The TWoP Post That Ran Amuck...
People were talking about how they became a J/D shipper of at TWoP's Keytus (J/D) thread. Mine just got too long for me to post in good conscience, but I didn't want it to go to waste. Good thing I have my LJ! (Be warned: I didn't proof it.)
How I Became a West Wing Fanatic and a J/D Shipper
By Quag E. Mire
I was stubborn. I refused to watch The West Wing, because the promos made it look… well, like Commander-in-Chief. Then, to add insult to injury (or the other way around in this case), West Wing was Sorkin’s top priority and therefore he let my beloved Sports Night fade into oblivion… or so the story went. Living in DC, I started to hear more and more about this show, but, by then, it had then become too trendy for me to bother with. I should have known better, but fortunately fate took a hand.
I was watching the inanity that was the Jack and Jill season finale (and series as well, as it turned out.) I was bored out of my mind, so I kept flipping channels during commercials (and occasionally during the actual show too.) I kept landing on West Wing. I knew about Mrs. Laningham because of an article in the Washington Post, so I wasn’t as lost as I could have been. Then came the cathedral scene. And Bartlet cursing out God… Wait… he’s not speaking English anymore! Is that Spanish? Ohmigod…. He’s cursing out God in Latin! I was hooked. And now I was watching West Wing and checking in on Jack & Jill during the commercials.
After that, I was determined to play catch up, which was easier said than done. No tapes. No Tivo. No Bravo. I had to do this the hard way by catching whatever repeats NBC chose to show. If I had heard about TWoP, my life would have been easier. (And I was thrilled when Bravo later picked up the West Wing, because I could finally catch all of season 1, in order.) But even way back during that summer, I knew I loved Donna and Josh was pretty funny too. They were cute together and I figured probably would make a good couple if he wasn’t her boss. I figured that they would get together when either the Bartlet term ended or the show did… whichever came first.
When the season 3 started off with Manchester, I was right there waiting for the characters I had already grown to love. Then, when Josh was in his room freaking out and Donna was doing her best to take care of him, I just couldn't comprehend how these two weren’t together. (Whenever it was repeated, I pretended that they were already married.)
Cliff came, and I didn’t mind. Wished it was Josh, but I didn’t mind. Josh and Donna couldn’t be together, so it made sense that they would be with other people. Amy came and I didn’t mind. Wished Donna was still with Cliff, if Josh was going to be with someone else, but I didn’t mind. As the season wore on, I started to mind Amy a great deal. I wanted her gone if I couldn't have Josh and Donna together. Jack showed up and I thought it was the dumbest plotline ever. I stood up and cheered when he was transferred. (And giggled through the snowballs.) Then Colin came and I was all disgusted. Still figured that Josh and Donna would get together at the end, but I was sick of seeing them with other people.
By season 5 finale peace talks cliffhanger left me cold. I knew I was only turning in next year to make sure my girl made it through surgery ok and see if my boy would finally get a clue. She did. And he was wonderful. Then Leo had a heart attack and I thought he was dead. I swore I was never watching the show again.
That resolve lasted until late January when I caught Opposition Research. I wondered why Josh was on the campaign trail and why Donna wasn’t with him. (I scurried off to TWoP after that.) I was mildly intrigued, so I kept tuning in and was rewarded with King Corn and its wonderful ending montage, which I took to be Well’s statement of intention. It showed first the Santos (couples present), Vinick looking at pictures of his wife (couples past) and ended on Josh and Donna (couples yet to be.) It broke my heart a little, but made me hopeful at the same time.
Despite all this, I hadn’t totally returned to the fold. I caught West Wing if I was home and didn’t care if I had to miss it. But it shocked me when I realized that the season finale had passed without me even knowing it! The description on TWoP sounded so good, I made sure to catch the finale when NBC repeated it.
Season 7 started and I tuned in. And I was hooked all over again. Bravo did a season 6 marathon and I watched the whole darn thing so I could catch up. That fall was also major marker in my obsession, because I started lurking on the TWoP boards. I didn’t start posting until after spoilers for The Cold came out, because I knew I would have a lot I would want to share. So, I posted. They kissed. My obsession grew. And the rest is history.
