I have made the terrible mistake of starting to watch The West Wing again

[BlueRaincoat1]

... on Prime.

Sigh. I have watched it all before, but not in years. Maybe 10 years. I love it so much. I'll never get to bed at a reasonable hour again 😫So many episodes!

What are your favourite scenes? Best episodes? It's so brilliant, every time.

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Ah, my happy place. For some Creaton I've had in my head the episode where Sam says the wrong country to someone and gets Donna to slip in that he knew the right one, which leads to more and more... I can't remember the sequence of putting things right which is really annoying me.

I throughly recommend Newsroom, also by Aaron Storkin. A bit slow to get going (Will starts off horrible) but it gets to a very similar feel as WW. I knows it's free somewhere but can't remember where.

So it's nearly two hours later and I still watching West Wing clips. I, too, have made a terrible mistake.

I’ve just finished another rewatch on Prime - it’s just sublime. We recently saw Hamilton in London and I was struck by how many WW references there are. I knew Lin Manuel Miranda was a super fan, it’s so clever how he’s weaved some lines in.

They interviewed Lin Manuel Miranda on TWWW podcast! He talked about how big a fanboy he was, it’s a delight to listen to.

itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-west-wing-weekly/id1093364587?mt=2&i=1000519261057

Just watched the Big Bird episode.

Then the next episode has Glenn Close !

‘And it’s Mr Toby Ziegler, from the Coney Island Killjoy’. God, I love this show. I love Toby. He’s a wittier, hairier, Jewish version of me.

“There is literally no one in the world that I don’t hate right now” Oh, the delivery!

Watched it when it was first on tv, then bought the box-set. Re-watch it every few years, and last watched it all during the first lockdown. Thoroughly enjoyable every time.
My favourite characters are CJ, Danny and the wonderful Toby. Least favourite are Mandy and Lord John.
My favourite episode is the one when Simon Donovan (Mark Harmon) goes to buy flowers for CJ. I won’t say any more as there’s so many of you watching it for the first time but it’s heart-breakingly good, I still cry a lot every time I watch it.
The WW is my second favourite series ever, The Sopranos is number one as I feel it hasn’t dated as much. Plus I agree with others who think the WW went “off” a bit when Sorkin stopped writing it.
Other favourites of mine are Oz, Rome and the finished far too soon Deadwood.

I have never fancied this programme, it just looked/sounded so overpolished, glamourised, and cheesy as only US programmes can be. Also Obama is the only US president in my lifetime who seemed any good at all so a US politics theme is not exactly a drawer. But so many people seem to rave about it, I may give it a go sometime. Though there are not many US TV programmes I like at all.

My daughter is named after CJ and DH is forever rewatching WW. I always know what will be on tv if he's cooking in the kitchen. It's his happy place and I really enjoy it too. I have been known to say 'there was a coup d'etat in this [public institution]' at work 😁

After being pulled in by this thread I started watching TWW last Thursday and now I'm hooked.
Those opening credits though, I have to skip them each time they're so cheesy and twee.

I was watching The Bear (new on Prime, amd excellent) when suddenly Oliver Platt appeared! He is brilliant as WH counsel Oliver Babish in the West Wing and I'd forgotten all about him. He has some really classic scenes.

Leo made fun of the woman’s shoes and sends Sam to make amends, he mixes up Kazakstan and Kyrgyzstan, he sends Donna to make amends, she leaves her dirty underwear with the woman by accident and they get posted back to Josh. I think 😁

@Rosehugger give it a try, what’s the worst that could happen?! It’s more about the behind the scenes of US politics rather than the office of the President himself - the original intention was for the President to never/hardly ever appear, but hey, Martin Sheen happened!

In the later series the character of Congressman Matt Santos is said to be based on Obama, who was still a young up-and-coming thing when this originally aired, and the character of Josh Lyman was rumoured to be based on Rahm Emanuel, a notorious political operative who worked in the Clinton administration and became Obama’s Chief of Staff, though he is now US Ambassador to Japan.

It has some twee moments, and it is dated in several ways (mainly relating to technology), but it is a truly amazing piece of writing and casting and one of the few shows that, in the main, shows strong female roles and more than passes the Bechdel Test.

It is a truth universally acknowledged that it is not possible to watch just 1 episode of TWW at a time 😜

Thanks @CaveMum

@Rosehugger America or Leader of the Free World as they like to call themselves is very much portrayed as the best nation in the world but if you can get past that it is alllll about the characters who must of us grow to love dearly. It’s also funny and lots of walking and delivering great lines in corridors in between meetings.

I just wanted to say I love everyone on this thread and reading everyone’s favourite quotes and scenes has cheered me right up.

Thinking about it the first few series probably deliver the best lines and classic WW moments but I was really surprised how much I enjoyed the later series with Vinick and Santos. Loved both their characters and Donna’s bigger role.

Going to download the podcast.

I really wanted to love The Sopranos (love the lead actor and the mobster stuff) but I really took a dislike to the psychiatrist bit. Maybe I should try again.

You will become an “expert” on US politics too. You’ll be spouting forth about the D-Triple-C, DARPA and the OEOB before you know it! Not to mention debating the merits of Big Block of Cheese Day 😜

Thanks Shadow! I remember Donna tried to get POTUS involved but he sadly refused.

Same, I watched so many full series and this has always been on my list. I must get it watched.

Brilliant, TWW is just brilliant. Dh and I have watched it about 4 times and both teen children watched it too. I will also recommend The Newsroom again written by Sorkin. Only 3 seasons as too much work for him for such short episodes and I have no idea where you would watch it but again an incredible tv series.

Best bits of TWW, Charlie and the knife, Charlie's tax return, the butterball helpline, Peterson Projection map, any Leo and Margaret scene, the radio talk hosts scene, Sam vs Ainsley and please don't let them be watching, Ainsley meeting the president. Zoe's panic button. The list just goes on. I don't want to say too much as I don't want to spoil it.

We originally watched it about 10 years ago and it hasn't really aged. To anyone thinking of watching it, I agree with give it a couple of episodes and hopefully you too will love it.

Brothers In Arms....

Binge watching it means you quickly see Mrs Bartlett's face becoming more rigid.

Ooh. When Margaret spams the entire government with a muffin recipe (or whatever it was). Love Margaret.