Posted by Janie Logan Nov 5, 2010, 1:36 GMT
Timothy Dalton joined Linda Hamilton in making "Chuck vs. the First Fight" a geek nirvana. Photo courtesy of NBC.
And the plot thickens! With the help of guest-star Timothy Dalton, the latest episode of Chuck was the most exciting yet this season, and not just because James Bond referenced my favorite episode ever of my favorite show ever ("Phase One" from the second season of Alias).
When "Chuck vs. the First Fight" ended, I was thinking about how I should have seen the big Volkoff twist coming, but it's a testament to Dalton's performance that I didn't. He was so utterly convincing as Frost's nervous MI-6 handler, to whom Chuck went for proof that his mother hadn't betrayed the CIA. And then when he pistol-whipped Sarah down in Daddy Bartowski's lair, "Tuttle"--who mere hours before had been cuddling a lamb as he and Chuck rode in the back of a truck--was transformed into uber-slick enemy boss, Volkoff. (For full effect, he had even changed out of his fluffy sweater into a sharp black suit.)
Chuck's misplaced faith in his mom led to her escape and the possible removal of the Intersect 2.0 from his brain, but there's more to the story than meets the eye. Mary slipped Sarah a razor blade that allowed her and Chuck to escape safely before the explosion ruined Chuck's childhood home and all of his father's research. And what's more, she was telling the truth when she said Tuttle/Volkoff didn't know she was a mother. So whatever else she has done, Mary has been protecting Chuck and Ellie for 20 years by keeping them secret.
That points to a possible hidden motive for her service to Volkoff, like perhaps she is a double-double agent trying to thwart a big, evil, Russian plan. Or if not, she can at least be considered not a total failure of a mother. Linda Hamilton has been great in this role, and never more so than in her scene with Sarah Lancaster.
I loved that we didn't get to hear what Ellie and Mary talked about because there was the sense that no words could even convey the emotion of that reunion. Spy stuff aside, it was a beautiful moment between a mother and daughter (soon-to-be mother to a daughter of her own).
"Frost" may be a "master of deception," but from her tears and the way she tucked Ellie's hair behind her ear, I believe her love is genuine. Sooner or later, we're going to see what that love is worth.
And while that scene was about the two of them, there was a whole other level added by Sarah witnessing it all. She didn't say anything--she knew it was an intimate moment that she shouldn't have been present for, were it not for her duty to keep an eye on her prisoner--but she watched with a sense of longing that broke my heart. You couldn't even call it a relationship, what Ellie and Mary have--they barely know each other. But I'm sure Sarah would prefer even that to no mother at all.
In the midst of all this, Chuck and Sarah were having their first serious relationship fight. Chuck was mad at Sarah for going behind his back to arrest his mom, and he was telling everyone except her how he was feeling. Sarah found this very disconcerting: "But he always wants to talk, about…anything."
The writers always seem to spice up the fight sequences in fun, interesting ways, and this time it was by having Chuck and Sarah deliver their kicks to Volkoff's men (and one mean-looking woman with a scar across her face, played by Ana Gasteyer) while verbally sparring with each other. Regardless of what happened with his mother at the end, Chuck was right:
"I don't need you to protect me. I need you to believe in me…even when you think I'm wrong."
Sarah is a very strong woman, but she can't just see it as her duty to save Chuck. Sometimes it's more important that she support him in his decisions, even if it means letting him make a mistake.
There are many questions as Season 4 progresses. To use an Alias term, what is Volkoff's endgame? When the inevitable choice between family and work arises, what will Mary's priority be? Removing Chuck's Intersect effectively cripples him as a spy--what will it take to get it back? And what did Daddy Bartowski leave for Ellie in that old Mustang?
And hopefully all of these storylines will be served with plenty of hilarious Morgan-Casey interaction on the side!
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