Chuck

*Warning - unimportant rambling about a TV show ahead*

I think when I attended Notre Dame the bigwigs that negotiated our football contract with NBC put something in the water. Or maybe they just made sure that the only channel to come in remotely clearly with the rabbit ears required to watch TV in our dorm rooms in those days was the local NBC station. Regardless of how it happened, I became an NBC addict. I watch plenty of shows on other channels, but my favorites are on NBC. I'd be hard-pressed to choose one out of my top three: The Office, 30 Rock, and Chuck.

It seems like a lot of people watch The Office, which is great because it's a hilarious show. 30 Rock has gotten a ton of publicity with all of Tina Fey's appearances and awards over the past several years. But, in my (admittedly biased) opinion, Chuck hasn't gotten the recognition it deserves. If you've never watched it, I'm sure that the premise sounds odd - a regular guy accidentally downloads all the government's secrets into his brain, then has to keep his spy life from his family and friends by pretending to date an attractive, undercover CIA agent and working with an undercover NSA agent at an electronics store...? Riiiight. But it has a perfect mix of action, comedy, and romance (heavier on the action and comedy), plus a lot of fun pop culture references. For example, *MINOR SPOILER* Sgt. Al Powell from Die Hard makes another appearance as a Twinkie-eating cop during a Christmas Eve hostage situation at the Buy More. And to be honest, it's a great show for nerds - where else you would you see someone *ANOTHER MINOR SPOILER* attempt to beat Atari Missile Command to retrieve a hidden code that will disable a terrorist satellite? Okay...it might make more sense if you watch it. If you want to check it out, the official Chuck website at least has all the episodes from this season, and season 1 is out on DVD/Blu-ray or on demand at Amazon.

Or, if you want to jump right in, Chuck is finally back on Monday (at 8pm EST) after the holiday break. And those 3D glasses NBC and Pepsi have been pushing for that Monsters vs. Aliens Super Bowl trailer? You'll get even more use by saving them for the 3D Chuck episode! I'll admit an ulterior motive - I've heard rumors of cancellation, plus Chuck will now be going up against House - so I'm kinda worried that one of our favorite shows is going to disappear after just two seasons. Not that me asking my few readers to watch will make a difference, but the more people who watch, the better - plus I just think you'll enjoy it. Let me know if you start watching - or if you already do!