Touching on the Touch season finale

FOX's Touch ended its freshman run this week with the two part episode, "Gyre." Things come to a head as Sheri (Roxana Brusso, Southland) and the company make a play to take over full custody of Jake (David Mazouz). Knowing that the shady organization killed Arthur (Danny Glover) and made a little girl named Amelia disappear, Clea (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) helps Martin (Kiefer Sutherland) sneak Jake away. With pursuers hot on their heels, Martin and Jake flee New York.

Touch is all about patterns in the world, and how things are fated to come together. For many weeks, this is simply something hinted at, seen in brief glimpses, or at the ends of episodes. But "Gyre" really pulls things together. A number of guest stars, such as Arnie (Jude Ciccolella, 24), return, making the world appear a little smaller. As first Abraham (Bodhi Elfman), and then Randall (Titus Welliver, Lost, The Good Wife), help Jake and Martin escape, it seems like their team, which includes Clea and Abigail (Catherine Dent, The Shield), has gotten a little bigger.

This is great! Martin and Jake need a team behind them!  They are facing one of the unseen, shadowy corporations with unlimited power and staff that makes for many an exciting story. Everyone wants to root for the little guy when he is threatened by the big guy, and Touch taps into the classic storytelling technique. Plus, how doesn't love a secretive group of traditional Jews, and prophecies of thirty-six people saving the planet?

Similarly, Touch has lots going on behind the scenes, too. Masquerading as a procedural, with Martin helping a different person each week, "Gyre" exposes the true serial story. Touch is something that will play out over years, and connections come together constantly, in the most unexpected ways. Those watching most of the first season may be forgiven for being disappointed in the lack of movement of the major arcs. "Gyre" makes up for this, and points to a less fomulaic approach moving forward. In fact, the title of the episode plays into unexpected change, and hints at things moving in different directions.

Not that the cases of the week are bad. Seeing a son and father finding understanding in Japan, or a man making up for a mistake that he thinks he made, or another guy, who is lost, but finds himself while building a church and a life in a community, is heartwarming. Unlike the slew of medical and crime dramas flooding the airwaves, Touch is more of an anthology series, with common threads typing things together. It's also inspiring and uplifting, making it unique and deserving of airtime.

Besides Martin and Jake's plot, which is the central thread of Touch, "Gyre" opens up a whole new bag of worms by introducing Lucy (Maria Bello, Prime Suspect). At first, she seems to be a crazy woman destined for a single hour, interacting with a traumatized man on the beach (Cougar Town's Ian Gomez). But then viewers learn that she is the mother of Amelia, and she is looking for her daughter, whom she does not believe is dead. With the ending of "Gyre" bringing together Martin and Lucy in California, she appears to figure more prominently into season two of Touch. As a fellow servant to the numbers? As a love interest for Martin? Who knows, but it would be nice if she is signed full-time.

Season one of Touch has been a mixed bag experiment, sometimes growing boring and confusing. But both parts of "Gyre" are shining examples of what the series could, and should be. With a finale like this, I am very much looking forward to season two! Touch will return to FOX next fall.

If you like my reviews, please follow me on Twitter! Catch up with streaming episodes of Touch. Article first published as Touching on the Touch season finale @TheTVKing.com

Chuck parties in "Chuck Versus the Business Trip"

    On NBC's Chuck this week, "Chuck Versus the Business Trip," Beckman (Bonita Friedericy) removes the Intersect from Morgan's (Joshua Gomez) head and asks Decker (Richard Burgi) to call off the hit on Morgan. He complies, but says there is one super assassin known as the Viper that cannot be called off. So Chuck (Zachary Levi) poses as Morgan at a Buy More retreat, attempting to draw the Viper out into the open. After a false lead, the real Viper, using the name Jane (Catherine Dent, The Shield), is caught. Right assuming Decker will allow Jane to kill them all anyway, since it risks her cover, Casey kills Jane and her crew. Which gives Decker an excuse to arrest Casey.

     The mission of spy versus spy in "Chuck Versus the Business Trip" is straight forward and exciting. Chuck and Sarah (Yvonne Strahovski) fight the bad guys, and Morgan has to run away and hide. Without the Intersect, the Carmichael Industries team still saves the day, with maybe slightly more effort than would be needed previously. If nothing else, it proves they have what it takes, with or without a computer in someone's head.

     Not that Morgan remains a fantastic spy without the Intersect. He shows bravery to protect Alex (Mekenna Melvin), whom he loves, but doesn't try to confront Jane on his own. This is wise. Unlike Chuck, who spends years training, Morgan's experience without the Intersect is very limited. This doesn't mean he can't still contribute to the team, but it does mean he won't be able to do everything he could do. An early scene in "Chuck Versus the Business Trip" shows Morgan enjoying a final stunt, before logically allowing his brain to be fixed.

     But will Carmichael Industries continue? Yes, they have what it takes, but do they want it? This is a question Chuck and Sarah stuggle with in "Chuck Versus the Business Trip." They would quickly grow bored without the adventures, as has been shown before. But at the same time, watching Ellie (Sarah Lancaster) and Awesome (Ryan McPartlin) with their baby, Chuck and Sarah can't help but wish for some amount of normal in their lives. In the end, they realize what they have is enough, because at least they have loved ones to spend time with at the end of the day.

     The final gathering, which finds Chuck, Sarah, Ellie, Awesome, Morgan, Casey (Adam Baldwin), and Alex enjoying each other's company post-mission, is bittersweet. There is some sadness hanging over the affair, with Alex only wanting to be Morgan's friend, since he lied to her about being a spy. Hopefully that will resolve itself soon. But the warmth and affection on the group is touching, and it reminds viewers that this group of complex, lovable characters will not be around much longer, and dark tragedy will likely strike someone soon, before the final curtain call. It is these external elements that fans cannot ignore that color this particular scene, and make it even better than the surface elements.

     What will happen next with Casey? Obviously, Decker set him up. Decker wants to take down everyone in Carmichael Industries, though his motivation as to why is still unknown. But allowing Jane to go after the team, Decker likely doesn't care whether Jane succeeds or not. Now he has a convenient excuse to take one person out of the equation, making the others all the more vulnerable. Without concrete evidence proving he acted in self-defense, how will Casey resolve this situation?

     Side note, the interaction between Casey and Morgan in this episode is top notch. Casey using the geeky movies that Morgan has forgotten to express the feelings he has for his little buddy throughout the episode is brilliant.

     The new Jeff (Scott Krinsky) is turning out to be very interesting. Not only does he help Awesome make Ellie happy by prompting him to go back to work so Ellie can stay home, but he also is a dedicated worker at the Buy More who can inspire the rest of the staff. This doesn't sit well with his frequent cohort, Lester (Vik Sahay), who makes an attempt to put Jeff back to who he was. But Jeff is too smart for this now, having Lester arrested instead. Bravo to Chuck for being brave enough to not have Lester reverse the change after a single episode, and pursue a major shake up such as this within the main cast. Only one problem: if Jeff is so smart and cultured off of the gas, what prompted him to sleep in his running van in the first place?

     Don't miss any of the final season of Chuck, airing Fridays at 8 p.m. ET on NBC.

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