The West Wing - "A Proportional Response", Episode 3, Season 1

This episode follows the aftermath of the events in episode 2, where President Bartlett learns that his personal physician (a man he very much liked and the father of a 10 day old baby girl) was one of those killed in a strike against the Americans. Here Bartlett has to decide what sort of justice to dole out, hence the title of the episode. The back story to this involves the issue of Sam Seaborn and the call girl ramping up when CJ gets wind of it and is forced to defend Sam to a member of the press (a man called Danny, who becomes a recurring bit-part character from this point on). We are also introduced to Charlie Young, a young black man who has been picked out by both Debbie and Josh as suitable for the position of Aide to the President.

It is a great episode, where the theme of justice and proportional response is carried through. There is a lot of righteous anger in a superb turn from Martin Sheen, who manages to convey the sheer frustration of wanting to make a proper impact on the people who killed his friend, at the same time as carrying the nerves of never having been in the military yet being expected to be the Commander in Chief.

There were also some lovely and quite humorous scenes (which helped to break up the moments of high drama) between Josh and Charlie. The latter is labouring under the misapprehension that he is still being interviewed for a messenger post, and is perplexed by the new role he is offered.

Finally, I very much enjoyed the discussion between Josh and Leo, and then Leo and Admiral Fitzwallace about the cosmetics of having a black man working for the President and holding doors open for him and such. I appreciated the fact that Admiral Fitzwallace (also black) stated that as long as he was paid a good wage and treated with respect, then it shouldn't matter a damn who served the President.

My favourite quote this time came from Leo McGarry, when he is trying to emphasise the responsibility that the President holds as the leader of a super power in the event of retaliation:

"So, my friend, if you want to start using American military strength as the arm of the Lord, you can do that. We're the only superpower left. You can conquer the world, like Charlemagne! But you better be prepared to kill everyone. And you better start with me, because I will raise up an army against you and I will beat you!"

An episode that definitely increased the quality levels and so I give it four stars out of five.

The West Wing - "Post Hoc, Ergo Propter Hoc"; episode 2, season 1

In this episode Sam Seaborn decides to go against the advice of Toby and Josh to cultivate a friendship with Laurie, the call girl he "accidentally" slept with in the first episode. There is a touching scene between Morris (a medical doctor, who is celebrating the recent birth of a daughter) and the President. And CJ tries to mediate between the President and the Vice President without a great deal of success.

This is the episode where the West Wing settles into its more usual pattern, after the flurry of the pilot episode. We see CJ performing one of her usual press briefings; Donna and Josh continue to snipe at one another in a gentle manner; the day-to-day issues that plague the running of a country are covered almost by incident.

The staff also realise they need a more effective media director after the Ryder Cup team decline an invitation for a photo opportunity with the President. This is where Mandy is introduced - she has worked with the team before, and it isn't make clear why she didn't stay with them. She has romantic history with Josh, and he is fervent in his desire to not bring her on board.

Personally, I can see why he wouldn't want her around. She is the first character introduced that I haven't felt immediate affection for. Even Toby, who is difficult to like, has some wonderful lines and you feel a huge respect for him and what he is trying to achieve. Mandy is abrasive, arrogant, and tries to cover every weakness. She is argumentative, and I ended up disliking every storyline she was involved in. This for me is the weakest point of the episode.

As I mention above, the strongest point is the warm conversation between Morris and the President. It affected me enough that the shocking end to the episode left me moved. I include this piece of dialogue as my favourite quote from "Post Hoc, Ergo Propter Hoc":

Bartlet: I don't need a flu shot.

Morris: You do need a flu shot.

Bartlet: How do I know this isn't the start of a military coup?

Morris: Sir?

Bartlet: I want the Secret Service in here right away.

Morris: In the event of a military coup, sir, what makes you think the Secret Service is gonna be on your side?

Bartlet: Now that's a thought that's gonna fester.

I really enjoyed this episode, especially the ending, but the series hasn't yet risen to the heights it is capable of, so here I give three and a half stars out of five.

The West Wing - "Pilot", Episode 1, Season 1

The West Wing is widely acknoledged to be one of the finest slices of television, consistently good across seven seasons, with sparkling dialogue and memorable characters. For a Brit viewer, some of the episodes – those politically heavy – sounded as though they were being acted in another language, since I have absolutely no knowledge of the American political environment, but even those gripped me.

A forum I frequent recently began discussing The West Wing, and I decided it was high time I dusted off my DVD collection and began a rewatch.

So here we are at the first episode, which dumps you straight into a chaotic White House and introduces you to all the major players, as well as setting up some of the future story arcs. I love the fact that you are never treated as an idiot viewer – as I say, the dialogue fairly crackles along, being intelligent and witty.

However, there are also moments of gravitas even this early on – thanks mainly to the introduction of the President himself. Martin Sheen plays such a brilliant, eccentric turn as the President – a man who knows his Scriptures as well as his political opponents as well as his Latin. I think a lot of people watched this President and wished heartily that he was truly in charge of the White House!

Some of the characters received only short screen time, but this is more than made up for in future episodes. Even so, each of them was given their defining characteristic in this first episode – Toby is cantankerous but fiercely loyal; Leo is a driving force, thinking only of the President and the Democratic Party; CJ is worried but clever, and slightly paranoid that she is the new kid on the block. We also had our first introduction to Josh and Donna, and their somewhat dysfunctional but affectionate relationship as boss and assistant.

So, great stuff right from the get-go, but, being aware that future episodes will increase the tension, the emotion, the comedy and the drama I will award this a solid three out of five stars.