Romance in the West Wing

The West Wing is not only a show that has great political plotlines, but it also has a great heart, with plotlines revolving around the characters' social lives as well. This can be seen in the many romantic relationships throughout the series. Given that, I thought that it would be fun this Valentine’s week to talk about some of the relationships in the show.

Some of the best relationships in the show are those between Presidents and First Ladies. The most obvious is that between President Bartlet and Abby Bartlet. They both are very passionate about what they do and willing to stand up for themselves in the relationship. It is also great that the First Lady was chosen to be such a strong and intelligent Woman. She even has a doctorate and is an acknowledged world-class physician. President Santos and Helen Santos have a similar relationship. They are not afraid to express their opinions to one another and like Abby, Helen is strong and willing to clash heads with her Husband and Josh when they are doing things she doesn’t believe in.

C.J. has two very good love interests in the series, Danny and Simon. Both pairs had great chemistry and were great relationships to watch develop. C.J. and Danny had a running romance throughout the series, that would disappear and reappear again and again until they got their happy ending. Meanwhile, C.J. and Simon’s was short-lived, and Posse Comitatus is arguably one of the most emotionally moving scenes of the series.

Josh and Donna also had a rollercoaster of a relationship, with the will-they, won’t-they plot being carried on until the end of the series. They both had many other conflicting relationships, with romance sparking between Josh and Mandy, Amy, and Joey, and Donna having relationships with Cliff and Jack. Their relationship is one full of witty banter fueled by their walk and talks.

Sam also had a lot of romantic plotlines throughout his run on the show. He has chemistry with Laurie, Mallory, and Ainsley, along with an episode featuring his ex-fiancee Lisa Sherborne.

There are many other relationships in the show too. Such as Charlie and Zoey, Toby and Andy, Leo and Jordan, and Kate and Will.

The relationships in the show add great relief to the political plots and help us viewers to empathize with and learn about our favorite characters. What are your favorite relationships in The West Wing? Did I leave any good ones out? Let me know!