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Reviewed by Anonymous, a former staff member of the Clinton Administration.

I'm disappointed in the West Wing. The glimmer of potential in last week's premiere was snuffed out this week through the combined forces of a boring story line, an annoying new female consultant character -- Mandy -- and unrealistic exchanges among the West Wing staff. While last week I lamented that the show needed to focus more on the real policy work of the White House, I guess you should be careful what you ask for. The second episode -- with a little more political 'meat' and less personal juice -- was as boring as a Bill Bradley stump speech.

The legislation part of the plot was too technical and dull even for political insiders. And you know you're in trouble when a dull plot is combined with characters just begging to be hated (see, for instance 'I-have-a-Ph.D.' Mandy who drives her BMW over a curb to chew out the Senator she's dating because of his position on a bill). You feel you've wasted an hour of prime time sleepwalking through the West Wing rather than experiencing the roller coaster ride it actually is.

Now that Mandy's been hired as the White House media consultant, we will have to suffer through even more of her in-your-face dramatics. That should match up just fine against the divine president - who opened the season quoting the ten commandments last week, and in episode two impressed us all with his remarkable fluency in Latin. True, Presidents toss around a lot of toasts, quotes and historical anecdotes, but that isn't the reason people experience awe around them. The awe usually has to do with their role as leader of the free world. Maybe all the verbal pyrotechnics serve as the show's feeble attempt to convey to the viewer that the President is the smartest person in the room. In the television version, this is not very convincing. With that said, this President does look pretty sharp compared to his staff. Sam (played by Rob Lowe) decides to pursue a call girl he slept with in a piece of poor judgment seldom seen in sharp young staffers on the rise. (Usually this type of behavior is reserved for those whose careers have peaked and whose egos have lost their grounding). Moreover, his behavior crosses the ethical line - in one scene, Sam throws around his political muscle to barge into a private bar threatening to call in the Assistant U.S. Attorney to prosecute her and her companion. Will this come back to haunt Sam later?

This is where West Wing is going to have to decide whether it will perpetuate stereotypes of abuse of power in Washington or whether it will explore the increasing paranoia among the new generation of government employees, ensuring they stay well within the bounds of the law so as to avoid embarrassment. My guess is we will see more unethical behavior by White House execs.

And since Sam is Rob Lowe he'll probably get away with it.

Some accuracies worthy of applause: A President's golf joke prompting the Ryder Cup team to turn down a White House invitation, a negative comment to the press by a VP who is distancing himself from the President, and the President crashing into a tree on his bike, feed off one another, creating an uncontrollable downward spiral quite common in today's political and press environment. And the need for damage control sheds light on the gloomiest of days in the real West Wing - when the Chief of Staff decides to throw money at a problem and bring in a paid consultant to dig the White House out of its ditch. Trailing the characters through a dull storyline, the only engaging aspect of this week's episode was the relationship between the President and his Navy doctor. Their conversation in the Oval Office, while sappy, was perhaps the most realistic part of the show. In the real White House, it is the doctors, official photographers, and stewards who often enjoy the most casual and genuine conversations with the President -- the kind of discussions his political staff only angle to have. And rarely do.

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