"The West Wing" Live debate

Torn Rose · 2005-11-06, 08:43 PM

For those who do not watch the West Wing, they are having an actul live debate as part of the show, Alan Alda playing the GOP vs Jimmy Smits playing the Dem.

This is the way the presidential debates should be like, an actual debate/argument. Very good show, this season has restored my enjoyment into the show that has been lost over the last 2 years.

Smutferret · 2005-11-06, 09:03 PM

Hmm...I quit watching the West Wing about 2 years ago...right after they let the head writer (who's name escapes me at the moment, I'm SO bad with names) go. Maybe it's time to check it out again...Not sure though...

It was once one of my favorite shows...I loved the banter...

Torn Rose · 2005-11-07, 08:56 AM

http://www.cnn.com/2005/SHOWBIZ/TV/1....ap/index.html

Inevitably, the term "liberal" was contested, as well.

"Republicans have tried to turn `liberal' into a bad word," said Santos. "Well, liberals ended slavery in this country."

"A Republican president ended slavery," Vinick retorted.

"Yes, a LIBERAL Republican, Senator. What happened to THEM?"

CalModels · 2005-11-07, 09:43 AM

oh it absolutely fucking ROCKED!!! For something that was broadcast live, it was excellent, noone missed a beat and it looked absolutely unscripted (which I am sure it was not)... but then again, Alan Alda and Jimmy Smits are both excellent actors...

The West Wing has again become my #1 show on TV.. although it being on the sundat sucks coz it cuts into my simpsons time

RawAlex · 2005-11-07, 12:18 PM

The West Wing WAS the show with some of the highest level discussions, the best "asides", and truly intelligent discussions of the issues of the day without being preachy. There was a moral to the story almost every week, and the victories and defeats were both enjoyable and painful.

Then things changed. Got stuck on the president being ill, this, that, the other... some characters left, others got added, and honestly, the spark went out.

This is sort of the pattern for another show I enjoy, CSI. First couple of seasons were brilliant! Amazing visuals, the stories and the criminals were the focus of the shows, and I was both entertained and challenged each week to try to actually put the clues together.

Last season was a total wash. Aggressive character developments, interoffice strife, personal issues, needless romance, alcohol, and re-arrangement threads took away from the nature of the show. In fact, you could actually see a shift where they moved from at least 2 crime scenes per week often down to a single crime set with all the characters working on the same situation. More time spent developing the personal lives of the characters, and less time actually working crimes and doing what made the show great.

This year they are back to solving crimes, less to do with the boss and much more to do with science, crime, and intelligent discussions, and the ratings are through the roof.

The West Wing would do well to stick to meat and potatoes and stay away from the fancy deserts. The debate show was a clear indication that the next man to occupy the fictional whitehouse will bring some interest to the show.

Alex

Torn Rose · 2005-11-07, 03:15 PM

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9957958/

"And while participants gave Santos (Jimmy Smits) the victory (54 percent to 38 percent), Vinick (Alan Alda) made gains on the Democratic congressman. In the pre-debate poll, 59 percent favored Santos while 29 percent liked Vinick. And while viewers thought Santos won the live debate, he didn't necessarily seem more presidential. Santos narrowly edged Vinick on the question of who appeared more presidential (42 to 39 percent with 15 percent calling it a tie)"

Jim · 2005-11-07, 03:38 PM

With our Satellite, we were able to record both debates. We did that way back when ER had a live episode. There are always slight differences that make it interesting to watch both. The west coast version is always better since they have already had an east coast run-through.

CalModels · 2005-11-07, 06:22 PM

Personally if I were asked who won, I would not be able to decide... between Alda and Smits, there is so much talent that even when they are performing by the seat of their pants, they pulled it off beautifully...

And in my view, probably the only thing that could have been done to make it better than it was, would have been to get Martin Sheen to participate in the debate as well... but that cant happen since he is already in his second term (not to mention all that MS stuff they spent so much time on two seasons ago)

Erick G · 2005-11-07, 08:14 PM

Imagine bush in a real debate his ear piece would need to be running in super duper realtime just like the hump in his back during the last debate

2005-11-06, 09:03 PM	#2
Smutferret No matter how good you are at something, there's always about a million people better than you Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: MA, USA Posts: 231	Hmm...I quit watching the West Wing about 2 years ago...right after they let the head writer (who's name escapes me at the moment, I'm SO bad with names) go. Maybe it's time to check it out again...Not sure though... It was once one of my favorite shows...I loved the banter... __________________ Pornication Web Cams TGPX by JMB Software

