As "Doc Martin" wound down its ninth series since its 2004 debut, this seriocomic vehicle for Martin Clunes as the acerbic Martin Ellingham, general practitioner in fictional Portwenn, Cornwall, ventured ever closer to becoming a thoroughly conventional medical comedy-drama. Is this the "Equilibrium" that Chris Reddy's debut script refers to, adopting sentimental overtures to balance the tone toward more audience-friendly expectations? It might denature the show's essence, but that one-note essence was already stretched past its breaking point, so why not?
For one thing, Reddy supplies the same bland veneer as the previous episode, mainstreaming "Doc Martin" into generic facelessness along with the cast. For another, Reddy, tasked with streamlining various strands, blithely touches on them in standard soap-opera fashion. Martin and Louisa begin seeing fertility specialist Doctor Emma Ryder (Lucy Russell) as Louisa prepares for her first supervised counseling session with troubled teen Bethany (Milly Toomey) while Louisa's professor Sam Bradman (John Hollingworth) evaluates Louisa's therapy skills.
Keeping the good doctor busy, Sam's sciatica flares up during the session, held in Louisa's new consultation room in Martin's surgery. That room was painted by a young man (Tom Glenister) whose hyperactive sweat glands produce unbearable body odor, which his girlfriend (Sofia Oxenham) seems blissfully oblivious to---until Martin discovers her nasal polyp and removes it.
PC Joe Penhale reunites with school chum Nathan Fowler (James Lance), now a laid-back surfer whose very pregnant wife Mags (Susannah Fielding) provides Morwenna with the chance to impress Martin with her newly-acquired first-responder skills. Lance has a ball spouting surfer attitude and lingo in a West Country accent (which presumably makes it "cowabunger," then) while Fielding, given a largely decorative part, nevertheless works in noteworthy dimension playing a maturing young woman who might just have two children---not just the newborn but also the new father---to raise.
Meanwhile, Martin encounters asinine Doctor Edward Mullen (Conleth Hill), first seen testing Martin's diagnostic skills with mock patients in Series Nine's fourth episode "Paint It, Black," ostensibly visiting on holiday yet who nevertheless hints that the decision to allow Martin to continue practicing might not be favorable.
That last is the setup for the series finale, with the future of "Doc Martin," not for the first time, uncertain, although shoots of growth suggest potential paths for some of the cast, particularly Louisa, whose consultation with Bethany shows promise while Martin's praise for Morwenna's performance similarly indicates her possible direction as Al Large, having to mind new pub owner Caitlin Morgan's (Angela Curran) produce store, might have found another "fresh and frugal" sideline as "Doc Martin" scrambles to find "Equilibrium."
REVIEWER'S NOTE: What makes a review "helpful"? Every reader of course decides that for themselves. For me, a review is helpful if it explains why the reviewer liked or disliked the work or why they thought it was good or not good. Whether I agree with the reviewer's conclusion is irrelevant. "Helpful" reviews tell me how and why the reviewer came to their conclusion, not what that conclusion may be. Differences of opinion are inevitable. I don't need "confirmation bias" for my own conclusions. Do you?
0 out of 0 found this helpful.
Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
