Written by Logan Kilde. Photo by Edith Manfred.
The residents of Port Wenn are a cheery bunch. They throw silly festivals and affectionately reference how small their town is once every ten minutes. Their new physician, Dr. Martin Best, is not cheery in the least. He establishes in the pilot episode of “Best Medicine,” FOX’s new medical sitcom that was featured at SCAD TV Fest, that he does not like people. “Best Medicine” sets itself up early on as a show about an uptight and closed-off man learning to live again by falling in love with his community, and this message, even when heavy-handed, might be exactly what audiences need.
“Best Medicine” brings the premise of the British hit “Dr. Martin” to America. Now, Port Wenn is in Maine instead of Cornwall, and the situations are inspired by tropes specific to northeast American culture. But even while banding lobsters, the diverse ensemble reflects on the same themes of family and belonging that drove the original show through ten successful seasons. “I liked the original, I just wanted to freshen it up,” Liz Tuccillo, showrunner and executive producer, told the audience in a talk-back after screening the at the time unreleased sixth episode “Eyewitness Blues.”
Dr. Best, played by Josh Charles, comes into town not entirely as an outsider, but he’s removed from the culture just enough to be caught off guard by the small group’s close-knit nature. Although the show is obviously set in modern-day America, a fantastic difference occurs on the streets of Port Wenn: people actually talk to each other. Even as Dr. Best’s assistant, Elaine Denton, played by Cree, attempts to start a social media career, she answers a landline at the office and appears to receive online engagement from her neighbors.
Rodney Ferrell, an executive producer, opened commentary at TV Fest with a bold claim. After thirteen years of consideration, the show was finally coming to light because, he said, “we knew at some point the world was going to need this show, and I think we waited just the right amount of time to get it right.”
Looking at the broad strokes of modern America, most people would not identify with the feel-good warmth and tight-knit community represented on screen in “Best Medicine.” The show itself critiques fast-paced life in big cities, where workers sit alone in cubicles, not knowing the people right next to them. In some ways, it feels like allowing these characters to live in such a wonderful world is antithetical to the show’s intention of reflecting a modern version of our country, but that conclusion would be a quick dismissal of the work beneath the surface.
Port Wenn, while being removed from any socio-political issue that would remind the audience of the reality of America, is entirely Americana. Dr. Best, like the audience, sees each celebration of baked beans or blueberries as a silly waste of time, a distraction from his dedication to wellness. But his neighbors know that their traditions are absurd, and they throw the party anyway. These Americans have actually adapted our traditional values into a modern setting much better than we have in reality: eat with your family, gossip with your friends and watch out for your neighbors.
