Debate and Switch
November sweeps have started and the live 'West Wing' debate episode airs tonight. I hope it's good. I'd given up on 'The West Wing' even before Aaron Sorkin left (the multiple-sclerosis cover-up episodes were GREAT, but then the Bartlett re-election arc, with a dim-witted James Brolin as his opponent, seemed a waste of an opportunity), but somehow I caught one of the early Jimmy Smits introduction episodes, got interested, and became totally sucked into the whole Matt Santos vs. Arnold Vinick (Alan Alda) drama. They even recently had a campaigning/traveling/kissing hands and shaking babies montage to Steve Miller's "Jet Airliner" that was pretty good.
(Tangent: I either knew someone or read somewhere about someone who thought the words of "Jet Airliner" were "Big Ol' Jed Had a Line-Up.")
It used to be that the campaign stuff was great and the actual White House stuff still boring, but two weeks ago they had a cool episode when they discovered that one of the regulars (SPOILER: Toby) was a White House security leak, and it had a semi-Orwellian depiction of what happens to you when you leak classified information (no matter that the cause is just). The interesting thing was, it aired right in the midst of the Scooter Libby/Valerie Plame stuff, so it felt like real life. Then LAST week's episode centered on abortion (Santos and Vinick are both pro-choice), and fit the national argument about the nomination of Judge Alito to the Supreme Court. Coincidence, or what?
Most everyone else seems to have given up on 'The West Wing,' too, because when I tell them how good the show is now, they look at me like I'm calling, say 'According to Jim' a brilliant, Noel Coward-esque comedy. But it's true! (Not about 'According to Jim,' the other thing.) That doesn't mean we still don't love making fun of the opening credits, which look like they really believe 'The Daily Show's' old claim of being "The Most Important Television Program -- Ever!"
I actually think it would be really interesting if Vinick won -- I find him a more intriguing character than Santos (same w/Alda vs. Smits) -- but I can't see it happening. How could Vinick be president without 'West Wing' firing all the Democrat regular characters?
goudabonbon pointed out the irony that with Alda on 'West Wing' and Donald Sutherland on 'Commander in Chief' (which I've never seen but I've heard is a guilty pleasure), you have both actors who played Hawkeye Pierce on network TV as formidable Republicans.
Thanks to
yellowdoggrl for directing me how to make livejournal links.
(Tangent: I either knew someone or read somewhere about someone who thought the words of "Jet Airliner" were "Big Ol' Jed Had a Line-Up.")
It used to be that the campaign stuff was great and the actual White House stuff still boring, but two weeks ago they had a cool episode when they discovered that one of the regulars (SPOILER: Toby) was a White House security leak, and it had a semi-Orwellian depiction of what happens to you when you leak classified information (no matter that the cause is just). The interesting thing was, it aired right in the midst of the Scooter Libby/Valerie Plame stuff, so it felt like real life. Then LAST week's episode centered on abortion (Santos and Vinick are both pro-choice), and fit the national argument about the nomination of Judge Alito to the Supreme Court. Coincidence, or what?
Most everyone else seems to have given up on 'The West Wing,' too, because when I tell them how good the show is now, they look at me like I'm calling, say 'According to Jim' a brilliant, Noel Coward-esque comedy. But it's true! (Not about 'According to Jim,' the other thing.) That doesn't mean we still don't love making fun of the opening credits, which look like they really believe 'The Daily Show's' old claim of being "The Most Important Television Program -- Ever!"
I actually think it would be really interesting if Vinick won -- I find him a more intriguing character than Santos (same w/Alda vs. Smits) -- but I can't see it happening. How could Vinick be president without 'West Wing' firing all the Democrat regular characters?
Thanks to