Doctor Foster Revisited

I just finished watching season two of Doctor Foster on Netflix. After giving season one four stars, it never even occurred to me that I could miss season two. Don’t make the same mistake! It was pure torture for me from beginning to end (thankfully only five episodes).

The second season of Doctor Foster continues the horrific saga of Gemma (Suranne Jones) and Simon (Bertie Carvel) Foster and their son, Tom (Tom Taylor). Simon, now married to Kate Parks (Jodie Comer), has moved back into town after a two-year absence and has invited everyone except Gemma to a house-warming party. Gemma comes anyway and begins her mission to drive Simon back out of town as soon as possible. Simon, meanwhile, tells Gemma she is the one who will be out of town within a month. The war begins, with Tom and Kate caught in the middle. What a nightmare!

I have no idea what the writers of this series wanted to say with this season or this show. Did they want us to sympathize in any way with Gemma, this incredibly broken woman who states (in the last episode), with complete conviction: “I am not broken”? Did they want us to feel any sympathy for Simon, who believes he can do whatever he wants with his life and those around him as long as it gets him where he wants to go, and then hates himself for it? Whatever the writers wanted to say with this show, it certainly didn’t work for me. I found this season merciless and absurd. 

I suppose any show that makes me shake with rage for having endured five hours of torture must be doing something right. Maybe that’s proof that the acting and writing are top-notch. But I can only think of the word ‘awful’ as the show drops from **** to * in just one season. If you haven’t watched season two, do yourself a favour and stay away. If you haven’t watched Doctor Foster at all, don’t bother to start (especially not on account of my four-star review, which I would no doubt change if I watched the show again). My mug is down.