initiated by navjeet on September 06, 2008 (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0745721/)
I am a HUGE fan of this show, and I must agree that this episode is by far the best episode of any television show I have ever seen. The whole sequence at the end with the juxtaposition between Bartlett going to the State Department, and CJ talking to the press and the motorcade passing by as the custodian picks up the cigarette from the floor of the National Cathedral is somehow beautiful, painfu more
I am a HUGE fan of this show, and I must agree that this episode is by far the best episode of any television show I have ever seen. The whole sequence at the end with the juxtaposition between Bartlett going to the State Department, and CJ talking to the press and the motorcade passing by as the custodian picks up the cigarette from the floor of the National Cathedral is somehow beautiful, painful, and suspenseful all at the same time- and the Dire Straits song at this point just fits perfectly and evokes such emotion! Also, the symbolism of the cigarette and the portico door and the themes carried over from the flashbacks of Bartlett and Mrs. Landingham in the past and the present are fantastic. This episode takes the watcher through a whole range of emotions, from the opening credits (which for some reason always make me want to just run out and VOTE for something!), to the despair of Mrs. Landingham's death, to the triumph and hope at the end, when a soaking wet Bartlett stands in front of a crowd, puts his hands in his pockets, and prepares to announce his decision to run for re-election. I could watch this episode a hundred times and still love it just as much as the first time I saw it.
