What are the turning points of the show? There are for sure many significant moments in the show but what are the ones that really change the course of the story with a dramatic twist in Chuck and Sarah’s relationship?
1.01 – Beginning of the journey
Chuck is intersected and meets Sarah. Up to this point, Chuck has been robbed by Bryce and the spy world of five years of his life but Bryce and the spy world are about give him back the life he was always meant to have.
1.09 – It’s real
A bomb is supposedly about to explode and Sarah kisses Chuck, confirming to him that her feelings for him are real and not just a cover. She will try to backtrack for a couple of weeks but, from now on, their cover relationship will never be the same.
2.16 – Sarah chooses real. Chuck takes charge of his destiny
At the end of 2.13 Suburbs, Sarah is stalling; she has one foot in the spy life and one foot in the normal life. So, the spy life sends her way Cole, who symbolizes the best of the spy life (larger-than-life bravado, excitement, sexiness) and represents The Last Temptation of Sarah. When she chooses Chuck over Cole, she subconsciously chooses the normal life over the spy life. And Chuck’s Tron poster reveals he’s now ready to take things in his own hands, leading to the awesome Orion arc.
2.22 – Chuck accepts his hero calling
In what is perhaps the most iconic scene of the show (“Guys, I know Kung Fu!”), Chuck finally accepts his destiny. After a year and a half of Sarah’s encouragements to see himself as the hero he is, and after watching Bryce sacrifice his life for the cause, Chuck realizes he can’t run from the fight and decides to re-intersect. This will change his and Sarah’s lives forever.
3.12 – Chuck saves James Bond and takes the girl from him
In 2.15 Beefcake and 2.16 Lethal Weapon, Chuck felt he was not man enough to keep his girl from James Bond (Cole) and his sense of inadequacy compared to super spies like Cole or Bryce was exposed in a very raw way (Casey, “Yes, general, it’s as pathetic as it sounds.”). But Chuck undergoes his hero’s journey in season 3, which culminates in the epic scene in castle during 3.12 American Hero, when James Bond (Shaw) leaves Sarah in Chuck’s care while he goes on an apparently noble suicide mission and Chuck decides instead to save Shaw for Sarah’s sake and then take her from him.
3.14 – A real double life. Together
Since the beginning of season 1, Chuck and Sarah have been on a journey towards a real life. They always understood that to mean a normal life, away from the spy life, because nothing is real in the spy life. But their European honeymoon shows them that they can have it all—they can be be spies and have a real life. Together.
4.24 – Five-year journey completed. Font chosen
Chuck and Sarah have come a long way. Chuck has completed his journey from aimless boy to confident hero. Sarah has completed her journey from “nothing but a spy” to a real woman. Chuck has actualized the five-year plan that he never put down on paper for the lack of a good font and is now the master of his destiny with a font (Helvetica, from his wedding invitation).
