The West Wing vs. American Democracy
Aug 23, 2019 18:42:40 GMT -8
Post by Quiara on Aug 23, 2019 18:42:40 GMT -8
Jeremy's most recent review has got me thinking about West Wing and its impact on American politics more broadly. Because "A Good Day" is perhaps the only West Wing episode which has directly impacted real-world politics... by inspiring real-life British pols to do Santos' "hide in your office to trick the rival party into calling a vote while they think you're away" gambit. This is rather odd for a show which waxes poetic about the importance of good-faith compromise and genuinely working to make the world a better place.
But then I thought about it and realized an odd trend - I'd argue that the two episodes of West Wing that I think most show those ideals rather than flaunting them as a rhetorical thing are "Isaac and Ishmael" and "The Debate" - both of which are arguably the most despised episodes of the show. Meanwhile, Alex C's description of "Two Cathedrals" as an episode where "a mediocre president rationalizes clinging to power" is accurate - and yet it's incontrovertibly the best episode of the show, and possibly of all of network television.
The weird paradox is, if there's any message to West Wing, it's that politics should be more than personality-driven spectacle, that it should be about helping people and working through differences. And yet, the show is at its best when it is the personality-driven spectacle to which the show turns its critical eye. I'm curious if this is a fair take, in CT's estimation.
But then I thought about it and realized an odd trend - I'd argue that the two episodes of West Wing that I think most show those ideals rather than flaunting them as a rhetorical thing are "Isaac and Ishmael" and "The Debate" - both of which are arguably the most despised episodes of the show. Meanwhile, Alex C's description of "Two Cathedrals" as an episode where "a mediocre president rationalizes clinging to power" is accurate - and yet it's incontrovertibly the best episode of the show, and possibly of all of network television.
The weird paradox is, if there's any message to West Wing, it's that politics should be more than personality-driven spectacle, that it should be about helping people and working through differences. And yet, the show is at its best when it is the personality-driven spectacle to which the show turns its critical eye. I'm curious if this is a fair take, in CT's estimation.
