The West Wing Spoilers

Dinner · 21-06-2011 11:02pm

cjmcork wrote: »

there's actually only 1 episode I don't watch (though I do forward through most of Mandy's scenes....), but I don't generally watch The Long Goodbye
re CJ's father
- just don't really see the point of it, I know it develops the character more.............. buuuuutttttttttttttt.........

Yeah on my second watch through I skipped that episode and Isaac and Ishmael, was never too pushed about them.

But it's by far my favourite TV show ever. Two Cathedrals is an incredible episode (

The speech in the cathedral is one of if not the best scenes in television, better still because is was just Martin Sheen by himself

. The Season 2 opener 'In the Shadow of Two Gunmen' was brilliant too, especially the first 15-20 minutes of it. (

GW! BLUE, BLUE, BLUE!

cjmcork · 21-06-2011 11:10pm

Dinner wrote: »

Yeah on my second watch through I skipped that episode and Isaac and Ishmael, was never too pushed about them.

But it's by far my favourite TV show ever. Two Cathedrals is an incredible episode (
The speech in the cathedral is one of if not the best scenes in television, better still because is was just Martin Sheen by himself
. The Season 2 opener 'In the Shadow of Two Gunmen' was brilliant too, especially the first 15-20 minutes of it. (
GW! BLUE, BLUE, BLUE!

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]She booted all over the back of her car. You know they're gonna bill me for
that. - hardly a spoiler..............ah lads, we could go on like this all night...........

"a motherboard so far up your ass!"............LOVE IT LOVE IT LOVE IT.............

[/FONT]

VinLieger · 22-06-2011 12:21am

Dont forget Charlie and CJs prank war, or when Josh and CJ are trying to get the

first Female Supreme Court Justice

and end up getting pissed drunk. Theres just too many hilarious moments to count

johnny_ultimate · 22-06-2011 12:31am

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q7H_L5cYkg8

Ellian · 22-06-2011 10:04am

The season two opener moment for me was Bartlets when

all the doctors are crowding around him and he nods at Ron and says something like "that guy over there has been shot if you know, somoene wanted to give him a band aid or something

and in Two Cathedrals, there is something just so powerful

about the caretaker finding the ciggy butt on the floor just as the motorcade rolls past - the link between Bartlet and the outward display of his power and status, set against the symbol of all his inner turmoil and human confusion

cjmcork · 27-06-2011 8:59pm

Paully D wrote: »

I've never watched it but I'm looking for a new series to watch after recently finishing The Wire, The Sopranos and catching up on Entourage (now waiting for the new season to be released next month).

Is it worth watching?

OP, dying to know if you've started watching it.........on foot of this thread last week, I've just started watching it from S1...........by christ, Mandy is a pain in the proverbial!

kenon · 27-06-2011 9:18pm

I'm impressed with how much "Two Cathedrals" was mentioned, I always thought it was an absolutely incredible episode. The use of music in the show was always excellent, the use of "Angel" by Massive Attack (which was mentioned already) was perfectly used to create the required sinister vibe to the scene.

I always like "Noël" in Season 2. I think it was despite Josh's arrogance, he was out of his league for a change. There is excellent use of music in "Noël" also.

The Black Oil · 27-06-2011 9:30pm

Ah, The West Wing. What a show.

Mandy's a pain, yes, but she is nowhere near as bad as a certain irritating intern in season 5. Thank you, John Wells, and for turning the show into a political ER. They really did struggle after Sorkin's 'f!ck you' in the season 4 finale, though. Season 5 also features the only real stinker of an episode which is Access. Seasons 6 and 7 are an improvement and occasionally come close to Sorkin's brilliance.

Two Cathedrals is probably the finest episode of television ever put together. However, one problem is we have to deal with Ryan Tubridy who will inevitably show a clip from this ep, a pointless exercise, imo, as it means nothing out of context to non-fans. Better off showing something from inside the Oval Office.

As mentioned, Noël is pretty amazing. Best character? Toby...the liberal conscience of the show. Plus, can you really top Schiff's performance?

