John Larroquette steals the show in ‘Chuck vs. The Seduction’
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- October
- 7
One of the first sitcoms I latched onto as a kid was “Night Court.” Yes, there was a lot of broad, bawdy humor that was probably not age-appropriate when I first discovered the NBC show in syndication on Fox, but I wasn’t the only one laughing hardest at the debaucherous Dan Fielding, played by brilliant five-time Emmy winner John Larroquette.
Larroquette would go on to star in his darker, self-titled NBC sitcom for 84 episodes, and continue to make a name for himself on other series—including recurring role on ABC’s “Boston Public” that scored him one of his Emmys—but there’s an entire generation of viewers who may not have had the chance to appreciate his dry delivery before last night’s episode of “Chuck.”
Let’s face it: “Chuck,” while struggling to collect, maintain and build an audience, was already a helluva show before Larroquette agreed to do a one-episode cameo. But last night’s main storyline might have been among the three best the series has showcased to this point. As superspy Roan Montgomery, Larroquette was one of the reasons why this edition was particularly hilarious, engaging and fun all the way around. They’d be smart to bring him back.
Even fans of “The OC,” which was the brainchild of “Chuck” creator Josh Schwartz, had to have been elated to see Melinda Clarke play a rogue KGB agent.
The only weak parts of this episode were the subplots: Ellie’s demands for more romance from Awesome, just felt contrived. And Lester’s losing control of the Buy More staff felt more reaching than funny. Does the Buy More really need a true bad guy? I thought that was why the show got rid of Harry Tang, played by C.S. Lee. (I’m still sad about Lee’s departure, but not sad to see his unlikable character go.) Lester’s more fun—obviously—when he, Jeff and Morgan are just being slackers. But before I complain too much, I should remember that there’s an arc building here to allow for the arrival of Tony Hale’s shape-up-or-ship-out character, coming soon!
I’ve been swamped of late, so I’ll recap some of my favorite parts of “Chuck vs. The Seduction” later today or tomorrow. Thanks in advance for your patience.
In the meantime, what did you think of “Chuck vs. The Seduction”? And what did you think of the subplots? Post your thoughts below.
(Photo by Adam Taylor, courtesy of NBC/Universal.)
This entry was posted
on Tuesday, October 7th, 2008 at 10:00 am by Chris Serico.
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Hey, “Chuck” fans! Check out this Mr. Media podcast interview with Joshua Gomez, who plays Chuck’s best friend Morgan on the show!