Episode IX

Journal Entry 9
12.7.09

TV shows hasn’t really impress me over the years. In my opinion, what makes a good TV show is the creators’ ability to entertain and enthrall the audience with its storyline and characters, similarly to movies. It’s about giving TV viewers a comfortable viewing pleasure at home where you don’t need over-the-top action or a very intricate storyline to wow them.

And just when I thought Heroes was a different TV show, I was wrong. Season 1 was a blast but it’s a show that you will only savour the taste once. So I stopped watching that show after its second season.

Then came our own Singapore’s productions: Fighting Spiders and Red Thread. They’re competent shows but Fighting Spiders seem to be doing better maybe it struck a chord with me and probably all the other audience.

Somehow, I was left unsatisfied with the direction that the show was going. During the season finale episode, a lot of storylines were not tied up, leaving me fuming mad. How could the show’s two main antagonists not get their desserts? Maybe the producers are leaving some space for Season 2? But even if that’s the case, that’s not the way you end it!

Even with all hope lost for TV shows for quite awhile, I came across an US show where I found delight and pleasure while watching it.

I was ransacking through my elder sister’s DVDs and I found the Season 2 of Chuck. I was reminded of the fun I had when I watching one of the episodes of Season 1 on the plane.

Chuck is your average Joe and he works at a retail shop called Buy More. On his birthday, he accidentally downloaded government secrets into his brain. Because of the secrets in his head, the government sent two of their agents to protect him from falling into the wrong hands.

What really interests me in the first place was the humour it had. At Buy More, Chuck has a very nerdy group of friends and these guys usually get into some hilarious situations. Besides, the missions that Chuck goes on with his CIA handlers usually end up funny as well. It’s like watching your old spy movies but with a twist of hilarity in it.

The more I watch through Chuck Season 2, I realized it wasn’t just your normal action comedy. What really impresses me was the show’s ability to balance the humour, action and drama. And the storylines that intertwine characters’ lives was smoothly done. Even with an uncomplicated plot, the story continues to wow me from episodes to episodes.

Does Chuck put my faith back in TV shows? Not really, but I look forward to watching it now. Bring it on, Chuck!