Unfortunately, this will be my last Early Edition review -- at least until the third and fourth season are released on DVD.
Overall: 8.8
This episode is a definite improvement over last season's finale even with Chuck's rather abrupt departure.
Plot Synopsis:
While out on a walk with Spike, Marissa sees (!) a blinding flash of light followed by an image of a smokestack with a curious emblem on the side -- two back-to-back R's. Gary doesn't know quite what to think when an excited Marissa tells him that she saw something on her daily constitutional, but ever the supportive friend, he takes Marissa to see her doctor. Unfortunately, neither the doctor nor a day of research offers Marissa any hope that she is regaining her sight, so she soon decides to dismiss her experience entirely.
Meanwhile, Chuck thinks he's found a great investment opportunity in Victor Buena Vista's computer chip business. When Gary refuses to authorize the use of the bar's profits for the venture, Chuck takes $10K from a wrecked armored car instead and heads over to Buena Vista's to close the deal. Alas, Chuck gets there just in time to run into Buena Vista's murderer. Gary and I facepalm when we subsequently learn that Buena Vista has ties to the mob. Oh, Chuck!
Chuck is sure he's "bacon" at this point. He buys a fake mustache to conceal his identity and makes a big show of helping an old lady across the street in an attempt to correct his "bad karma." Gary and Crumb gradually grow exasperated with Chuck's melodramatics. Marissa, for her part, loans Chuck her St. Jude medal, and Chuck ruefully acknowledges that he is indeed a hopeless case.
Sure enough, when Chuck decides to go out for a drive on the theory that it's harder to shoot a moving target, he is snatched. Gary immediately goes to the police, but the officer in charge of the Buena Vista case is unconvinced that Chuck's disappearance is in any way related to the murder. Then, out in the streets, Gary sees his red-headed angel (from last season). He chases her down and consequently discovers a building downtown that has back-to-back R's emblazoned above its entrance. He hurries back to McGinty's to tell Marissa that he found the emblem she saw earlier in the episode. Marissa believes Gary is just trying to make her feel better, but when Crumb arrives and tells Gary that the Rosario crime family uses that exact same symbol, Gary realizes that Marissa's vision is key to finding Chuck. He asks Marissa to describe her vision again, detail by detail, and together, Marissa and Gary conclude that what Marissa saw was a tugboat.
Gary and Crumb pretend to be dock inspectors in order to board the Rosario tug. Gary finds Chuck handcuffed to a pipe below deck, but before he can get Chuck free, the Rosario deckhand brings Crumb below decks -- at gunpoint, as said deckhand has figured out that Gary and Crumb are not inspectors. Crumb is handcuffed to Chuck's pipe; Gary is tied up. Chuck launches into this confession session in which he admits to smashing Gary's walkman and stealing some of his money. Chuck then declares that he loves both Gary and Crumb, and Crumb mutters that Chuck is completely hopeless. This reminds Chuck of Marissa's St. Jude medal. Fortuitously, the medal is just small enough to be used to unlock the handcuffs.
Meanwhile, the paper arrives at McGinty's -- but the only one available to receive it is Marissa. Knowing that whatever's in the paper must be important, Marissa goes out into the streets and starts begging for help. When she finds none, she sits down on a bench and prays to God that she be given sight one more time. Just then, Gary's red-headed angel arrives and helps her read the front page story, which reports the discovery of three bodies beside the site of a sunken tug. Using the information from this story, Marissa is able to get a rescue boat out onto the lake to collect Crumb, Gary, and Chuck before a bomb on the tug detonates.
Back at McGinty's, the men celebrate their narrow escape. They are interrupted, however, by the arrival of a lawyer who represents department store heiress Camilla Danforth. Ms. Danforth, it seems, likes to pose as a bag lady in order to search the city for the needy and deserving, and she was impressed by Chuck's willingness to help her across the street. To recognize Chuck for his kindness, Ms. Danforth has authorized her lawyer to give him a Bible -- and a check for $100K. Chuck decides to use the money to start a company in Hollywood that will focus on producing family-friendly entertainment. He packs up and leaves for L.A., and SABR Matt is sad.
The Skinny:
First, allow me to offer a quick tribute to Chuck: Ah, Chuck -- I am sorry to see you go. Although I don't agree with SABR Matt's contention that the show jumped the shark after your departure - if it did, it unjumped it by the fourth season - it is certainly true that the show was never quite the same without your presence. You provided both humor and necessary balance. You reminded us of our own fallibility -- and of our own capacity for heroism. You may have been a "pain in the butt" sometimes, but you were our pain in the butt -- and what's more, we could always see that you were a basically decent soul. No one else could deliver the voice-overs quite like you can. No one else could fill the comic relief role with quite the same panache.
Now to the rest of the review: It's a shame my computer has finally decided to stop working after four years (I'm currently borrowing Mom's). If I were on my own machine, I'd include a pretty extensive "Highlights" section at the end of this review, as Chuck has many funny bits in this, his final episode as a regular. My personal favorite moment is Chuck's "death bed confession" on the tug. Chuck's effusive expressions of repentence are hilarious on their own, but when you add in the reactions of his fellow prisoners, the comedy is increased ten-fold.
Of course, this is also a very God-filled episode. The plot unfolds in a universe in which angels walk among us, visions are par for the course, and prayers are answered. In the dialogue, the writers openly acknowledge that they have been influenced in part by the Bible, and that's nice to see. It's also nice to revel once again in the show's absolute confidence that some Power beyond our ken is directing events and looking out for all of us.
I do believe Chuck's decision to go to Hollywood is a bit random. He hasn't evinced any interest in show business before, so why would he suddenly do so now? But that's a very minor complaint. The rest of the episode is both entertaining and inspiring.
Writing: 8.5
Chuck's out-of-the-blue yen to go west is the only thing that mars this otherwise fun script.
Acting: 9.0
Fisher Stevens, Kyle Chandler, and Ron Dean foment a perfect storm of comedy together. Shanesia Davis, meanwhile, does a very nice job in her more serious scenes.
Message: 9.0
I hate to repeat myself, but it's unavoidable in this instance, as the message here is structural once again: God's presence can be found in the details of the plot, the writers clearly believe in the reality of Divine Providence and the power of prayer, etc., etc. Ah, I love your consistency, show.
The Benevolent Hand:
Here, we have miraculous visions, angelic visitations, and an eventually useful loan. I'd say the Benevolent Hand's role in events is quite obvious.
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