The West Wing *Season Premiere* - "The Ticket" - 9/25
 

"The Ticket"


Figured I'd start this in case anyone else, like me until I looked at tonights listings, forgot that this started tonight :lol:

I missed the very very beginning, like first 2 minutes. how far in the future was that?

three years. a quick time to get the presidential library up and done but oh well. the coolness factor of the opening was awesome!!

wow. if the premiere is any indication, i am much more interested in this than i was last year. some really good stuff.

-the opening tease. fantastic. this show has always used the flashback greatly so if this is indeed the last season, it will be nice if they use the flash forward to slowly reveal what happens to everyone. so far we see that end up together :)

-great to see leo again. he was vastly underused last year and has always been one of my favorite characters.

-a great josh/dona moment. i have faith that they will end up together by show's end in one way or another. i think.


-more mallory? hell yeah! :drool:

I liked it

So I take it was the leak

if the leak was either of the main characters left in the white house, they didn't go to prison for long as they are all in the teaser looking well.

Judging by the previews

"Is the baby photogenic?" :lol:

das

CJ and Danny are together in the future scene so she's not the leak (3 years dating and whatever.. not enough time for trial, prison and then to get out). Bartlet made some comment to Toby about getting there like he was on the run or out of country. So he might be the leak.

I forgot this was on, missed the 1st 10mins.. should I get it from a 'friend' or did much happne?

The opening was 3 years in the future at the dedication of the Bartlett Presidential Library. C.J, Danny, Charlie, Toby, Will, & Kate are there. Josh comes up and says the President is here. Cut to the limo pulling up, the door opening, and then the opening credits.

Nothing really after that.

Ok I was confused as the timeline for this. I saw the 3 years later bit at the begining, but I'm assuming there was then something refering back to a bit of time closer to the finale of last season? I was utterly confused thinking it was all just 3 years forward.

In the begining do we find out that the new president is Santos? I know everyone was thinking it was going to happen, but just writing it in, is such a bad case of telling not showing. -ohbfrank-I'd hope they don't from the very begining it was understood that they would never actually make it together. I understand it isn't Sorkin's show anymore, but Wells would be a bit of a jerk if he went against Sorkin thusly.Oh yeah Mallory brings the hot.

I was a bit sad not to see Sam. Maybe he is the one ending up with Mallory? If this is the last season (I haven't heard anything until this thread), Sam should definitely make his way back somehow. West Wing without Sam has never been the same.

I was also disappointed not seeing Jeb's daughters at the ceremony, The 1st lady I can live without, but I'd think at least Zoey would be there, possibly accompanying Charlie after the marriage that was broached upon last season.

There was something that said it was back in the present

The shadowy figure geting out of the limo looked like Santos, but I wouldn't be surprised if having Josh say the Presidnet is here is a swerve and it's Vinnick.

one other person missing from the ceremony unless I missed them

Ok thanks for clearing that up. I remember seeing Josh say the president is there, then credits, commercials, then Santos. I'm guessing the present day line came after the commercials but before Santos shows up? Missing that bit had me confused for quite a bit of the episode.

Alan Alda is severly underused in this show. I know none of the main characters actually work for him, but it would be sure nice to have something more than just "TV appearances" here and there for him.

hmm. I took the toby comments in the very beginning to indicate he was an ambassador or something. I think he said he was in columbia

I thought he said he was <i>at</i> Columbia, as in the university.

That's the impression I got. He became a professor/instructor at Columbia after the Barlett admin ended.

I think he's a drug lord in Colombia.

das

Pretty good episode. Frankly though, the leak storyline does nothing for me although it was good to see Oliver Platt back as the WH Counsel.

9 pts down is a good thing? That's a pretty big hole. :lol:

John Spencer pulled off the "I'm very uncomfortable campaigning" thing very well.

You people can't figure out who the leak is? It is obvious. It is not CJ or Toby, it is:

well that's an interesting theory although some have said...



as for the beginning, i think that they are going to revisit that whole '3 years later' scenario to help wrap up things, so it may take us awhile to see everyone in that period.

Interesting post script. The day after this episode aired, I received an eMail from the NBC Consumer Panel (I am an NBC focus panel member) that asked some very specific questions about my opinion of the West Wing episode that aired.

What was most interesting was the following question:

"Are you interested in the storyline of the campaign continuing throughout the season, or would you like to see who the President is in the next few weeks?"

Obviously, the brass at NBC are considering several options. There were no questions about who I would like the president to be, but they did ask about the performances of Smits and Alda.

My answer to that would be to go with the original plan and have the election in November with the new president taking office in January. So we'll have the election, the transition, and the first 100 days this season. I'm much less interested in keeping the campaigns going through nearly another full-season.

If the election isn't over by the end of this year I will stop watching the show.
If Vinick doesn't win the election I will stop watching the show.

:)