Oh yay! A West Wing rewatch! I am totally down with that, it is my favorite TV show EVER, and never get tired of talking about its brilliance. I feel like I am amongst my people! :)
I love the pilot, mainly because of the brilliantly witty lines from Leo McGarry. I love everything he says as he walks and talks his way through the West Wing starting with:
MIKE It's a nice morning, Mr. McGarry.
LEO We'll take care of that in a hurry. Won't we, Mike?
MIKE Yes, sir.
Then his first scene with Donna:
DONNA I heard it's broken.
LEO You heard wrong.
DONNA I heard--
LEO It's a mild sprain. He'll be back later today.
DONNA And what was the cause of the accident?
LEO What are you, from State Farm? Go. Do a job, would ya?
DONNA I'm just...
LEO He was swerving to avoid a tree.
DONNA And what happened?
LEO He was unsuccessful.
Then this little bit with Josh:
JOSH We need Al Caldwell. We want Al Caldwell. We do not need John Van Dyke. And we do not need Mary Marsh.
LEO And I think there shouldn't be instant replay in football, but that' s not my call, now, is it?
JOSH [stops walking, while Leo continues on] It was stupid.
LEO Damn straight.
JOSH I was right, though.
LEO [talking to himself] Like I don't know that.
This with Mrs. Landingham:
MRS. LANDINGHAM Oh, Mr. McGarry. Have they done an X-Ray?
LEO Yup.
MRS. LANDINGHAM Is anything broken?
LEO A $4,000 Lynex Titanium touring bike that I swore I'd never lend anyone.
MRS. LANDINGHAM [following Leo into the OVAL OFFICE] I don't understand. How did he...?
LEO He's a klutz, Mrs. Landingham. Your President's a geek.
MRS. LANDINGHAM Mr. McGarry, you know how I feel about that kind of talk in the Oval Office.
LEO I apologize.
MRS. LANDINGHAM Just in this room, Mr. McGarry. That's all I'm asking.
This with CJ:
C.J. Is there anything I can say, other than the President rode his bicycle into a tree?
LEO He hopes never to do it again.
C.J. Seriously. They're laughing pretty hard.
LEO He rode his bicycle into a tree, C.J.. What do you want me to -- 'The President, while riding a bicycle on his vacation in Jackson Hole, came to a sudden arboreal stop' -- What do you want from me?
C.J. A little love, Leo.
Squeee! I adore Leo, and if I already didn't love The Pilot, I would love it even more for the best entrance of a new character on a TV show ever!
PRESIDENT JED BARTLET "I am the Lord your God. Thou shalt worship no other God before me." Boy, those were the days, huh?
:)
Edit: Is there anyway of accessing the content of the old TWOP West Wing forums or has that ship already sailed? I would love to read them again.