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The West Wing : The Complete Sixth Season [2001]


RRP: £61.99
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Editorial
DVD Description

The West Wing returns for a behind-the-scenes look at another year in the life of the eclectic group of frenzied staffers in the Oval Office from creator Aaron Sorkin. The sixth season has enjoyed popular and critical resurgence in the US, thanks in part to the addition of recurring guest stars Alan Alda as Republican Presidential candidate Arnold Vinick and Jimmy Smits as Democratic candidate Matthew Santos, a bright and enigmatic congressman from Texas. Both go up against current Vice President and candidate, Robert Russell played by Gary Cole.

We rejoin the Bartlet administration in the aftermath of the Gaza Strip attack that seriously wounded Donna and killed several others and finds President Bartlet facing strong opposition to his peace plans. Defying the wishes of the majority of Congress - including some of the White House's democratic allies - the American People and the Vice President, Bartlet persists in the hope that inviting Palestinian and Iranian leaders to participate in peace talks will forestall the necessity of a U.S. military retaliation. Even Leo feels that the President should order an attack to make a decisive statement on terrorism.

Adding to the stresses of the peace negotiations, magicians Penn and Teller cause controversy at the White House when they burn the American flag as part of their act celebrating Bartlet's birthday. An asteroid hurtles towards Earth and a leak of oxygen on the International Space Station requires a controversial rescue mission and Bartlet is stricken by a paralyzing episode of his multiple sclerosis.

Editorial
Synopsis

The Presidential race is on. Following the events of the Gaza Strip President Bartlett continues in his hope to bring the Palestinian and Iranian leaders to peace talks so stop any chance of military action. In addition to this, the American flag goes up in smoke during a magic act celebrating Bartlett's birthday; an asteroid is rapidly moving towards Earth; a rescue mission is required at the International Space Centre; and Bartlett is debilitated by his multiple sclerosis.

Better than you might expect
Review date: 2007-12-27 Rating: 8 out of 10

I would agree with those who say that this season is not as good as the early Sorkin ones, but it is still far better than most of the programs on T.V. It is therefore definitely worth buying, especially for only £17.

The casting in this season continues to be excellent. Santos (Jimmy Smits) and Vinnick (Alan Alda), the main candidates for the democratic and republican nominations, are excellent throughout. The writers and actors manage to make you care about these new story-lines, an impressive feat in season 6 of any series.

The beginning of the season seems to be struggling with these multiple story-lines, however, slipping into a fairly dire structure whereby the President takes up alternate episodes and the nomination candidates fill in in between. There seems to be very few stories which include both and it makes the series feel disjointed and faintly irritating, as soon as you get involved in one character you are moved onto another. Thankfully this improves as the season progresses and the writers manage to write much more cohesive story-lines.

The rearrangement of the West Wing itself is also a shame. The characters never seem to fit their new roles as well and as some move away from the West Wing you feel nostalgic for those early, brilliant seasons. The roles of some characters, especially the President, Toby and Leo seem to be sacrificed in order to give screen time to the new campaigns. Inevitably this damages the show as these men are undoubtedly its backbone.

This preparation for the season eight that never was, with its reorganisation and change in focus, does not merely have negative consequences, however. The nostalgia the audience feels is mirrored by the characters and the movement away from the idealistic early years continues. This disillusionment is something I like, the characters, especially those who remain with the president, realise how little they have managed and how many compromises they have made. The president begins to lose staff and the lack of time to make any real difference is palpable.

In one brilliant scene, Santos is making a speech about hope. This is inter-cut with the president struggling to walk after a bad M S attack. Although the scene is ultimately hopeful, for both men, the contrast between the young vibrant Santos and the older, ill President Bartlet is clear and almost unbearable.

In conclusion, this season is not the best but it does have its consolations. There are some wonderful moments and the show is often as well written and engrossing as it ever was. Inspite of the major problems with this season, there are some aspects of the show which actually improve and it is probably the most realistic, and therefore affecting season to date.

