Thread by @Psythor

Here’s a very special festive treat that no one has asked for. I’m going to reprise my grand plan and explain to you all once more:

HOW TO REBOOT THE WEST WING.

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The year is 2018. It’s August. But there are dark clouds in the sky. The show begins at Washington National Cathedral. It is a hive of activity. A funeral is taking place.

It’s the funeral of President Bartlet.

A motorcade arrives, but it is not the President. It is the Democratic Nominee, who a week early accepted the party’s nomination at the Democratic National Convention.

The door opens - and out steps CJ Cregg.

After the Bartlet administration, she left government briefly working for a non-profit building roads in Africa, but after Santos was defeated in the 2010 election, she was lured back to public service, running successfully for governor of her native Ohio.

The funeral is sombre, but also a celebration of President Bartlet’s life. The whole gang are reunited in the Cathedral.

Charlie, after Georgetown had worked in Democratic politics for 20 years. He was back as CJ’s campaign manager.

CJ’s bodyman? Anthony Marcus.

Speaker Will Bailey is also at the funeral. He has an awkward encounter with his ex-wife, Congresswoman Kate Harper. She is a moderate Republican in the mould of the late Arnie Vinick, but she is also alarmingly authoritarian on national security issues.

Toby is there too, having spent the last twenty years clawing back his reputation. Today, he is a left-leaning podcaster, and holds enormous sway over the activist base of the democratic party.

The establishment is still nervous about embracing him given his history.

There is a problem, though. The Cregg campaign is struggling. There was a tortured and far too personal nomination fight against Sam Seaborne, who had reinvented himself and ran to CJ’s left. She had taken on heavy damage in the primary.

The campaign realises that they want to bring a heavyweight veteran campaigner on board. Someone who can help turn the campaign around. They need Josh.

But there’s a problem: Josh is burned out. After Santos lost reelection, he was devastated and felt personal responsibility.

Josh’s wife, Congressperson Donna Moss is spending almost all of her time in Wisconsin, campaigning for Cregg. Josh, however, is living in DC but is a virtual recluse.

So the obvious question: Who is CJ Cregg’s opponent? After 8 years of a relatively moderate Republican Presidency, the party has radicalised and the new candidate is a brash outsider, who rejects all of the norms of democratic politics.

Who should play this Trump analogue?

Vincent D’Onofrio.

We first see him at a rally where he insults the late President Bartlet. Setting the tone for the battle ahead.

That’s right. This West Wing reboot is re-fighting the 2016 election. And this time, the good guys win.

Of course, we also introduce some new characters in a Force Awakens-style passing of the torch type situation. So we have a new Josh, Toby, Sam and CJ, who would have been too young at the time of the original series.

Maybe this time this core group would be a bit more diverse.

Narratively, this 8 episode mini-series would obviously follow the journey of the Cregg campaign from the funeral to inauguration. The first episode would be about bringing Josh back in.

D’Onofio would make hay out of CJ’s, umm, cosy relationship, with the press.

…And that’s all I have for now, I think.