Final season of ‘Doc Martin’ arrives
Acorn streams the 10th and final season of “Doc Martin,” a long-running U.K. comedy that has been embraced all over the globe. While set in the picturesque Yorkshire seaside tourist town of Portwenn, its enduring success owes much to comedy conventions that American broadcasters have long since abandoned.
For the uninitiated, Martin Clunes stars as Dr. Martin Ellingham, a renowned London surgeon afflicted with a neurotic phobia — he can’t stand the sight of blood. This ends his career and his perch among the medical elite and sends him back to Portwenn, the scene of his miserable boyhood. There he takes over for the local general practitioner, treating the everyday ailments of the townsfolk, from farmers and workers to a recurring cast of oddballs, misfits and dimwits. The townsfolk know of “the Doc’s” affliction but recognize a great practitioner when they see one. Nearly every episode consists of Doc Martin MacGyvering a medical procedure under dire circumstances, saving a local who might have otherwise died with more conventional treatment.
Martin’s brilliance comes at the price of severe social shortcomings. Highly focused and incapable of the small talk that lubricates daily life, he can be placed somewhere on the autism spectrum — not unlike the heroes of “The Good Doctor” and “House.” But while “Good” plays up the sentimental and Dr. House projects a certain arrogant swagger, Doc Martin just can’t seem to help himself. He can’t suffer fools and answers most chitchat with a simple, dismissive “yes.” But don’t dare counter his medical diagnosis with New Age nostrums.
The notion of placing a sitcom character amongst oddballs in a provincial setting is hardly new. It was the formula that made “The Andy Griffith Show” among the most beloved series ever. And it also worked for “Newhart,” set in a Vermont bed and breakfast. There’s also a lot of Mayberry in Portwenn. Over the seasons, Martin has been cared for by at least two kindly
aunts. And much like Don Knotts’ Barney Fife, Portwenn constable Joe Penhale (John Marquez) exudes a dithering incompetence that has long departed from American TV’s depiction of police.
For all the medical emergencies on this show, it distinguishes itself with its lack of real or potential violence. Any number of slick women have come to town to steal Penhale’s heart, but there’s a palpable lack of crime. Despite a longstanding love story about Doc and his wife, Louisa (Caroline Catz), it’s refreshingly free from sentiment. It’s not as dark or narcissistic as “Seinfeld,” but shares that show’s philosophy: “No hugs, no lessons.”
Among the original aspects of “Doc Martin” is the occasional presence of a gaggle of adolescent girls taunting the Doc with giggles and mild obscenities. Far from American television, with its emphasis on status, wealth, caste, police authoritarianism and prevailing bloodshed, Portwenn is a gentle place where every ego is cut down to size.
Acorn will stream two episodes tonight and new episodes will arrive on Mondays. A celebratory summing-up documentary streams on Dec. 26, and the series finale (and Christmas special) is ready for New Year’s Eve.