Editing Lester Patel

{{Character
|color = background:#3CB371
|image = [[File:Vik.png|250px|]]
|character_name = <font color="white">Lester Patel</font>
|alias = Ass Man (Buy More staff, short for Assistant Manager, season 2)
|residence = Los Angeles
|occupation = [[Nerd Herd|Nerd Herder]] (seasons 1-5),<br>[[Buy More]] Assistant Manager (season 2, briefly)
|relationships = [[Jeff Barnes]] (best friend)
|date of birth = July 4, 1981
|actor = [[Vik Sahay]]
|status = Alive
|seasons = [[Season One|1]], [[Season Two|2]], [[Season Three|3]], [[Season Four|4]]
}}
{{Quote|<i>Bubeleh, you've come to the right place. Repulsion is our business.</i>}}

'''Lester Indira Golda Patel ''' is a [[Nerd Herd]]er, specializing in Apple products, which gives him a superiority complex with regard to IBMs. He is the only friend of [[Jeffrey Barnes]],  just as Jeff is his only friend, the two would constantly plot together. Jeff and Lester also form the singing duo "Jeffster." Lester is of Indian descent,<ref name="colonel">[[Chuck Versus the Colonel]]</ref> and is Jewish, referring to himself as a "Hinjew".<ref name="colonel" /><ref name="vic">"[[Chuck Versus the Crown Vic]]" </ref>  He is portrayed by [[Vik Sahay]].

[[File:Bar.png|thumb|Lester at his bar mitzvah|left]]Little information on Lester's family has been given in the series, however, [[Chuck Versus the Lethal Weapon|''Chuck Versus the Lethal Weapon'']] reveals he has a cousin familiar with legal work, and helped [[Morgan Grimes|Morgan]] compose his Morganuptuals. Several episodes have said that he keeps kosher, however, he frequently takes advantage of other aspects of his faith, such as scamming his coworkers with a dreidel. In [[Chuck Versus the Crown Vic|''Chuck Versus the Crown Vic'']],  he several times has issue with [[Big Mike]] when he refers to the store's holiday party as a "Christmas Party".  Lester's Canadian origins have also been referenced in a number of episodes.<ref name="balcony">"[[Chuck Versus the Balcony]]"</ref><ref>"[[Chuck Versus Agent X]]"</ref><ref>"[[Chuck Versus the HackOff]]"</ref><ref>"[[Chuck Versus Bo]]"</ref><ref>"[[Chuck Versus the Bullet Train]]"</ref> 
==Biography==
Lester was born in July 4, 1981 on Saskatchewan, Canada, into a "Hinjew" community that, by his own admission, may very well have been a cult.<ref name="balcony" /> There may well have been other 'branches' in places such as Montreal. Prior to the start of the series, Lester emigrated to [[Burbank]], California.

Lester is the lead singer in the two-man band [[Jeffster!]] along with Jeff, and auditioned - with Toto's ''Africa'' -  for the gig of  [[Ellie Bartowski|Ellie]] and [[Devon Woodcomb|Devon's]] wedding. [[Jeffster]]!, though not hired, nonetheless performed Styx's 'Mr. Roboto' before the ceremony in order to stall events when the bad guys arrived without invitation in [[Chuck Versus the Ring]]. 

He has written dozens of pop songs as well as "Virus/rebuild," an experimental symphony for monophonic synthesizer. His stylistic influences include Morrisey, Kurt Cobain, Bon Scott, Billy Joel, and Madonna. He does not, in fact, have a Wikipedia entry in his name, an "accomplishment" he noted on his resume while applying for the position of Assistant Manager at the Buy More.<ref name="date">"[[Chuck Versus the First Date]]"</ref>

Lester's best - and only -  friend is Jeff, and the two are frequently seen scheming together. Stealing Big Mike's [[Norman|marlin]] was Lester's idea,<ref name="marlin">"[[Chuck Versus the Marlin]]"</ref> and he conspired with Jeff to break into the Buy More and steal a high-tech computer he mistakenly believed was a new gaming machine. He frequents the Bennigan's bar across the street from the Buy More with Jeff, presumably to attempt to pick up women, something they fail at utterly.

== Series==
Lester's primary role throughout the series, is in the secondary plots at the Buy More, and he has rarely contributed to the main plot. His antics with Jeff are frequently a source of comic relief. His most important contributions to the main plot came in [[Chuck Versus the Marlin|''Chuck Versus the Marlin'']] when he decided to steal Big Mike's fish after breaking into the store. The resulting hunt for the fish became a major focus of the plot. His performance of ''Mr. Roboto'' during Ellie's wedding also indirectly helped Chuck save her life.

[[File:Lester Patel.jpg|thumb|Lester Patel as Assistant Manager]]In the second season Lester was promoted to Assistant Manager of the Buy More after beating Jeff in a cage match organized by Morgan. Much like [[Harry Tang]] before him, his tenure was highly unpopular due to his tyrannical tendencies, with the rest of the employees staging a walkout led by [[Morgan Grimes]]. He voluntarily resigned his managerial role, and returned to his former position with the Nerd Herd at the end of [[Chuck Versus the Cougars|''Chuck Versus the Cougars'']]. Despite his previously held position of assistant manager, he has a strong aversion to anyone in power in the Buy More, and very often attempts to sabotage or humiliate them when possible, especially after the new assistant manager turns out to be Morgan.

