I have a friend who came across the entire series of The West Wing on DVDs, they were being given away for free, and she grabbed them up thinking of me. How cool is it to have friends who on occasion think of you?
I had heard of this TV show, of course, but I had never seen an episode. Surprisingly I hadn't watched it, seeing as I'm a really big fan of Aaron Sorkin, the creator of the show. Aaron is known for writing screenplays to movies and television with quick-paced, tightly-scripted dialogue. Maybe you've seen one of his other shows like: Sports Night, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, or The Newsroom. Or perhaps on of his movies: Moneyball, The Social Network, or one of my personal favorites A Few Good Men. I think he's brilliant, and generally watch whatever project he's attached to. So I repeat, that it was amazing that I had never seen The West Wing.
The West Wing has some incredible acting in it. It's incredible how much talent they were actually able to amass on this show. And throughout it's run they continue to add talent like Jimmy Smits and Alan Alda, who play candidates in an election to replace the series' president played by Martin Sheen.
I generally don't get too interested in politics, at least not the output of politics. Obviously I care just enough to try and make the best informed decision I can make when it comes to elections. But for the most part I don't really care who's in whatever office and whatever decisions are made. Instead I get much more enjoyment at watching the behind the scenes and the details of how something is created more so than the actual product. For instances, I watch all the DVD extras for all seven seasons of this show. All the extras.
This show is a fictional glimpse at the inner workings of the people who work inside the White House and the daily happenings that help our country function. I've recommended to one of my students that he should ask his U.S. Governments teacher if he can watch the show for extra credit.
President Jed Bartlett ranks up there with President David Palmer and President James Marshall as fictional Presidents you secret wish were actual presidents.
If you're interested in watching the series, let me know and I'll pass off the DVDs to you.
