Chuck vs. Best Episode Ever Pt. 54 (SPOILERS)

So the Chuck finale was epic. Of course we shouldn't really be surprised by that because I think every single episode of Season 3 has been better than the last and many have been better than any in the previous two seasons. The Season 3 finale certainly falls into the latter category eclipsing the Season 2 finale, a feat going in I'm not sure I would have expected, though probably should have. Sadly ratings haven't been there and I do wish more people were watching this show although I suspect with the Celtics playing in New England last night I might have been the only one watching live.

Needless to say I can't WAIT for Season 4 and I am elated that NBC has decided to stick with such an amazing show, really just watch Season 3.5 and if you aren't convinced well I just don't know. Long live Chuck!! What follows are some very random musings on the finale, it lacks any real structure of a review more rambling thoughts, you've been warned.

I have to say I HATED Shaw with a burning passion when he was trying to put the wedge between Chuck and Sarah in early Season 3. I get why it was important to have that but Shaw I dunno it was hard to find much at all to like about him and I actively cheered when Chuck pumped a couple of rounds into him. For as much as I'd have been okay for him to have been dead (let's face it that isn't the way this show works!) the way he came back is what I've been hoping for from the spy part of the show for a long long time. Very shadowy, intense, conspiracy, etc.  Also for as much as Brandon Routh didn't pull off anything likeable about Shaw his delivery of evil Shaw was amazing and downright bone chilling at times. So cold, so calculating, and perhaps the best line ever when he looks at Chuck and makes a very dry pronunciation of "Mwa-ha-ha" I mean that is just comedic genius right there and such a nod to spy baddies everywhere. And now he's alive with an Intersect so I imagine we haven't seen the last of him, buy a long shot. I feel like Team Bartowski might have a worth adversary in him. Although it was fun to see how Chuck was able to beet Shaw with the one thing Shaw doesn't have...any family or friends. I feel like even Beckman started to realize that more than the intersect that was Chuck's biggest asset.

If I am disappointed by anything spy wise it is that we still don't seem to know anything more about The Ring. What's there deal we have the elder's in custody now but I mean what were/are they up to? Do they have any kind of plan at all? I think Shaw being at the head brings some credibility and I don't imagine that he is going to stay captured for long. I like the way that the captured the elders baiting Shaw into warning them that is Chuck being smart without the intersect and that's always nice to see, though it did seem a little too easy. Although really Morgan w/a machine gun (all be it unloaded) is worth it ;)

Lots to like elsewhere. I really liked the way they brought Ellie in to the spy world even though we're not sure what it means, with by completely manipulating her and using her ignorance against her. And of course she's a Bartowski so she handles it pretty well overall. Morgan and Casey continue to delight and I really really hope Casey's daughter is at least a recurring character in S4 if not a full member of the cast (at least one of the two seems likely based on her apperance at the dinner table at the end) because not only would it be cool for Morgan to get a girl again but the interplay between Casey/Morgan on that would be a limitless comedic gold mine. I don't think they missed a great chance for a reference in the scene where Casey has kidnapped his daughter and the bad guys are arriving. I was absolutely convinced that Casey was going to say "Come with me if you want to live." Of course Morgan and Casey have bonded and that's been fun to watch and I think Casey would probably be cool with it ultimately because he knows Morgan is a good guy at heart. Other great Casey moment's I'm always a fan of Casey and Sarah moments like when he uses her name and tells her she's found a good guy in Chuck...good stuff.

Buy More is gone and for as much as I get that I dunno I miss the geek references of Season 1. The Jeffster video made a good backdrop for the Chuck/Shaw fight and I wonder if we will see any of the fugitives next season. Speaking of the Chuck/Shaw fight it was fairly epic very much along the lines of what we would want for intersect v. intersect. Hope we haven't seen the last of that. I'd like to see them flash between many different fighting styles in the course of battle. Evil Shaw is so evil that I would be okay if he were a commic book style recurring vilian ala Joker or as the creators described him Harvey Dent. Also cool that Sarah got to club Shaw and she got a good shot at him earlier as well. After this episode I think it is abundantly clear where the loyalties of every member of Team Bartowski lie, with Chuck. Even Casey/Sarah who are all for love of country I think have transitioned to being more on Team Bartowski than Team USA, immediately volunteering in the truck to go rouge for him.

Then there's our hero couple and while there's so much else going on in this episode we do get some great moments. Chuck's line that he'll always chose to protect Sarah. The best moment by far though is the scene when Chuck doesn't take out Shaw and Shaw proclaims "That's what makes you weak." Then Sarah, clubbing him "No, that's what makes him great." I think the moments between Sarah and Papa B. were also pretty cool as well. Really all good stuff!

What's next? If I had to speculate I'd say that Buy More is gone to make way in the casting/set/whatever budgets for whatever is coming next season. But let's raise one to Buy Moria!! I think the new "Castle" will be the old Bartowski home and it seems like the new paradigm will be something akin to Knight Rider's FLAG organization kind of pseudo law-enforcement/spy operating acting outside the government. I suppose the Batman analogy could be extended as well. Chuck as more of a superhero than a government agent. Conceptually based on who/what Chuck has become it makes sense on a number of different levels. We'll see if the execution does as well. Perhaps we'll see Beckman feeding the missions or cases while officially the INTERSECT project is off the books entirely. Obviously the promise to Ellie needs to be dealt with somehow and I'm not quite sure how that is going to happen. I hope that we don't go back to the lets lie about everything strategy. I suspect she will be drawn in some how based on what we think we've learned in the finale scene of the episode.

Can't wait for Season 4!!!!!!!! Thank you to everyone who is involved with bringing this great show into our lives!