I don't really care about every detail of ep to ep minutiae at this point. I do like the hosts though. I especially find Malina to be surprisingly smart and funny (I say surprisingly because I didn't think much of Will or Malina's acting). Also, I've enjoyed all the gusts from the show, and I'm sure that will be a regular feature. I haven't listened to the last 2 yet, so maybe it's terrible all of a sudden and I'm fos. At any rate I plan to keep listening.

Podcast is fine. Allison Janey also has the best laugh in showbiz

https://youtu.be/xtwaDbXK440?t=1m24s

I am a big fan of both the show and the podcast, but there's one thing that I can't understand at all: What is so appealing about CJ lip-synching "The Jackal"?

It seemed stupid to me, as a viewer and it seems implausible to me that the entire West Wing would flock to her performance. So I don't think it makes sense from any perspective. On a recent podcast, they were saying that Janney's original take had to be reshot because it was too good or too real or something, which makes even less sense to me. Just hate hate hate that small piece.

Also, Dule Hill is great and Donna's "wouldn't stop at red lights" is great.

inside jokes are funny for reasons that have nothing to do with how funny they are.

The Jackal was an inside joke amongst the show's characters. We get from context that its something she's done before and has grown into a thing that happens during celebrations. The characters' enthusiasm for it makes the exact origin unnecessary. Its enjoyable to the viewers because its enjoyable to the characters.

about the second take - first was probably too sexual in her facial expression or mannerisms. Final version was pretty innocuous.

i went to trivia night at a local watering hole tonight. Girl there looked JUST like Donna. I asked her if she had seen the west wing and she looked at me like i was from jupiter. Kids these days

One of my favorite aspects of Sorkin is the mostly inconsequential facets he adds to scenes or characters. They went into a couple in the podcast, but watching the Season 7 opener I finally took notice of a great Leo moment in his adjustment to his new role as VP. The whole episode for Leo's arc is building off of Annabeth's comment "Just because you groomed a Preakness jocky doesn't mean you can ride a horse". Leo gets ignored at a meeting, then is asked to change his clothes because his boss is wearing the same color shirt.

Periodically the show would make a point to show Leo's appreciation for the proper sartorial path. The guy clearly has strong opinions on how a man should dress himself, and I just love the short moment of contemplation here that's followed by a "I hate you right now" stare of death. Not only does he have to change the cloths he certainly picked with precision, but now he's not even allowed to dress himself like a big boy.

Yesterday, my 4 year old showed my 2 year old her fake computer and asked if she wanted to watch a video. 2 year old says "yes," then I hear 4 year old say "OK, the options are doc mcstuffins, peppa pig, or west wing."

Yup.

Smart kids you are raising.

The most interesting thing that I've noticed upon my many rewatches is just how much more complex the "he know's everything" aspect of Bartlett's character is. One of the popular criticisms of the show was how unrealistic it was to have a president who had the perfect answer to everything and was smarter than everybody else.

I think over time people realized the surreal aspect of the show, but Bartlett is far more than a know it all hero. One of my favorite episodes, Gone Quiet, perfectly highlights this with him being insecure about his lack of military knowledge, but I just noticed how funny it was with the way the president was sitting when the expert (the brilliant Hal Holbrook) was talking.



Just a funny departure from his usual swagger that is generally either confident or folksy. Then when he changes posture as he tries to be a part of the conversation before getting politely shut down is great. As is his line: "ok, well I'll just stand over there."

The most powerful man in the world, ladies and gentleman.

GOAT show gonna GOAT

Every scene with those 2 is great!!

it seems impossible to find Schweppes Bitter Lemon nowadays though, so I can't watch with the proper beverage. I found Fever Tree Bitter Lemon, but I can't be sure how close it is.

The latest podcast is just talking with Sorkin for an hour about the first season (while he was also writing the second season of Sports Night) and writing in general.

Still worth a listen imo.

Maybe it was just me, but that was absolutely one of my favorite episodes of this podcast.

Wasn't just you.

I heard you like debates. If you want to pregame for your debate with some more debate, might I recommend Game On (Season 4 Episode 6) and The Debate (Season 7 Episode 7), both of which are steaming on Netflix.

Game On - Bartlett vs Richie. Barlett previously decided to kick his ass after Ritchie proclaimed "crime, boy I don't know". But now that Charlie has lost the president's lucky tie, anything can happen.

The Debate - Episode filmed live, twice even, once for the east coast, once for west. If I'm not mistaken, it's the west coast version that made the cut and got saved for reairing. Of course since I'm just guessing, there's a very good chance that I'm mistaken.

I loved Jimmy Smits in NYPD Blue and TWW, but he really struggled in that live debate episode...made to look even worse by standing next to Alda's near-flawless performance.

Not necessarily Smitts' fault, IMO. The live episode was garbage overall, made worse when you look at the other debate episode's sheer perfection. That bass drum hit when Bartlett opens with the first jab gets my blood pumping:

"Unfunded mandate is two words, not one big word."

But when he ends it with his question...



Thinking on it after last's nights debates makes me wish Hillary had Bill's chops. He would have been like a pig in **** debating trump.

That episode gave me chills quite a few times.

Then whose? I'm speaking specifically about his inability to deliver his lines smoothly.

The live debate really does throw sort of a clunk into that last season, because Smits really did look bad next to Alda. I suppose the policy difference with the nuclear reactor cleans it up some but all the subsequent episodes where they're going on about the debate being basically a tie ring sort of false.

I enjoyed both episodes of the podcast that dropped today, especially theb first episode with Tommy Schlamme.

I thought Smits was fine

linking youtube vids shouldnt be allowed in here, instant rabbit hole