Chuck Bartowski - Series Development - Spy Life

Spy Life

In many episodes Chuck has adopted a fantasy alias, "Charles Carmichael", who is endowed with all of the characteristics he believes a super-spy should have, except he doesn't really have the physical abilities to go with the skills. Carmichael has been referred to as where Chuck thought he would be by this time in his life had he not been expelled from Stanford: a millionaire semiretired software magnate. Ironically, his fantasy alias has gained actual respect in the spy community: in "Chuck Versus the Predator", Fulcrum agent Vincent told Chuck he's heard of him, and the mercenary Mr. Colt was highly impressed with Chuck. His adventures as "Carmichael" are also beginning to make him a legend in the CIA community. His operational aliases are numerous; various false passports and identity documents are stored in a shoebox under his bed, as seen in the beginning of "Chuck Versus Tom Sawyer".

While police and operational backup personnel have supported Casey and Sarah in various episodes, Chuck is revealed near the climax of "Chuck Versus the Ex" to have gained the contact information required to summon such teams on his own initiative. Moments later, it is further revealed that Chuck carries a badge and credentials which give him some degree of authority over local and federal law enforcement agencies, including the police and FBI. This is demonstrated in the episode when, upon arriving at an emergency situation where an assassin released a biological weapon on a scientific conference, Chuck promptly assumed command of the operation without dispute from the senior officer on-site. In "Chuck Versus the Beard", Chuck reveals to Ring agents Del and Neil that he has "Level 6" security clearance, though how high this places him in the CIA security hierarchy has not been expanded on, though it is high enough for Carina to become interested in Chuck.

Chuck has been charting every piece of information he can find on Fulcrum unknown to his handlers, the Intersect and various figures connected to the CIA and NSA on a board hidden behind the Tron poster in his bedroom, and continues to express a desire to have the intel removed from his brain. Using the data, Chuck built a bot to search the web for Orion, which he can be seen using in the opening scenes of "Chuck Versus the Predator". He succeeds in doing what the CIA and NSA could not; he gets the attention of Orion who recognizes Chuck as the Intersect and thus wants to meet him. Orion reveals it is possible to remove the Intersect from Chuck's brain before his apparent suicide upon his capture by Fulcrum. It was later revealed in "Chuck Versus the Dream Job" that not only did Orion survive, but is actually Chuck's father.

In "Chuck Versus the Ring", after Bryce is killed, Chuck downloads the modified Intersect 2.0 before destroying the computer system. When confronted by agents belonging to the Ring who had been intent on taking control of the system, he uses the knowledge received from the Intersect to quickly disable them in hand-to-hand combat. Earlier in the episode, Ted Roark reveals that Fulcrum has specifically ordered that Chuck be killed regardless of whether they recover the Intersect.

Chuck was fired by Beckman after failing his spy training in "Chuck Versus the Pink Slip", but by the end of the episode proved his value and was reinstated on the team. He was sent on his first solo mission by Daniel Shaw in "Chuck Versus First Class". Throughout the third season Chuck continued to train with Sarah, Casey, and Shaw. In "Chuck Versus the Final Exam", Chuck completed his last tests (with Casey's help) and was activated as a full-fledged spy by Beckman and ordered to report to Washington, D.C. for induction. He quits being a spy but after finding his father's secret room it is uncertain whether he'll remain a civilian. In the premiere of season 4, it is revealed that after the success of Operation Bartowski, the President made Chuck a priority and is forced to become a spy again at the orders of Beckman.

It is revealed that Chuck comes from a long line of spies as his father told him through the electronic message.

In "Chuck Versus the Couch Lock" Beckman expresses a great deal of pride in Chuck's development as an operative, after Chuck outlines a complex plan to lure Casey's old team out of hiding by using Casey himself as the bait. However. the realization that he is putting his friend in danger for his own purposes unsettles him greatly, and he is prepared to call off his clandestine search for his mother entirely to protect them.

In "Chuck Versus the Last Details", Sarah is poisoned by Volkoff Industries' "Norseman" weapon, and in "Chuck Versus the Cliffhanger", Chuck goes rogue in order to acquire the antidote to save Sarah's life.

At the beginning of season 5, Chuck, Sarah, Casey, and Morgan, have started a freelance spy organization known as "Carmichael Industries" using the assets formerly owned by Alexei Volkoff as start-up money. Morgan is now the Human intersect, as he accidentally put on a pair of intersect glasses at the end of season 4, although it is removed in "Chuck Versus the Business Trip". However, Carmichael Industries struggles, as they are outshined by Verbanski Corportion, led by Gertrude Verbanski,and had all of the money in their account frozen by Clyde Decker in "Chuck Versus the Zoom". Towards the middle and end of season 5, Chuck, Sarah, and Casey work alongside Verbanski and Beckman in some joint missions. At the end of the series in "Chuck Versus the Goodbye", Chuck is offered a position back in the CIA, but refuses.