Chuck Versus Santa Claus 

A car crashes into the Buy More, everyone inside, including Ellie and Devon are taken hostage. Chuck does his best to protect everyone. The real goals are not evident, and it will lead to some very hard choices.

Director:

Robert Duncan McNeill

Writers:

Josh Schwartz (created by), Chris Fedak (created by)

Stars:

Zachary Levi, Yvonne Strahovski, Joshua Gomez

Cast

Episode cast overview, first billed only:
Zachary Levi	...	Chuck Bartowski
Yvonne Strahovski	...	Sarah Walker
Joshua Gomez	...	Morgan Grimes
Ryan McPartlin	...	Devon 'Captain Awesome' Woodcomb
Mark Christopher Lawrence	...	Big Mike
Vik Sahay	...	Lester Patel
Scott Krinsky	...	Jeff Barnes
Julia Ling	...	Anna Wu
Sarah Lancaster	...	Ellie Bartowski
Adam Baldwin	...	John Casey
Tony Hale	...	Emmett Milbarge
Jed Rees	...	Nathan Edward 'Ned' Rhyerson
Bonita Friedericy	...	General Diane Beckman
Reginald VelJohnson	...	Sgt. Al Powell
Michael Rooker	...	Mauser

Storyline

Chuck's nerd herd was prepared for the Christmas shopping rush, not apparently mentally unstable Nathan Edward 'Ned' Rhyerson crashing in his car trough the front glass and taking everyone hostage without clear demands. Awesome is among the hostages with Ellie, but refrains his natural heroism long enough at Chuck's urging. Casey and Sarah fail to extract unwilling Chuck separately and end up hostages, Casey even loses a toe. Police detective Mauser, the negotiator in charge, alas also makes Chuck flash.

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Plot Keywords:

christmas episode | christmas | kiss | foot chase | down blouse | 

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Genres:

Action | Comedy | Drama

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Certificate:

TV-PG

Did You Know?

Trivia

As of this episode, John Casey only has nine toes (and it's revealed that Jeff only has eight).

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Goofs

When Mauser walks in the Buy More, he starts to remove the bullet-proof vest outside the store and just as Chuck closes the door back, the vest can clearly be seen on the ground. When Mauser is walking inside, he has the vest back in his right hand.

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Quotes

Ellie Bartowski: Great, so uh, my present to my fiancée is a ticket to death.
Devon 'Captain Awesome' Woodcomb: Babe, it's completely safe. Besides, I need the adrenaline rush, a little sense of danger in my life.
Ellie Bartowski: [Ellie scoffs] What?

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Connections

Spoofs Predator (1987)

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Soundtracks

I'll Be Home for Christmas
(uncredited)
Written by Kim Gannon, Walter Kent, and Buck Ram
Performed by Bing Crosby

User Reviews

Some nice easter eggs here to freshen up the usual holiday fare

Strictly as an episode, "Chuck vs. Santa Claus" is a pretty great one. It's got twists, turns, Fulcrum agents, and a heady does of sappy TV holiday spirit. Everyone in Chuck's life is rounded up in one place in a hostage situation, bringing the peril ever closer (and personal) to the guy. And characteristic of the rest of the show, it's got geeky shoutouts, too; I love that the hostage-taker is named Ned Ryerson.

Which brings us to the gem in this crown: it's the "Die Hard" episode. And it doesn't take that lightly, either. It weaves the hostage scenario into the overall serialized plot, the humor therein is great, and they actually brought in Reginald VelJohnson to reprise his "Die Hard" role. That's right, he's actually Officer Al Powell! And they made him Big Mike's cousin! Great stuff 8/10

Details

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 December 2008 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

College Hill Pictures Inc., Wonderland Sound and Vision, Warner Bros. Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

44 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1