What I’m Watching: Chuck (Season Premiere)

Chuck: Season 3, Episodes 1, 2 & 3 “Chuck Versus The Pink Slip,” “Chuck Versus The Three Words” & “Chuck Versus the Angel de la Muerte” (B+)

This excess of Chuck as he returns from an eight-month hiatus is pretty exciting, and it certainly gets thing started up again. There’s a sense that these episodes are a bit plodding and silly and that thing have yet to actually really get going, but they’re still quality entertainment. Seeing a bearded Chuck eating nothing but cheese balls was rather depressing, though now he’s back on his feet, and that’s great. His reactions to his newfound abilities are almost as gratifying and exciting as the powers themselves, and Zachary Levi continues to do a spectacular job of playing Chuck. It’s weird to see Emmett kicked off the show so violently, though I suppose the fact that it’s underplayed and that no one except Casey knows what really happened makes it easier for the show to move on and bring Chuck, Morgan, and Big Mike back without wasting any time. The disappearance of Anna, which I believe is due to budgetary reasons, has been explained away nicely and quickly, allowing Morgan to return to being a loveable, single loser all by himself. Morgan’s courtship of Karina was a bit iffy, but ultimately the episode worked. That’s how I feel about all three of these episodes. Ultimately, they’re much more worthwhile than not, though it hasn’t quite reached the peak of excitement achieved at the end of last season. The end of the third episode, with Captain Awesome’s abduction, was a nice way to end this "Chuck" overdose and keep things, well, awesome. None of the three episodes left me with much to say other than “welcome back, Chuck!” Oh, and that Adam Baldwin is pretty cool.