AVS Discussions
Movie and TV Discussion => TV series => Topic started by: Barry on February 24, 2026, 01:47:39 PM
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Doc Martin was a British show that ran 79 episodes, ten seasons over 19 years. I discovered it, perhaps 15 years ago on PBS and I have bought the 10 years of discs, so you know I like it and it is very rewatchable. The first six are DVDs and the rest are blu- rays.
The show was a unique drama-comedy. Doc Martin, played magnificently by Martin Clunes, was a British surgeon who develops a fear of blood and can no longer do surgery. So he becomes a physician in a small town, but must deal with his problem and with the local residence of a beautiful Harbour town.
This is different in the United States. With socialized medicine in Great Britain it seems that the government assigned him to this area, and he doesn’t have the choices that an American doctor would have in terms of location. Martin, therefore, must be answerable to government officials in a way that’s not done here.
The British town is filled with interesting people all of whom are a bit quirky. The doctor himself, is a bit more than quirky. Always in a suit he is an excellent diagnostician, but a hard person to get to know. But the character of Doc Martin is compelling and makes you wanna watch. Martin Clunes: "Lots of people say that he is Aspergic or something to some degree—which, yes, I think he is. He has also said, "He's wired the way he's wired, but growing up being loathed by both your parents is going to leave a footprint. That's why he's so dysfunctional with relationships, 'cause there's gaps in his makeup.’
I totally enjoyed this show. And frankly, I wanted to live in that town, it’s beautiful and had very colorful people.
The character of Sheldon Cooper on The Big Bang Theory is similar to that of Doc Martin. How both survive and get married and have children is beyond me. But these are fictional characters not real ones.
It is not unusual for a British show to find a remake in America. The most famous one is All in the Family.
Well, “Best Medicine” is the American clone to Doc Martin. And I have seen now several episodes. It is not very good.
This Doc Martin is played by Josh Martin who has the unenviable task of creating a new character, but basing it on Martin Clunes creation. It was so much about the show that I didn’t like. And then I realized simply what it was..
Instead of being a drama with some comedy, Best Medicine is an American sitcom. The characters were not just quirky and colorful, but over the top and ridiculous.
For example, The British Doc Martin originally had a receptionist that was not very competent. The American version is a ridiculous woman who is not only incompetent but is running a not relevant video stream from the office. And she’s actually blackmailing the doctor to keep her.
There’s a gay couple and an interracial couple just to add to the mayhem. For example, they have a pet pig that they let hangout in the kitchen of their restaurant, despite health laws which they are not aware of in spite of running a restaurant for so many years. That was not in the British production. It’s that American sitcoms always have a weird person in them. But it’s just not funny, at least not to me.
Too many of these characters are just poorly recycled. Of course they cannot be original, but they can be made more interesting and less silly. And more believable. Or maybe even introduce original characters?
In writing this, I realized there is a tremendous irony that I didn’t catch till now. Annie Potts plays Martin’s aunt and she is actually just wonderful, as always. She can motivate him and she understands him…the irony is she played Sheldon Cooper’s grandmother and had the same relationship with him on Young Sheldon.
If you can stream Doc Martin or get the discs, do it! On a Barry scale Doc Martin scores a VERY GOOD for the series, with some GREAT episodes.
Best Medicine gets a bearly SIT THROUGH-ABLE, closing in on a BAD. So don’t waste time on the copy, if you can see the original.
The last four seasons. Of Doc Martin are on Blu-ray. And it looks exceptional full time this is especially true of the town and the harbor, I just looked so good. You wanna live there full sound. The audio is surprisingly good too. It is done in 5.1 and you really get a feeling of things happening around you. For A TV show it’s pretty good.
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I unfortunately have to agree with you Barry.
We were avid fans of the Martin Clune version, and really enjoyed it, for all the reasons you've identified. In fact, we visited Port Wenn on a trip to England many years ago, which was a fascinating experience. It was surreal seeing the various locations where it was filmed.
We made it through about 3 episodes of Best Medicine, and have given up. They were unable to convey the quirky charm and appeal of the original characters. It just felt completely flat, unfunny, and often outright cruel. The receptionist in particular was incredibly annoying and irritating, with little to no redeeming quality.
Oh well - maybe the Scrubs reboot will fare better, but I'm not expecting much!! :o
Don
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I should have mentioned one more thing which is so funny!
There is a continuous “in joke’ in Doc Martin. In real life, Martin Clunes is a dog fancier and has done documentaries on them. He has also worked with charities for dogs. As in “in-joke’ Doc Martin is continuously bothered by dogs and tries to get rid of them, until the last episode. it’s very funny.
again, in real life, and they show this on the DVD bonuses when people do go to visit the set while they’re filming they often bring their dogs.
On the American show he is bothered by a dog, but for no reason and there’s no logic to it and it’s just not funny.