Three decades ago, CBS aired a show called “Northern Exposure” as a summer replacement. Plot-wise, it was a pretty basic “fish out of water” story about a Jewish doctor from New York, transplanted into rural Alaska.
Just eight episodes were originally ordered, but ultimately 110 were made across six seasons. The show, at its peak, was some of the best television around and garnered almost 60 award nominations. It won more than two dozen, including the 1992 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series.
Northern Exposure originally aired in 1990, which it turns out was a long time ago. Television has changed quite a bit: writing and production got more sophisticated, story pacing and complexity have changed dramatically, and streaming services and binge-watching became things.
If it aired today, Northern Exposure would look horribly dated and be unlikely to succeed. But you can’t judge the show next to current creations.
Ten years ago I visited Roslyn, WA., where Northern Exposure exteriors were shot.
So what made the show so good? As a longtime fan, I’m going to re-watch, and share what I find.
But before I get to that, here’s a caveat: Only Seasons 1, 2 and 3 were consistently good. Season 4 had its great moments, but it quickly devolved. By Seasons 5 & 6, it was …. crap. Truly. Which is some feat in itself, to go from such glorious storytelling heights to prime time drivel.
So, this “rewatching” is unlikely to go the whole distance.
But let’s get started.
The show opens on an airplane, with Joel Fleischman (Rob Morrow) talking to the “businessman” next to him. It is pure exposition, the type which could be hamfisted and awful but worked in part because of its brevity.
In two minutes we get the entire backstory: The state of Alaska agreed to pay for Joel’s medical schooling in exchange for a four-year commitment. He has left behind a fiance in New York City.
The businessman gets 10 words in the whole scene, including “Have you ever been to Alaska?”
From there, it’s off to the races. In Anchorage, Joel finds the city doesn’t need a doctor and so he will instead be serving in the tiny town of Cicely, “in an area we refer to as the Alaskan Riviera.” In seven minutes of screen time, the writers move the main character through multiple scenes to the tiny rural area that will be the show’s main setting.
Episode 1.1 is largely about getting Joel into his new home, establishing that he hates it there (he really hates it), and introducing a few characters who will be mainstays.
There is Maurice Minnifield (Barry Corbin), the town’s rich founder who is responsible for bringing Joel there. He gets this amazing line: “When I heard we had a crack at a Jew doctor from New York City, well I don’t have to tell you, I jumped!”
Northern Exposure frequently dealt with the topic of racism, and Maurice was a useful foil as his own prejudices and unconscious ideas were often portrayed as obliviousness and thus easier to approach.
The first episode also introduces Maggie O'Connell (Janine Turner) , a bush pilot who dislikes Joel but eventually is the show’s main source of romantic tension. There is Ed Chigliak (Darren E. Burrows) , the young native Alaskan with a perchance for lower-48 pop culture. And Holling Vincoeur (John Cullum), who owns a local bar called “The Brick” and is dating a much-younger woman, Shelly Tambo (Cynthia Geary).
Ultimately, there’s very little in Episode 1 to suggest Northern Exposure would go on to be wildly successful. But we do see the beginnings of something. In particular, the writers create fantastic dissonance because Cicely is portrayed as an idyllic community with lots of interesting residents—while the main character just wants to leave.
All in all, a solid episode that gets the show started. Plot-wise, we see Joel remove a bullet from a man’s leg and then help him reconcile with his wife (who shot him). It sets up a dynamic frequently used in the early episodes where Joel’s dislike of Cicely is in tension with his responsibilities towards its citizens.
