Chuck and Sarah go for a walk to get Chuck out from under his father's feet as he works on the Governor (which Sarah thinks is just an old family heirloom he's retouching). They go to a local farmer's market...
- **FLASH**
... Where Chuck flashes on Daniel Shaw's voice. He tries to follow the man he thinks is Shaw, but is hampered by a sudden, blinding headache: the Intersect is damaging him as predicted. Nonetheless, he manages to follow the Shaw suspect into a Subway station, where he loses him, only for Shaw to reveal himself on a train that's pulling away.
Awesome approaches Morgan, asking about the questions Morgan was asking about Ellie, who didn't come home last night. Morgan plays the recording of Ellie's call, making Awesome think she's cheating. Meanwhile, Ellie finds out she can't make calls from the CIA office, but is assured it's for her safety as Casey is still at large.
Back in Castle, the team track Shaw to another station, where he goes through an apparent maintenance door into what is, presumably, a Ring station. They go after him, acknowledging that it's a trap, and split up to search for Shaw. Sarah and Casey realise it's a CIA station and go to find Chuck just as an alarm sounds.
Ellie is scared by the alarm, even more so when a shadowy figure passes by the office. Justin goes out, warning her to stay in, and a fight ensues. Ellie comes out, just in time to see Justin knocked down by a figure in black. A figure who looks just like her brother...
And just like that, Chuck's secret is exposed to his sister. But before he can deal with it, Justin runs, and Chuck gives chase... right into a courtroom where the Intesect program is under review by a panel of government officials. And Chuck just tackled a CIA agent in front of them, looking like an unprofessional jackass.
Ellie is taken home, while Chuck is essentially put on trial, a situation that gets worse when it becomes clear who he's up against: Shaw, now rebranded as a patriot shot down by an unstable, Intersect-addled Chuck. It Gets Worse: Chuck realises Shaw's an Intersect, and tries to prove it by throwing a knife that Shaw fails to catch. Chuck ends up in a cell, but is broken out by his father's hacking. He reunites with his father, who gives him the finished Governor and they prepare to disappear.
Casey leaves the building and reaches the café where his daughter Alex works, having built up a rapport with her as a customer. Agent Justin follows him, threatening to hurt Alex if Casey doesn't cooperate. Casey bashes the man's face in an brazenly kidnaps Alex. After telling her who he is, he gives her a locker key and tells her to go to the Buy More before being arrested.
Ellie and Awesome talk, and all the "Chuck is CIA" stuff comes out, with Morgan drawn in to help. The guys are thrown by Chuck's arrest, and go to Castle just in time to get a call from General Beckman, who explains the situation before being dragged out of her office by Shaw's men. Morgan calls Chuck to pass on some news: Sarah's been arrested.
Chuck insists on going back for Sarah, which his father insists is a trap. They go to Ellie, who shows them where she'd meet Justin and the door he left through. Telling Ellie to wait, they go to investigate, finding a real Ring base this time. But as they come out, they're caught by Shaw and his men, who take the Governor.
Shaw kills Chuck's father while Ellie, who followed the Ring agents in, watches from the shadows. Unable to flash, Chuck is taken prisoner.
Alex reaches the Buy More, where she is rescued from Jeff and Lester by Morgan. He shows her the locker, where they find bricks of cash and fake passports to help her go off-grid. Awesome comes in and tells Morgan they need to talk.
Chuck is loaded into a prison van with Sarah and Casey. Shaw drops by for some gloating, telling them that "when this ride ends, so do your lives." He shuts the door and the van drives off, with a desparing Chuck stating that Shaw has won as there is no one else to help them.
However, behind the van, a car follows, driven by a tearful Ellie. On the phone in a different car, Awesome with Morgan asks her if she's sure she wants to "do this," noting that their lives are over if they do. She says yes.
Trope Flash:
- Batman Gambit: Everything Shaw does is designed to make Chuck look like a lunatic with Intersect brain damage, while making himself look like a hero and taking over the CIA for the Ring.
- Big "NO!": Chuck, when Shaw kills his father.
- Call-Back:
- Casey's daughter shows up again for the first time since Chuck Versus the Tic Tac.
- The events of Shaw's "death" are gone over, retouched this time so the higher-ups think he was going undercover, only for Chuck to "mistake" his faked turn for a real one and shoot him.
- As predicted in Chuck Versus the Tooth, the Intersect is starting to take a serious toll on Chuck.
- Cliffhanger: Stephen is dead, Shaw has the Governor and the CIA in the palm of his hand. Chuck, Sarah and Casey are being driven away in a prison van to an uncertain fate. All seems lost, but a car is following the van. a car driven by Ellie...
- Killed Off for Real: Stephen Bartowski is shot by Shaw to stop Chuck from using the Intersect.Chuck: Come on, aren't you a little curious? I know I am. Don't you want to see how your Intersect stacks up against mine?
Shaw: You're right, Chuck. The fight will be incredible. We're totally equal now. Nothing separates us. Though... there's one thing that's different. You can't function when your emotions have been compromised.
Chuck: Don't worry about that. I've never been more calm.
Shaw: Really? How you feeling now?
[Shoots Stephen Bartowski] - I Have Your Wife: Shaw takes Sarah prisoner to lure Chuck into a trap.
- Internal Reveal: Ellie finds out that Chuck is in the CIA. Sarah finds out about Chuck's brain damage.
- Locked Out of the Loop: Ellie is not impressed that Morgan knew Chuck was in the CIA before her.Ellie: Morgan Grimes, the boy who took my pillow as his date to Junior Prom, knows more about my family being spies than I do!
- Lured into a Trap: Team Chuck are lured into a courtroom where the Intersect program is under review, and where Chuck is made to look unstable.
- Shame If Something Happened: Justin threatens Alex, prompting Casey to deck him and abduct Alex for her safety.
- Villain with Good Publicity: Shaw's plan hinges on looking like a hero at Chuck's expense.
