Chuck 5x03: Chuck Vs. the Frosted Tips

Original Air Date: 11 November 2011

Storyline: Chuck worries Morgan is letting the Intersect change his attitude for the worse. Sarah gives Casey relationship advice on Gertrude Verbanski. Captain Awesome discovers shocking news about Jeff and Lester.Trivia: The scene where Morgan dodges the tranquilizer darts is an homage to a well-known scene from the 1999 film The Matrix, that features Neo (played by Keanu Reeves) dodging bullets in a similar manner. Carrie-Anne Moss also starred in The Matrix.Best Quote:

Alex: I just don't understand. I just want the old Morgan back, you know?
Casey: I know it hurts, honey. We, Caseys, we don't like to open up, make ourselves vulnerable. 'Cause when someone does rip our heart out and stomp on it right in front of our eyes, it could be like the worst torture of all. I just want you to know that I'm always here for you. Always will be.

Review: I've been complaining a lot about this season of Chuck losing the focus from the things that made so many people fall in love with its characters. Straying from its core plot and making Morgan the intersect is just one of those really annoying things that make me ask myself why I'm still wasting precious time with this show, because the focus is so much on him nowadays that it feels like a Morgan show altogether.

With all this in mind, I found "Chuck vs. the Frosted Tips" more entertaining than the first two installments of this season, despite having every scene featuring the bearded one annoy me more than I can actually express in words. The action part was well done and the focus on friendship took me back to the beginning of the series, when Chuck and Morgan stood together against the world. And, while I'm relieved the new Morgan persona only lasted this long, I don't really buy it that all it took to reverse his state of mind was getting him to remember an embarrassing incident he went through back in seventh grade.
The episode focused on the events following Morgan's betrayal by selling the intersect - thus himself - to Verbanski Corp for a cool ride, frosted tips and a personal assistant who doesn't know the difference between soy milk and almond milk. His new personality, which included dumping Allie... uhm, Alex through a text message and informing Chuck that they are no longer friends wasn't in the least funny and I was disappointed that his friend didn't kick his ass when he got the chance. I also hated that the writers felt the need to explain to the viewers that the intersect was acting differently in Morgan's brain than it did in Chuck's; wasn't this shown over and over again in the previous four seasons? Anyways...
The comedy part of the week was insured by Casey's encounters with Gertrude Verbanski. Who would have thought he'd be so bad at asking someone out? But I guess any man would be intimidated by a woman such as Carrie-Anne Moss' character. The tango in Gertrude's office was my favorite scene, especially since it ended up with her tied up and Casey reclaiming his gun. It was both funny and passionate.
Other highlights: Devon finding himself on Clara time. It seems like being a stay-at-home dad might not be as rewarding as he thought it would, but something good came out of this one: Jeff's transformation. Now, that was amazing! Who knew all it took for Jeff to become more like a human being was having him not sleep in his van with the engine running? I wonder how long will the new him last and what will Lester do to get his damaged friend back. 
Now with a hit put on Morgan's life, I wonder what kind of trouble will the Carmichael Industry team find themselves into. I just hope things are going in the right direction with this show.Chuck 5x02: Chuck vs. the Bearded Bandit Back to Season 5