Week Twenty-Nine: Jesse Sample’s Freak of the Week “The West Wing”

This is Jesse Sample. What’s your favorite TV show? I remember my first time through the Sopranos. That show was on my mind even when I wasn’t sitting down and watching TV. Those characters and the situations that they found themselves in were so captivating. Yes, the show was centered around a bunch of stone-cold gangsters, but it was about something more relatable. It was about relationships that bring you to your knees and the vulnerabilities we all have no matter how tough we try to appear.

Then there is The Office. For some reason, I find the fictional world of Dunder Mifflin so comforting. The jokes are funny, and the writing is deep…and funny. Steve Carrell’s character is so cringe worthy that I find a way to forgive myself. He is all of us in some way.

Lately, it’s the West Wing. I don’t know what I like so much about it. The cast is wildly talented. Every great actor of that era costars or makes a cameo. The shows characters approach topics that were relevant in the late 90’s and today. And there is an innocence and desire to believe that government could be so principled and well-intended. It’s a beautiful fantasy. Last night, I saw the episode where we got to meet Toby’s dad, played by Jerry Adler, who also played Hesh on the Sopranos. So… I’m happy.

Thanks to all of you tuned into RadioRadioX. This is the Freak of the Week, “The West Wing.”