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4.9 Chuck versus Phase Three Review by Josie Kafka "I'm just a needy, love-crazed girl on a husband hunt who's trained in over 200 ways to kill you." As a card-carrying feminist (yes, we have cards; no, they are not pink), former riot grrl, and reviewer preoccupied with the male gaze, I only have one thing to say about this adventure into the tougher side of femininity, this blatantly sexy portrayal of female power in short shorts and covered in water, this intermixing of female vengeance and an ass-kicking hottie: Awesome. This could have gone one of two ways. The bad way, in which I stared in dismay at my screen, feeling shut out of the near-pornographic representation of a woman fighting in skimpy clothes -- the way, in other words, that was about Sarah as a visual pleasure for male viewers. The good way (the way it actually went down) made me want to be Sarah, kicking ass and not even bothering to take names. That's what all those she-male jokes were about: they represented the other point of view. But the Chuck powers that be managed to make this about a person with a nice rack and a great butt doing some serious damage -- only a puerile mercenary would think this was a situation in which a woman was taking on a man's role. We, and Casey, know that it's just Sarah being incredibly cool. In other news: Chuck's dream sequences were touching, especially the scene of Sarah walking (Sarah Walker, see?) out on him with her rolly suitcase. But I'm glad that Chuck took a backseat this week, even though it meant that we didn't get a chance to test the fan theory that Chuck's love for Sarah will make him flash, even though his fear of death didn't. Morgan continued to play messenger boy between Chuck and Sarah. Morgan's good at this, but Chuck and Sarah need to work on communicating honestly and openly -- they are not in a threesome with Morgan, and the biggest hurdle to their relationship continues to be their inability to take the risks that honesty involves. C'mon, kids! You fight Baddie the Belgian, but are afraid of opening up? Chuck and Sarah's reunion was sweet, and now Chuck knows that Sarah loves him, but it didn't resolve the question of what Sarah thinks of Chuck's spy abilities. Does that not matter? Morgan and Casey's romance, however, is doing well. Communication is no problem for them, and they both bring a lot of useful knowledge to the relationship: Morgan's the heart and Casey is the brains (and the brawn) of the coupling. I think those two kids just might make it work. The BuyMore plot didn't jibe, at all, with the A-plot this week, but it continued to set up developments for later in the season. Awesome and Ellie -- they didn't just subject themselves to another Intersect download, did they? (No, surely not. Right?) Papa B seems to have anticipated Mama B's moves; judging from the previews, we'll find out more next week. Bytes: Awesome: "Did your dad's ride get five out of five stars in side-impact protection?" Product placement, yes. But still something that Awesome would say. Morgan: "I've had this awful taste in my mouth ever since Chuck disappeared. Which makes me think that, wherever he is, he's eating something icky. It's a strange twin thing." Thai Guy: "It's amazing what a woman will do to find a husband." Jeff: "Four words: my abscess, Lester's gout." Morgan: "I overshare to connect. I'm a connector." Sarah: "Anyone else wanna be my boyfriend?" Other Thai Guy: "The people have been talking much about the giant blond she-male." Casey: "What's with all the she-male jokes?" Morgan: "It's okay now. Casey and I are here. Oh! Scary snake! Scary snake!" Morgan: "This is, like, a violation of my civil rights." And Pieces: -- So, losing the Intersect is like losing penis potency. Just remember, you heard it here first. -- When has the CIA ever cared about jurisdiction? We just saw them install a puppet government a few episodes ago! -- I loved Sarah walking into a Thai bar, speaking Thai, and then realizing that the entire bar was filled with white mercenaries. -- I also loved the BuyMorons trading medical advice for tech advice. I'm pretty sure that anyone who has ever lived without health insurance loved that, too. -- I'm going to leave it to all of you to note the numerous jungle-movie references in this episode. I know there were a lot, but I only caught the Apocalypse Now homage, which was equally well done in Hot Shots: Part Deux. Four out of four scary snakes. View all comments or post a comment. |
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