Review of West Wing, The: Season 1 Part 1

Introduction

An American political drama, The West Wing (TWW) has characters and settings in the White House, the West Wing to be precise. Jed Bartlett (played by Martin Sheen) together with the rest of his administration go through the ups and downs of running the largest democracy in the world, and have to contend with pretty much everything you can think of that can happen to a country. You might think this would be a boring concept, but you couldn`t be further from the truth. For the first time we get a political drama which is not only well written and wonderfully observed, but also one that gives us a glance at the inner workings of the White House too. Is it really like this?

TWW DVD set starts off with the pilot episode and guides us into a seemingly different world all together. Senators, Congress, the press, scandal, racial unrest, gun control...it`s all here and much more besides. It hasn`t aged at all and remains contemporary.

This boxset is part one with three discs covering 11 episodes of season one. The other parts will follow on later in the year. Will a mere 11 episodes be enough to keep you going until the next installment?

Video

Presented with a fullframe 4:3 transfer, TWW isn`t too bad. Granted there is evidence of some grain, which annoyed at first, but within 30seconds I was into the storyline and I didn`t care about the video transfer. Despite some grain, the picture is very watchable with well saturated colours.

Audio

Dolby Digital 2.0 is all we have here. Since the drama is dialogue driven more than anything else, I think the sound is fine.

Features

Unfortunately the review discs we have did not include the extra features so we`re unable to rate the interviews and whatever else there is.

Conclusion

If you think the idea of a drama set in the White House might be dull, think again. The writing and cast here make this one of the most riveting and compulsive dramas of recent years and I for one am hooked. From the pilot show onwards the audience is drawn in to the behind-the-scenes goings on at the Oval Office. Add to this the sharp script and a mix of humour, tension, poignancy and great timing and it all adds up to great drama.

The West Wing was subject to some atrocious scheduling by Channel 4 which saw its time slot move around airing later and later. I`m glad that at last I can sit and watch the DVD and enjoy the frenetic pacing of this superb series. It`s even better than watching it on TV with no commercial breaks to spoil the pace and this alone has quite an effect on the storylines since you`re totally immersed. By the end of the programme I can`t help but feel totally exhilerated. The quality of the writing is top notch regardless of where your personal politics lie.

The casting too is exemplary since I can`t imagine other actors in these parts, they`ve become so ingrained in their characters and I`ve become so wrapped up with them too that I`m transfixed when watching them onscreen. Rob Lowe, Martin Sheen, John Spencer et al work really well together.

I do hope that the quality of the video transfer improves with successive DVD releases and that we can look forward to receiving anamorphic episodes in future. Those of you that need reminding of the last series can visit the official West Wing website at: http://www.thewestwing.co.uk. I for one can`t wait for the next series.

Having part one of the boxset is a bit of a tease however. I really like the show and seeing it here on DVD just made me want more. I could easily sit through the whole of season one in one sitting. It`s riveting drama and a pleasure to watch time and again. This is well worth having if you enjoyed watching it on TV. For those of you that missed out, catch the new series on Channel 4 and if you like it, buy into this boxset! Absolutely recommended.