2005-11-07, 09:43 AM	#4
CalModels Trying is the first step towards failure Join Date: Sep 2005 Posts: 122	oh it absolutely fucking ROCKED!!! For something that was broadcast live, it was excellent, noone missed a beat and it looked absolutely unscripted (which I am sure it was not)... but then again, Alan Alda and Jimmy Smits are both excellent actors... The West Wing has again become my #1 show on TV.. although it being on the sundat sucks coz it cuts into my simpsons time __________________ My Amateur Calgary Models

2005-11-07, 06:22 PM	#8
CalModels Trying is the first step towards failure Join Date: Sep 2005 Posts: 122	Personally if I were asked who won, I would not be able to decide... between Alda and Smits, there is so much talent that even when they are performing by the seat of their pants, they pulled it off beautifully... And in my view, probably the only thing that could have been done to make it better than it was, would have been to get Martin Sheen to participate in the debate as well... but that cant happen since he is already in his second term (not to mention all that MS stuff they spent so much time on two seasons ago) __________________ My Amateur Calgary Models

2005-11-07, 08:14 PM	#9
Erick G Look maah I moved out and got my own space:) Join Date: Jun 2005 Posts: 555	Imagine bush in a real debate his ear piece would need to be running in super duper realtime just like the hump in his back during the last debate __________________ Exclusive Feeds

2005-11-06, 08:43 PM	#1
Torn Rose "Faith is believing what you know ain't so." ~ Mark Twain Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Portland, Oregon Posts: 4,806	"The West Wing" Live debate For those who do not watch the West Wing, they are having an actul live debate as part of the show, Alan Alda playing the GOP vs Jimmy Smits playing the Dem. This is the way the presidential debates should be like, an actual debate/argument. Very good show, this season has restored my enjoyment into the show that has been lost over the last 2 years.

2005-11-07, 08:56 AM	#3
Torn Rose "Faith is believing what you know ain't so." ~ Mark Twain Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Portland, Oregon Posts: 4,806	http://www.cnn.com/2005/SHOWBIZ/TV/1....ap/index.html Inevitably, the term "liberal" was contested, as well. "Republicans have tried to turn `liberal' into a bad word," said Santos. "Well, liberals ended slavery in this country." "A Republican president ended slavery," Vinick retorted. "Yes, a LIBERAL Republican, Senator. What happened to THEM?"

2005-11-07, 12:18 PM	#5
RawAlex Took the hint. Join Date: Mar 2003 Posts: 5,597	The West Wing WAS the show with some of the highest level discussions, the best "asides", and truly intelligent discussions of the issues of the day without being preachy. There was a moral to the story almost every week, and the victories and defeats were both enjoyable and painful. Then things changed. Got stuck on the president being ill, this, that, the other... some characters left, others got added, and honestly, the spark went out. This is sort of the pattern for another show I enjoy, CSI. First couple of seasons were brilliant! Amazing visuals, the stories and the criminals were the focus of the shows, and I was both entertained and challenged each week to try to actually put the clues together. Last season was a total wash. Aggressive character developments, interoffice strife, personal issues, needless romance, alcohol, and re-arrangement threads took away from the nature of the show. In fact, you could actually see a shift where they moved from at least 2 crime scenes per week often down to a single crime set with all the characters working on the same situation. More time spent developing the personal lives of the characters, and less time actually working crimes and doing what made the show great. This year they are back to solving crimes, less to do with the boss and much more to do with science, crime, and intelligent discussions, and the ratings are through the roof. The West Wing would do well to stick to meat and potatoes and stay away from the fancy deserts. The debate show was a clear indication that the next man to occupy the fictional whitehouse will bring some interest to the show. Alex

2005-11-07, 03:15 PM	#6
Torn Rose "Faith is believing what you know ain't so." ~ Mark Twain Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Portland, Oregon Posts: 4,806	http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9957958/ "And while participants gave Santos (Jimmy Smits) the victory (54 percent to 38 percent), Vinick (Alan Alda) made gains on the Democratic congressman. In the pre-debate poll, 59 percent favored Santos while 29 percent liked Vinick. And while viewers thought Santos won the live debate, he didn't necessarily seem more presidential. Santos narrowly edged Vinick on the question of who appeared more presidential (42 to 39 percent with 15 percent calling it a tie)"

2005-11-07, 03:38 PM	#7
Jim Banned Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Mohawk, New York Posts: 19,477	With our Satellite, we were able to record both debates. We did that way back when ER had a live episode. There are always slight differences that make it interesting to watch both. The west coast version is always better since they have already had an east coast run-through.