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Reviews


mixed bag
Review date: 2007-09-21 Rating: 6 out of 10

The sixth season of The West Wing, while it certainly has its moments, is not, unfortunately, up to the calibre of its predecessors. For much of the time, the action the takes place in the White House is just dull. The dialogue, which once sparkled (mainly under Aaron Sorkin's penmanship) now seems old-hat and stale. It doesn't have the musicality it used to, and at times it seems like the actors don't know what to do with it - except say it, and hope that nobody will notice that it's not up to spec. The cracks in the series are visible early on: in the opening episodes, the drama is reduced to Bartlett and Leo shouting at each other in the Oval Office, which they seem to do a lot of. By the three quarters of the way through the season, the writers seem to have hit rock bottom, and by the time they have Toby and Josh indulging in a little fisticuffs, you can't help but feel that they're scraping the bottom of a very empty barrel.

The cast gets shaken up a bit too. Season 5 addition Mary McCormack's 'smarter than everyone else and sorts out all the problems' Kay Harper is not terribly convincing - and her running commentary on the Middle East peace process in the opening episodes is exactly the kind of polemic didacticism that Aaron Sorkin would have avoided at all costs (if nothing else because it's shallow thinking). And Kristin Chenoworth's Annabel Schott is annoying, and no replacement as a Southern belle for Emily Procter's Ainsley Hayes. Also, CJ's character seems to get dumbed down as the season goes on. And Richard Schiff, capable of so much as an actor (see his performance in Season 2's 17 People) is left floundering in the White House bullpen with very little to do except mumble and try and catch the occasional storyline that comes his way (but when it does, it's among the worst written episodes ever).

Thankfully, there are some new additions to the cast. Jimmy Smits as Congressman Matthew Santos is truly interesting and dynamic character, and he not only holds his own in the show, but he ends up stealing it. The interplay between him and Bradley Whitford's Josh Lyman is a delight. And it's nice to see Josh finally getting a storyline that makes use of Whitford's considerable dramatic and comedic talents. The other standout performance is from Alan Alda as Arnold Vinnick. Here, the writers have excelled themselves in creating a Republican presidential candidate who is both interesting and intelligent and also a man of integrity and principle. He is a million miles from James Brolin's one-dimensional Governor (`George W') Ritchie who Bartlett easily faced down in season 4. Alda seems to particularly relish the part, and has not been this good since the end of M*A*S*H. Donna too gets a proper storyline, as does Joshua Malina's Will Bailey. But it's Alda, Smits and Whitford who come to the show's rescue. It's in the Santos-Josh storyline and in the Santos-Vinnick storyline that the show comes to life again. These characters are fresh and interesting, and it's when the action shifts back to the White House the show is in the doldrums.

In truth, the show never recovered from the loss of Rob Lowe's Sam Seaborn. Lowe brought a much needed warmth and humour to the show, and also a healthy dose of Capra-esque naiveté. Without him, The West Wing is colder and more cynical. Some would argue that this makes it more realistic, but realism wasn't actually what the show was predicated on. The show also never really recovered from the loss of Sorkin as the principal writer and guiding hand. The show's current writers have their moments, but these moments are too few and far between. And it can be no coincidence that the best characters are the new ones: Santos and Vinnick. Try as they might (and they do) they can't imbue the original characters with the essence and life that Sorkin gave them. Hence, I only give this item three stars. The missing stars are for Rob Lowe, and for Aaron Sorkin.


Mediocrity Rules...
Review date: 2007-03-12 Rating: 6 out of 10

Season 6 is about two things: the president's increasing MS problems and the upcoming presidential election. Several things bother me about this season. One is the lack of in-depth electoral material. I realise that the producers have probably feared putting too much emphasis on how elections work would be considered as dull by the viewers, but I frankly don't see the point of once again showing detailed episodes of what the staff is doing and what strategies they are planning if we're not going to be shown anything new. We've seen it before, both in the flashback episodes of season 2 and in the re-election campaign episodes of seasons 3 and 4. I imagine the point of showing us this again is to build up a story under the new characters coming onto the scene. As well as, of course, that it would be slightly embarrassing having a presidential election without the typical behind-the-scenes and strategy footage so characteristic of "The West Wing".

