Best TV series ever. A bold statement made simply to share something with you, particularly for UK viewers, who may not have heard of it or, if you have, not watched it as you felt it was too focussed on non-UK material (and there’s a clue!).
So, almost exactly twenty years ago, September 22nd, 1999, a new TV series pilot aired in the USA. It went on to run for seven seasons, 155 episodes, over 100 hours of brilliantly written television. In fact, though to be honest I don’t watch that much TV, it is by far the best TV series I’ve ever watched. Back in the days of DVD boxsets, I used to watch it again and again on the many long haul flights I took in the “noughties”.
Earlier this week I shared in “Never make a point without telling a story” the brilliant new movie Blinded by the Light, which took me back to when I posted a weekly series called Movies with Meaning, featuring many favourite movies (and TV series, including this one).
However, whenever the topic of the best TV series ever comes up with people I meet now I live in Britain, though certain US series are always mentioned, very few have heard of this show.
If you love brilliant writing (and Aaron Sorkin, who wrote the first four seasons, is one of the very best, including A Few Good Men, The Newsroom), do watch it. It says a lot about the quality that it is not on free streaming yet, despite the last air date being in 2006. Such high quality that you still have to buy it 🙂
I leave you with the entrance of President Bartlett towards the end of the pilot episode. Quite the entrance and first speech.
Oh, and as this is a blog focussed on leadership, this show has countless examples of leadership challenges and opportunities, including one of my favourite episodes, “Let Bartlet be Bartlet“.
I give you The West Wing.