So, what did you think of The West Wing‘s finale?
I was disappointed. Bored, almost.
It was not very compelling, nor did it tug at any emotional strings. Gee, will the president pardon Toby? Cripes, did anyone have a doubt on that? Even so, Toby didn’t even appear in the episode! Who cares? Toby disappeared and no longer interests me — out of sight, out of mind.
Everyone just kind of walked away, no fanfare, no emotional goodbyes… they just left.
No Danny, just mentions of him. No Nancy McNally, just mentions of her. No Chief Justice Evelyn Baker Lang, just the back of a Glenn Close look-alike’s head. Other notables not seen include the president’s daughters (and the new president’s children… where they in school while dad was taking the oath of office?), Joey Lucas, Amy Gardner… But hey, we did get a cameo from Aaron Sorkin. Gee, I guess that was worth it. Would have been more amusing if they stuck the mysteriously disappeared Mandy in the inaugural audience.
The only good moment, which was one that unfortunately was telegraphed right at the beginning ruining the surprise, was Leo’s “Bartlet for America” napkin that started it all. A nice touch to end on, but would have had more resonance if it hadn’t been so conspicuously delivered and giftwrapped at the start.
This was really what they call “going out with a whimper.”
