There are some shows you watch just to find out what happens next. You want to know if the terrorist group managed to capture the president, or whatever. That's not Chuck. In Chuck, you don't particularly care whether they manage to secure the top secret data chip or not. Rather, the data chip is the set-up. It provides an excuse for Chuck to go on a mission, get out of the car (when he's been told to stay put), and have a hilarious mishap with a firearm, or get captured by a badguy and amuse the viewers with snarky, on-the-spot dialog. The plot does have a purpose, it's just not an end in and of itself. Instead, it enables and initiates comedic encounters.