What I’m Watching: Chuck (Series Finale)

There are certain things that you can expect from a series finale, especially one that has been given ample time to prepare for such an event. Usually, one hero finds him or herself in a state totally unlike normal, and often a minor villain from the show’s history becomes a major player to defeat in the show’s final hours. That was the case here, with Sarah unable to remember her past and Quinn suddenly identified as the number one threat against humanity. What’s sad in some ways is that Sarah still isn’t herself by two-hour-episode’s end, which is somewhat sweet since Chuck is working so hard to make her remember but also disappointing since their fairy tale home doesn’t happen in the way any expected it would. It was endearing that Chuck put the glasses on one last time so that he could save Beckman, but it really should have been used to restore Sarah's memory. There was also a strange reference to futuristic technology, much like the Intersect itself, actually, with Morgan’s discovery of the invisibility cloak at DARPA, which was fun if not rather unprecedented on this show. Ellie crashing the car with Sarah in it and Casey telling Beckman to shut up because they were saving her were amusing moments that had probably been building for a long time. This finale did exhibit other welcome telltale signs of characters being aware of the end as Ellie and Awesome were wooed by a Chicago hospital, Morgan and Alex moving in together, and Casey heading off to find Gertrude. Jeff and Lester’s fate was particularly fun, as they got to prevent the bomb from going off by making horrible music, resulting in a visit from a VIP that forced them to consider leaving the Buy More. And, though it will be a long time before they’re back to normal, Chuck did get the girl, and a few choice flashbacks to their important moments were sweet. As a finale, this was a fun episode, though maybe not the greatest one the show has ever produced. I’ve enjoyed this show thoroughly throughout its five years, and looking back, I’ve actually reviewed almost every episode (with a few missing) since the pilot, way back on September 24, 2007. A retrospective feature could well be in order for this show that hit its high point in the middle but never slipped back down after that. It’s been a great five years.

Series finale: B+
Season grade: B+
Season MVP: Yvonne Strahovski
Series grade: B+
Series MVP: Adam Baldwin
Best season: Seasons 2 & 3
Best episode: “Chuck Versus the Colonel”