(Well, there is also the part about West Wing getting cancelled and the death of John Spenser, but I wanted to end on a good note!)
How I Became a West Wing Fanatic and a J/D Shipper
By Quag E. Mire
I was stubborn. I refused to watch The West Wing, because the promos made it look… well, like Commander-in-Chief. Then, to add insult to injury (or the other way around in this case), West Wing was Sorkin’s top priority and therefore he let my beloved Sports Night fade into oblivion… or so the story went. Living in DC, I started to hear more and more about this show, but, by then, it had then become too trendy for me to bother with. I should have known better, but fortunately fate took a hand.
I was watching the inanity that was the Jack and Jill season finale (and series as well, as it turned out.) I was bored out of my mind, so I kept flipping channels during commercials (and occasionally during the actual show too.) I kept landing on West Wing. I knew about Mrs. Laningham because of an article in the Washington Post, so I wasn’t as lost as I could have been. Then came the cathedral scene. And Bartlet cursing out God… Wait… he’s not speaking English anymore! Is that Spanish? Ohmigod…. He’s cursing out God in Latin! I was hooked. And now I was watching West Wing and checking in on Jack & Jill during the commercials.
After that, I was determined to play catch up, which was easier said than done. No tapes. No Tivo. No Bravo. I had to do this the hard way by catching whatever repeats NBC chose to show. If I had heard about TWoP, my life would have been easier. (And I was thrilled when Bravo later picked up the West Wing, because I could finally catch all of season 1, in order.) But even way back during that summer, I knew I loved Donna and Josh was pretty funny too. They were cute together and I figured probably would make a good couple if he wasn’t her boss. I figured that they would get together when either the Bartlet term ended or the show did… whichever came first.
When the season 3 started off with Manchester, I was right there waiting for the characters I had already grown to love. Then, when Josh was in his room freaking out and Donna was doing her best to take care of him, I just couldn't comprehend how these two weren’t together. (Whenever it was repeated, I pretended that they were already married.)
Cliff came, and I didn’t mind. Wished it was Josh, but I didn’t mind. Josh and Donna couldn’t be together, so it made sense that they would be with other people. Amy came and I didn’t mind. Wished Donna was still with Cliff, if Josh was going to be with someone else, but I didn’t mind. As the season wore on, I started to mind Amy a great deal. I wanted her gone if I couldn't have Josh and Donna together. Jack showed up and I thought it was the dumbest plotline ever. I stood up and cheered when he was transferred. (And giggled through the snowballs.) Then Colin came and I was all disgusted. Still figured that Josh and Donna would get together at the end, but I was sick of seeing them with other people.
By season 5 finale peace talks cliffhanger left me cold. I knew I was only turning in next year to make sure my girl made it through surgery ok and see if my boy would finally get a clue. She did. And he was wonderful. Then Leo had a heart attack and I thought he was dead. I swore I was never watching the show again.
That resolve lasted until late January when I caught Opposition Research. I wondered why Josh was on the campaign trail and why Donna wasn’t with him. (I scurried off to TWoP after that.) I was mildly intrigued, so I kept tuning in and was rewarded with King Corn and its wonderful ending montage, which I took to be Well’s statement of intention. It showed first the Santos (couples present), Vinick looking at pictures of his wife (couples past) and ended on Josh and Donna (couples yet to be.) It broke my heart a little, but made me hopeful at the same time.
Despite all this, I hadn’t totally returned to the fold. I caught West Wing if I was home and didn’t care if I had to miss it. But it shocked me when I realized that the season finale had passed without me even knowing it! The description on TWoP sounded so good, I made sure to catch the finale when NBC repeated it.
Season 7 started and I tuned in. And I was hooked all over again. Bravo did a season 6 marathon and I watched the whole darn thing so I could catch up. That fall was also major marker in my obsession, because I started lurking on the TWoP boards. I didn’t start posting until after spoilers for The Cold came out, because I knew I would have a lot I would want to share. So, I posted. They kissed. My obsession grew. And the rest is history.
(Well, there is also the part about West Wing getting cancelled and the death of John Spenser, but I wanted to end on a good note!)