As the temperature plummets below zero, Chuck tries to flash, but the Intersect continues to short out. Chuck tries to call Sarah, but his phone doesn't get any service. Chuck pleads with Rye to do something, but Rye wants Chuck to flash in the face of certain death. He tries to flash again, but can't. With the spies nearly frozen, Rye steps up to the computer and inputs the combination. The air stops and compartments in the vault open, revealing numerous copies of the diamond. Chuck removes a jeweler's loop from his pocket: fortunately, when he learned the mission would concern a diamond, he grabbed a loop from Castle and took an online gemology course on the plane. Since the diamond in question is supposed to be internally flawless, Chuck studies the copies, but finds them all to be made of glass. He does, however, find a microdot inside each one. They decide to take one and analyze it further. Before they leave, Rye tells Chuck that he may need more intense fear therapy to regain the Intersect. He believes that Chuck's rock is tied to Chuck's deepest anxiety: Sarah.
Casey and Alex dine at their favorite pie place. Alex remarks that their lunch has been rather quiet. Morgan said that Casey has been so ornery at work that he is going to have to stage an intervention. She knows that he hasn't been on a mission in a while, but there must be something more going on that an itchy trigger finger. Casey says that he's distancing himself from his friends in case he is ordered back to Iraq or Afghanistan now that Chuck no longer has the Intersect. Alex thinks on this, and asks her father that if he does end up leaving, wouldn't he rather be nice to his friends then push them away?
At the Buy More, Morgan finds a Subway sandwich (BPP #2!) placed precariously on the Nerd Herd desk. He brings the sub to Jeff and Lester who admonish him for removing their Greta bait. Morgan tells them that they need to stop messing with Greta, but Lester insists that they won't be stopped! They leave to try to find Greta, who silently appears behind Morgan. She says that Jeff and Lester are a risk to the CIA's mission at the Buy More, and if they don't stop, she will have to neutralize the risk. "If they bother me again," Greta says, pulling out her knife, "they are going to meet my best friend."
As Rye sets up a computer to analyze the fake diamond, he asks Chuck why he always calls out for Sarah before he flashes. "Are you a spy, or a guy with a spy girlfriend?" Chuck insists that he is a spy. The guys link up with General Beckman, Sarah and Casey. They determine that the microdot contains intelligence The Belgian is selling to the bad guys of the world. Sarah asks if she can go to Switzerland to assist in retrieving all of the fake diamonds, but Chuck says no. He can handle it without her. Sarah insists, stating that it isn't safe for him to face the bad guys alone. The two of them squabble, their fight escalating until Chuck says he is a spy, and Sarah yelling, "No, Chuck, you're not!" Chuck is stunned. Sarah quickly adds, "Not right now," but the damage is done. Beckman orders Sarah to Switzerland. Sarah tells Chuck that they will talk when she gets there; she can't let him risk his life alone.
Back at the Buy More, Lester pages Greta over the P.A. system to come to the storage cage for a Subway sandwich (BPP #3!). Morgan, hearing the announcement, mutters that he is going to kill Jeff and Lester if Greta doesn't. With Casey watching on a screen in Castle, Greta enters the cage. Morgan tries to stop Jeff and Lester's interrogation, but they remain unbowed. Lester finally demands, "What do you know? Who are you?!?" Greta pulls out her knife and replies, "Do you want to die with your wig on or off?" "Are you talking about my hair?" Lester, hurt, responds. Before Greta can knife Lester, Casey appears and orders her to stand down. Casey tells Jeff and Lester that Greta was acting shady because she was stealing head massagers. Morgan leads Greta off to "fire" her, and Casey thanks Jeff and Lester for their service to the Buy More. Crisis averted.
Chuck receives a text message from Sarah that she has landed in Switzerland, so he should call her. He ignores the message and views The Belgian in the vault; he is going to leave with the diamonds. Rye suggests that they should arrest The Belgian in the gondola he needs to get back down the mountain. They can wait for Sarah, or they can be heroes. Chuck chooses the latter. Sarah calls Chuck while driving to the auction house, but only gets his voicemail. She says she's on her way, and that she loves him. Meanwhile, in Castle, Greta tells Casey that she used to admire his work, but she is disappointed in the Buy More outpost, and in Casey himself. Casey doesn't appreciate the insult, so he tells Greta to not let the door hit her ass on the way out. Greta gives a perfect Casey-style grunt, which Casey matches in return, and she leaves (this double grunt was my favorite part of the episode). Morgan enters and notices that one of Castle's screens is flashing a picture of Chuck. This is not good news. Chuck's being the Intersect is on the microdot -- The Belgian knows Chuck is the Intersect!
Sarah calls Chuck, who finally picks up, and tries to tell him that The Belgian knows his identity, but Rye grabs the phone and hangs up before she can finish. The spies get on the gondola with The Belgian. Rye pulls his gun, as do The Belgian's henchmen. Rye says The Belgian is coming with him, but The Belgian insists Agent Carmichael is coming with him, or he will die. Rye asks if Chuck is scared, which he is. So is Rye. Chuck tries to flash, and gets closer to his Chuck Fu, but the Intersect continues to short. Rye whispers that the Intersect might return if they are in a fight. "Let's find out!" he says before attacking the henchmen. During the ensuing fight, the gondola door is opened, and Chuck is pushed out of it. Fortunately, he grabs the bottom of the gondola car, but is dangling hundreds of feet in the air.
