Several of my American friends have posted about going through the new season’s TV schedules, planning their viewing. Aside from trauma that people do this (not just them – I just find the notion of watching enough TV to have to plan it ghastly) it reminds me that a new season of The West Wing is about to start, which means episiodes for me to download. I’m a little worried about this, as Sorkin’s gone now, and I’m nervious about what they’ll do with/to the show. So I’m skimming the spoiler sites, looking for hints about what’s coming, and am pleasantly surpirsed to see that Gary Cole (American Gothic, Crusade) is apparently joining as a recurring cast member.

As for the plots – well, it’s early to tell, especially since the first few episodes of season five have to deal with the enormity of the end of season four, and can to an extent, coast on that, but I think I can see some of the new angles in the hints. I don’t think it’ll be bad but I can see how they’re skewing away from the politics-driven stories, toward character-focused stuff. On the one hand, a bit gutless, but on the other, perhaps it’ll be less liberal-propagandist (not that I mind that, being a big old bleeding-heart myself, but it’s a bit heavy handed at times), and I like the characters and actors enough that it’ll keep my interest for a while. Whether it’s enough to remain the only TV show I give enough of a fuck about to download/schedule time around, I don’t know.