spy

(S03E05) What a great episode! Forgive me if I gush, but this was -- for me -- the best Chuck of the third season. And I think it may well be a game-changer for Chuck Bartowski, fledgling spy and man with the Intersect in his brain. For the first time, Chuck really achieved altitude, which may coincide with the plot that had Chuck, as the title suggested, taking flight.

(S03E10) "People get hurt and things get complicated no matter what you do." - Fiona

Welcome back, Burn Notice. We've missed you. The story picked up a day or two after the resolution of the Strickler thing, with Fiona still on the mend and Michael more than a little miffed by the missed opportunity to get back in the spy game. And if sore feelings and healing wounds weren't painful enough, there's a new threat for Michael.

(S03E04) Do you have the nerve? That was the question a few times this go-round. If you get off on the "I double dog dare you" kind of action, then you were right at home. Chuck was put in an impossibly emotional situation, a continuation of last week, with Awesome drawn into Chuck's web of espionage. Would he be able to keep it together and use the Intersect to help his bro-in-law? And what about the new guy in the mix, the off-camera character the General was talking to? All that and more after the jump.

Season 3 of 'Chuck' premieres tonight on NBC at 9PM, but rest assured, it's "No more Mr. Nice Spy!" Chuck discovers all sorts of new talents, including kick-ass fighting skills, the ability to play the guitar (very well, we might add), and even the prowess to sweep a lady off her feet on the dance floor.

Good news? We think so! Chuck's geekiness is still a big part of him, but we'll embrace the new Chuck 2.0 super-spy with gusto.

When last we saw the Chuckster in the season 2 finale, he had turned in his pocket protector at Buy More and picked up a jaw-dropping check for government services rendered during the past three years. At Ellie's wedding, Chuck pulled Sarah into the hallway. "Sarah Walker, will you do me the honor of ... taking a vacation with me?" But alas, Sarah was planning to leave in the morning to work with Bryce.

This Sunday night, Chuck returns to NBC for a special two-episode, two hour jump start into season three. Expect to be dazzled. NBC was good enough to send an impressive press kit for Chuck's new season, including five episodes.

For those of you who were concerned about how the show would handle the many changes promulgated by the end of last season, you can relax. While it's no spoiler to reveal that Chuck now has the fully integrated Intersect 2.0 inside his head, complete with martial arts skills and other talents (Flamenco guitar?) it's also not a surprise that having all that in his brain doesn't mean that life is any easier for a simple, Burbank IT guy.

Most American TV viewers know Edward Woodward from his run as Robert McCall as The Equalizer. But, British TV aficionados know he trained in backside-kicking on the dark, gritty British spy series, Callan.

Written by James Mitchell, the show featured David Callan -- a spy working for an ultra-secret arm of the British Intelligence service specializing in assassinations. Unfortunately, the former soldier and convict was cursed with a conscience that led him to hate his job, his superiors and himself.

Woodward was perfect in the role -- blending haunted humor with genuine menace to create an intelligent, tortured man who you believed could kill anyone without having to look like Rambo while he did it.

When NBC did its upfront -- it wasn't really like the other networks, because they had leaked so much information -- one of the things the powers that be decided to do was split the season into two sections. Or two official seasons. It all seemed a bit strange, and now that NBC has gotten off to such a dreadful start, things are changing. One change seems to be that Chuck may be back before March.

(S01E01) "Oh god, with the curry again. This shirt smells likes Indira Gandhi's thong." - Archer

I should preface this review with something basic - I am in no way whatsoever an animation buff. I didn't watch a lot of cartoons as a kid and now that I'm a big boy, my Adult Swim knowledge stretches about as far as Aqua Teen Hunger Force with the occasional episode of Sealab 2021 tossed in. So... I guess I know a little. Enough to say that Sealab's mastermind Adam Reed definitely has a hit on his hands with his first stab at a half-hour show in FX's Archer.

