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The West Wing season 4

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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Drovethrughosts (talk | contribs) at 16:28, 24 July 2023 (Undid revision 1166922792 by Movieking134 (talk) we don't include episode counts per WP:TVCAST). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

"Guns Not Butter" redirects here. For the quote by Hermann Göring, see Guns versus butter model.
"The California 47th" redirects here. For the congressional district for which the episode is named, see California's 47th congressional district.

The West Wing
Season 4
DVD box cover. Cast from top to bottom and left to right: Donna, Josh, Will, Sam, Charlie, C. J., Toby, Abbey, President Bartlet and Leo
Starring
No. of episodes23
Release
Original networkNBC
Original releaseSeptember 25, 2002 (2002-09-25) –
May 14, 2003 (2003-05-14)
Season chronology
← Previous
Season 3
Next →
Season 5
List of episodes

The fourth season of the American political drama television series The West Wing aired in the United States on NBC from September 25, 2002 to May 14, 2003 and consisted of 23 episodes.

Production

After the difficulties Aaron Sorkin encountered in writing Season 3, he saw Season 4 as a return to the form he and the show had previously enjoyed, saying "[we] came back to work, after the hiatus, and didn't feel any of that, just felt the week-to-week pressure of trying to write well."[1] In 2003, at the end of the fourth season, Sorkin and fellow executive producer Thomas Schlamme left the show due to internal conflicts at Warner Bros. TV not involving the NBC network, thrusting producer John Wells into an expanded role as showrunner.[2] Rob Lowe departed the series after episode 17, saying he was not happy with his character Sam Seaborn and believed he did not fit in the show anymore.[3]

On December 11, 2015, in an interview with the Archive of American Television, producer John Wells said that Sorkin was unhappy with two of the cast members, and wanted one in particular removed from the show. NBC disagreed, but Sorkin "just stopped writing the character." As the season progressed, with ratings cresting and episodes consistently going over-budget, Wells told Sorkin he would have to be more responsive to the demands of the network and the studio. When a meeting with Warner Bros. executives, backed by NBC, was held at the end of the season, Sorkin declined to make any changes to the way he worked, and quit the show.[4]

Cast

The fourth season had star billing for ten major roles. Nine of these were filled by returning main cast members from the third season. Rob Lowe received star billing for the episodes in which he appeared, while Martin Sheen received the final credit for his role as President Josiah Bartlet. The rest of the ensemble, including (from episode eleven) Joshua Malina, were credited alphabetically. Rob Lowe departed in episode seventeen. Channing was only credited for the episodes in which she appeared.

Main cast

Plot

The fourth season covers the end of Bartlet's fourth year of his first term in office through the beginning of the first year of his second term. The season begins with the continuation of the election storyline with the president touring the nation and his staff trying to firm up presidential debates. The storyline ends in a clear victory for Bartlet less than halfway through the season in "Election Night". Other plots include Sam leaving the White House to run in a special election in California, the news of the Abdul Shareef assassination resonating both inside and outside the U.S., Will Bailey taking Sam's position after coming over from the California campaign's staff, the President and his staff facing the reality of an overseas genocide, and Vice President Hoynes being forced to resign after a sex scandal is uncovered. The fourth season ends with Bartlet's youngest daughter being taken hostage. Bartlet ends up invoking the 25th Amendment in the final episode, "Twenty Five." Since no one had been nominated to replace Hoynes, the presidency passes to the iron-willed conservative Republican Speaker of the House, Glen Allen Walken.

