Wow. The West Wing's Nov. 23 ...
Question: Wow.
The West Wing's Nov. 23 episode just ended and I'm still in shock. I think that was probably the best episode written by someone other than
Aaron Sorkin. It was tension-filled and kept me glued to the television. It was very similar in that regard to the "17 People" episode from
The West Wing, the first era. (BTW, we're currently in the second era of
The West Wing, better known as the we-no-longer-care-about-the-Bartlet-Administration-and-only-care-about-the-campaign era). It would definitely have been better if the entire hour had been dedicated to the White House, but it was still great. What were your thoughts? Also, is this the end for
Richard Schiff? I have not heard that he is leaving the show and it would be perfectly reasonable for the investigation-indictment-prosecution process to take three months, which is about what is left until Election Day, according to the show's time line. I will be very sad to see him go if it is. It would also contribute to my growing feeling that long-term fans of this show are getting cheated. Vital story lines containing main characters in the last season of a show aren't supposed to wrap up until the end — it's the payoff for seven years of dedication. The teaser for the season premiere already gave away too much (and hinted that Toby was the leak). If Toby leaves now, it'll add to my disappointment with the way the show is ending. I don't want the series finale of
The West Wing to be 75 percent new people and 25 percent old people, like the finale of
The Practice.
Answer: Lots and lots of mail on this episode, making me wish I'd had time to file a separate dispatch this week. But I agree this was a standout episode, and the show in general is much improved from the last few seasons. I am surprised to find myself making an appointment to watch it on Sundays, after more often than not letting it slide on Wednesdays over the last year or so. I was especially impressed at the quiet intensity of the fall-of-Toby episode sustained in its White House scenes, and agree it would have been nice to leave the campaign trail for this full hour (though I often feel the Bartlet scenes nowadays stop the show dead, but not this week). The minute Toby confessed, it was over for him. Another take on the episode from Kelly, who wrote: "The meeting with the president was brutal, and I agree — someone should thank Toby for his service. So my question is this... am I the only one who got choked up? Okay — I confess, I actually shed a few tears and had to get a tissue." I won't go so far as to say it had me in tears. More like Gil's response: "It had been a long time since the show had affected me in any real way. It was a very well-directed, extremely well-acted episode that brought home a conclusion to a story line that I didn't really care about until they ended it. It was nice to wake up the day after an episode and want to talk to someone about what I had seen on
The West Wing. It had been a while." Isn't that the truth?
In conclusion, while I empathize with Sylvia's feelings that longtime fans are being robbed of a cathartic final year with the old gang, what makes this season stand out is that it doesn't feel as stagnant as it did a year ago. In large part, that's because of the Santos-Vinick story lines, which brought much-needed new blood into a tired and tiring show. (For the record, the "17 People" episode referenced above was the one in which Toby discovered the president had MS and fretted with Leo over the legal implications. Kinda ironic, no?) As for Leo's future on the show: I suppose it will be pretty limited, but as the show heads toward its final bow, I imagine Richard Schiff will be seen again.