G_R · 27-06-2011 9:32pm

Since reading this thread last week I started watching it again. I'm currently 10 episodes into season 3! I love college breaks!

Work is seriously cramping my style tho.

jc84 · 27-06-2011 9:36pm

the west wing, brilliant show, almost finished watching the final season, flew through s1-6 but found the first half of 7 hard to get into, didn't really feel like west wing, best show EVER (season 6 is my favorite of all)

cjmcork · 27-06-2011 9:51pm

my fav character...........Josh 'lemonlyman.com' Lyman!!!

VinLieger · 27-06-2011 10:09pm

cjmcork wrote: »

OP, dying to know if you've started watching it.........on foot of this thread last week, I've just started watching it from S1...........by christ, Mandy is a pain in the proverbial!

Yes she is, luckily at the beginning of season 2 she abruptly disappears through no storyline or important event, she just isnt there so its not a spoiler dont worry. Apparently Sorkin just didnt know how to write for the actress and if Sorkin cant write for you well........

cjmcork · 27-06-2011 10:15pm

VinLieger wrote: »

Yes she is, luckily at the beginning of season 2 she abruptly disappears through no storyline or important event, she just isnt there so its not a spoiler dont worry. Apparently Sorkin just didnt know how to write for the actress and if Sorkin cant write for you well........

I've actually watched it loads of times, but just keep forgetting that she's a pain in the butt..........fortunately her scenes become more sparse as S1 progresses - her VOICE annoys me intensely

though, LOVE john hoynes...........'excuse me, me and my pal!!':eek:

VinLieger · 27-06-2011 10:38pm

cjmcork wrote: »

I've actually watched it loads of times, but just keep forgetting that she's a pain in the butt..........fortunately her scenes become more sparse as S1 progresses - her VOICE annoys me intensely

though, LOVE john hoynes...........'excuse me, me and my pal!!':eek:

Hoynes is ok but cant get enough of Lord John, finished season 1 again at the weekend and ripping through season 2 again in anticipation of 2 cathedrals

cjmcork · 27-06-2011 10:45pm

aw man - gotta thank OP for posting at all - this is a class series.......we should do a 'everyone watch an ep and discuss' forum..............ooohhh, that would be TOO SAD!:o

amacachi · 27-06-2011 11:43pm

Gave up after 3 and a half episodes. Maybe it gets better but I'm not arsed putting the time in after how predictable and cheesey the first 3 episodes were I've other things to watch that I know are good.

Biggins · 28-06-2011 12:14am

amacachi wrote: »

Gave up after 3 and a half episodes. Maybe it gets better but I'm not arsed putting the time in after how predictable and cheesey the first 3 episodes were I've other things to watch that I know are good.

Pity you gave up. You missed on how better it got.
Give it another few episodes.

Pepe LeFrits · 28-06-2011 12:22am

The first episode I ever watched was the season 1 finale; I did find the first few episodes of season 1 slow but I already knew it was going to be worth sticking with.

This is such a great scene.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dJb4dUSNmIo

amacachi · 28-06-2011 12:27am

Biggins wrote: »

Pity you gave up. You missed on how better it got.
Give it another few episodes.

Like I said, I have other stuff I know I'll like to watch. :pac:

Biggins · 28-06-2011 12:29am

amacachi wrote: »

Like I said, I have other stuff I know I'll like to watch. :pac:

Hopefully you will give it another go sometime.

amacachi · 28-06-2011 12:30am

Thing is I'll stick by things if they seem even just OK but I'd actually call what I watched bad.

Biggins · 28-06-2011 12:35am

amacachi wrote: »

Thing is I'll stick by things if they seem even just OK but I'd actually call what I watched bad.

Aaa...well, tastes differ.

Theboinkmaster · 28-06-2011 11:00am

amacachi wrote: »

Thing is I'll stick by things if they seem even just OK but I'd actually call what I watched bad.

Your loss TBH

Biggins · 28-06-2011 3:18pm

Theboinkmaster wrote: »

Your loss TBH

People will still be talking about various aspects of this great show in decades to some.
To miss an opportunity to understand and know where they are coming from, in indeed a sad loss for the show it self was an influencing/teaching factor for later shows that tried to capture its endemicity.

