WEST WING: THE COMPLETE 1ST SEASON - DVD review

Politics is an unusual animal. It is not the most interesting subject to be translated into film but one can't help but be intrigued by the ironies and backroom dealings that make the democratic process tick. On the one hand, many of us can't and probably don't even try to understand the convoluted procedures that go into running the federal government. On the other hand, our lives are profoundly affected by what goes on in these corridors of power, whether we like it or not. The Oval Office has been featured in countless films, which to a certain degree, either glorifies or demonizes the powerful men who occupy it. None, however, have tried to capture the spirit, the sacrifices and the intelligence of the men and women who help keep an entire Administration running like "The West Wing".

Making its debut back in the Fall of 1999, "The West Wing" is a series that chronicles the trials and tribulations of the Jed Bartlet administration. With the huge amount of publicity surrounding the show's creator Aaron Sorkin recently, I was surprised to find out that "The West Wing" is only Sorkin's second television series creation (his first was one of my favorites, the highly praised but seldom watched "Sports Night"). In terms of writing Presidential stories, Sorkin had already tasted success with the Michael Douglas-helmed romantic drama, "The American President" in 1995. While writing about the White House may be familiar territory for Sorkin, "The West Wing" is, however, an entirely different undertaking due to its highly political and sometimes preachy tone. The series' notion that the President is almost infallible and is always taking the moral high ground can get a little tedious after a while. However, one cannot run away from such acts of patriotism when the President of the United States is the central character of the show. Given the popularity of "The West Wing" and the numerous awards that the show has garnered over the years, it has certainly not been faulted for these weaknesses that I have just mentioned. Rather, the performances of the ensemble cast and the intelligent and witty script put it way above many other dramatic series on television today.

For all the political neophytes out there, many of you must be wondering: what or where is the West Wing? Well, the West Wing is an office building located within the White House compound that holds the President's Oval Office and the offices of the President's support staff. To separate the President's living quarters at the White House from the working one, President Theodore Roosevelt had a temporary office building constructed in 1902. That building is now known as the West Wing.

"The West Wing" is a behind-the-scenes look at the inner workings of a fictional White House Executive Office. Before this, the public face of the White House is only prominently featured during press conferences and the occasional shot of the President getting into his helicopter, Marine One. Although a lot of attention to detail may have been made to present credible scenarios, the accuracy with which this series depicts the work done at the actual West Wing is still up for speculation due to dramatization. First-term Democratic President Jed Bartlet (Martin Sheen) is a former Governor of New Hampshire, Nobel Laureate in Economics and former 3-term Congressman. Supporting him is a group of highly motivated individuals whose sole goal in life is to have the President's welfare and agenda as their top priority each and every day. In charge of the Executive Office (West Wing) and the President's de facto right-hand man and closest political advisor is White House Chief of Staff, Leo McGarry (John Spencer), who is an old friend of Bartlet and also a powerful figure in furthering the President's political agenda. McGarry, together with his deputy Josh Lyman (Bradley Whitford), work closely with Communications Director Toby Ziegler (Richard Schiff), his deputy Sam Seaborn (Rob Lowe), White House Press Secretary CJ Cregg (Allison Janney) and political consultant Mandy Hampton (Moira Kelly) to get the President's message out to the media. Added into this mix are supporting characters, Vice-President John Hoynes (Tim Matheson), First Lady Abbey Bartlet (Stockard Channing), Presidential Aide Charlie Young (Dule Hill) and the President's daughter Zoey (Elisabeth Moss). From the get go, we are given the impression that Hoynes is very ambitious and doesn't always see eye to eye with President Bartlet. I am led to wonder why Bartlet and Hoynes were on the same ticket in the first place. As for the First Lady, she makes sporadic appearances every now and then. In fact, the first time the audience is introduced to her is in episode 7, "The State Dinner".

Early in the first few episodes, you are already pounded with the fact that public perception of the White House and ultimately the President, is paramount to these folks who work in the West Wing, which sets the procedural tone for most of the series. For them, getting the right message out at the right time is very important. After all, the political process is all about influencing Congressmen and Senators to vote the way that you want them to. Whether you apply subtle pressure, compromise or call in some favors in order to get Bills passed, the President must not be made to look weak in front of the country. The public relations blitzes run by the White House Communications office do go a long way in ensuring that doesn't happen. That, in a nutshell, is the main role of these occupants in the West Wing as they tackle hot button issues like gun control, military standoffs with foreign and domestic enemies, campaign finance reform, the environment, Supreme Court appointments, the death penalty and hate crimes.

Thankfully, "The West Wing" is not just about the grunt work of playing politics. What fun would that be? There is only that much backstabbing and politicking a normal person can take. An equal amount of time is also spent focusing on the personal lives of these White House staffers. Some very interesting scenarios involving many of the main characters are presented throughout the first season. In only a situation that can occur if you work for the most powerful man in the world, an astonished Deputy Chief of Staff Josh Lyman is given a card by the NSC (National Security Council) detailing instructions on how to get to an underground bunker or Air Force One in case of an imminent nuclear attack. After finding out that none of the other staffers were given one, Lyman candidly begins to closely examine his loyalty to his friends, family and colleagues. Then of course, there are the scandals in the making, which, among them include Sam Seaborn's "accidental" encounter with a call girl and Toby Ziegler's improper profiting from the testimony of a close friend that helped push the internet stock market boom. Not to be left out, romantic entanglements are also in the cards as well for some of the characters. What impresses me about this show is that it seldom falls into cliché situations even when the conditions are ripe for such banality.

