Chuck Versus the Undercover Lover
Encyclopedia
"Chuck Versus the Undercover Lover" aired on January 24, 2008. It is the 12th episode of the first season of Chuck
, and aired alongside "Chuck Versus the Marlin" to close out the season. Casey is forced to revisit his past when his presumed-dead girlfriend resurfaces. Meanwhile, Ellie and Awesome have a fight, and it falls upon Morgan to help them patch things up.
undercover as an energy consultant, staying with his AP
photographer girlfriend, Ilsa (Ivana Milicevic). She goes out with her camera, leaving him to sleep in and enters a restaurant just as a bomb explodes. Casey is jarred from bed and runs out to find the plaza near the hotel in chaos. All that's left of Ilsa is the charred remains of her camera. Four years later, it is revealed a digital camera triggered Casey's memory. He is about to attack an angry customer who is berating him when Chuck intervenes. Chuck goes to the storage cage and kicks out Jeff, who is stealing celebrity hotel room phone numbers from the hotel's computer, which is in for repairs. Chuck flashes on one name in the register, and as more names trigger additional flashes he begins writing them down, except for one: Ilsa Trinchina, who has a connection with Casey. Chuck informs Casey of the flashes, and then teases him with the nickname "Sugar Bear," which he got from Ilsa's file. Casey nearly strangles him in a fit of rage.
Chuck advises Sarah of the flashes, and what he saw about Casey. Sarah's own interest is piqued and she agrees to check into it. The team is ordered by Beckman to head to the hotel to investigate. Chuck begins to tease Casey again about Ilsa, but he storms out angrily. Sarah tells Chuck that she discovered Ilsa was dead. They reach the hotel, where Chuck and Sarah use their cover as hotel staff to get close to a group of Russian mobsters gathered in town, on whom Chuck flashes. One of the mobsters mistakenly identifies Chuck as his cousin and pulls him into the celebration. While dancing with the Russians, Chuck sees Ilsa and tries to alert Sarah, but the mobster sees him and believes Chuck is trying to tell him he's interested in Sarah, so she is drawn into the dance as well. Chuck warns Sarah about Ilsa, and the two break away warning him they've been compromised. Before they can get out of sight Casey runs right into Ilsa, and tells her in disbelief he thought she was dead. Ilsa tells him when she woke up after the blast she had no memory of who she was, and could only recall his face. Meanwhile, Chuck flashes on the head of the mobsters, Victor Federov (Pavel Lychnikoff). He is in town to marry his fiance, Ilsa.
Sarah is ordered to monitor Federov, while Chuck and Casey return to the Buy More. Chuck tries to get Casey to open up, but he initially rebuffs him. After some more pestering, Casey finally tells Chuck about how he and Ilsa met, surprising Chuck that Casey is capable of real emotion. He asks why Chuck is so interested, and Chuck admits that if even Casey can find love, maybe there's hope for him as well. Casey is prepared to give up - if Ilsa was the good woman he thought, she wouldn't be with Federov. Chuck then reminds him that she didn't know what Casey did when they were together, so maybe she doesn't know about Federov. The two head back to the hotel, and tell a suspicious Sarah they've come to help. She goes to plant a bug in Federov's room and asks the two of them to monitor the surveillance. Ilsa is alone in the bar, and Chuck convinces Casey to go see her. Meanwhile, Sarah runs into trouble when the mob enforcers recognizes her from the party and is forced to knock him out and hide him. Sarah calls Casey to plant the bug, but Chuck goes instead. He sneaks into Federov's room and, while planting the bug, sees Ilsa's briefcase. He opens a secret compartment and flashes, learning that Ilsa is not who she says she is, and is actually a spy for the French.
Ilsa returns to her room and Chuck is forced to hide under the bed. She brings Casey into the room and the two are about to have sex when Chuck's phone rings and alerts Casey to his presence. Chuck warns him about his flash, but Ilsa already has a gun on him. Before any explanations can be made, a very drunk Federov returns to have sex with Ilsa, but he passes out. Ilsa helps Chuck and Casey escape. She later approaches Casey at the Buy More and admits she was never caught in the bomb blast, and works for the French Secret Service assigned to bring down Federov. She apologizes to Casey for her dishonesty, and returns the necklace he gave her in Chechnya. Later, Chuck goes to Casey's apartment and finds him heavily drunk, listening to Neil Diamond, and enjoying a dinner of burnt Hot Pockets
. Chuck tries to convince him to fight for Ilsa, but he's resigned to letting her go until they discover a bug in Ilsa's necklace planted by Federov, who knew from the start she was working for the French government. Casey immediately decides he has to save her, and drags Chuck with him.
