krasinskisaurus: 30 Days of The West Wing: Day...

July 21, 2012

30 Days of The West Wing: Day 5 -Your favourite minor character(s)

So I may have a cheated a little bit (and believe it or not, this is a revised list) but there are too many wonderful characters to choose between.

Ellie Bartlet was always my favourite Bartlet sister and my second favourite of the whole First Family. Kind, grounded, subtly intelligent and the most like Jed, she was the Bartlet I related to the most from the beginning, despite her lack of screen time. Plus, the scene in the cinema between Jed and Ellie is one of the loveliest in the entire series.

Ron Butterfield. How do I begin to explain Ron Butterfield. Ron Butterfield is flawless. I hear his moustache is insured for $10,000. You get the idea… There’s a spin-off with his name on it; just saying.

Ainsley Hayes was the first Republican I loved on the show because, in a rare move by Sorkin, she proved that politics do not always have to be divisive. Her dynamic with Sam was thoroughly enjoyable and its lack of closure is one of the many reasons I wish that Ainsley could have stayed at least one more season.

Joey Lucas. WHY WAS THIS GIRL NOT A REGULAR INSTEAD OF MANDY?! Her wit, feistiness and ability to get under Josh’s skin made sure that every guest appearance was a delight. Perhaps one of the reasons I love her so much is that she’s essentially the female Josh Lyman, and had Donna never existed, I would have wanted Joey and Josh together for sure.

Margaret Hooper was one of those characters where you know that every time she’s on screen, she’ll make you laugh. Whether it be her cheesy jokes (like the one above) or the deadpan delivery of all her lines, I always considered her as an honorary member of the main cast.

Percy Fitzwallace was a BAMF, let’s face it. I adored his no nonsense attitude, almost always agreed with him on the moral issues and although we didn’t get to see it much, he was definitely a guy with a massive heart. His death during the Gaza arc was all the more heartbreaking, because here was a guy who’d served 38 years in the military, but he was killed during a diplomatic mission.