Episodes

No.
overall		No. in
season		TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air dateProd.
code		US viewers
(millions)
66
67		1
2		"20 Hours in America"Christopher MisianoAaron SorkinSeptember 25, 2002 (2002-09-25)175301
175302		18.16[5]
683"College Kids"Alex GravesStory by : Debora Cahn and Mark Goffman
Teleplay by : Aaron Sorkin		October 2, 2002 (2002-10-02)17530316.70[6]
694"The Red Mass"Vincent MisianoStory by : Eli Attie
Teleplay by : Aaron Sorkin		October 9, 2002 (2002-10-09)17530415.99[7]
705"Debate Camp"Paris BarclayStory by : William Sind & Michael Oates Palmer
Teleplay by : Aaron Sorkin		October 16, 2002 (2002-10-16)17530515.90[8]
716"Game On"Alex GravesAaron Sorkin & Paul RedfordOctober 30, 2002 (2002-10-30)17530615.73[9]
727"Election Night"Lesli Linka GlatterStory by : David Gerken and David Handelman
Teleplay by : Aaron Sorkin		November 6, 2002 (2002-11-06)17530816.22[10]
738"Process Stories"Christopher MisianoStory by : Paula Yoo & Lauren Schmidt
Teleplay by : Aaron Sorkin		November 13, 2002 (2002-11-13)17530915.78[11]
749"Swiss Diplomacy"Christopher MisianoKevin Falls & Eli AttieNovember 20, 2002 (2002-11-20)17530715.03[12]
7510"Arctic Radar"John David ColesStory by : Gene Sperling
Teleplay by : Aaron Sorkin		November 27, 2002 (2002-11-27)17531014.28[13]
7611"Holy Night"Thomas SchlammeAaron SorkinDecember 11, 2002 (2002-12-11)17531115.39[14]
7712"Guns Not Butter"Bill D'EliaEli Attie & Kevin Falls and Aaron SorkinJanuary 8, 2003 (2003-01-08)17531213.96[15]
7813"The Long Goodbye"Alex GravesJon Robin BaitzJanuary 15, 2003 (2003-01-15)17531314.45[16]
7914"Inauguration: Part I"Christopher MisianoStory by : Michael Oates Palmer & William Sind
Teleplay by : Aaron Sorkin		February 5, 2003 (2003-02-05)17531413.03[17]
8015"Inauguration: Over There"Lesli Linka GlatterStory by : David Gerken & Gene Sperling
Teleplay by : Aaron Sorkin		February 12, 2003 (2003-02-12)17531513.59[18]
8116"The California 47th"Vincent MisianoStory by : Lauren Schmidt & Paula Yoo
Teleplay by : Aaron Sorkin		February 19, 2003 (2003-02-19)17531612.23[19]
8217"Red Haven's on Fire"Alex GravesStory by : Mark Goffman & Debora Cahn
Teleplay by : Aaron Sorkin		February 26, 2003 (2003-02-26)17531714.01[20]
8318"Privateers"Alex GravesStory by : Paul Redford & Debora Cahn
Teleplay by : Paul Redford & Debora Cahn and Aaron Sorkin		March 26, 2003 (2003-03-26)17531811.70[21]
8419"Angel Maintenance"Jessica YuStory by : Eli Attie & Kevin Falls
Teleplay by : Eli Attie and Aaron Sorkin		April 2, 2003 (2003-04-02)17532012.72[22]
8520"Evidence of Things Not Seen"Christopher MisianoStory by : Eli Attie & David Handelman
Teleplay by : Aaron Sorkin		April 23, 2003 (2003-04-23)17531913.65[23]
8621"Life on Mars"John David ColesStory by : Paul Redford & Dee Dee Myers
Teleplay by : Aaron Sorkin		April 30, 2003 (2003-04-30)17532113.18[24]
8722"Commencement"Alex GravesAaron SorkinMay 7, 2003 (2003-05-07)17532213.37[25]
8823"Twenty Five"Christopher MisianoAaron SorkinMay 14, 2003 (2003-05-14)17532313.79[26]

Reception

Critical response

On Rotten Tomatoes, the season has an approval rating of 92% with an average score of 8 out of 10 based on 12 reviews.[27]

Accolades

The fourth season received 15 Emmy Award nominations for the 55th Primetime Emmy Awards, winning a total of 2 awards. The series won its fourth consecutive and final award for Outstanding Drama Series. Christopher Misiano won the season's other award, for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series for "Twenty Five". Notable nominations included Martin Sheen for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, Allison Janney for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series, John Spencer and Bradley Whitford for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series, Stockard Channing for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series, and Tim Matheson and Matthew Perry for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series. Aaron Sorkin was nominated for Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series for "Twenty Five".[28]

Thomas Del Ruth received a nomination from the American Society of Cinematographers for the episode "Holy Night".[29]

