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Network: NBC
Premiere: Monday, September 29, 8pm
Cast: Zachary Levi,
Joshua Gomez,
Yvonne Strahovski,
Adam Baldwin,
Sarah Lancaster, Ryan McPartlin
Previously on Chuck: Captain Awesome asked Chuck for permission to propose to his sister. Sarah and Casey discovered that they're being spied on by someone looking for the intersect. With his life and the secrets lodged in his brain in danger, Chuck prepared to be taken away to a permanent holding cell.
Chuck only aired thirteen episodes in its debut season, but it seems like more. NBC hitched its wagon to
Chuck, promoting the series aggressively throughout its initial run. TV wunderkind Josh Schwartz (
Gossip Girl, The O.C.) brought
Chuck into existence with co-writer Chris Fedak, and had old producing partner McG direct the relatively impressive pilot. The premise of
Chuck had promise from the outset: it's basically a fish-out-of-water story set in the spy game.
The tricky thing about
Chuck was always going to be the tone. With the mix of comedy and drama and action, there was bound to be a tug-of-war between genres. Early episodes tended to struggle here and there with the mix, but the series improved as the season moved along. Thankfully, Schwartz and company struck gold with the most integral aspect of the series: the casting of Chuck Bartowski.
Zachary Levi is already one of the very best leading men on television. He is able to juggle comedy and drama stunningly well, bringing depth and charisma to every episode. Without his myriad abilities, the show could have easily crashed and burned. The rest of the cast is equally stellar, and more often than not elevate the material significantly above what it should be.
The second season of
Chuck will be a make or break year. Its placement on the Monday night schedule is treacherous. The competition will be fierce, and low ratings leading to a cancellation is a possibility. Let's hope that doesn't happen, and that
Chuck continues to improve upon a promising first season.
Will you watch the new season of Chuck?
-Oscar Dahl, BuddyTV Senior Writer
(Image Courtesy of NBC)