<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Chuck<\/strong> ran for five seasons between 2007 and 2012, surviving the 2008 Writer’s Strike as well as the surplus of spy-related material that came out in the early-to-mid 00’s. It had plenty to contend with, including Alias<\/strong>, 24<\/strong>, Kim Possible<\/strong> and Spooks<\/strong> on television, and Spy Kids<\/strong>, Johnny English<\/strong>, Mr and Mrs Smith<\/strong> and Agent Cody Banks<\/strong> on the big screens.<\/p>\n

\"Chuck1\"<\/a><\/p>\n

For a while there, we all seemed to be obsessed with espionage-related entertainment, and though Chuck<\/strong> was a late-comer to the bandwagon, it managed to outstay all the competition; ending just as popular culture shifted its attention to emo-vampires and Sherlock Holmes.<\/p>\n

Premise:<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Charles “Chuck” Bartowski is a normal guy working in the electronics department of the local BuyMore. Average job, average friends, average life. Things wouldn’t be too bad except that he’s still hung-up over getting kicked out of university after his best friend Bryce Larkin framed him for cheating on an exam.<\/p>\n

But then one day, completely out of the blue, Chuck gets an e-mail from Bryce. He opens it, and unwittingly has an entire database of government secrets downloaded into his head. (Just go with it). Turns out that Bryce was a rogue spy for the CIA, and the last thing he managed to do before his death was send a stolen file to Chuck’s computer.<\/p>\n

Now every time Chuck sees or handles a random object that has a link to international espionage, he has \u201cflashes\u201d in which his brain downloads pertinent information about various criminals, assassins and terrorists. Yeah, it\u2019s pretty much exactly what happens to Phoebe Halliwell on Charmed<\/strong>, except with super-computer technology instead of witchcraft.<\/p>\n

\"Chuck2\"<\/a>Chuck and his two bodyguards. Guess which one he likes more.<\/em><\/p>\n

Enter Sarah Walker and John Casey. The former is CIA, the latter is NSA, and both have been sent to retrieve what\u2019s been dubbed the Intercept. Once they find out that it\u2019s permanently lodged in Chuck\u2019s head, they become Chuck\u2019s undercover bodyguards instead \u2013 Casey as a sales clerk at the BuyMore, Sarah in the hotdog parlour across the road. And just to make things really<\/em> interesting, Sarah poses as Chuck\u2019s girlfriend to explain their near-constant togetherness.<\/p>\n

Story:<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Needless to say, you’ll need to suspend your disbelief if you’re going to enjoy Chuck<\/strong>. More Get Smart<\/strong> than Spooks<\/strong>, more James Bond<\/strong> than The Bourne Identity<\/strong>, this show has fun with the spy genre, infusing it with comedy, pratfalls, wisecracks, and romantic complications.<\/p>\n

\"Chuck3\"<\/a>Chuck tries to be helpful.<\/em><\/p>\n

Most of the obstacles faced come about due to Chuck’s fish-out-of-water experiences in the world of espionage, and thankfully the writers don’t feel the need to turn him into an instant expert. Armed with only his technological know-how and some sheer dumb luck, Chuck occasionally gets to save the day, though the real heroics are usually left to the professionals.<\/p>\n

And though most episodes are standalone stories, a long-running arc is eventually introduced in which it’s revealed that there was a lot more to Chuck’s expulsion and Bryce’s betrayal than first appears…<\/p>\n

Characters: <\/strong><\/h3>\n

Zachary Levi carries the show as the sweet-natured Chuck, who is simultaneously delighted and terrified by the new direction his life has taken. Australian Yvonne Strahovski manages to combine Sarah Walker’s lethal efficiency with real warmth and vulnerability, whilst Adam Baldwin was a shoe-in for the role of John Casey. (He’s basically a slightly-less-psychotic version of Jayne from Firefly<\/strong>).<\/p>\n

\"Chuck4\"<\/a>Chuck and Casey \u2013 this is how they usually interact.<\/em><\/p>\n

It’s in the relationships between these characters that things are taken a bit more seriously. Chuck pines for Sarah, but she has a dark history of her own that’s gradually revealed over the course of show. Chuck’s relationship with his beloved sister, Ellie, is strained when his double-life starts interfering with hers.<\/p>\n

Even comic relief characters such as Morgan Grimes (Chuck’s best friend) and Ellie’s boyfriend (nicknamed Captain Awesome because he’s good at everything<\/em>) get their own moments of three-dimensionality.<\/p>\n

Conclusion:<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Chuck <\/strong>is tailor-made escapism for your average twenty-something male nerd, in which a shy and self-effacing everyman is treated to wild adventures and a gorgeous love interest, all because he’s just such a nice guy<\/em> (seriously, that’s the reason Bryce sends him the e-mail that changes his life).<\/p>\n

The show only just manages to edge itself into the “sci-fi” genre thanks to its use of the high-tech McGuffin in Chuck’s head, but as it’s filled with geeky pop-culture references and actors who have since become familiar faces in genre film and television, I thought it would be acceptable to include Chuck<\/strong> in this particular column.
\n.<\/span><\/p>\n

Next Time: Game of Thrones<\/strong><\/span><\/em><\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

I can’t believe I haven’t covered Game of Thrones<\/strong> yet!<\/span>
\n.<\/span>
\n<\/em><\/p>\n

About The Reviewer:<\/h3>\n

\"\"<\/a>Rebecca Fisher is a graduate of the University of Canterbury with a Masters degree in English Literature, mainly, she claims, because she was able to get away with writing her thesis on C.S. Lewis and Philip Pullman. She is a reviewer for FantasyLiterature.com<\/a>, a large website that specializes in fantasy and science-fiction novels, as well as posting reviews to Amazon.com<\/a> and her They\u2019re All Fictional<\/a> blog.<\/p>\n

To read Rebecca\u2019s detailed introduction of both herself and the series, as well as preceding reviews, click on:<\/p>\n

Big Worlds On Small Screens<\/a><\/h3>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

~ by Rebecca Fisher Introduction: Chuck ran for five seasons between 2007 and 2012, surviving the 2008 Writer’s Strike as well as the surplus of spy-related material that came out in the early-to-mid 00’s. It had plenty to contend with, including Alias, 24, Kim Possible and Spooks on television, and Spy Kids, Johnny English, Mr […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[49],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-27218","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-big-worlds-on-small-screens-with-rebecca-fisher"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27218","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27218"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27218\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":27227,"href":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27218\/revisions\/27227"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27218"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27218"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/helenlowe.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27218"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}