Lester has, on several occasions, shown a willingness to sell out anyone for personal gain. In [[Chuck Versus the Alma Mater|''Chuck Versus the Alma Mater'']] he betrayed Morgan's revolt against Harry Tang for a monogrammed Buy More polo. He also attempted to suck up to Chuck when Big Mike assigned him to interview for the assistant manager position. In [[Chuck Versus the Beard]], he offers to dish the dirt on the Buy More in return for immunity. Lester, however, freely acknowledged to [[Emmett Milbarge]] that when faced with a difficult decision, he asks himself WWCD, or "What would Chuck do?" He then followed Morgan's lead in an attempt to sabotage Emmett's efficiency rating.

He is terrified of Casey, and when he attempted to hit on [[Sarah Walker|Sarah]] after Chuck "dumped" her, he panicked and fled when she responded aggressively to his advances.

Lester was responsible for nearly getting the Buy More involved in a sexual harassment law suit when he and Jeff organized a "casting couch" to hire a new Buy More "Greenshirt," and used it as an opportunity to hit on women.<ref name="beefcake">"[[Chuck Versus the Beefcake]]"</ref> As a result, they mistakenly believed a [[Fulcrum#Alexis White|FULCRUM agent]] who kidnapped Chuck was a police officer taking him into custody.

In [[Chuck Versus the Ring: Part 2|''Chuck Versus the Ring, Part 2'']], Lester suggests to Big Mike that the Buy More host a "going out of business sale", to boost sales. He also convinces Big Mike to play Jeffster!'s first music video, which took "two and a half weekends" to make. The sale turns out to be an incredible money maker, but lands the employees in hot water when the Beverly Hills Buy More employees show up. The merchandise was supposed to be sent to their store. Later, during the fight between [[Shaw]] and Chuck, Jeffster!'s music video begins playing. Later, Lester tries to silence Jeff when he suggests burning down the Buy More to save the employees' jobs. When Morgan accidentally blows up the store, Lester and Jeff become prime suspects in the store's destruction. Believing they may have actually blown the place up somehow, Lester went on the run with Jeff, but eight months later, they were living near an overpass, and no one believed that they burned down their store. 

[[File:Jeffster.jpg|left|thumb|Jeffster! in concert]]In [[Chuck Versus the Suitcase|''Chuck Versus the Suitcase'']], they were tracked down by Morgan and Casey, who wanted to rehire them for the Buy More, now a CIA substation, to make the  cover seem less noticeable. Lester tried negotiating more perks, only for Casey to tranquilize him and Jeff; and the two were then dragged back to the Buy More. 

Lester and Jeff then have a serious falling out when Jeff stops sleeping in his van, and is thus no longer suffering the effects of carbon monoxide poisoning. Lester's 'prank' in response, pumping auto exhaust into the break room in order to make Jeff once again docile and subordinate, almost kills people and lands him in jail.  Jeff offers to drop charges if Lester promises never to try and kill him again, and is refused, so Lester goes to the county lockup, where he saves Casey from jail house assassins by threatening to cut off their cable and internet access.

In the series finale, Jeffster! perform a cover of "Take On Me" by A-ha, in order to keep an audio sensitive bomb from exploding in a concert hall. When they return to Burbank, a German record producer who was at the concert signs them. Jeff and Lester follow him to Germany to become stars.

==Development==
Beginning with the second season premiere, actor [[Vik Sahay|Vikrahm Sahay]] was listed in the opening credits as a series regular. During the audition process actor [[Vik Sahay]] originally read for the role of Morgan, the role eventually coming down to him and [[Joshua Gomez]]. After Gomez was selected for Morgan, Sahay was offered the role of Lester. Sahay has described Lester as ''"fancying himself a superstar and he just does not have the nervous system to back it up." ''The concept for Jeffster! first appeared after Sahay mentioned to the writers Lester's "rock star" hair and swagger. He further goes on to describe Lester as'' "...He wants to be respected, right? He wants what Chuck has — that effortless charm and likeability. He wants it so bad that the last thing he is is effortless. He’s effort-ful." ''A significant amount of improvisation and riffing also occurs between the actors, which Sahay attributes to the "electric environment" resulting from the strong working relationships and friendship between the cast members.<ref>''Interview: April 12, 2009'': [http://weblogs.redeyechicago.com/showpatrol/2009/04/vik-sahay-jeffster-geekiness-saving-chuck.html Sahay on Jeffster, geekiness, and saving Chuck]</ref>

Sahay issued a "thank you" to fans of the series following the completion of a deal between [[NBC]] and Warner Bros. to pick up the series for a third season.<ref>''Interview: May 18, 2009'': [http://weblogs.redeyechicago.com/showpatrol/2009/05/vik-sahay-thanks-fans-for-saving-chuck.html ''Vik Sahay thanks fans for saving 'Chuck''']</ref> Josh Schwartz has also indicated that Jeffster! would make another appearance in the show's third season.<ref>''Interview: April 29, 2009'': [http://www.sliceofscifi.com/2009/04/29/josh-schwartz-talks-chuck-finale-renewal-odds/ ''Josh Schwartz Talks "Chuck" Finale, Renewal Odds'']</ref>

== Trivia==

*Lester's birthday is on the 4th of July making him a Cancer 
*"Indira" and "Golda" are both feminine names, they were the names of famous women who led India and Israel respectively.

==References==
<references />


{{Main Character}}
[[Category:Characters]]
[[Category:Main Characters]]
[[Category:Male]]
[[Category:Buy More Staff]]
[[Category:Nerd Herder]]