This one was all about Sarah Walker.
Thanks to Daniel Shaw’s cryptic ending to last week’s “Chuck vs. the Santa Suit,” we knew that something was up. What we didn’t know was just how much of Sarah’s past would come to light in “Chuck vs. the Baby.”
It was a sentimental, occasionally even sappy episode. And here are the Top 5 moments!
Family, But Not Quite What You’d Expect
After so long without any mention of Sarah’s mother, it was a bit surprising to find out that Sarah and Emma (guest star Cheryl Ladd) actually had an excellent — and secret — relationship. That relationship proved to be the key to everything in “Chuck vs. the Baby.”
Emma’s presence made possible several of the episode’s most interesting moments. Sarah didn’t just give her mother a baby and then disappear. First, Sarah needed some serious babysitting advice — do babies actually stop crying with a little singing? Then, Emma spent five years raising the little girl, Molly, as her daughter. And then she gave us a giant family reunion chez Bartowski.
Tim DeKay as a Bad Guy
Speaking as a fan of White Collar, it’s awesome to see Tim DeKay’s bad side. I always knew he would make a great villain — in contrast to his squeaky clean role on White Collar — and Kieran Ryker fit the bill just fine.
As Sarah’s one-time handler, Ryker was cool, calm and evil. He seemed totally relaxed throughout the episode, whether ordering Sarah to kill a roomful of men, Matrix-style, or cheerfully making it clear he was prepared to murder an innocent baby. It’s almost a pity that Sarah took Ryker out (in a thoroughly graphic way). He would have been a good villain to see return.
Oh well. Maybe his White Collar co-star, Matt Bomer (the former Bryce Larkin of Chuck) can come back instead. I’d be OK with that.
Sometimes, Even Sarah Is Off Her Game
Sarah Walker usually gives us the impression that she could legitimately take down all the evil in the world by herself. But, as we found out in “Chuck vs. the Baby,” that isn’t always the case.
Quite frankly, Sarah was completely off her game in this episode. She failed to realize Ryker might have heard about Shaw’s recapture. Then she got herself beaten and bound. This was followed by missing a bug, thereby telling Ryker everything he needed to know about the lost baby.
Fortunately for Sarah, her husband is incapable of staying out of anything. Chuck, with Casey in tow, managed to save the day for Sarah when her lone-wolf methods fell far short. Chuck, meanwhile, helped out with everything from chasing down a nefarious waiter to having fun with a Hungarian phrasebook (thanks, Monty Python!).
Ellie and Awesome Always Win at the Game of Life
The Woodcombs are about as close to perfect people as we can expect on a TV show. So it’s no wonder that they first kicked butt at Life, the board game, and then proceeded to share their successful life choices with the less-successful Morgan and Alex.
It’s entirely possible that Ellie and Awesome only showed up to game night because it meant a visit inside Castle with minimal supervision. They naturally put this freedom to good use, setting up an interrogation situation with whips, handcuffs and horrible English accents.
But the couple’s real usefulness in the episode came when they decided to help the lovelorn Morgan and Alex back onto the path of romance. A couple of sentimental life lessons later, and the stage was set for the eventual Morgan/Alex reunion.
Awesome.
Home Sweet Home
Remember that perfect home Chuck wanted to buy for Sarah? Well, Chuck hasn’t forgotten. And he somehow convinced a real estate agent to let the happy couple in (with about a million candles) for a weekend.
That was probably a bad choice by the real estate agent.
Not only would all that dripping candle wax wreak havoc on those lovely floors, but Sarah and Chuck took their legitimized vandalism one step further by carving their names in a doorframe. Let’s just hope that Chuck comes up with the money for the house, even without rejoining the CIA.
What were your favorite moments of “Chuck vs. the Baby”? Were you disappointed (or surprised) that the baby wasn’t Sarah’s? Based on the promo for next week, do you think babies are still in the future for the Bartowskis? Give us your opinions in the comments section below!
(Image courtesy of NBC)
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Senior Writer, BuddyTV
Laurel grew up in Mamaroneck, NY, Grosse Pointe, MI and Bellevue WA. She then went on to live in places like Boston, Tucson, Houston, Wales, Tanzania, Prince Edward Island and New York City before heading back to Seattle. Ever since early childhood, when she became addicted to The Muppet Show, Laurel has watched far too much TV. Current favorites include Chuck, Modern Family, Supernatural, Mad Men and Community. Laurel received a BA in Astrophysics (yes, that is possible) from Colgate University and a PhD in Middle Eastern Studies and History of Science from Columbia University before she realized that television is much better than studying.
