Chuck Versus the Intersect
The episode also introduces series regulars Joshua Gomez and Sarah Lancaster as Chuck's best friend and older sister, Morgan Grimes and Ellie Bartowski, respectively.
"Chuck Versus the Intersect" received generally positive reviews from critics, with most writers praising the casting of the series.
As Bryce attempts to escape, he is shot dead by NSA agent Major John Casey (Adam Baldwin), but not before emailing the data to Chuck and self-destructing his PDA.
In Washington, D.C., Casey is informed by the National Security Director (Wendy Makkena) and CIA Director Langston Graham (Tony Todd) that the computer Bryce destroyed was a government database called the Intersect, which the NSA and CIA used as a joint resource to identify threats to the government.
[1] The hour-long, high-concept action-comedy, described in press releases as being "in the vein of Grosse Pointe Blank", would revolve around a man who downloads the entire CIA and NSA databases into his head.
Schwartz signed a three-year, seven-figure overall deal with Warner Bros. Television to write and executive produce the series with Fedak.
And in trying to figure out what was sort of the best home for a character like Chuck, the Nerd Herd -- obviously inspired by such things as the Geek Squad [of the consumer electronics store Best Buy] -- felt like a really natural environment for him.
[5] Fedak always had Baldwin in mind for the role and the producers found that the actor was a "perfect fit" for the character during the first casting session.
[1][7] On February 12, 2007, Australian actress Yvonne Strahovski was announced[7] for what was then the role of Sarah Kent, joining Levi and Adam Baldwin.
Additionally, Captain Awesome was originally planned to be an enemy agent but his portrayal by Ryan McPartlin was so well received that this storyline was also abandoned.
[15] The exterior shots of the Burbank Buy More where Chuck and Morgan work are of a former Mervyn's store in the Fallbrook Mall in Canoga Park.
[16] Chuck's fingers are bandaged at one point due to injuries Zachary Levi sustained while playing Call of Duty.
[4][17] The music of Chuck has been described as "a blending of action soundtracks with Schwartz's penchant for good, pretty obscure bands" such as Foreign Born[18] and The Shins.
[20] Other songs include "Cobrastyle" by Teddybears, "Cellphone's Dead" by Beck, "Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is" by Jet, "See the World" by Gomez, "For A Fistful of Dollars" by Ennio Morricone, and "The Missionary" by Brothers Martin.
The series premiered on broadcast television at 8pm EST on September 24, 2007,[10] after having been screened to overwhelmingly positive reception at San Diego Comic-Con.
[25] "Chuck Versus the Intersect" received mostly positive reviews from critics, with several praising the casting of the series, especially that of Zachary Levi.
[17][18][26][27] Eric Goldman of IGN gave the episode a rating of 9 out of 10, writing, "Schwartz and Fedak's script for the Chuck pilot is very strong, deftly mixing action and humor.
"[22] Television Without Pity gave the episode an A− on a scale of A+ to F.[28] The Columbus Dispatch called the pilot "delightful", writing, "Chuck has good nerd jokes, a winning everyman who is easy to root for, a hot blonde, ninja fighting and a backward car chase."
"[26] Robert Bianco of USA Today gave the episode an overwhelmingly positive review, writing, "Everyday superheroes are, of course, a recurring TV fantasy, but seldom has the genre shown as much pluck as Chuck, and seldom has it found a more agreeable hero than Zachary Levi... Levi needs only a few minutes here to convince you of his wider range and lay claim on breakout stardom.
