Am I going nuts? I could have sworn I saw Armin Shimerman’s name in the guest credits but unless I blinked and missed him, he didn’t seem to be anywhere around.

As soon as Simon said that they’d caught CJ’s stalker, I knew that he would be dead by the end of the episode but assumed that they’d caught the wrong guy and that Simon would have to take a bullet for CJ when the stalker finally arrived. However, I would have hoped for a slightly less corny and clichéd ending than the one they gave him.

Me too, Callie! Bravo aired it earlier, but I didn't see him.

I loved this episode. Absolutely great. Allison Janney's acting was even better than usual. Especially when she received the bad news.

Oh, and what was that song they used? I've heard it used on many shows in similar situations, but it's sooo beautiful...

Saw it again tonight.

The song is Jeff Buckley's "Hallelujah," and it's one of my favorite songs ever. I love Buckley.

The use of the song at the end was sublime.

Again, this episode makes me an emotional wreck.


I wanna see War of the Roses

Come on, guys! Anyone else have gushing praise for this episode?

As usual for me, I have a little criticism. I applaud Bartlet for being willing to take the very difficult step of having a man murdered in order to protect the national security of the United States. I pray that I never find myself in such a situation. However, some of the discussion about the operation is pretty silly.

First off: "Posse Comitatus"? Please. Putting a team on the ground and shooting 14 bullets into the chest of a man who has never been convicted and sentenced, let alone indicted, is NOT a police action. A police action, by the definition of the Posse Comtitatus Act, would be arresting the guy and reading him his rights. Shooting him and then ditching the bodies is a full-out military special operation, and it is not at all affected by the P.C. act. So there's no legal prohibition against using military personnel to carry out the plan.

Next, the executive order. One of the congressman present at the "Gang of 8" meeting says, "How are you going to get around [the executive order prohibiting assassination]?" Leo replies, "We're going to ignore it." WRONG! If it's ignored, the guys who carried it out are now criminals! More properly, the President issues a new (albeit classified) order which rescinds the original order; this new order is signed off by the Attorney-General and is presented to the National Security Advisor, who would then brief the appropriate agencies and allow them to inspect the signed order.

Finally, when asked why they don't have the FBI arrest Shareef, Leo says that the FBI's role "is investigatory." He then says that the FBI doesn't have the power to arrest Shareef. Um....what does that mean, exactly? By that defense the FBI can't arrest anybody! Again, Leo's statement is utter nonsense. The correct answer would be that Shareef has diplomatic immunity and is thus not subject to trial in the US; to revoke the immunity, the President would have to speak with the Sultan of Qumar, who would never consent to his brother's being arrested, tried, and possibly executed.

Synopsis for this episode:
The President meets his election opponent, attends a performance of "Wars Of The Roses" and gives the order to assassinate the defence minister of Qumar. Meanwhile CJ's stalker gets caught but the trauma is far from over for her.

Buckley's "Hallelujah" is also used in the movie Shrek. Rewatched it last night, and the use of that music surprised me.

That was Rufus Wainwright, Scott.

Shrek 2, by the way.

No, "Hallelujah" was used in the first Shrek as well -- after they get back to Duloc, but before the wedding.

Simon tells CJ that they've caught her stalker on a train en route to the theatre, then adds, "He wasn't going to do anything to you." How does he know this? Sure, the guy may have said he was only going to watch her go in and out of the theatre, but then he would say that, wouldn't he? And even if he was only going to watch her this time, he might have genuinely intended to try to kill her at some time in the future.

I don't understand why Ron takes CJ out of the theatre to tell her that Simon is dead. The stalker has been caught and Simon is no longer CJ's bodyguard. Unless Simon told Ron that he intended to start dating CJ before he went to the store, the working relationship between CJ and Simon is over. Of course Ron would tell her at a more convenient moment, but extracting her from watching the performance in order to tell her seems like something they just wouldn't do. I would have expected Ron to intercept her the moment she came out, in case any of the press knew and asked her about it when she went outside.