The West Wing: Things Like This Make Me Go A Big Rubbery One
Written: Jan 11 '03 (Updated Apr 15 '03)
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Pros: "Scrubs" is without doubt the Best Comedy on television
Cons: “The West Wing without doubt never deserved the Best Drama Emmy over "The Sopranos"
The Bottom Line: "The West Wing" is the most overrated show on television.
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| Donlee_Brussel's Full Review: NBC |
Sobriety has killed the writing skills of "Sports Night" and "The West Wing" creator, Aaron Sorkin. The former cokehead used to write snappy dialogue for his quirky, non-stereotypical characters. Last year, NBC repeated a "special" episode of "The West Wing" entitled "Isaac and Ishmael," which addresses the September 11 tragedy. This pretentiously didactic episode is proof positive that Sorkin has lost his once razor-sharp edge.
"Isaac and Ishmael" opens at the FBI Field Office with the capture of a bomber giving out the name of someone involved. Among the names found after a search of aliases is Raqim Ali (Ajay Naidu), an Arab-American working at the Old Executive Office Building in the White House.
At the opposite end of the aforesaid site, Josh Lyman (Bradley Whitford) is forced to babysit some high school kids visiting. These "well dressed who can’t vote" serve merely as sounding boards for the regular characters. Depicted as a bunch of snotty smart-asses, naturally, actors in their mid-20s to early 30s portray them.
The interaction that occurs between these precocious youth and the White House staff plays like a high school essay: raising important issues without supporting them up with more than fluff. Sorkin, originally a playwright, makes these segments of the episode overly stagy. Characters go off on pompous rants and the cast overacts.
Additionally throughout the episode, Leo McGarry (John Spencer) interrogates Ali, questioning certain aspects of and decisions Ali made in his life. Spencer appears to relish playing the role of the white bigot whose heart grows in the end. One could easily resent watching yet another portrayal of this cliché character though.
There’s no question what Sorkin set out to achieve in tackling this timely topic on "The West Wing." However, he and director Christopher Missiano fail to offer any new insights or revelations on how to cope with an event such as this one. Moreover, the two have failed to craft an episode of the series that could be considered solid TV entertainment for a Wednesday night.
Recommended:
No
Average Program Rating: TV 14 -- parents strongly cautioned
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Donlee_Brussel
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Location: Los Angeles, CA
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