'Best Medicine' Review: This Remake of a Beloved Series Just Doesn't Hit the Same Way

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Fans of the original comedy classic Doc Martin have been hoping that the American remake, Best Medicine, could reintroduce the same lovable and quirky small-town atmosphere that made the British original such a hit in the first place. Considering showrunner Liz Tuccillo's comments about trying not to "reinvent the wheel" with her adaptation, and merely wanting to "have more stakes and... be more interconnected," Best Medicine appeared primed to add another layer of excitement and energy that American audiences would surely welcome. However, while there are certainly aspects of Best Medicine that make it an enjoyable and comforting watch, it lacks both the heart of the original and the kookiness one would expect from such a large cast of characters.

There's no doubt that Best Medicine's leading actors, Josh Charles and Abigail Spencer, turn in strong performances that do a great deal to carry the show through their characters' will-they-won't-they relationship, yet the peripheral cast struggles to maintain the same level of entertainment. There's ambition from Tuccillo in how many personalities are squeezed into the town of Port Wenn, with individual arcs and interpersonal dynamics that bemuse Charles' Doctor Martin Best. But Best Medicine's bland comedy and surface-level drama mean that the show's themes of individualism versus community spirit rarely feel fully explored.

'Best Medicine's Premise Allows for a Colorful but Mixed Bag of Characters

Tuccillo truly wasn't joking when she revealed that Best Medicine wouldn't stray too far from the original, as the first episode, "Docked," follows the same beats Doc Martin's did. Like Martin Clunes's protagonist before him, Charles' Martin Best leaves his prestigious role as a surgeon after developing a phobia of blood, and relocates to a small coastal village where he used to spend time as a boy. With a blunt, bordering on rude, and awkward personality, Martin is a fish out of water in a town that is one big family, with professionalism all but thrown out of the window from the second scene, where he is interviewed while noisy construction occurs in the background. Much of Best Medicine plays out like a battle between Martin and his patients: he pleads with them to follow his advice, only for them to brush him off so they can continue with their lives and traditions, even though Martin believes these habits are making them ill.

With a medical whodunit providing each episode's structure, as Martin tries to diagnose typically unhelpful patients, Best Medicine populates Port Wenn with a variety of oddballs. From Martin's administrative assistant, Elaine (Cree Cicchino), who focuses more on her internet career than her job, to the show's antagonist, Glendon (Patch Darragh), Martin's childhood bully who has grown up pompous and rich, to Sarah (Annie Potts), Martin's tough and protective aunt, Best Medicine does well to introduce several characters who provide different dynamics with Martin. Additionally, Best Medicine tries to broaden itself beyond Martin's perspective. By giving characters like Elaine and Spencer's Louisa their own arcs, such as struggling with the idea of a stepdad or trying to find a new best friend, the audience has a better chance to get to know these characters and grow fond of the actors' performances.

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However, the agency of characters and the quality of performances are inconsistent at best throughout Best Medicine. Characters such as George (Jason Veasey) and Greg (Stephen Spinella), owners of town diner the Salty Breeze, are given little to do besides being reduced to flamboyant homosexual stereotypes. The town's sheriff, Mark (Josh Segarra), similarly suffers the fate of simply being the village idiot, as his scenes with Dr. Best only serve to annoy the doctor rather than help him as the town's other public servant, despite Segarra giving a performance that means you can't help but love his dopey smile. Less significant characters, such as the parents of the town's children and three recurring Gen Z teens, are still afforded color in their comedic supporting roles, blowing raspberries to explain their diarrhea or mocking Martin's outfit choices. While these presences are clearly intended to make Best Medicine feel vibrant and full, however, the show feels amateur in these moments.

Josh Charles' Strong Performance Carries 'Best Medicine'

It's impossible to look past Josh Charles when settling on the most engaging aspect of Best Medicine. His performance as the show's titular Martin Best is as close as the show comes to emulating the success of Doc Martin and Clunes' own iteration. From the very first moment he steps on screen, Charles' stiff, almost military-like posture immediately contrasts with the townsfolk's relaxed body language, creating tension in every scene he is a part of. Without even knowing the character's tragic backstory, this is a man who struggles with connecting to others, making Port Wenn his worst nightmare.

While other characters, such as the aforementioned Sheriff Mark, can feel lacking in emotional depth, Best Medicine gives Charles every opportunity to showcase subtle changes in his cadence and expression. Early on in the show, a dinner between Charles' Martin and Spencer's Louisa provides what is likely to be the best-written and acted scene of the season, as Martin reveals the tragedy that led him away from his illustrious career and back to this coastal village. Spencer radiates empathy and kindness, reminding viewers of the ability that made her such a fan favorite on Suits, but it is Charles who steals the show with his monologue. Charles doesn't completely drop his character's emotional barriers, keeping his jaw tense like he wishes he hadn't shared such personal history, but his softened eyebrows remove the scowl viewers have grown accustomed to by this point, showing a far more vulnerable character that makes you want to give him a big hug, even if he hates them. Best Medicine has the potential to better balance its comedic and dramatic tones in the vein of Doc Martin, but, sadly, these shining moments are few and far between.

'Best Medicine' Doesn't Fully Explore Its Strongest Theme

Martin Best (Josh Charles) tries to get the attention of patients in 'Best Medicine'

Most of the time, a narrative's themes are as important as the characters it follows, and thought-provoking commentary can be the most memorable aspect audiences take away. In theory, this could even allow viewers to forgive weak acting or character writing. Best Medicine ventures down this path at times, creating interesting conflict between Martin's big-city perspective of privacy and the people of Port Wenn's trusting attitudes. Many of the locals assist Martin when he does not want them to, such as the town's handyman letting himself into Martin's home to fix things like a sliding door, despite Martin not wanting this kind of informal assistance. That doesn't mean he doesn't care about people. As he points out in the first episode, the only thing he likes about people is "cutting them open and saving their lives."

This leads to many second-act moments where the town turns on Martin, as he makes some kind of diagnosis that affects the town's local activities, yet the repetition of this beat means that Best Medicine's biggest theme often feels surface-level, with few meaningful conclusions drawn or changes in character following these confrontations. Part of this comes down to Best Medicine's aforementioned struggle with its dramatic moments, as characters can sometimes condemn Martin in quite a definitive fashion in the second act, only to forgive him with a simple line of dialogue by the end of the episode. It's like Best Medicine can't decide whether it wants to be an over-the-top comfort show or a bittersweet comedy about a man who isolates himself from a supporting community, and picking one over the other would do the show a great service in the long run.

There's nothing heinously wrong with Best Medicine, and it's not a failure of an attempt to remake Doc Martin by any stretch. There are lovable characters, strong actors, and interesting ideas at the heart of the show, but Best Medicine struggles to inject these qualities beyond its core cast of Martin, Louisa, and Elaine. If this weren't an ensemble series, this might be an issue that can be forgiven, but there are too many forgettable aspects to ignore. At the end of the day, Best Medicine tries to do too much and spreads itself too thin in the process.

Release Date January 6, 2026

Network FOX

Josh Charles

Dr. Martin Best

Pros & Cons

Josh Charles and Abigail Spencer give engaging performances with strong chemistry.
The medical mystery of each episode makes Best Medicine an easy binge-watch.
Best Medicine shows ambition in its ensemble cast and relevant themes.