Raw Data: Election Night - Part 2

Episode 2-09
"Election Night Part 2"

This is the season finale to Season Two.

Written by Aaron Sorkin

Directed by Alan Poul, one of the shows executive producer, directing his third episode this season

Somewhat surprised Sorkin did not direct an episode this season.  He is supposedly gearing up to direct "The Politician" which is a movie he is adapting about John Edwards' fall.

• Saying "The Great State of..." is a lot like saying the "Fightin' ...." for whatever Congressional district
• Maggie, who looks a lot like that Kristen Wigg character from SNL, "found" this quote that got fed to her
• The debate had about how to proceed on Petreaus was pretty interesting.  It happened fast, which is I imagine how these decisions need to happen in real life.  There's not always the benefit of hindsight.  It was a rational and logical decision making process
• A source of conflict we haven't seen explored is between Jim and Will with Mac in the middle, but this episode sets that up nicely to take place next season
• A bunch of relationships no one cares about coming together in the finale is pretty much what happened at the end of Studio 60
• Maggie Cut! Her! Own! Hair!
• This puts her at the intellectual level of the four year old neighbor kid who got hold of the clippers.
• If Will were within earshot of Don's rant about ironing clothes while wearing them he, as a former pitcher, may have shared an anecdote about Braves pitcher John Smoltz
• This girl at the part is hilarious and obviously just joshin' with Lisa.  You can tell by the way she talks down to her and says she's joking.  Isn't that the best?
• Treating the waiter poorly is oen of those 'kick the dog' moments
• Nice reminder from Will about the bias of objectivity, probably the central point to this whole show
• Larry Deltagamma doesn't appear in this episode either, but everyone (Charlie, Leona, Reese, etc) agrees he is the worst, but only because Reese and Leona have likely not met Maggie 

So that caps a second, improved, season of Newsroom.  We saw the show gain steam in the later episodes of Season One, and it carried over well into Season Two.  The lawsuit has to carry into the next season, I imagine, even though the actor who plays Larry Deltagamma, like the actor who played Bob Benson on Mad Men, will be busy on his soon to be cancelled sitcom.  But they can likely play out the scene with little or minimal involvement from that character.  At the very least they will need to tell us the outcome via exposition.  While this episode ends on an optimistic note for the news team, it's possible to have some reverberating affects for the characters from the lawsuit, as I could not imagine them winning outright.

With no election, and Genoa done with, I'm wondering what will be the common thread throughout next season.  Even Season One did not have a clear theme throughout it, much of how the news team behaved, including their preference for facts and journalism, was in reaction to the Tea Party.  Season Two was maybe Sorkin's first attempt to tie an entire season together by a single storyline*

* You could argue the Bartlet re-election runs most of Season Three and into Season Four.  But the best example of a continued story is probably episodes 2-17 "The Stackhouse Filibuster" through 2-22 "Two Cathedrals" and the build up to the MS breaking.  That is only six episodes though.

I mentioned this above, but the show is set up for some major conflicts between Jim and Will next season.  It will be interesting to see Will having a friend, besides Charlie.  There is always the possibility of Charlie becoming a raging alcoholic.  Will and Mac and Don and Sloane will obviously have troubles.  If you are not Coach and Mrs. Coach you cannot be a happy television couple.