Chuck-"Chuck vs the First Bank of Evil"

Chuck and Sarah help Vivian turn to the dark side on "Chuck"
Credit: NBC

My review of tonight's episode of Chuck is after the jump.

I didn't dislike this episode, but I didn't find myself enjoying it without reservations. I enjoyed quite a bit, but I'm not exactly invested in the Vivian Volkoff storyline but the rest of the episode was very good and very fun. 

Like I said, the Vivian Volkoff storyline isn't hooking me. Sure she's no Superman or James Bond but the transformation from Vivian McArthur to Vivian Volkoff isn't terribly interesting. It's not that Lauren Cohan isn't doing a good job, but it's that the character isn't all that interesting. I'm not sure that she will make a great villain as the season continues. I don't see her becoming the major villain that Team Bartowski usually faces as a big bad. There are parallels to Chuck himself there, but that's not enough to make me interested in the character. This is something that I want to see play out, the writers may have some major twist up their sleeves where they somehow bring Alexi Volkoff back into play (which is pure speculation, but something that I won't be disappointed if it happens).

If there is one thing that I'm very intrigued in about Vivian's arc it's Ray Wise. He entered in this episode and did a fantastic job. He's my favorite post-Volkoff guest star and I'm very interested in where his character goes and how his character ties into the possible return for Alexi himself. (This may be because Ray Wise is awesome and did a fantastic job in this episode.

 The rest of the episode was very good and very enjoyable. The bank robbery scene was fantastic. I loved the way this played into the rest of the episode very well and was a very fun scene. I was able to ignore that two people who looked a lot like Vivian's team breaking in while Vivian is in the bank and I was able to enjoy a fantastic scene. Zachary Levi and Yvonne Strahovski did a great job in that scene, creating that fun mood that I have come to expect from this show.

I also really liked the continuing of the Chuck and Sarah wedding arc. The scene at the beginning with Ellie and Sarah was beautiful and very funny. I also really enjoyed the Sarah wedding dress scene. It was a great parody of the scene from so many other things (*). Strahovski did a great job in that sequence, and made "the moment" even more beautiful then it already was. I really loved that scene and it was probably my favorite part of the episode. I also liked the ending moment with Sarah making ridiculous requests for her wedding. That was a great moment that tied into the episode well.

(*) Damn, Castle has a wardrobe machine. I'd like one of those! I thought this was clever and really tied into the episode well. Lets hope that they don't suddenly forget about it. 

The Morgan plotline was very good as well. His quest to find a home had some great gags. Morgan's disgust with Big Mike dating his mom was very, very funny. As was anything involving Jeffster, it was the first non-singing plotline that clicked with me. The Renaissance idea was very funny and it worked very well. It served as great comic relief. Probably the best parts of that plotline though were anything involving Casey. The scene at the end with the two of them was fantastic and very funny. It's also interesting that Morgan's moving across the courtyard into Casey's house. I wonder how that's going to affect Morgan's relationship with Alex.

Some other thoughts:

•            The Casey mission continues to be a secret, although we got a glimpse at the room. I hope that it's worth all the trouble that they're putting into it.
•            Loved the "Lost" references in the episode. First, Francois Chau (aka Dr. Chang) guest starred as the bank manager. And the numbers on the card are very familiar. (4815162342)
•            Go with the orchids Sarah! (sorry, had to put in.)
•            Loved how Morgan's original ad was "Fabulously bearded man seeks roommate".
•           "I could be our very own Kevin Costner"
•            Loved the Chuck/Sarah lines in the bank scene. They were very funny.
•           "I thought they were installing DirectTV or something. Another example of great Chuck product placement.
•             I have to mention how awesome Zachary Levi was at the Oscars last night. He did really well on the big stage. 

Overall, I had some problems but the good out-shined the bad in this episode of Chuck.

What did everyone else think?


(I apologize for off formatting in this review compared to others, I had major google issues before publishing this review.)