Episode Rankings: The West Wing

The West Wing is a good political show carried hard by its lovable cast and the immaculate writing of Aaron Sorkin. The way it structures itself is unconventional and it's fair to say the politics of it haven't aged the best, and yet the writing, the characters, the standout moments of drama, and the sentimental tone still holds up in my eyes. Here's my ranking of its episodes:

1. Commencement (S4.22)
2. Dead Irish Writers (S3.15)
3. 17 People (S2.17)
4. In The Shadow Of Two Gunmen: Part 2 (S2.02)
5. Posse Comitatus (S3.21)
6. Game On (S4.06)
7. He Shall, From Time To Time (S1.12)
8. The US Poet Laureate (S3.16)
9. Manchester: Part 2 (S3.02)
10. Evidence Of Things Not Seen (S4.20)
11. Hartsfield's Landing (S3.14)
12. Noel (S2.10)
13. Celestial Navigation (S1.15)
14. Election Night (S4.07)
15. In The Shadow Of Two Gunmen: Part 1 (S2.01)
16. Bartlet For America (S3.09)
17. What Kind Of Day Has It Been (S1.22)
18. 18th And Potomac (S2.21)
19. 20 Hours In America: Part 2 (S4.02)
20. The Stackhouse Filibuster (S2.17)
21. 25 (S4.23)
22. Enemies Foreign And Domestic (S3.18)
23. The Short List (S1.09)
24. Inauguration: Part 2 (S4.15)
25. Manchester: Part 1 (S3.01)
26. Let Bartlet Be Bartlet (S1.19)
27. Two Cathedrals (S2.22)
28. We Killed Yamamoto (S3.20)
29. In Excelsis Dei (S1.10)
30. 20 Hours In America: Part 1 (S4.01)
31. Shibboleth (S2.08)
32. Process Stories (S4.08)
33. H Con - 172 (S3.10)
34. Bartlet's Third State Of The Union (S2.13)
35. Pilot (S1.01)
36. The Fall's Gonna Kill You (S2.20)
37. Life On Mars (S4.21)
38. Lies, Damn Lies, And Statistics (S1.21)
39. Inauguration: Part 1 (S4.14)
40. Six Meetings Before Lunch (S1.18)
41. The Midterms (S2.03)
42. Holy Night (S4.11)
43. A Proportional Response (S1.03)
44. War Crimes (S3.05)
45. Bad Moon Rising (S2.19)
46. The Black Vera Wang (S3.19)
47. The War At Home (S2.14)
48. Ways And Means (S3.03)
49. Mr Willis Of Ohio (S1.06)
50. The California 47th (S4.16)
51. And It's Surely To Their Credit (S2.05)
52. 100,000 Airplanes (S3.11)
53. Take Out The Trash Day (S1.13)
54. Stirred (S3.17)
55. College Kids (S4.03)
56. The Indians In The Lobby (S3.07)
57. Somebody's Going To Emergency, Somebody's Going To Jail (S2.16)
58. Angel Maintenance (S4.19)
59. Arctic Radar (S4.10)
60. Five Votes Down (S1.04)
61. Enemies (S1.08)
62. Galileo (S2.09)
63. Mandatory Minimums (S1.20)
64. Night Five (S3.13)
65. Ellie (S2.15)
66. Post Hoc, Ergo Propter Hoc (S1.02)
67. In This White House (S2.04)
68. Red Haven's On Fire (S4.17)
69. Gone Quiet (S3.06)
70. Lord John Marbury (S1.11)
71. Take This Sabbath Day (S1.14)
72. On The Day Before (S3.04)
73. The Leadership Breakfast (S2.11)
74. The Red Moss (S4.04)
75. The Crackpots And These Women (S1.05)
76. The Lame Duck Congress (S2.06)
77. The State Dinner (S1.07)
78. The Women Of Qumar (S3.08)
79. Swiss Diplomacy (S4.09)
80. The Two Bartlets (S3.12)
81. The Drop-In (S2.12)
82. The White House Pro-Am (S1.17)
83. Guns Not Butter (S4.12)
84. Debate Camp (S4.05)
85. The Portland Trip (S2.07)
86. Privateers (S4.18)
87. 20 Hours In LA (S1.16)
88. The Long Goodbye (S4.13)
89. Isaac And Ishmael (S3.00)