Article first published as TV Review: THE GOOD DOCTOR on Seat42F.
ABC premieres yet another medical drama
tonight, one of the most common types of shows made. This one, called
THE GOOD DOCTOR, follows a young man named Shaun Murphy, who has Autism
and Savant syndrome. Shaun is hired as a pediatric surgical resident at
San Jose St. Bonaventure Hospital. Most of the staff, including the head
of surgery, do not want him there, feeling his limited ability to
recognize and express emotion will make it impossible for him to be
proficient at the job. But with strong support from the president of the
facility, Shaun is allowed to give it a go.
Shaun is played by Freddie Highmore, a
brilliant actor who is fresh off a starring role in the series Bates
Motel. Highmore makes Shaun as interesting and well-developed as his
Norman Bates was, and it is immediately clear that Highmore will do a
great job. Joined by the excellent Richard Schiff (The West Wing) as
Aaron Glassman, the aforementioned president, as well as several other
capable, sometimes terrific, actors, it seems there is the framework in
place for a very solid show.
Furthering the points in THE GOOD
DOCTOR’s favor is the creative team behind it. This show is based off of
a successful South Korean series, and was developed for the U.S. by
David Shore (House) and Daniel Dae Kim (Lost). Shore definitely knows
something about making strong dramas in the genre, and Kim is well
respected as a performer, which sometimes makes for a good guiding hand
in production.
Here’s where the review takes a turn,
though. Despite everything working in its favor, THE GOOD DOCTOR is
merely the adjective the title uses – good. You may ask, what’s wrong
with good? Indeed, many merely good series are watched by a great number
of people week after week, year after year. But this is 2017, the era
of peak TV, and there are many, many more innovative, complicated, and
compelling options available. Good is no longer good enough.
There are plenty of factors working
against THE GOOD DOCTOR, starting with how the story is very cliché.
Despite being somewhat character-driven, it appears poised to feature
mainly stand-alone episodes. The way Shaun’s thought process is depicted
is a step above what House did, graphically speaking, but not unusual
when compared to other, more recent series. The climax feels forced, and
the resolution, unrealistic. Characters are almost two-dimensionally
against Shaun for the wrong reasons, and viewers are hand-fed
manipulative emotional scenes.
So what could THE GOOD DOCTOR have done
better? Well, let’s start with the other characters having more nuanced
opinions of Shaun. Why be so certain he’s going to fail before a person
has even met him? Or worse, once they see Shaun impressively figure out a
tough puzzle, why do they still write him off so quickly? In stark
contrast with Highmore’s performance, it’s glaringly bad. It would also
be interesting if the show was more focused on communicating Shaun’s
experience, rather than using it as set dressing against a more mediocre
storyline.
The one thing it probably could not have
done better is choose better actors, and that’s probably why I’m so
disappointed. We have enough melodrama on TV, and there are plenty of
fine thespians to handle those. With people the likes of Highmore and
Schiff, far above average, the project could and should have had more
weight.
In fact, the thing I would most relate
this show to is a formulaic, feel-good Disney film about overcoming
diversity, with the struggle simplified to a sugar-coated,
nutritionally-lacking, tasty but unsatisfying snack. This is the
television version of that. Airing on Disney’s ABC, that might work out
for it. But for the discerning viewer who only has time for high quality
and freshness, this won’t make the cut.
THE GOOD DOCTOR premieres tonight at 10 ET on ABC.
Posts