References

  1. ^ "Charlie Rose October 2002, Ep. 2". Amazon. October 2, 2002. Retrieved September 4, 2013.
  2. ^ Adalian, Josef (May 1, 2003). "Sorkin sulking away from 'Wing': Regime change for NBC White House series". Variety. Retrieved January 7, 2012.
  3. ^ "Rob Lowe leaving 'West Wing'". CNN. July 24, 2002. Retrieved August 11, 2013.
  4. ^ "John Wells discusses Aaron Sorkin leaving "The West Wing"". Archive of American Television. April 14, 2017. Retrieved December 19, 2017.
  5. ^ "National Nielsen Viewership (Sep. 23–29)". The Los Angeles Times. October 2, 2002. Retrieved April 17, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.Free access icon
  6. ^ "National Nielsen Viewership (Sep. 30–Oct. 6)". The Los Angeles Times. October 9, 2002. Retrieved April 17, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.Free access icon
  7. ^ "National Nielsen Viewership (Oct. 7–13)". The Los Angeles Times. October 16, 2002. Retrieved April 17, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.Free access icon
  8. ^ "National Nielsen Viewership (Oct. 14–20)". The Los Angeles Times. October 23, 2002. Retrieved April 17, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.Free access icon
  9. ^ "National Nielsen Viewership (Oct. 28–Nov. 3)". The Los Angeles Times. November 6, 2002. Retrieved April 17, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.Free access icon
  10. ^ "National Nielsen Viewership (Nov. 4–10)". The Los Angeles Times. November 13, 2002. Retrieved April 17, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.Free access icon
  11. ^ "National Nielsen Viewership (Nov. 11–17)". The Los Angeles Times. November 20, 2002. Retrieved April 17, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.Free access icon
  12. ^ "National Nielsen Viewership (Nov. 18–24)". The Los Angeles Times. November 27, 2002. Retrieved April 17, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.Free access icon
  13. ^ "National Nielsen Viewership (Nov. 25–Dec. 1)". The Los Angeles Times. December 4, 2002. Retrieved April 17, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.Free access icon
  14. ^ "National Nielsen Viewership (Dec. 9–15)". The Los Angeles Times. December 18, 2002. Retrieved April 17, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.Free access icon
  15. ^ "National Nielsen Viewership (Jan. 6–12)". The Los Angeles Times. January 15, 2003. Retrieved April 17, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.Free access icon
  16. ^ "National Nielsen Viewership (Jan. 13–19)". The Los Angeles Times. January 23, 2003. Retrieved April 17, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.Free access icon
  17. ^ "National Nielsen Viewership (Feb. 3–9)". The Los Angeles Times. February 12, 2003. Retrieved April 17, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.Free access icon
  18. ^ "National Nielsen Viewership (Feb. 10–16)". The Los Angeles Times. February 21, 2003. Retrieved April 17, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.Free access icon
  19. ^ "National Nielsen Viewership (Feb. 17–23)". The Los Angeles Times. February 26, 2003. Retrieved April 17, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.Free access icon
  20. ^ "National Nielsen Viewership (Feb. 24–Mar. 2)". The Los Angeles Times. March 5, 2003. Retrieved April 17, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.Free access icon
  21. ^ "National Nielsen Viewership (Mar. 24–30)". The Los Angeles Times. April 2, 2003. Retrieved April 17, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.Free access icon
  22. ^ "National Nielsen Viewership (Mar. 31–Apr. 5)". The Los Angeles Times. April 9, 2003. Retrieved April 17, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.Free access icon
  23. ^ "National Nielsen Viewership (Apr. 21–27)". The Los Angeles Times. April 30, 2003. Retrieved April 17, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.Free access icon
  24. ^ "National Nielsen Viewership (Apr. 28–May. 4)". The Los Angeles Times. May 7, 2003. Retrieved April 17, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.Free access icon
  25. ^ "National Nielsen Viewership (May. 5–11)". The Los Angeles Times. May 14, 2003. Retrieved April 17, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.Free access icon
  26. ^ "National Nielsen Viewership (May. 12–18)". The Los Angeles Times. May 21, 2003. Retrieved April 17, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.Free access icon
  27. ^ "The West Wing: Season 4". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved November 11, 2021.
  28. ^ "The West Wing". Emmys.com. Retrieved September 4, 2013.
  29. ^ "The ASC Awards for Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography". American Society of Cinematographers. Archived from the original on November 12, 2010. Retrieved October 26, 2013.
General references
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_West_Wing_season_4&oldid=1166924845"