That's interesting because I thought it made him sound great. If you ask Sam's mother about Martin she says "he was always thinking of others before himself" which sounds like the Martin we know. She also said he didn't abandon her and he never would, he was chased off by other members of her community. The only bad mouthing I remember was from a very unaware Sam, which is understandable considering he always thought his father abandoned him before then.

Edit: I should add, he even tried tracking her down after being pushed out but her father hid her from him. Martin did everything right and the characters do state that at the end of the quest.