The Everygeek Named Chuck

Good TV is sometimes tough to find to begin with these days, especially when it comes to discerning geeks like us who tend to be a little picky about what we want to watch. But every so often comes a series that speaks to us that actually isn’t on a major channel.

One of these is Chuck, the show on NBC that’s about a normal geek who gets pulled into the world of espionage, armed with nothing but geeky social skills and a computer of government secrets trapped in his head. I’m actually a recent convert to the show, with Samit Sarkar of Destructoid deserving the credit for turning my geeky head towards it.

I’d have to say the main reason it seems Chuck is appealing to many people out there is the reason a few series out there get good followings – the main character is an everyman – or in this case an everygeek – who appeals to the people who watch him. Chuck’s stumbling, awkward ways provide a nice little identification with the normal stuff that us geeky folk go through every day. Whether someone who went to college learning advanced tech, a gamer into online shooters, or even a worker at a computer repair service like the fictional “Nerd Herd”, Chuck has something that speaks to us.

Chuck’s had a bit of a colored history – the show was nearly cancelled forever after its second season, but a “Save Chuck” campaign and the voice of the Internet (something I just talked about yesterday regarding Conan) spoke loud and clear. Season 3 is playing now, but for anyone who’s got geeky tendencies and looking for a tv hero to get behind, feel free to stand by Chuck. Just try not to trip him up as much as he might do the same to you.