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Honestly if there is only one episode that I get to show to anyone of this series - this is the episode.

This episode has one liners galore!

A plot that is truly iconic and sadly but humorously timeless.

The best of every main character.

Josh, CJ, Sam, Charlie, Jeb, Leo, Toby (even Danny get's a couple words in that just kill me).

There is no way to describe this other than pure TV gold.

This is why it's legendary. This is it.

This episode brilliantly encapsulates the essence of everything that is The West Wing. Every character is at their very best. Bradley Whitford, in particular, kills every scene he is in - I could (and have) watch(ed) the press room and Oval scenes over and over, only to laugh harder each consecutive time. The scene in the jail cell is shot beautifully, and is a shining example of what The West Wing does perhaps even better than humor: capturing the raw and often painful reality of issues we continue to wrestle with as Americans, and to a greater extent, as humans.

Without question, my favorite episode of Season 1.

Headed by Bradley Whitford, the White House staff demonstrate their comedic timing in this very amusing depiction of how they deal with crises, especially ones created by the administration itself. From a story by former press secretary Dee Dee Myers and now MSNBC anchor Lawrence O'Donnell, Sorkin's script handles the subject with insider authority.

Beyond the levity, there is of course a serious backdrop to the action, notable in two dramatic scenes involving guest stars. CCH Pounder portraying the HUD secretary is forceful in her role, even though she has to submit to expediency when John Spencer reads her the riot act for her having called Republicans tantamount to being racists. And Edward James Olmos as the president's nominee for the Supreme Court is likewise adamant in his stance on being racially profiled by a Connecticut cop, but he too has to capitulate to Richard Schiff's convincing argument on taking the easy way out of a bad situation.