Fans of Sorkin's previous television effort, "Sports Night", can immediately identify the witty and fast-paced dialogue delivery style that is also a staple on "The West Wing". The camerawork is also quite similar and it keeps the on-screen action flowing smoothly by moving with the actors as they walk and talk around the various sets. Its intricately crafted plot and brilliantly written script sets such a high standard that is rarely achieved by a network show. Only "The Sopranos" is able to go toe to toe with "The West Wing". The Emmy voters have voted "The West Wing" as the Outstanding Drama Series 4 years in a row, holding off "The Sopranos" in 3 of those years. With the departure of Sorkin and Rob Lowe recently, "The West Wing" has certainly lost its momentum and some if its luster. The first season is perhaps one of the show's best and you will get to experience it over and over again with this 4-disc DVD set.

Season One of "The West Wing" consists of 22 episodes, spread out over 3 DVDs:

Disc 1 (Side A): "Pilot", "Post Hoc, Ergo Propter Hoc", "A Proportional Response", "Five Votes Down"
Disc 1 (Side B): "The Crackpots and These Women", "Mr. Willis of Ohio", "The State Dinner", "Enemies"
Disc 2 (Side A): "The Short List", "In Excelsis Deo", "Lord John Marbury", "He Shall, from Time to Time"
Disc 2 (Side B): "Take Out the Trash Day", "Take This Sabbath Day", " Celestial Navigation", "20 Hours in L.A."
Disc 3: (Side A): "The White House Pro-Am", "Six Meetings Before Lunch", "Let Bartlet Be Bartlet"
Disc 3: (Side B): "Mandatory Minimums", "Lies, Damn Lies and Statistics", "What Kind of Day Has It Been?"

Video:
Presented in its original full frame aspect ratio (1.33:1), the video for "The West Wing" does not live up to the expectations of the series. Although much, much better than the broadcast quality video you see every week on your television, certain aspects of the video presentation should have been improved in the transfer to DVD. In most cases, the images are slightly soft and not as sharp as it could have been. Colors are nicely saturated and skin tones are natural but the black levels lose definition when overlapped. Other than that, the transfer is relatively good and free of any dirt. These small problems that I mentioned above, however, certainly do not take away the enjoyment of watching the series. Subtitle options include English, Spanish and French.

Audio:
Given the dramatic nature of the show, the Dolby Surround 2.0 audio offering is adequate enough to satisfy most fans. Dialogue is delivered in a crisp and clear manner without any distortion. What stands out is the background military-type music, which exudes a feeling of grandeur befitting the Office of the President. Only an English language track is available.

Extras:
Headlining the special features on this set are 5 audio commentaries. They are:

"Pilot": Commentary by Aaron Sorkin and director Thomas Schlamme
"In Exelcis Deo": Commentary by Sorkin, Schlamme and director Alex Graves
"Take This Sabbath Day": Commentary by Sorkin and Schlamme
"Celestial Navigation": Commentary by Sorkin, Schlamme and director Christopher Misiano
"What Kind of Day It Has Been": Commentary by Sorkin and Schlamme

Overall, these 5 audio commentaries provide a great deal of inside information on the making of these various episodes. Both Aaron Sorkin and Thomas Schlamme talk almost constantly with little pause in between.

The remaining special features can be found on Side A of Disc 4 (Side B is empty). First up is a feature called "The Primaries", an interview piece with Aaron Sorkin, Thomas Schlamme, producer John Wells and many of the cast members regarding the conceptualization of the pilot episode. It is quite informative and funny as well. In "The Inauguration", viewers are taken on a half-hour tour of the set designs done for the show. Next, we have "Capital Beat", which consists of interview sessions with the show's political consultants, including one with Dee Dee Myers, Bill Clinton's former White House Press Secretary. These consultants main goal is to try and ensure the accuracy of the show with regards to the real-life political scene in Washington D.C. If you like the music on the show, then tune in to "Sheet Music", which is a 6-minute interview session with W.G. Snuffy Walden (yes, that's his name), the composer of the show's theme song. In the "Deleted Scenes" section, four deleted scenes are included: "Toby's Dark Mood", "No Touching", "Fourteen Words" and " Call Neil Armstrong". Unfortunately there are no audio commentaries recorded for these scenes to explain why they were removed. Fans of bloopers should not miss a feature called "Gag Order", a funny yet brief 3-minute collection of flubbed lines and pranks. In "The West Wing Suite", viewers are shown a musical montage of many of the images from the entire first season. Finally (phew!), there is an off-key feature called "Off The Record", which is pretty hard to explain. Actually this feature is pretty pointless. Skip it if you like.

Film Value:
Success doesn't come easily to television shows. Many of them get canned before even reaching the halfway point of a season. Those with long staying power are simply the best of the best. "The West Wing" is certainly one of the best. A contemporary behind-the-scenes look at the inner workings of a President's support staff is not something that will make every one jump for joy in anticipation. Politics is after all, not everybody's cup of tea. "The West Wing" tries and succeeds in making the tea palatable and comes out as invigorating as a freshly brewed cup of Darjeeling. No one can ignore the show's brilliant writing with its smart dialogue and slightly quirky humor that when coupled with a cast that is a dream team for any television director, produces an outstanding anomaly in today's cookie cutter television programming landscape.