West Wing 7.18: "Requiem"

Written by John Wells, Eli Attie, and Debora Cahn
Directed by Steve Shill

In which old friends return to attend Leo McGarry’s funeral and wake, but nothing will stop the political jockeying that comes with the Santos presidential victory…


This is a difficult epsiode to review, because it’s clear that the producers were trying to preserve their original plans through the end of the series while dealing with John Spenser’s passing. Whatever some producers might say about the plans for a Vinick win, it really felt like the issue slated for this episode was the first step in the Santos transition.

That side of the episode played very conventionally, at least from the “West Wing” point of view. It was clear that Santos would bow down to the logic of the situation before long; the point was the tension between Josh and Santos. Josh is beginning to realize that winning the election was only one step in the learning process. It’s going to take quite a learning curve to become the next Leo.

I say “the next Leo” because making CJ his successor had an unintended consequence. CJ got the job done, but it never felt like she had the command of the position. She kept things moving, but she didn’t drive anything to the degree that Leo did in the early years. But that fit within the “ruling the tomb” atmosphere of the late Bartlet administration. Bartlet’s second term was filled with unrealized potential.

Leo’s legacy is such that Josh has massive shoes to fill for his president. Frankly, they don’t have the deep trust that existed between Bartlet and Leo. Josh is still working out the best way to advise Santos, and Santos is still trying to get a sense of independence. They need to start working on the same page, and that means that Josh needs to settle down and work out where his life is going.

Just because Josh and his learning curve can be tied directly to his desire to live up to Leo’s memory doesn’t mean that this plot element ties into the rest of the episode very well. The funeral at the top was very well done, and I was really hoping for more. I wouldn’t have minded a few speeches in memory of the man, a ripping Bartlet monologue, a few graveside moments, but alas. I was really expecting Josh to visit the grave at the end of the day and say something personal and meaningful, even beg for some advice, just so it could all hang together.

But the wake, both public and private, didn’t go far enough or remain separate enough to provide the necessary cathartic release. There was never a time to reflect on Leo and what he brought to the characters and the series. And perhaps there’s good reason for that: the Sorkinites would have ripped into anything that was overly sentimental, accusing Wells of cheap dramatics. But caution, in this case, may have been the wrong way to go; it’s too easy to compare this negatively to “Two Cathedrals”.

Even so, the message is clear: the political demands of the transition wait for nothing. In a way, it might be the message directly to the audience from the producers: to wrap this up right, this is what needs to be done. As easy as that might be to understand, it still doesn’t take away from the fact that the audience is left wanting more.

Writing: 1/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 1/4

Final Rating: 6/10