TV Underdogs: On ‘Call the Midwife’ season 5 and Patsy Mount

To us, the ultimate underdog really is the person who starts out with nothing, and ends up becoming someone who is integral to their surrounding world. That is Patsy Mount on “Call the Midwife” (above, c.) in a nutshell, and that is why she is a perfect person to discuss in our TV Underdogs series.

For those who are new to the site, what we’re doing throughout the month of January is taking some of our favorite shows, and from there spotlighting someone who we believe is worthy of getting even more opportunities than what we have seen from them so far.

Why she’s an underdog – When we first had a chance to see Emerald Fennell as the character, it was merely in a small role during season 2. It wasn’t until season 3 that she started to become a significant part of the series, and from there blossom outward into one of the most interesting people at Nonnatus House. She’s someone who paid her dues and became a central character because of the quality of the work, not because of some initial conceptualization that it would be this way.

Why we don’t see more of her – We are seeing more of her now, courtesy of her story with Delia and how the circumstances of the times are keeping them from disclosing their romance. The tragedy at the end of season 4 was heart-wrenching. For Patsy, the main thing holding her back still is time (she’s not as established as some other characters), and of course the fact that this is a rather large cast.

Ways to give her more airtime – How about giving her a storyline in the lion’s share of season 5 episodes, or giving us more of a window into her past? We’ve heard a little about some of the near-impossible circumstances that Patsy faced previously, but the more backstory of her, the more that we want to root for her. You can also start to explore what could happen in the event that Patsy chose to make her sexuality more public, and the problems that could pose for her both publicly and privately. We do not imagine it would go over well unfortunately due to the perception of the time, but it would give Fennell great, meaty material to work with.

If you are interested in grabbing some other news when it comes to “Call the Midwife,” be sure to head over to the link here right now! Also, sign up over here to get some other TV news on everything we cover, sent right to you via our CarterMatt Newsletter. (Photo: BBC.)