They arrive at the hotel but are ambushed in Federov's room and tied back-to-back. Federov intends to marry and murder Ilsa, then fake his death by putting Casey, Ilsa and Chuck on his private plane and letting it crash. After Federov leaves, Casey provokes the guards. Using Chuck to protect his back and also as a weapon, he takes on the henchmen but they are eventually forced out a window and fall several stories into a pool below. Casey emerges from the pool and has guns drawn on him by several of Federov's men as he announces his objection to the wedding. Sarah backs him up, but recognizing she is outnumbered, sets her gun down only to kick it to Ilsa, who ends the stalemate by drawing it on Federov.
Casey and Ilsa share one night together and say goodbye outside Chuck's apartment the next morning (while he incompetently tries to spy on them). After she leaves, Casey tells Chuck that they'll likely never see each other again. Chuck tries to offer Casey consolation saying that at least they have their friendship, but Casey angrily shoves him away into the bushes and walks alone back into his apartment.
Awesome spends the evening at the Buy More with Morgan, Jeff, Lester, and other Nerd Herders and Green Shirts complaining about relationships over a game of poker, which Awesome wins. Unfortunately he didn't realize that the all-male group was playing strip poker
, and hurriedly leaves when the others start undressing. Meanwhile, Sarah is looking for Chuck and arrives at his apartment, where she finds that Ellie is very drunk and upset about the fight. Sarah tries to get away at first but agrees to stay when Ellie begins to freak out about being left alone. Morgan shows up and Sarah uses him as an excuse to leave and find Chuck and Casey.
Morgan tries to help Ellie to bed, but she passes out drunk on the couch. Eventually he gets her to the bedroom where he stays at her insistence. When she wakes up the next morning she initially panics before realizing that nothing actually happened. She thanks Morgan for being there, and especially for not taking advantage of her. Awesome comes in and apologizes. Morgan flinches fearing he's about to be hit, but Awesome knows that it wasn't even possible Ellie would actually sleep with Morgan. Awesome shows Ellie that he got her the TV, and the two make up.
, with the second episode of Chuck, "Chuck Versus the Marlin
", airing at 10pm. These were the last two episodes completed by the time of the 2007 Writers' Strike
, which interrupted production of the series. Although Chuck received a full, 22-episode pickup for the rest of the season, Josh Schwartz elected to end with the episodes already filmed rather than restart production.
This was the first episode to reveal significant details of John Casey's personal life. Bosnian actress Ivana Milicevic was cast in the role of Casey's former girlfriend Ilsa Trinchina, whom he believed was killed in a bombing in Chechnya. Josh Schwartz stated in interviews that this episode would provide a glimpse into what makes Casey, Casey, showing that Ilsa'a apparent death profoundly affected his personality.
TV Squad enjoyed the break from the Chuck and Sarah relationship and the focus on Casey, and the role-swapping with Sarah as the "straight man" while Casey had his turn to get into trouble with Chuck. They also praised the development of Ellie, Awesome and Morgan. As with IGN, the fight scene with Casey and Chuck tied together was particularly noteworthy.
Chuck (TV series)
Chuck is an action-comedy/spy-drama television program from the United States created by Josh Schwartz and Chris Fedak. The series is about an "average computer-whiz-next-door" named Chuck, played by Zachary Levi, who receives an encoded e-mail from an old college friend now working for the Central...
, and aired alongside "Chuck Versus the Marlin" to close out the season. Casey is forced to revisit his past when his presumed-dead girlfriend resurfaces. Meanwhile, Ellie and Awesome have a fight, and it falls upon Morgan to help them patch things up.
Main Plot
In 2004, John Casey is in ChechnyaChechnya
The Chechen Republic , commonly referred to as Chechnya , also spelled Chechnia or Chechenia, sometimes referred to as Ichkeria , is a federal subject of Russia . It is located in the southeastern part of Europe in the Northern Caucasus mountains. The capital of the republic is the city of Grozny...
undercover as an energy consultant, staying with his AP
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
photographer girlfriend, Ilsa (Ivana Milicevic). She goes out with her camera, leaving him to sleep in and enters a restaurant just as a bomb explodes. Casey is jarred from bed and runs out to find the plaza near the hotel in chaos. All that's left of Ilsa is the charred remains of her camera. Four years later, it is revealed a digital camera triggered Casey's memory. He is about to attack an angry customer who is berating him when Chuck intervenes. Chuck goes to the storage cage and kicks out Jeff, who is stealing celebrity hotel room phone numbers from the hotel's computer, which is in for repairs. Chuck flashes on one name in the register, and as more names trigger additional flashes he begins writing them down, except for one: Ilsa Trinchina, who has a connection with Casey. Chuck informs Casey of the flashes, and then teases him with the nickname "Sugar Bear," which he got from Ilsa's file. Casey nearly strangles him in a fit of rage.