Rye dispatched the henchmen and knocks down The Belgian. He approaches Chuck and tells him to flash, as he is certainly in store for certain death if he doesn't. Chuck tries, but to no avail. "Focus, Chuck," Rye orders. "Tell yourself you don't need Sarah." Chuck replies that he does need her, and that he'd gladly give up the Intersect for Sarah's love. With Chuck still hanging out of the gondola, Rye responds that the CIA sent him to make sure Chuck gets the Intersect back. Chuck needs to get the rock off and be a real spy like him. Just then, a bullet rips through Rye's chest. "Did I just get shot? I certainly did," Rye says, amazed, before falling out of the gondola to his death. The Belgian replaces his smoking gun and helps Chuck back up into the gondola. Sarah's phone rings. She answers and asks Chuck if he is OK, but it is The Belgian on the line. "Pursue Agent Carmichael and we'll kill him...slowly," the bad guy tells Sarah before hanging up.
Back at Castle, Sarah tells General Beckman that she wants to follow The Belgian back to Belgium. The General tells her that they have no intelligence that says Chuck is there, or anywhere for that matter. Sarah pleads her case, but Beckman orders her to go home and rest. Casey (who was given an unnamed mission by the General) tells Sarah not to worry. Chuck is a smart guy, Intersect or no. Sarah blames herself for Chuck's capture: if she hadn't said what she did, Chuck wouldn't have tried to prove that he's a spy. Chuck awakes strapped to a chair. The Belgian informs him that he wants the Intersect. Cut back to Sarah packing guns into a bag at home. Casey and Morgan enter and tell her that she won't be going alone. They are going to go with her to find Chuck. The Belgian prepares a hypodermic needle and asks again for the Intersect, but Chuck insists he no longer has it. The Belgian doesn't believe him and brings the needle closer. "The less you resist, the less painful this is going to be." To be continued....
Commentary
It may seem a little obvious, but "Chuck vs the Fear of Death" was clearly a set-up episode. The entire thing felt like one long exposition, and therefore, wasn't the best of Chuck episodes. This isn't to say that the episode was poor in any way,
but compared with the last couple episodes, this one just fell a little flat. Surprisingly, the best part was the Buy More stuff, as they actually gave the Greta something to do instead of just look hot in a Nerd Herd uniform (not that there's anything inherently wrong with that). Otherwise, the main plot just felt like an excuse to build the story to what looks to be like a kick-ass episode next week.
To me, it felt like the "Sarah worries about Chuck's spy ability" story has been done over and over again, especially during the lackluster first two-thirds of last year's Season Three. Alan Sepinwall describes my feeling well, when he mentions that the show missed an opportunity, at least so far, for Chuck to prove his spy worth by using his natural intelligence to succeed in the mission. This was a main thrust of Chuck's first two seasons: that despite his lack of true spy skills, Chuck was still an asset due to his computer/video game/nerd tendencies. With the introduction of Chuck Fu and Intersect 2.0, Chuck hasn't had to rely on those faculties at all. With the Intersect now suppressed, it would be nice to see Chuck rely on his given talents to get himself out of trouble. Perhaps that will occur next week when the story continues, but as far as this week's episode was concerned, that opportunity was missed.
Sarah's doubt of Chuck's skills did lead to the very well played moment when Sarah blurts that Chuck isn't a spy. Yes, it's ground that has been covered before, but Zachary Levi and Yvonne Strahovski are so skilled and have such great chemistry that even though they were acting across video screens, the moment felt honest and earned. Bravo once again to these two.
The Casey subplot was good. I believe that Casey, as gruff as he is, would try to push his friends away if he thought he was going to be sent back overseas after Operation Bartowski had concluded. This season has done a great job humanizing Casey and making him appreciate the fact that he does, in fact, have friends and family in Burbank and the Buy More, despite his possible desires to the contrary. This is a man that since he became John Casey (and Alexander Coburn "died") hasn't had any family or friends at all. Such people were liabilities that could be used against him. So, he may have been reluctant at first, but Casey is beginning to realize the value in having people close to him. This creates nice moments for the show, as they can parallel the Chuck-Sarah relationship, and lets Adam Baldwin stretch himself, a task he is more than capable of tackling.
So, all in all, this was an OK episode of Chuck. It set up what looks like an excellent, Sarah-centric episode where Yvonne Strahovski's martial arts skills will be fully put to the test. Color me intrigued. What did you think of "Chuck vs the Fear of Death"? Where would you rank it in this fourth season? What did you think of guest stars Rob Riggle and Richard Chamberlain (Personally, I thought they were both great. I've loved Riggle since his The Daily Show days, and Chamberlain is just a class act)? Did you catch the Marathon Man homage at the end? Are you as psyched for Sarah kicking some ass next week as I am? Please leave your thoughts, questions and comments below. For another TVOvermind take on "Chuck vs the Fear of Death," check out Emma's review. I'll be back next week with a recap of "Chuck vs Phase Three." Until then, I'm off to smell like grapefruit.
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For me I really enjoyed this episode it my favorite storyline is Jeff and Lassiter thoses to characters are so much fun you have to wonder what is going though there heads…..