As far as acting goes, I'm more than happy. Jimmy Smits and Alan Alda are exceptional actors who look and sound natural enough to hold their own in a series dominated by a brilliant cast - in some cases, however, their characters simply don't leave enough room for movement. The writers have once again to set up a plot in which only the "good men" dominate the field of politics. "If only all politicians could be like this", is a thought continuously popping up in your head, but as we all know, there aren't usually that many "good men" in politics. In fact, they are few and far between. Sorkin knew this when he designed Bartlet to be "a good man" (as CJ called him) and "the real thing" (as Josh and Sam called him), and he knew this when he put him up against the more "typical politician" governor Richie in the re-election. This time setting up two of these guys against one another resembles a pleonasm, a little too much of a good thing, though it has its advantages. The series will be nearing its very end before we know who wins, and it's actually quite a close race this time: it really wasn't as hard to guess that Bartlet was going to beat Richie.

Season 6 is also about the new roles of the old White House staff. Some leave to do other things, some stay in place filling new roles. Political juggernaut Josh Lyman finds himself in a bit of a vacuum when his beloved assistant Donna takes the plunge to develop her own career, and he wonders if he shouldn't be looking to the future himself. He does, finds himself a presidential candidate he can put his world-class political mind behind, and thus the stage is set. The new aspect of the campaigning is that we get to see several sides of it. One episode describes the same day from the different views; one is Donna's, another is Josh' and the third is Vinick's.

In fact, the only thing that makes this season worth buying, is the chance to be with your favourite heroes a bit longer. The whole season is a build-up to the next one, and if I hadn't known that the series was going to end with season 7, I'm not sure I would have bothered. If you're NOT buying season 7, drop this one too.

Disappointing
Review date: 2006-07-16 Rating: 6 out of 10

I'm an avid West Wing fan and have sat at weekends watching one episode after another until the early hours. Series 1 thru 5 were superb and there were always twists and turns and excitement galore. That's why I was slightly disappointed with Series 6. While it's got some amazing performances and the introduction of Jimmy Smits was welcomed I found the whole series slightly lacking. There wasn't the excitement or unexpected shocks and surprises that we've come to know and love from the West Wing. As the Bartlett administration starts to wind down to its end of term in office I found the West Wing winding down too. The whole series was predictable and I guess that's what I found disappointing. I will however still be ordering series 7 and eagerly look forward to watching it. It's a shame that the West Wing series has now finished as it's been fantastic. While Series 6 didn't thrill me the rest of the series definitely did and I'd still recommend that everyone watch all 6 series.

Quality Import
Review date: 2006-06-08 Rating: 10 out of 10

Having been a huge fan of the West Wing for the past few series, I opted to buy the complete series 6 box set and wasn't disappointed. Excellent performances from the entire cast and a script that can run and run. Have pre-ordered series 7 already on the back of this one.

Product Details/Specifications


Actor(s):
Martin Sheen

Creators:
Martin Sheen (Primary Contributor)

Director(s):

Recording label: Warner Home Video
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
EAN: 7321900718417
Binding: DVD
Number of items: 6
Format: Box set, PAL, Widescreen,
Release date: 2005-09-26
Aspect ratio: 1.77:1
Audience rating: Suitable for 12 years and over
Region code: 2
Running time: 912 minutes
Theatrical release date: 2004
Language: English (Subtitles For The Hearing Impaired)
Language: English (Subtitled)
Language: Danish (Subtitled)
Language: Greek (Subtitled)
Language: Finnish (Subtitled)
Language: Swedish (Subtitled)
Language: Hebrew (Subtitled)
Language: Arabic (Subtitled)
Language: English (Original Language)

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