Feel badly for Al Large. He has an interest in Elaine and she left. Then he established a strong relationship with Paulene and she leaves. Most recently it seems he is developing a relationship with Morweena. Wondering if that will end well.
shareAl and Morweena are headed for the horizontal mambo. They make such a cute couple. I love Morweena. Beautiful and kind. The perfect woman.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
You have meddled with the primal forces of nature, and YOU ... WILL ... ATONE!
Only because they haven't really left for narrative reasons. it's hard to feel bad for the character when it's so clearly a scheduling issue. Pauline left and no one said a word. He didn't even look concerned. It feels as if Pauline and Morwenna are basically variations on the same character.
The show feels more sitcomish in this regard. Just a romantic foil for Al that always ends up being the receptionist whoever she is. Hence it's less realistic.
I wouldn't worry, if I were you: It seems pretty obvious Morwenna is supposed to be the one true love Al's been waiting for. They seem to genuinely care about each other, so I think they'll be in it for the long-haul.
shareI think you're taking that subplot a bit too seriously.... If the show cared as much as you do they would've showed some sort of a reaction to Pauline disappearing into thin air. It's: Al hits on the receptionist. Receptionist actress leaves the show due to other commitments. Lather, rinse, repeat.
shareI don't think so. They've given the Al-Morwenna romance a lot more buildup than him and Pauline. The writers have given Al and Morwenna the "slow-build" format that usually translates to OTP in the TV-verse. Part of that was going out of their way to demonstrate that Al and Morwenna had a strong friendship first, not the "Pauline flirts with Al so he goes for it and then they both stay in a relationship that was dead-weight long ago for convenience's sake" model.
They've given them the slow build up because three in a row exactly the same way would have been ridiculous.
All I'm saying is that if there were going to be plenty more seasons, then 3 seasons down the line Morwenna would have left just like the rest of them and they would have replaced the actress like they always did.
Morwenna didn't appear because of narrative reasons. Pauline was supposed to be there instead. It was like a day after the previous season's finale when Pauline just didn't exist.
They've given them the slow build up because three in a row exactly the same way would have been ridiculous.
All I'm saying is that if there were going to be plenty more seasons, then 3 seasons down the line Morwenna would have left just like the rest of them and they would have replaced the actress like they always did.
I agree with you there. It's not likely. I was merely talking about the silliness of feeling bad for Al when it was clearly not the writers' intention to have Pauline leave. They sort of just started from scratch the moment she left as if she has never existed.
shareAh. Well, I suppose it's silly to ever feel bad for a fictional character, but then what fun would it be if TV and movies weren't little emotional journeys? But I see what you mean. It seems the showrunners - not fictional Al - are more the ones cursed in the "Martin's receptionist" area.
shareFeel badly for Al Large. He has an interest in Elaine and she left. Then he established a strong relationship with Paulene and she leaves. Most recently it seems he is developing a relationship with Morweena. Wondering if that will end well
Yeah,it sucks they leave. OTOH, it's not too sad that he's able to go from one to another to another, with hardly any time inbetween. He also seemed to be able to move along emotionally from one to another, like changing in your cup of coffee for a fresh one.
It's a man's world, huh?
Ha. Yeah, I noticed Al's quick recoveries as well. Ironically, the one he seemed to take the longest to get over was Elaine, with whom he wasn't even serious. So is him not really being shown mourning the loss of Pauline meant to be a sign that he didn't value their relationship much? I don't really think so. I think there's just only so many scenes they can write with Al and they like to speed things along, if possible.
I will say, however, that - even though he was with Pauline for quite some time - I always got the impression he's just someone who wants to be in a relationship (like how Mark Mylow was), and therefore, he was more invested in the idea of a relationship than Pauline herself, if that makes any sense. With Morwenna, I feel like he really does value her as a person, not just as a stand-in for the void in his life.
I get this same sense too:
...even though he was with Pauline for quite some time - I always got the impression he's just someone who wants to be in a relationship (like how Mark Mylow was), and therefore, he was more invested in the idea of a relationship than Pauline herself, if that makes any sense. With Morwenna, I feel like he really does value her as a person, not just as a stand-in for the void in his life.
One of the nicest thing about Morwenna is that she treats him better than either Elaine or Pauline did. I love how she basically tells Al to ask her out as part of her self-remake after reading the Feminist power book that Sigourney Weaver gives her, which also includes demanding a pay rise from Doc.
I think it's looking that way (more fingers crossed!). What's curious, though, is how Al never really seemed to notice Morwenna until recently. How many years and/or seasons was it?
And remember that odd meeting they had at the pub, as "Colin" and "Nefertari", though the dating website? Both of them seemed upset about it, rather than intrigued... I loved Bert's joking, sarcastic take on the whole thing (online dating). He's a realist, but fun!
Don't get me wrong...
It might be unbelievable,
But let's not say so long
That's true. Morwenna appears to be a local, since Louisa knew who she was before she started working for the doc. And the fact that she was named after a Cornish saint makes it seem more likely she has deep roots in the area (though I suppose she could have recently moved to Portwenn - then again, does anyone do that but Martin? Seems to be a very isolated community. But maybe she's from Truro or Delabole and moved to Portwenn to be with the grandpa. I love all their names, LOL).
It's interesting that you mentioned the pub-meeting, because I just rewatched that episode the other day, and I found myself still a bit confused by both of their reactions. What I've decided is, I think they were both freaked out by their feelings for each other because the feelings are so strong, and they had convinced themselves they were just friends/roommates. This was never addressed, but it could be that Al was afraid of getting hurt again after Elaine and Pauline. As for Morwenna, I think she was more open to the idea of being with Al after her initial rejection of him, because she seemed disappointed when he was moving out, and then she deleted her Cornish Couples profile. For some reason, I initially took that to mean she was so turned off by her experience with the website that she was just like, "I'm through." But then I thought about it more, and I think maybe the reason they showed her deleting her profile is because she had, indeed, come to a realization about her feelings for Al (no need to be on Cornish Couples if you're already falling for someone else).
Yes, Morwenna seems very local, but also very smart and worldly, unlike most of Portwenn's residents. Your analysis of the Colin/Nefertari situation seems pretty reasonable. That thought occurred to me--that both of them were surprised by their feelings. But then they never followed up on it! Wasn't it right after that that Bert, despite making fun of Al's online activities, started dating again? He dates that woman who supplies their napkins and Bert is shocked by how forward she is. "She sent PICTURES!" Bert says in distress. Al gets some revenge by teasing his dad, "Did you send anything back?" lol
Sounds like you do what I do: watch recorded eps or series whenever! I always find Doc Martin to be a great combination of a good story, interesting characters, humor and intelligence.
I love that name "Cornish Couples"...how many could there be?! If you see it from the air, Cornwall, it's like Wyoming or something...so unpopulated! But gorgeous. :D
Don't get me wrong...
It might be unbelievable,
But let's not say so long
I do feel like they are at least attempting to build up the relationship between him and Morweena. With the others it just seemed like they got together and I missed when they actually started going out. They are taking their time with this one and I'm glad because I like Morweena the most out of all the receptionists Al has been interested in aka all of them. Not just as his future love interest though but as a character as well. I wasn't a fan of Elaine and though I love Katherine Parkinson it didn't seem like she worked on that show. But I'm loving this actress and her character and want to see what happens between her and Al. I liked when she was being all assertive and finally asked Al when he's going to ask her out. You could tell there was something from him at the barbecue at Penhale's but I think he was either shy or didn't think she was interested in him in that way. I am looking forward to the new episodes either way.
shareUnfortunately, it's the result of the show shooting a season every 2 years. Actors move on.
share