The West Wing Bradley Whitford's...

The West Wing Bradley Whitford's not just a good actor, he's also a pretty good writer. He penned tonight's episode, which found C.J. handling palace intrigue, national politics and international crises, all while trying to squeeze in a private life. Whitford called the episode "Internal Displacement," but he might have been better off with "Lady's Night at the White House" or monster-movie style: "C.J. vs the Pompous Men." Claudia Jean had Josh trying to force her hand on the announcement of the biomolecular transporter lab (is that even a real thing?). Then she has to deal with the increasingly condescending and stereotypical ambassadors. We had the rude Frenchman, the slick German and the inscrutable Chinese guy. If those three walk into a bar, you have yourself the start of a pretty good joke. Heck, even the human-rights expert on Darfur seemed a little full of himself while discussing genocide. Not easy. On top of it all, there's Doug, the president's ambitious son-in-law, who can't keep his hands off the nanny. It was fun to watch C.J. negotiate all these dangerous waters with the aplomb and tenacity that Leo brought to the role of chief of staff. (Of course, I'd watch Allison Janney read from the phone book for an hour. But that's me.) The only real help C.J. got was from Kate, who, did you notice, sure seemed in a hurry to avoid Will. While C.J. and Danny have had a will-they-won't-they thing since the show started (and she was totally wrong to run out on him twice), how concerned can I get about the fate of their relationship when we already know they get married and have kids? I'm telling you, that early-season flash-forward scene was just a bad idea all around. A final thought: Is Gail the longest-living goldfish in TV history or what?