Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip - The Complete Series (2006) Review

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(More customer reviews)On the one hand, it didn't crackle the same way Sports Night or The West Wing did, and plot inconsistencies and occasional heavy handedness revealed a show that never fully trusted its truth. Still, I can't shake the feeling that Studio 60 is a link in an evolution toward a new, more complicated, more interesting television. NBC should have given it more time to find itself. Doing that would have benefitted the network, the audience, maybe even the society (that's a lot of pressure!)
Imperfections included, Studio 60 made me laugh, it made me cry, it literally made me cheer, and it did what Aaron Sorkin's work always does: celebrate the human condition (instead of tearing it down, as many shows do.) Like other Sorkin series, Studio 60 focused on people of good will doing their best to support each other and create something of value. I inevitably felt cleansed when I watched it, and I didn't clear the episodes from my DVR until the DVD was in my mailbox.
As for the DVD, I wish there had been more extras on it than the Pilot commentary, and a mini-documntary made early in the season. It would have been fascinating to hear Mr. Sorkin and his partner Tommy Schlamme have an honest discussion of the strengths and weaknesses, successes and demise of this show. What can be learned from the path Studio 60 traveled?
I hope Mr. Sorkin keeps on evolving, and keeps on writing television, plays and films (and books, too), 'cause his dialogue excites my mind, and his work fills my soul.

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What goes on behind the scenes of a nationwide late-night comedy sketch show? Aaron Sorkin, creator of The West Wing, answers that question with a must-see show within a show filled with engaging characters, ear-grabbing dialogue and a Hollywood hive of insider buzz. Matthew Perry and Bradley Whitford portray the likable hotshots brought in to revive NBS-TV's sagging flagship comedy series and Amanda Peet plays their savvy boss in episodes exploring the lives and loves of and the make-or-break creative pressures on the show's staff. Panic. Chaos. Fear. Sleep deprivation. Just make sure it's funny by Friday. Because that's when a nation tunes in to Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip.DVD Features:Audio CommentaryDocumentary

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The West Wing: The Complete Seventh Season (2005) Review

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(More customer reviews)It wouuld be difficult for me to truly describe the wonderful shock that is The West Wing's final season. I, like so many, had given up on The West Wing when Aaron Sorkin left, wished the show cancelled during its atrocious 5th season, and, honestly, found the show an irritating fantasy during the Sorkin-helmed 4th season anyway. Something astonishing happens during "The Ticket," the season's first episode - you feel, in its incredible pacing, structure, and emotional understatement - that Aaron Sorkin has not only returned but has regained all of his abilities as a writer. That he is not at all involved with the show means that writers like Eli Attie and Deborah Cahn have finally gotten their work as writers to both revive the lightning-quick trademarks of The West Wing while also justifying the often-unswallowable plot maneuvers of its previous two seasons. It occurred to me during "Message of the Week," a nimble and thrilling episode, that campaign-trail politics had never been so accurately represented, if they'd truly ever been attempted at all. That means The West Wing had found a reason to exist again, and that sense invigorated all the stories it surrounded - the White House's "leak" story, or the regional conflict between Kazhakstan and China. And, in a winning surprise, it also revived its still extraordinary cast - Bradley Whitford especially turns the stress of campaigning into a frayed study of stress and exhaustion, and with Janeane Garofalo at his side, he finds a sparring partner of incredible energy. The two's chemistry makes the workplace seem as vital a beast as this White House ever seemed in its prime.

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The seventh season of the West Wing chronicles the transition between the administration of President Josiah 'Jed' Bartlet and the race for the new presidency between Congressman Mathew Vincente Santos of Houston, Texas and Senator Arnold Vinick of California. The season includes the live episode of "The Debate" and ends with a new administration in the West Wing.

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The West Wing: The Complete Second Season (2000) Review

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(More customer reviews)I think that in many cases, the second season of a TV show is its best season. Why is TV so often completely opposite from sophomore efforts in music and movies? From my own observations it's because in the second season of a TV show, the actors have gained a comfortable grasp on how to portray the deeper parts of their character. At the same time, the show still has the freshness of a new show, the same rich texture that won it a debut to begin with; the writers are still developing plots that don't feel stale, so the show hasn't lost that "new car smell". Of course there are exceptions: shows that run out of steam soon after they start, and shows that just seem to keep getting better even after the second season.
I don't know if The West Wing's second season is its best, but it definitely includes some of the best episodes. Great writing, great acting, great sets and music, all come together to form what has become my favorite TV show ever.
Season Two includes these episodes:
In The Shadow of Two Gunmen (Part 1)
In The Shadow of Two Gunmen (Part 2)
The Midterms
In This White House
And It's Surely To Their Credit
The Lame Duck Congress
The Portland Trip
Shibboleth
Galileo
Noël
The Leadership Breakfast
The Drop In
Bartlet's Third State of the Union
The War at Home
Ellie
Somebody's Going to Emergency, Somebody's Going to Jail
The Stackhouse Filibuster
17 People
Bad Moon Rising
The Fall's Gonna Kill You
18th and Potomac
Two Cathedrals
(You can look up an episode guide if you want a quick summary of the plots; I didn't want to spoil any surprises here.)
I doubt Warner will include the special episode "Isaac and Ishmael" in this set. This episode was written after the 9/11 attacks, and aired a week before the start of Season Three; thus, if it is included with a regular season, it will probably be the third.

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It's never politics as usual inside this Oval Office. The President and his staff have been targeted for disruption by rival politicians, soon after being targeted by would-be assassins. Yet the determined colleagues continue to serve the U.S. and its President as the administration heads through midterm elections and into a crisis that leads to allegations of criminal conduct. The West Wing's second season won the Best Drama Series Emmy and Golden Globe Awards.DVD Features:Audio CommentaryDeleted ScenesFeaturette

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