I know this is supposed to be a recap, but I have to start with the part that struck me the most. And it’s not a scene that has much to do with the main plot of “Chuck Versus the Sizzling Shrimp,” but rather a secondary storyline that has more to do with establishing the main characters and with one of the show’s overarching themes.

It’s also one that calls for a bit of a mea culpa on my part—just a tiny bit.

For Chuck and Ellie, Mother’s Day is about as significant a day for them as a family as there is on the calendar. And through much of this episode, we’re left to wonder why, especially as Chuck finds himself not finding time for Ellie (or Morgan, for that matter) because the government is taking all his time.

So, jumping right to the end, the Mother’s Day dinner finally comes together. And defying tradition, Ellie has invited Morgan and Sarah along.

This sets up a useful bit of exposition in which Chuck explains to Sarah about Mother’s Day, Bartowski-style. For them it’s the anniversary of the day their mom left. Sure, their dad was there (as we’d later learn), but he was never really there. So that was the day they learned to rely on themselves.

That’s so much more than we ever usually learn about any character in one shot, isn’t it? The writers subtly summed up everything you need to know about who Chuck and Ellie are as people and why they’re so close.

Now, about that mea culpa. I’ve complained about the weird vibe I used to get early on between Chuck and Ellie, that there was a kind of sexual-type tension. No, I didn’t think it was actually sexual (or that it was egregious or constant). It was just that it seemed like the writers didn’t always do a great job differentiating their relationship from your typical troubled romantic TV relationship.

I’ve had people agree with me on this, and I’ve been challenged on it too. Recently, in fact.

And in all fairness, I just want to say it totally worked for me by the end of this episode. I was totally feeling the familial tension between them and really feeling for all they’d lost and all that had made them so close.

That Ellie would come to accept Chuck’s new girl and his best friend into their private family celebration was pretty decent and showed what we now know so well—that she only wants the best for him even if it means them growing a little bit apart.

Also, they did a good job showing how torn he is between competing obligations and his innate desire to do what’s right by those he cares about. In the end, Chuck saved the day, and we saw that his family and friends don’t give up on him so easily.

This exchange in particular relieved my earlier trepidation…

Chuck: Ellie, you know you’ll always be my best girl.

Ellie: Don’t take this the wrong way Chuck. I hope not.

That actual conflict surrounding the Triads and the renegade Chinese agent was almost the least interesting thing about this episode. However, it did set up some fun stuff.

You had Chuck and Morgan doing corny Kung Fu impressions to Sarah’s horror delight. There was Chuck getting tips on how to tail someone. (Normal tail rules apply to the double tail.) And there was Casey’s priceless appraisal of Mei-Ling: “Glocks and crotch rocket. My kind of gal.”

One serious bit of business I did appreciate was Chuck screwing up and rescuing the bad guy instead of Mei-Ling’s brother and feeling torn about the damage he’d done. Compounding it is the bit of realism that Sarah drops on him when she says they can’t save everyone.

His guilt spurs him to pitch the idea of coaxing Mei-Ling to defect, and it’s his justification for ditching Mother’s Day and joining the mission.

That had the added bonus of putting him in the van to coordinate the remote cameras. And when everything falls apart, he goes off script and engineers a fireworks rescue cleverly foreshadowed in the opening scene when you almost thought Morgan had some kind of drug addiction.

Speaking of Morgan, this is an episode I’ll show anyone who doesn’t fully appreciate what Josh Gomez’s character brings to this show. He was pitifully sympathetic in this one. The guy’s always had Chuck to bail him out, and he was lost without his friend. It was fitting that Ellie filled that role in the end, even if Big Mike’s sales contest was a sham.

Morgan sure couldn’t rely on Jeffster (who no longer have individual names for me). The Wounded Raccoon strategy decidedly does not work, by the way. I thought it was pretty clear, at least, that Morgan’s sales technique flaw is that he’s a decent guy who’d rather be honest and weird than phony.

Anyway, all that mattered was the sincere bonding Morgan and Ellie did, untinged by his deep-rooted and inappropriate affection for her. It was him who reminded her that she was the one who got Chuck through his worst times after Stanford. And he confides in her about his work dilemma.

It almost made up for the dashed Night Out With Morgan, aka Sarah’s big chance to show she’s bringing something to the relationship table.

By the way, if you listened closely in this early moments of the episode you caught possibly the first reference to Casey not being included. Loved that.

A few other observations I loved…

• The sizzle of the shrimp is like the sound of angels laughing.


• Sarah has a spastic colon. Huh.


• Star Wars shout-out: “Help me Chuck Bartowski. You’re my only hope.”


• Chuck’s four favorite words: Stay in the car. Morgan’s four favorite words: Chuck’s not here, Morgan. Ellie’s four favorite words: I’ll let myself out.


• Chuck, to the old guy: “Forget it, Ben. It’s Chinatown. You ever see that movie?”