Chuck advises Sarah of the flashes, and what he saw about Casey. Sarah's own interest is piqued and she agrees to check into it. The team is ordered by Beckman to head to the hotel to investigate. Chuck begins to tease Casey again about Ilsa, but he storms out angrily. Sarah tells Chuck that she discovered Ilsa was dead. They reach the hotel, where Chuck and Sarah use their cover as hotel staff to get close to a group of Russian mobsters gathered in town, on whom Chuck flashes. One of the mobsters mistakenly identifies Chuck as his cousin and pulls him into the celebration. While dancing with the Russians, Chuck sees Ilsa and tries to alert Sarah, but the mobster sees him and believes Chuck is trying to tell him he's interested in Sarah, so she is drawn into the dance as well. Chuck warns Sarah about Ilsa, and the two break away warning him they've been compromised. Before they can get out of sight Casey runs right into Ilsa, and tells her in disbelief he thought she was dead. Ilsa tells him when she woke up after the blast she had no memory of who she was, and could only recall his face. Meanwhile, Chuck flashes on the head of the mobsters, Victor Federov (Pavel Lychnikoff). He is in town to marry his fiance, Ilsa.
Sarah is ordered to monitor Federov, while Chuck and Casey return to the Buy More. Chuck tries to get Casey to open up, but he initially rebuffs him. After some more pestering, Casey finally tells Chuck about how he and Ilsa met, surprising Chuck that Casey is capable of real emotion. He asks why Chuck is so interested, and Chuck admits that if even Casey can find love, maybe there's hope for him as well. Casey is prepared to give up - if Ilsa was the good woman he thought, she wouldn't be with Federov. Chuck then reminds him that she didn't know what Casey did when they were together, so maybe she doesn't know about Federov. The two head back to the hotel, and tell a suspicious Sarah they've come to help. She goes to plant a bug in Federov's room and asks the two of them to monitor the surveillance. Ilsa is alone in the bar, and Chuck convinces Casey to go see her. Meanwhile, Sarah runs into trouble when the mob enforcers recognizes her from the party and is forced to knock him out and hide him. Sarah calls Casey to plant the bug, but Chuck goes instead. He sneaks into Federov's room and, while planting the bug, sees Ilsa's briefcase. He opens a secret compartment and flashes, learning that Ilsa is not who she says she is, and is actually a spy for the French.
Ilsa returns to her room and Chuck is forced to hide under the bed. She brings Casey into the room and the two are about to have sex when Chuck's phone rings and alerts Casey to his presence. Chuck warns him about his flash, but Ilsa already has a gun on him. Before any explanations can be made, a very drunk Federov returns to have sex with Ilsa, but he passes out. Ilsa helps Chuck and Casey escape. She later approaches Casey at the Buy More and admits she was never caught in the bomb blast, and works for the French Secret Service assigned to bring down Federov. She apologizes to Casey for her dishonesty, and returns the necklace he gave her in Chechnya. Later, Chuck goes to Casey's apartment and finds him heavily drunk, listening to Neil Diamond, and enjoying a dinner of burnt Hot Pockets
Hot Pockets
Hot Pockets are microwaveable turnovers usually containing a combination of cheese, meat, and vegetables. Hot Pockets are currently produced by Hylan Steez.- Varieties :...
. Chuck tries to convince him to fight for Ilsa, but he's resigned to letting her go until they discover a bug in Ilsa's necklace planted by Federov, who knew from the start she was working for the French government. Casey immediately decides he has to save her, and drags Chuck with him.
They arrive at the hotel but are ambushed in Federov's room and tied back-to-back. Federov intends to marry and murder Ilsa, then fake his death by putting Casey, Ilsa and Chuck on his private plane and letting it crash. After Federov leaves, Casey provokes the guards. Using Chuck to protect his back and also as a weapon, he takes on the henchmen but they are eventually forced out a window and fall several stories into a pool below. Casey emerges from the pool and has guns drawn on him by several of Federov's men as he announces his objection to the wedding. Sarah backs him up, but recognizing she is outnumbered, sets her gun down only to kick it to Ilsa, who ends the stalemate by drawing it on Federov.
Casey and Ilsa share one night together and say goodbye outside Chuck's apartment the next morning (while he incompetently tries to spy on them). After she leaves, Casey tells Chuck that they'll likely never see each other again. Chuck tries to offer Casey consolation saying that at least they have their friendship, but Casey angrily shoves him away into the bushes and walks alone back into his apartment.
Buy More
Ellie and Awesome come into the Buy More. They're greeted by Jeff and Lester, but Morgan takes control to help them decide on a joint anniversary gift. Ellie is interested in a big-screen TV, but Awesome is eyeing a washer and dryer. Both insist their choice will give them more time together - Ellie believes they can watch TV together, while Awesome argues they don't have to worry about laundromats and can stay in more. Ellie gets paged by the hospital and leaves the choice to Devon, who decides on the washer/dryer. When she finds out that he went with his own choice of the washer/dryer, the two get into a fight.Awesome spends the evening at the Buy More with Morgan, Jeff, Lester, and other Nerd Herders and Green Shirts complaining about relationships over a game of poker, which Awesome wins. Unfortunately he didn't realize that the all-male group was playing strip poker
Strip poker
Strip poker is a party game and a variation of the traditional poker where players remove clothing when they lose a round. Any form of poker can be adapted to a strip form; however, it is usually played with simple variants with few betting rounds, like five card draw...
