What's on My TV: Small-Town Core for Women
It’s safe to say that I don’t know what small-town life is like, and while I understand romanticizing it, I don’t understand the specific nuances of the American version of it.
What’s on My TV is, literally, what’s on my TV when I’m decompressing after work or during the weekends. Sometimes, I’ll talk about a film, but I’ll almost always talk about old series and new reality shows I choose to binge-watch.
I grew up living in the same house where my mother was raised in Cubao, a not-so-quiet but not-so-busy corner of Quezon City, one of the biggest cities in Luzon—the biggest island in the Philippines.
It’s safe to say that I don’t know what small-town life is like, and while I understand romanticizing it, I don’t understand the specific nuances of the American version of it. I remember small provincial towns in the Philippines, but they are very different from the small towns featured in TV shows based in the United States. So what do I like about TV shows about small-town girls living in a lonely world?
What’s Small-Town Core for Women?
So, what is it about a TV series set in a small town that I like? We’ve discussed shows like Walker and Vampire Diaries before, but although they were set in small towns, that’s not what made them special. For the shows I’ll tackle below, I think it’s the tightness of the communities and the adjustment of the big-city women to a slower life that I enjoy.
They also feel like they’re written by women for women. Maybe it’s the lack of pressure to perform for men, or perhaps they’re more likely to be empathetic. Through the years, I’ve watched many male-written TV shows focusing on women as love interests or sidekicks rather than fully fleshed-out characters. In contrast, these shows feel authentic and relatable for women. The female characters are multidimensional and have aspirations, struggles, and relationships outside their romantic lives.
Good Witch
Okay, maybe we’re cheating a little here. Although Good Witch is set in a small town, Middleton, that’s not really the show’s focus. It is, after all, named Good Witch. It’s about a long line of witches, but specifically about Cassie Nightingale—and, later in the series, her cousins, Abigail and Joy.
I confess that it took me three tries to get through the show’s first episode—it seemed so dull. I tried it because I recognized the two leads—Cassie Nightingale (Catherine Bell) and the doctor who moves in next door, Sam Radford (James Denton). I know Catherine Bell from JAG and James Denton from Desperate Housewives. In hindsight, I should have expected the pilot episode to be boring. It is an origin story, after all.
But once I got past the pilot episode, I was hooked. The show succeeded in showing just how small Middleton is and how everyone knows each other—and each other’s business. And because it’s a supernatural show, it has that extra layer of magic that makes everything feel cozy and familiar. The third time’s the charm, I guess. The show grows on you, and the characters grow on you. The town begins to feel like a real place you want to visit someday.
I liked the show’s approach to exploring witchcraft. It wasn’t too heavy-handed and blended well with small-town characters and issues. Although the witches in this series are white, it never felt unfamiliar or unwelcome to me. And its characterization of witchcraft never seemed hokey—it was very believable until the last episode when some special effects made it a little over-the-top. But that’s a minor quibble.
Throughout the series, you’ll see various storylines for different characters in Middleton. There are disagreements and conflicts, but overall, everyone is kind to each other. It’s refreshing to see a show without major villains or antagonists. In the last season, some flashbacks got me excited to find and watch the Good Witch movies—of which there are many, as I’ve now found out.
Verdict: I loved watching this series but wouldn’t recommend it to everyone. It does get boring, especially if you’re binge-watching. Maybe put this on your to-watch list, but don’t expect to get into TV shows about small towns by watching this first.
Virgin River
I started watching Virgin River because I thought the lead was the same one from Revenge—Emily VanCamp, who played Emily Thorne. Sometimes, I can’t tell white women apart, okay? But I was wrong. It’s Alexandra Breckenridge. You may know her from American Horror Story. That’s where I last saw her, anyway. She played young Moira O’Hara in the season set in the haunted house.
While Good Witch begins with the male lead moving to the small town, in Virgin River the opposite happens. Mel Monroe (Alexandra Breckenridge) moves to Virgin River because she’s running away from her past. She doesn’t want to talk about it yet or be reminded of it, so she chooses a little town in the middle of nowhere.
However, the two shows have many similarities. Both are about women adjusting to small-town life and forming relationships with the people there. Both have older married women as mayors of the town. Both towns only have one doctor, and by coincidence, the female lead is trusted by the town to give medical advice. Both shows take their time and don’t force the leads into a relationship right away. Before we go on further, I’ll admit that I haven’t actually finished Virgin River yet—I’m on the last season on Netflix, though.
I like that Virgin River isn’t in a hurry to get Mel over her pain. It takes time for her to open up and embrace her new community. She starts working as a nurse practitioner under Doc Mullins (Tim Matheson). You may know him from Hart of Dixie, which I haven’t watched but keeps getting recommended to me as a good small-town-focused show. The male lead is bar owner Jack Sheridan (Martin Henderson). I don’t know him from anywhere else, and I think of him as a discount Matthew McConaughey.
Both Good Witch and Virgin River have heartwarming messages about community, love, family, and second chances. They may be set in different small towns with different communities, but they both remind us that sometimes, slowing down and embracing the simple life can lead to greater happiness. In this show, the conflicts and issues are more significant than what we see in Good Witch. Mel has real trauma from her past that affects how she sees herself and her relationships with others. Unlike in Middleton, where everyone is kind, some not-so-nice people in Virgin River cause trouble for our protagonists.
Verdict: Again, I haven’t watched this series to the end. But from what I’ve seen, this is an ideal show to get into the small-town genre. And the male characters in Virgin River are more believable than those in Good Witch!
Who Is Sue Tenney?
While watching Virgin River, I noticed the same name in the credits I was used to seeing when watching Good Witch. Sue Tenney is the creator and showrunner of Good Witch and Virgin River. She has a background in writing, producing, and directing for TV shows such as Cedar Cove, Criminal Minds, and NYPD Blue. She’s also known for her work on Hallmark Channel movies like The Sweetest Heart and Finding Father Christmas.
So, if she’s responsible for these two shows, does that mean that what I love about them is all due to her? I think, to some extent, yes. She has a talent for creating heartwarming stories that explore the themes of community and relationships in small towns. Plus, her experience with Hallmark movies probably contributed to the cozy atmosphere of both Good Witch and Virgin River. Sue Tenney’s creations have charm and warmth, making them enjoyable to watch. As someone who grew up in a bustling city but now lives in a quieter town near the mountains, I can relate to these shows’ messages about slowing down and appreciating the simpler things in life.
What’s Your Favorite TV Show About a Small Town?
Is it one of these two or another show entirely? Small-town stories have a certain appeal that makes them relatable and heartwarming—I’d love to watch more shows that tackle this genre. Tell me all about your favorite!
Photo by Jason Ortego on Unsplash
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