So if you're looking for a treatise one why Archer's flash animation or cell-shaded stop motion freeze-frame whatever-it's-called is superior vs. parochial and clunky, then this is not the review for you. I'm basing my review on content alone and seeing as how Archer won't be back for its official premiere until January, we were very fortunately given more than enough to whet our appetites.

When FX initially picked up six episodes of its first foray into animated comedy, the plan for Archer was to pair it with It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. Since that greenlight, two things happened.

First, FX got trigger-happy and greenlit a whole bunch of other shows (from the likes of Louis CK and Don Cheadle). Second, and more importantly, according to FX it turns out that from start through post, it takes almost a whole month to complete one episode of Archer. With Always Sunny premiering this Thursday night at 10PM ET on FX, slotting in Archer's six eps suddenly became impossible. So the plan has changed. Instead of pairing Archer with Sunny mid-season, FX plans to launch its fantasy-football themed sitcom The League instead. However, if you were looking forward to seeing Archer, I've got some good news.

(S04E19) A few of you told me that I was wrong by claiming that last week's performance show was electrifying. I agree with you that we have seen much better performance shows in the past. However, when you compare the third performance show of the season with the two previous, you have to admit that it was the most electrifying.

Save for a few of tonight's acts, such as Ishaara and Barbara, the third performance show is still the best performance show we've had so far this season.

My comments on the fourth performance show and my predictions coming up!

(S03E08) In the latest Michael adventure, our hero was hell-bent on getting back into intelligence work – nothing new, really. However, that meant dancing with Strickler, a foxtrot that Fiona was reluctant to take part in ...

More on Fiona's vulnerabilities after the jump. Meanwhile, another job popped up when Barry, money launderer and occasional member of the Michael troupe of operatives, called in all his favors and became the client.

(S03E06) It seems like this season of Burn Notice has been all about friends and family. You know, like the cell phone deal. Michael has been relying more and more on family -- and yes, that means Fiona and Sam to me -- and picking up new friends week in and week out. As Michael has pointed out a few times, he's more valuable as a friend than an enemy. By the time we reach the end of the summer, Michael may have to throw a party to celebrate the new friendships he's made.

We also now know what can stop Michael Westen in his tracks; a Taser to the neck. Yes, for one of the few times, bad guys got the jump on Michael and he was snatched.

(S03E04) That pesky Detective Paxson of the Miami PD continued to be a thorn in Michael's side, to the point that Michael decided it was time to extract her from his life. To get Paxson -- one royal pain in the butt who doesn't believe that Michael's one of the good guys -- Michael concocts a plan to help her close her case against Rick Matheson, a real bad guy.

Matheson was a one-note Rock look-alike, without Dwayne Johnson's charm. Mostly Matheson was a scumbag who deserved to be brought down.

Tommy, on the other hand, wasn't really a nasty moke. He was broadly hammed up by former NYPD Blue star Nick Turturro, and turned out to be Michael's way into Matheson's organization.

(S03E03) It seems as though everyone wants to be Michael's boss. Everyone but the CIA or the NSA or some other international spy agency, including whatever organization burned him in the first place. But characters like Carla last season or the rogue Management group at the start of this season, as well as Brennen, tonight's guest handler, they're all for Michael.

Seth Peterson was back as Nate, Michael's brother with a propensity for great-rich-quick schemes and getting into trouble. This time, though, he was a pawn in Brennen's game to get Michael to do his bidding.

(S03E01) You knew from last season's finale that Michael taking the plunge into the Atlantic from a helicopter, thus turning down an offer to work with Management in some organized ops position, he was taking a big chance. The leap was a metaphor and the danger for Michael Westen was about to increase exponentially.

Well, in this opening episode, it's clear that creator Matt Nix has upped the volume for Burn Notice. In Spinal Tap terms, we're at eleven, and that's more than ten. For Michael, a five-mile ocean swim in suit pants was just the kind of discomfort trained operatives have to learn to endure. When he landed on Miami Beach, one of the busy, bikini-clad girls and kids making sand castle types, he was all in. But no rest for the weary. In short order, Michael was on the run and in a world of trouble.