TV REVIEW Chuck 1.09 "Chuck Versus the Imported Hard Salami"

Original US air date: 19/11/07

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Written by: Matt Miller, Scott Rosenbaum

Directed by: Jason Ensler

Rating:

The One Where: Chuck tries dating a new girl, but ends up snogging Sarah when they think they’re going to be killed by a bomb.

Verdict: Will they?/Won’t they? relationships are ten-a-penny on TV, but the Sarah/Chuck dynamic here is simmering away nicely. Just when you think they’ve blown it in a “Niles and Daphne finally get it together” way, up pops Sarah’s old flame Bryce to add to the mix. The episode once again offers some great action tempered by some really tender moments. Though it’s a shame that cute “sandwich girl” is gone already, the gag rate is as good as ever (“Is it just me, or does our government want me never to have sex again?”), there’s real charm here in bucketloads and the deliciously bizarre supporting characters (especially Anna, Morgan’s new feisty girlfriend) provide some entertaining support.

Highlight: Chuck chatting up sandwich girl with his spiel about fillings. “You had me at pastrami,” says an onlooker.

Geek Credentials: Morgan is seen playing Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare.

It’s Wossisname! Bryce is played by Matthew Bomer, who was Luc, Tru’s boyfriend, in a batch of Tru Calling episodes.

Best Line:
Casey (passing Chuck a Rose): "Aren’t you forgetting something, Romeo?"
Chuck: "Of course. Let me guess: this is equipped with some kind of microscopic, infrared tracking device that determines... her mother’s Communist affiliations?"
Casey: "No, idiot. It’s so you can get laid."

Dave Golder

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