You can fault the Chuck writers for all sorts of things, especially in the past two seasons, but if there's one thing to praise them for, it's that they always try to dig deeper than the surface plot. "Chuck vs. the Muuurder" is a good example of that, where the main plot--Team Bartowski solving a murder inside a Castle damaged by bombs--is neither new nor executed well, but the episode manages to not be a waste because the writers explore the characters much more than procedurals.
"Chuck vs. the Muuurder" places Chuck in charge of the team, and since Chuck has little experience in the area, as well as fear of the current murder situation, he struggles to maintain his cool. Sarah and Casey are there for him, however, and guide him towards solving the murder. Chuck's final statement about the Intersect being the entire team rings true since none of them would get things done individually.
The return of Large Mart has been a long time coming, and we got to see the rivalry heat up again as Big Mike is captured after Jeff and Lester steal the pig, Kevin Bacon. While the plot was given little focus, it still provided plenty of good laughs, including yet another huge advertisement of Subway.
Meanwhile, Ellie launches herself into Orion's work and with Awesome, shields this from Chuck. Ellie is very much like Vivian Volkoff, finding her absent father's legacy and building on it. It would be cool to see the two do meet, though it'll probably be under dangerous circumstances.
Score: 8.4/10
