Bartlet4America News Archive

'West Wing's' fifth season: Politics NOT as usual

Onscreen, President Bartlet decided to step aside amid a crisis; offscreen, creator Aaron Sorkin had to leave the show. Now what?
By JILL VEJNOSKA
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

He looks small."

So sighs White House aide Josh Lyman (Bradley Whitford) in the opening moments of tonight's fifth season premiere of "The West Wing." The "he" is Josiah Bartlet (Martin Sheen), the once and presumably future president of the United States.

Of course, much depends on the actions of Glenallen Walken (John Goodman), the beefy, blunt Republican speaker of the House until Bartlet handed the reins of power to him in last season's final moments. Uncertain of his own ability to run the country while dealing with the kidnapping of his youngest daughter, Zoey, by foreign terrorists, Bartlet shows up tonight at a televised news conference, looking diminutive and diminished as he stands silently by Walken's side.

Meanwhile, "The West Wing" looks surprisingly robust.

Yes, surprising, in spite of its having snagged its fourth consecutive Emmy for best drama Sunday night. In previous years, "Wing" could have won on buzz alone. Its sense of relevancy and richly inventive story lines and dialogue made it appointment television for everyone from viewers to political professionals. That all changed last year, when "Wing's" must-watch status tumbled along with its ratings, which were down 21 percent. While it didn't deserve to be eclipsed by time-slot competitor "The Bachelor," of all things, it didn't deserve to beat out "The Sopranos" or "24" for the Emmy either.

Not when it bogged down in a seemingly interminable presidential election story line whose outcome was only slightly more assured than North Korea's. Or featured such self-indulgent or jarring touches as C.J.'s (Allison Janney) "Show Me the Emmy" visit with her Alzheimer's-afflicted dad, or the acidly brusque Toby Ziegler (Richard Schiff) suddenly going all squishy over impending fatherhood. Throw in the Zoey kidnapping supposedly tied to the made-up country of Qumar, and it's no wonder viewers were flummoxed.

Not to mention executive producer John Wells.

"I was on vacation with my wife, and I said to her, 'Well, how am I supposed to get out of that?' " Wells recalls about last season's cliffhanger.

He's kidding . . . sort of. The veteran producer helped develop "Wing" along with creator and one-man writing team Aaron Sorkin. When Sorkin and NBC agreed to part company last spring (the network reportedly wasn't happy about cost overruns and slipping ratings), in came "ER" and "Third Watch" executive producer Wells to run things.

Wells has only good things to say about Sorkin and mostly talks about what he won't be doing to "The West Wing." No sudden escalation of "ER"-esque personal story lines, for example, although expect to still see a lot of first lady Abigail Bartlet (Stockard Channing).

"The rest of them have no home life but the White House," Wells says.

Meanwhile, the real world has changed, something Wells is determined to make "Wing" reflect even more. Wells says it isn't the reality of having a Republican in the real White House that's made the Democratic Bartlet Administration feel less like Must See TV. We just feel less safe.

"Something really has changed in the way we look at the world and what we need from our political leaders," says Wells, who foresees story lines about economic and security issues. "We need to address that in a way that makes the show not too ponderous and earnest, but that feels real to the audience."

Adding to the realism, the new vice president, played by Gary Cole, will be in place by episode four or five, and around more than predecessor Tim Matheson.

"He needs to be brought up to speed," Wells says of the character. "He's also very ambitious."

But first, there's a missing daughter and an extra president to deal with. Far from being the disaster some "Wing" groupies predicted, tonight's episode moves crisply, without sacrificing either humor or emotion. Most satisfying are the chinks we finally get to see in Channing's Super First Lady armor as she swings between fear for her daughter and fury at what her husband may have done to bring the family to this point.

Even better is Goodman, who assumes his role as confidently and unapologetically as his House speaker moves into the Oval Office.

A big man with a little dog he keeps ordering off historic pieces of furniture, Walken would be so easy to overdo -- especially since he's a guaranteed short-timer in the office. But Goodman wisely resists that temptation -- like Walken, he knows he's there to keep the show going, not steal it outright -- and the result is a richer story all around.

Indeed, Wells' next big challenge may be getting viewers to immediately embrace the "small" Bartlet upon his inevitable return to office. (Regarding Goodman, Wells says he's "hopeful to have him back" later in the year.)

By the end of tonight's episode, though, we still don't know Zoey's fate or when her father might give Walken and his growing staff of Republican aides their walking papers. And that only adds to the sense of fun as Josh Lyman and the rest of the usually articulate and assured Bartlet staff are reduced to having to watch and wonder along with the rest of us.

It feels real because it is.

"They don't like to ask a lot of questions about where we're going," Wells says of the cast. "Mostly, they like to be surprised."

So far, all the surprises are good.