The doctor is in
Not since Doc Hollywood (yes, I went there) has there been a entertainment with the main foundation of the story being a doctor from a big city succeeding charmingly in a small rural area. Well, take away the Michael J. Fox charm, the movie format and you’ve got yourself a show that could be considered a more entertaining version of Northern Exposure (yes, I went there too).
Martin Clunes plays a very insensitive, unemotional Dr. Martin Ellingham. He has been assigned to a small port town in Cornwall, England. He hates the town and merely tolerates the villagers. Episode to episode he brings the charm of a porcupine and the sensitivity of rock; and surprisingly he does it quite well. Normally for such a storyline like this it runs into typical plot points that continually repeat if you shed away the interwoven details. Doctor suspects something the villagers can’t, he investigates and makes the villagers wiser in the end. Fortunately, Doc Martin carries a dry sense of humor and interweaves very unfamiliar, uncertain ground and builds its characters through unconventional methods. For example, at the beginning of series two, even if you weren’t aware of series one (like myself), you understand that the doctor is madly in love with Caroline Catz’s character Louisa Glasson (she’s a school teacher in the show). Unlike other shows of similar taste, this show takes that love and places it oddly enough on the outside of every story. So, when the characters, Louisa and Martin, interact together they show signs of love that doesn’t get in the way of the current story. Martin is still an a-hole and Louisa is generally defending the villagers. It’s a very strange way to develop the characters, but it works remarkably well. It doesn’t interfere or get placed oddly into the thick of things and it develops each character outside of the episode’s storyline. Not many shows can do this successfully without bringing the love affair into a story, which ultimately warps the story arc. That’s what makes this show so appealing. They carry on the story and they develop their characters in a way not to get in the way of the individual story being told. It’s a complicated, precise way to do things, but in the end what you get are stories that are rock solid and characters that are just as solid. Ladies and gentlemen, that’s tough to do in a television show.
So, in short, whoever the hell is writing this show, which appears to be eight writers (including Craig Ferguson — get back to work, you git!), is doing one damn fine job.
Outside of character development, the stories are nearly all interesting. For example, the best story in this series is about the lone police officer in the village named Mark Mylow (PC to you! — played by Stewart Wright). His character is sort of the goofy police officer, who doesn’t see much action so his skills are a bit rusty. When he finally meets the woman of his dreams he goes nuts on her (no pun intended). The couple end up getting engaged and soon fine themselves nearly married. Before they get hitched, they also find out that they’re going to have a baby. You figure that all of this is fine because leading up to this point, Mylow has to find a best man for his wedding and ends up having to ‘force’ someone to play the role. The episode is great because you have an unimpeded current of humor drifting through and you certainly don’t see the arc coming up in the storyline. When Mylow finds out there is more to his bride than what it seems, he turns from funny character into an emotionally scarred, serious character. The turn isn’t subtle, but it’s damn powerful. This is how the stories go in the series, which makes each episode unique and interesting.
Now, is there a downfall to any of this? Well, this carries a Fraiser like arrogance about it. If the character of Fraiser never smiled and hated everyone, it would be comparable. The humor isn’t as in your face, but it’s equally as eloquent in areas. You have to truly appreciate the intelligent, subtle humor that the writers and actors have laid out for you in the series. It may not suit everyone’s fancy as Life on Mars does, but it will reach the audience that is appropriate. That’s where the series takes a hit because it’s simply not for everyone to enjoy. With that said faithful readers, your reviewer isn’t the intelligent type and the show was fun to watch.
Like many British shows, you get nine episodes in the series. Each episode is roughly around an hour or so (sorry, didn’t time them exactly, I know they were longer than U.S. shows). You’ll breeze right through them if you like the show. More importantly, you’ll be jonsing for series one (much like I am).
As for features, you get some filmographies and photo galleries, but not much more. Those are nice and what not, but having commentary or even a featurette on shooting an episode in such a gorgeous locale would have been nice. Alas, only two features to crow about and you need not crow loud.