, and hurriedly leaves when the others start undressing. Meanwhile, Sarah is looking for Chuck and arrives at his apartment, where she finds that Ellie is very drunk and upset about the fight. Sarah tries to get away at first but agrees to stay when Ellie begins to freak out about being left alone. Morgan shows up and Sarah uses him as an excuse to leave and find Chuck and Casey.
Morgan tries to help Ellie to bed, but she passes out drunk on the couch. Eventually he gets her to the bedroom where he stays at her insistence. When she wakes up the next morning she initially panics before realizing that nothing actually happened. She thanks Morgan for being there, and especially for not taking advantage of her. Awesome comes in and apologizes. Morgan flinches fearing he's about to be hit, but Awesome knows that it wasn't even possible Ellie would actually sleep with Morgan. Awesome shows Ellie that he got her the TV, and the two make up.
Production
"Chuck Versus the Undercover Lover" was one of two episodes aired on January 24 to close out the season. It was run at 8pm EST, followed by an episode of The ApprenticeThe Apprentice (U.S. TV series)
The Apprentice is an American reality television show hosted by real estate magnate, businessman and television personality Donald Trump, created by Mark Burnett and broadcast on NBC...
, with the second episode of Chuck, "Chuck Versus the Marlin
Chuck Versus the Marlin
"Chuck Versus the Marlin" is the 13th episode and season finale of the first season of Chuck. It aired in a special two-episode block on January 24, 2008 with "Chuck Versus the Undercover Lover." Chuck's time as a civilian may be coming to a close when a Fulcrum bug is discovered at the Buy More,...
", airing at 10pm. These were the last two episodes completed by the time of the 2007 Writers' Strike
2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike
The 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike, more commonly referred to as simply the Writers' Strike, was a strike by the Writers Guild of America, East and the Writers Guild of America, West ....
, which interrupted production of the series. Although Chuck received a full, 22-episode pickup for the rest of the season, Josh Schwartz elected to end with the episodes already filmed rather than restart production.
This was the first episode to reveal significant details of John Casey's personal life. Bosnian actress Ivana Milicevic was cast in the role of Casey's former girlfriend Ilsa Trinchina, whom he believed was killed in a bombing in Chechnya. Josh Schwartz stated in interviews that this episode would provide a glimpse into what makes Casey, Casey, showing that Ilsa'a apparent death profoundly affected his personality.
Production Details
Contrary to the subtitles, Sarah does not say "Don't touch me again, pig" in Russian to her assailant in the hotel. She says "Touch me again, and I'll break off not only your finger." (Datronsya do menya otkruchu ne tolko paletz.)Flashes
- Chuck flashes on several names in the hotel computer, including Ilsa's, which revealed her connection to Casey.
- At the hotel Chuck identifies several of the mobsters with additional flashes.
- Chuck flashes on Victor Federov and determines why the mobsters are there.
- A flash on the contents of Ilsa's briefcase identifies her as a French intelligence operative.
- Chuck flashes on the bug Federov planted on Ilsa's necklace.
Music
- "Mexican Hat Dance" (Chuck's cellphone ring tone)
- "Love On The Rocks" by Neil DiamondNeil DiamondNeil Leslie Diamond is an American singer-songwriter with a career spanning over five decades from the 1960s until the present....
- "UltimateSuper Taranta!Super Taranta! is the fourth album by gypsy punk band Gogol Bordello released on the July 10, 2007 on SideOneDummy records. This album was #14 on Rolling Stones list of the Top 50 Albums of 2007...
" by Gogol BordelloGogol BordelloGogol Bordello is a Gypsy punk band from the Lower East Side of Manhattan, formed in 1999 and known for theatrical stage shows and persistent touring.Much of the band's sound is inspired by Gypsy music...
Reception
The episode was well-received. IGN.com scored it an 8.7 out of 10, particularly citing the development of Casey's character. IGN also praised the revelation of Ilsa's identity and the fight scene with Chuck and Casey tied back-to-back. Some moments were more awkward, but chalked up to the limited rewrites possible due to the writer's strike.TV Squad enjoyed the break from the Chuck and Sarah relationship and the focus on Casey, and the role-swapping with Sarah as the "straight man" while Casey had his turn to get into trouble with Chuck. They also praised the development of Ellie, Awesome and Morgan. As with IGN, the fight scene with Casey and Chuck tied together was particularly noteworthy.