The Good Doctor is a medical drama based on a South Korean television series with a similar premise. The American series first began airing on September 25, 2017 on ABC. The first season consists of eighteen episodes, each 40 minutes in length.

Shaun Murphy (Freddie Highmore) is an autistic from Casper, Wyoming, beginning his medical residency in surgery at San Jose Saint Bonaventure Hospital. The hospital’s president, Aaron Glassman (Richard Schiff), has been a mentor for Shaun since he was 14 and left his dysfunctional home. The series follows the medical cases of Shaun’s surgical team: the attending physician Neil Melendez (Nicholas Gonzalez), resident Claire Browne (Antonia Thomas), and resident Jared Kalu (Chuku Modu), as Shaun adjusts to the demands of residency and adulthood.

Rounding out the cast are Marcus Andrews (Hill Harper), Chief of Surgery at the hospital; Jessica Preston (Beau Garrett), a hospital attorney and fiancée of Dr. Melendez; Allegra Aoki (Tamlyn Tomita), chair of the board of trustees and funding director; and Lea Dilallo (Paige Spara), Shaun’s neighbor. Flashbacks feature young Shaun (Graham Vechere) and his brother Steve (Dylan Kingwell). Later in the season introduces hospital residents Morgan Reznick (Fiona Gubelmann) and Alex Park (Will Yun Lee).

I am not a doctor, so I cannot comment on the medical accuracy of this show, but I have heard anecdotally it is relatively accurate, at least in the anatomical knowledge. I would suggest that with any medical drama, take that with a grain of salt. Shaun is purported to have a “savant syndrome” and has memorized medical diagrams and images that aid in his diagnoses and suggested treatments. Given that, I thought this might be a House, M.D. style show (The Good Doctor and House share a creator), where he miraculously knows what rare problem is going on with each patient. But actually, the show features less of this than I first thought it might. Shaun sometimes gets things right, and sometimes gets things wrong.

This is the first medical drama I have watched that wasn’t in passing, but I would guess that the scenarios were par for the course in a medical drama: rare, eye-catching cases, with variable outcomes (e.g., fetal surgery, conjoined twins, tapeworm infection). In the later episodes, the cases and themes grew increasingly political, addressing topics such as sexual harassment in the workplace, religion stereotypes, transgender issues, and male infertility. I particularly liked the show shedding light on the bureaucracy of hospitals.

(As an aside, one episode has Shaun treating an autistic patient. The character, Liam West, is played by an autistic actor, Coby Bird. Another episode focuses on transgender patient Quinn Darby, played by transgender teen Sophia Giannamore).

Highmore’s acting and portrayal of autism is excellent. One scene in particular, when Shaun has a meltdown, is brilliantly performed and executed. Shaun’s mannerisms, behaviors, and patterns match autistic adults very well. We know Shaun’s quirks: he likes pancakes and apples and does not like pickles. He stims with a toy scalpel given to him by his brother. He doesn’t like touching or music. He has a keen memory of odors.

At times, the show reveals how an autistic processes and understands their world from Shaun’s perspective, which is important for casual viewers to see. The show provides examples of what autistics find very confusing and frustrating about neurotypical communication. The flashbacks show the bullying Shaun experienced in his youth, a sadly all too common experience for autistics. In general, the show is accurate about the symptoms of autism, but I do think Shaun can be a bit behind in his social understanding for an autistic his age.

What I like about the show is that Shaun’s diagnosis is an asset to his work as a physician. Shaun has challenges, but he is not only an adult capable of supporting himself, he also has a job as a surgical resident. “What would happen if an autistic was a doctor?” is a premise I thoroughly enjoyed exploring. That said, I do admit to suspending some disbelief. Being a doctor, or a surgeon, is incredibly difficult for anyone, and I would imagine it would only be exponentially harder for an autistic, where one is expected to maintain focus and keep cool in life-or-death situations. Along the lines of Shaun’s social understanding, let’s not forget he didn’t become a doctor in a vacuum; he had to attend years of college and medical school. Much of what he learns on the job in residency about social interactions, I would think he would have already learned during medical school clinical rotations.

As a final verdict, I very much enjoyed season 1. I found most of the characters interesting and enjoyable, the actors were great, and so was the cinematography, color palette and music throughout. Most episodes left me feeling good. I would recommend this show, and I am excited to dive into season 2.

Autism accuracy: 4/5 Acting: 5/5 Cringe factor: 2/5 Overall rating: 4/5