Fresh out of New York's Columbia University, cocky young Dr. Joel Fleischman is looking forward to his comfortable position in Alaska's largest city. But upon his arrival, Joel finds himself a fish out of water as he's instead assigned to a tiny Alaskan village where the offbeat locals would love him to stay forever.

After failing to read the fine print on his scholarship requirements, a young New Yorker is sent to the remote and eccentric town of Cicely, Alaska after he graduates medical school.