'Chuck' fans stuff their faces at Subway to save the NBC show

Well, hit me over the head with a foot-long sub. In fact, that's what happened on a recent episode of Chuck, NBC's spy-lite series that's struggling in the ratings and might not make it back for another season. A really obvious product integration from Subway had the character Morgan plying his boss with a chicken teriyaki sandwich and soda, logos pointed conveniently toward the camera, and dropping in the "$5 foot-long" ad tagline. Not to be outdone, Big Mike, the chief at the fictional Buy More store where Chuck and his friend work, bites lovingly into the food and declares that the "flavors melt together in perfect harmony." So, that's a coup, yeah?
  While the Subway folks have already said they're plenty pleased with that placement, fans are going one further today by snapping up $5 foot-longs as part of their "Save Chuck" effort. It has a Facebook page and everything, and it coincides with the show's second-season finale tonight. Rabid fans in the past have pulled a lot of time- and money-wasting stunts to get network execs to renew shows that hardly anybody watches. But we've come a long way from 40,000 pounds of peanuts delivered to CBS a few years ago, with an advertiser standing to benefit directly from the groundswell. That could be a first. Chuck star Zachary Levi led a whole passel of people to a Subway in the U.K. yesterday, and if the blog chatter is to be believed, Subway should expect a sales spike today from the self-proclaimed nerd nation that adores the show. Is NBC listening? Chances are, a lot of marketers are.

—Posted by T.L. Stanley