Originally published in January 2017
I think we’re all a little anxious. Maybe I’m putting that mildly. And yet in the midst of that anxiety, we’re also lucky enough to have the ability to engage in self-care when we need it. I know I’m not alone when I suggest The West Wing to you as an antidote to the orange nightmare from which we cannot wake. A great piece of fiction is always preferable to real life, but good lord.
I also understand that seven seasons can be a lot to commit to (though once you start, heaven help you if you had anything else to accomplish that day). If you’re looking for something to quickly lift your spirits, distract you, or simply calm the nerves ignited by a week filled with the utter crumbling of the American spirit, I suggest the following:
Season 1, Episode 5. The Crackpots And These Women
I won’t say any one episode of The West Wing is my “favorite,” but if someone forced me to, say by threatening to deport my family or taking away my healthcare, I might tell you this one’s the winner. If you really get into this show, you’ll hear a lot about an episode called “Two Cathedrals,” because people mistake it for the “best” episode. It’s not. It’s the most epic, but one of the reasons this show was so amazing is that it never needed to be epic to be amazing. It made an average day in The West Wing feel remarkable. As maybe it should in real life.
There is a lot going on here. But you’ll never feel overwhelmed or confused, just calm and wistful, like the TV is giving you an extended hug. That’s one of the reasons I like “The Crackpots And These Women” so much for settling our souls in times like these. It’s the primetime version of a bowl of mashed potatoes.
Basketball. The episode begins very unconventionally for TWW, with the male cast playing a pickup game in what looks like the street outside the White House (I dunno). I will ruin nothing for you, except to say the exchange between President Bartlet and Toby Ziegler (several of them in this episode, actually) are building blocks of a very complicated, wonderful relationship. There was something similar in “Five Votes Down,” the episode that came before it, during the most epic walk & talk you’ve ever seen. I digress.
Zoe and Charlie. We meet Zoe. Zoe meets Charlie. I’ll say no more.
Big. Block. Of. Goddamn. Cheese. Day. It’s the first, but certainly not the last time we will enjoy the treat that is Big Block Of Cheese Day. I’ve included Leo’s speech for you below, you are quite welcome.
Josh’s mental health. I was always really proud of how The West Wing touched on mental health, most often through Josh. It would be very odd to have a job in the White House, and all that comes along with that, and not take particular care of your mental state. They didn’t sweep this stuff under the rug and I think that’s admirable.
Bartlet’s intelligence. Where some might not comforted by a President who is the smartest person in the room, I sincerely need him or her to be, because they’re…you know, running a country. I love how much attention is paid to his brilliance here.
CJ sass. She gets some good ones in. “Josh, there’s an article I want you to read in The New Yorker.” “What’s it about?” “Smallpox.” “The disease?” “No, the dessert toping, Josh.” Queen.
Ave Maria. I’ll say no more.
The speech at the end. Don’t be sad it’s over, cry because it isn’t real.
And also the President makes everyone chili.
