West Wing 7.13: "The Cold"
Written by Debora Cahn
Directed by Alex Graves
In which Vinick’s troubled campaign becomes the target of armchair quarterbacking while Santos positions himself to take advantage, but the situation in Asia forces a change in all plans…
It was a damn long wait for this episode, but as far as I’m concerned, it was worth it. And I’m not even a strong Josh/Donna shipper, either. (For the record, I relished every bit of it, because I really do feel like they should get together already, even if I usually don’t go for that sort of plot thread!) A lot of interesting twists came along in this episode, and finally, the possible war in Asia factored into the election plot threads. That alone made me a very happy fan.
I understand that some people don’t like this season, and that’s really their right. I have been very happy with the series since Santos and Vinick were introduced, with some minor exceptions, and this episode only continues with the happy. I was expected the “cold” metaphor to be used with Santos, especially after his visit home not so long ago, but it works a bit better with Vinick in this context. Vinick’s campaign is sick, by external criticism and internal schism, and it’s in desperate need of treatment if it wants to survive.
Santos’ campaign has seldom been in a position to act with confidence, and it’s good to see it happen, even if only for a little while. After all, by the end of the episode, it’s clear that the level playing field is no longer quite what the candidates thought it would be. Vinick and Santos both look stunned and sickened by the prospect of taking control of a country in the middle of a nation-building exercise (something that the 2008 candidates should keep in mind).
The election is no longer going to be about domestic issues; it’s going to be about a nation supporting a military effort with little or no exit strategy. This actually favors Vinick, based on what the initial concerns during the primary season indicated, because Santos has very little experience with national security issues. And Asia would be spun as a national security issue.
Vinick would have to be careful, though. If he jumps after Santos now, given his recent setbacks, it could be perceived by those undecided voters as a desperate ploy. After all, many of them moved out of Vinick’s camp into the undecided column, which means they had a specific reason to change their stance. He needs to be careful to give them more than just a reason not to vote for Santos.
I was also struck by the fact that the writers weren’t going to provide Bartlet with some magic bullet of a legacy. Bartlet is exactly right: his legacy will be this military quagmire, regardless of whatever else he might have accomplished. I find that to be a bold choice. After all, it speaks to something that we know on an intellectual level yet often fail to acknowledge: even a good man like Bartlet could end up with a tarnished and devalued presidency.
If there’s one thing I might mention as a negative, it’s the use of a musical montage at the end of the episode. I seldom like these, because too often, it’s a storytelling device used to overcome an inability to close out a script in a compelling manner. It can be done artfully, and it has been done very well on this series, but this time it seemed a bit unnecessary and a little pretentious. Other than that, I was quite pleased to have the series back on the schedule, even if just for a little while.
Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 2/4
Final Rating: 8/10
Directed by Alex Graves
In which Vinick’s troubled campaign becomes the target of armchair quarterbacking while Santos positions himself to take advantage, but the situation in Asia forces a change in all plans…
It was a damn long wait for this episode, but as far as I’m concerned, it was worth it. And I’m not even a strong Josh/Donna shipper, either. (For the record, I relished every bit of it, because I really do feel like they should get together already, even if I usually don’t go for that sort of plot thread!) A lot of interesting twists came along in this episode, and finally, the possible war in Asia factored into the election plot threads. That alone made me a very happy fan.
I understand that some people don’t like this season, and that’s really their right. I have been very happy with the series since Santos and Vinick were introduced, with some minor exceptions, and this episode only continues with the happy. I was expected the “cold” metaphor to be used with Santos, especially after his visit home not so long ago, but it works a bit better with Vinick in this context. Vinick’s campaign is sick, by external criticism and internal schism, and it’s in desperate need of treatment if it wants to survive.
Santos’ campaign has seldom been in a position to act with confidence, and it’s good to see it happen, even if only for a little while. After all, by the end of the episode, it’s clear that the level playing field is no longer quite what the candidates thought it would be. Vinick and Santos both look stunned and sickened by the prospect of taking control of a country in the middle of a nation-building exercise (something that the 2008 candidates should keep in mind).
The election is no longer going to be about domestic issues; it’s going to be about a nation supporting a military effort with little or no exit strategy. This actually favors Vinick, based on what the initial concerns during the primary season indicated, because Santos has very little experience with national security issues. And Asia would be spun as a national security issue.
Vinick would have to be careful, though. If he jumps after Santos now, given his recent setbacks, it could be perceived by those undecided voters as a desperate ploy. After all, many of them moved out of Vinick’s camp into the undecided column, which means they had a specific reason to change their stance. He needs to be careful to give them more than just a reason not to vote for Santos.
I was also struck by the fact that the writers weren’t going to provide Bartlet with some magic bullet of a legacy. Bartlet is exactly right: his legacy will be this military quagmire, regardless of whatever else he might have accomplished. I find that to be a bold choice. After all, it speaks to something that we know on an intellectual level yet often fail to acknowledge: even a good man like Bartlet could end up with a tarnished and devalued presidency.
If there’s one thing I might mention as a negative, it’s the use of a musical montage at the end of the episode. I seldom like these, because too often, it’s a storytelling device used to overcome an inability to close out a script in a compelling manner. It can be done artfully, and it has been done very well on this series, but this time it seemed a bit unnecessary and a little pretentious. Other than that, I was quite pleased to have the series back on the schedule, even if just for a little while.
Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 2/4
Final Rating: 8/10
posted by John Keegan | 16:09
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