April 10, 2009

tgif top 10

One of my favorite TV blogs devoted this week to promoting love for NBC's Chuck. Because my own love for this show has grown even more in the second season, I'm inspired to use this week's top 10 list to convince you to watch. So, here we go...

Top 10 Reasons to Watch Chuck:


1. Zachary Levi. I'll try to abstain from a full on gushfest and just say the guy is super talented playing a role that requires him to bring the funny and the drama - usually simultaneously - with a heavy dose of physical comedy, and he makes it all look easy.

2. Music.
The soundtrack of this show is amazing. I don't always love a "musical montage," but the action scenes and busy plotlines often require them - and the music is always perfect. I've found some great new music through this show, and NBC always makes them easy to find on iTunes. And I'd be remiss to not mention "Jeffster" whose rendition of Africa by Toto nearly had this girl out of her chair.

3. The Spy Within.
Admit it, you know you have one. Some little piece of you always wanted to be a spy. Here's your chance to learn some tools and tricks of the trade.

4. Nerds.
Chuck's "real life" job is with the Nerd Herd at BuyMore electronic superstore. As a nerd prone to nerd crushes, I can't get enough of Chuck and his weirdo BuyMore friends.

5. Girl Fights.
Yvonne Strahovski does a terrific job playing Sarah Walker, one of Chuck's CIA handlers and his "cover" girlfriend. Not only does she have great chemistry with Levi, she's also hot and frequently fights other tough girls.

6.
Major John Casey. No words really.

7. The Financial Crisis. It can be tied to everything these days, right? We'll just say it's cheaper than going to a movie. Depending of course on your cable provider.

8. This Video. I just realized Zach Levi's site posted a video called Ten Reasons to Watch Chuck. I wasn't copying. Promise.

9. Guest Stars. I have to hand it to the producers/writers/network for attracting some amazing guest star appearances - not only great actors, but also really well-written roles that don't seem too forced. Some favorites: Rachel Bilson, Nicole Richie, Ben Savage, Michael Clark Duncan, John Larroquette, Dominic Monaghan, Jordana Brewster, Morgan Fairchild, Gary Cole, and most recently Quantum Leap's Scott Bakula - perfectly cast as Chuck's dad (and as an added treat, NBC.com is showing old episodes of Quantum Leap!).

10. NBC.
Franky, NBC needs this show. Besides standby Law & Order: SVU and what has proven a reliably strong Thursday night comedy lineup, NBC doesn't have too many sturdy (scripted) legs to stand on. The network did a good thing standing by Friday Night Lights, but craptastic wonders like Heroes and Knight Rider just aren't going to cut it, especially with next season's late night talk show marathon cutting down the programming time to 10 hours per week. If NBC would get behind Chuck (still not forgiven for neglecting to run the 3-D episode post-SuperBowl), the show has huge potential for broad audience appeal - action, comedy, love, music - all wrapped up in a relatively family friendly package of wonderfulness.

Have I convinced anyone? Go catch up on NBC.com, hulu, Netflix, etc. But you can jump in any time due to Chuck's handy little "here's what you need to know" recaps at the beginning of each episode.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

I agree--NBC definitely should have shown Chuck post superbowl!

Pamela Jaye said...

I love how 3 of your top 5 (shows) are in the same time slot (well not really, I have the same problem - plus HIMYM - i have 3 tuner cards and there's not enough time between HIMYM and BBT for the beginning of HIMYM to not get cut off :-( )

(you misspelled Quantum)

Maura said...

thanks! "quantum" doesn't come up too often in every day life. agreed, mondays are killer. i watch HIMYM too, so it's a painful choice over which i will be forced to watch online.

Post a Comment