WesternNight · 28-06-2011 3:29pm

To be fair it's different when you watch it without having heard anything about it than when you watch it after having loads of people tell you it's the best thing since sliced bread. It's bound to affect your expectations and perceptions of it. And then there's the way people can tend to want things to not be as good as people say because they don't want to be seen to be jumping on the bandwagon. Which would be a shame if it happened in this case.

Biggins · 28-06-2011 3:37pm

WesternNight wrote: »

To be fair it's different when you watch it without having heard anything about it than when you watch it after having loads of people tell you it's the best thing since sliced bread. It's bound to affect your expectations and perceptions of it. And then there's the way people can tend to want things to not be as good as people say because they don't want to be seen to be jumping on the bandwagon. Which would be a shame if it happened in this case.

You have point indeed to be fair also.
The thing about The West Wing is that its greatness just don't lie within any single episodes as such (although some do stand out too), but that when you manage to get through a lot more episodes you start to grasp a fuller picture of its range of interwoven complexities and characters that have a daily effect on outcomes on same and other characters, besides places and wars, deaths etc.
If one was to judge a picture/painting by just glancing at its dullest corner or peaking at just one area, a viewer could fail to see a broader canvas and all its additional wonders.

WesternNight · 28-06-2011 3:55pm

Biggins wrote: »

You have point indeed to be fair also.
The thing about The West Wing is that its greatness just don't lie within any single episodes as such (although some do stand out too), but that when you manage to get through a lot more episodes you start to grasp a fuller picture of its range of interwoven complexities and characters that have a daily effect on outcomes on same and other characters, besides places and wars, deaths etc.
If one was to judge a picture/painting by just glancing at its dullest corner or peaking at just one area, a viewer could fail to see a broader canvas and all its additional wonders.

For sure. It was only after I'd watched all 7 seasons and went back to the very start again that I realised how far the show had come since the first few episodes.

One thing (of many, heh) I really love about the show is how you get to be able to read the characters, and actually get to know them, and understand references that go back to previous episodes or seasons without them being spelled out. Makes the audience feel properly part of it, which is probably why people love it so much.

Marz66 · 28-06-2011 10:42pm

Have to agree with all the love for TWW

Agree the charachters make it, you really root for them. I watched the 7 seasons from Sept to January last and it was brilliant to watch on the winter evenings, something to look forward to during the day:)

Have to say reading some of the negative comments has made me think of a few things that grated with me as well..

In season 7, it never really got to the bottom of whether Santos had an illegitimate son? i know he said he was paying maintenance for his brothers son but it sounded like he was making it up and it took him a while to say it. Were we just supposed to accept that?

Major

I dont know why but was donna and josh getting together a bit of an anti climax?

And

the Toby

thing was already said.

Agree no need to watch Episode 1 of Season 4 or Access in Season 5 - you wont miss anything by skipping them but they are the only two episodes to avoid i think.

On the majorly postive side though, wouldnt the interactions between

danny and cj, donna and josh & toby and andie

throughout the series just make your heart melt!

VinLieger · 29-06-2011 12:26am

Marz66 wrote: »

In season 7, it never really got to the bottom of whether Santos had an illegitimate son? i know he said he was paying maintenance for his brothers son but it sounded like he was making it up and it took him a while to say it. Were we just supposed to accept that?
Major
I dont know why but was donna and josh getting together a bit of an anti climax?

It kinda was confirmed when you see the brother in the house begging santos to meet his friends, cant remember what episode, anyway he comes across as a bit of a dick

maudgonner · 29-06-2011 9:37am

Marz66 wrote: »

On the majorly postive side though, wouldnt the interactions between
danny and cj, donna and josh & toby and andie
throughout the series just make your heart melt!

Did the episosode of Studio 60 where Allison Janney guest starred bother anyone? She played herself, talking about The West Wing to a character (Cal) played by Timothy Busfield, who played Danny in the West Wing. It made my brain hurt!

The West Wing *Spoilers*

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The West Wing Spoilers