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Post by Nalkarj on Feb 20, 2018 19:38:51 GMT
Any other fans? It’s not perfect, but I think it’s one of the better American detective shows since 2000.  My favorite episodes: “Mr. Monk Meets Dale the Whale” “Mr. Monk and the Billionaire Mugger” “Mr. Monk and the Airplane” “Mr. Monk Goes to the Ballgame” “Mr. Monk and the Sleeping Suspect” “Mr. Monk and the Three Pies” “Mr. Monk Goes to the Dentist” “Mr. Monk is Underwater” “Mr. Monk and the Daredevil” “Mr. Monk and the Genius” |
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Post by sweetpea on Feb 20, 2018 19:49:09 GMT
Monk is in a class all his own...and he prefers it that way.
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Post by marianne48 on Feb 20, 2018 20:38:40 GMT
How can anyone not like Tony Shalhoub?
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‘Monk’
May 4, 2018 3:57:40 GMT
Post by Nalkarj on May 4, 2018 3:57:40 GMT
Monk also gives us some interesting plot lines, and I always appreciated how it splits the difference between a good mystery and, in its first few seasons, good comedy. (My preference is for Season 2, which I still think is its best.) “Mr. Monk and the Billionaire Mugger” (S1:E7) is super. I watched “Mr. Monk and the Very, Very Old Man” (S2:E5) last night for the first time and was struck by something: Monk plots tend to turn on a similar plot gambit in which the murderer kills the victim because he [the murderer] needs the object (or fact) the victim has (or knows) and can’t get it without killing him [the victim]. Crucially, the victim usually does not know his killer and, therefore, does not know that he has that needed object. Episodes I know offhand that fit the pattern: “Mr. Monk Goes to the Ballgame” (S2:E3), “Mr. Monk and the Very, Very Old Man,” “Mr. Monk and the Paperboy” (S2:E10), “Mr. Monk and the Three Pies” (S2:E11), “Mr. Monk and the Red Herring” (S3:E10), and probably many more. “Mr. Monk and the 12th Man” (S2:E9) is also similar, though it’s a more complex (if, halfway through, quite guessable) version of this gambit, very close to Ellery Queen’s Cat of Many Tails. “Too diverse” is a delightful clue, but “they all lived in the same county” gives the game away too soon. I’m somewhat amused by the plotting similarities among these episodes because they were all done by different writers. Was there a Monk plotting house-style?
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‘Monk’
May 4, 2018 4:16:11 GMT
Post by Nalkarj on May 4, 2018 4:16:11 GMT
Something else I’ve noticed about Monk, in contradistinction to the Murder, She Wrotes of the world, is when it can be too complex for its own good. “Mr. Monk Goes to Vegas” (S3:E14) and “Mr. Monk and the Lady Next Door” (S7:E12) have great plot twists halfway through and then negate them in the ultimate revelation. I mentioned “Mr. Monk and the 12th Man” above; it’s similar in that the halfway-through plot twist (the connection between all the suspects) is better than the end one (Babcock’s unbelievable motive for killing eleven people). The end one nicely fits the paradigm I articulated above (which we may call “the Blue Carbuncle” gambit after the Sherlock Holmes story of the same name, which started it), but it’s both ridiculous and unnecessary. |
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‘Monk’
May 4, 2018 5:31:44 GMT
Post by Nalkarj on May 4, 2018 5:31:44 GMT
As you’re probably going to guess, there’s a Monk marathon on now. I watched “Mr. Monk Takes a Vacation” (S1:E9), which has got to be one of the weirder ones. Lots of brilliant plot-elements, especially the hiding place of the body (brilliant concept, though we should have seen the items in question a bit more to give the revelation even more of that “of course!” feel) and the clues (I caught the “too clean” one). Also—great interactions between Shalhoub and the kid and between Shalhoub and Polly Draper, who’s uproarious as a hotel security guard who learned all her detective skills from the movies. (The dialogue she’s given to say isn’t the great part, it’s how she says it—wonderful stuff.)
But the identities of the killers, and their shared motive, are so ridiculous that it completely takes you out of the story. It more makes the viewer laugh than anything else—which is too bad, as I’ve read writer Hy Conrad’s work before, and the guy really has a knack for the puzzle-plot (which he shows here in everything but the killers’ identities). Definitely a strange one.
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‘Monk’
May 17, 2018 19:08:59 GMT
Post by Nalkarj on May 17, 2018 19:08:59 GMT
I watched “Mr. Monk is Up All Night” (S6:E9) last night, and it may well just make it up to my “best episodes” list. Very unusual, very well-written, and very enjoyable—it’s one of the funniest Monks I’ve seen, but (unlike many episodes) many of the gags wouldn’t work out of context, as they’re embedded into the story. Monk calling into QVC has to be one of the show’s best and most hilarious moments. Not many scenes with Traylor Howard, unfortunately, but Jason Gray-Stanford and Ted Levine are at their best. The plot is a fairly routine variation on the “disappearing corpse” trope, and it’s not too hard to guess, but there is one absolutely brilliant sequence—to paraphrase critic Nick Fuller, it’s one of those glorious detective-story sequences, like the journal in The Murder of Roger Ackroyd or the Harlequinade in “The Flying Stars,” that must be read/seen twice to appreciate the writer’s subtle art of hiding the truth in plain sight. That is, of course, the entire scene in the coin shop: on first viewing the shop-owner’s reaction mostly makes sense but seems a little off—when they flash back to that scene near the end, you see it’s a fine thread in the screenwriter’s tapestry. Brilliant. Also excellent is the way in which, unlike most mysteries, the plot unfolds right in the viewer; these events, and the events behind the scenes, are happening right as you watch. An unusual but fascinating structure. My biggest caveat may be that the clues are too few, but the napkins (discovered by Capt. Stottlemeyer) and the missing coins are quite good. (It would have been better if the napkin had a unique design or something, though.) All that pales to the solution to the female cabdriver mystery, though. Well-clued and absolutely surprising, and rather touching at the end. Shalhoub plays it perfectly. Great episode. |
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‘Monk’
May 18, 2018 10:00:26 GMT
Post by Deleted on May 18, 2018 10:00:26 GMT
Its ok
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Post by Vodkie on Jul 19, 2018 15:20:57 GMT
Yes! I have the complete series dvd
my top 8 (one per season)
1. Mr Monk & The airplane
2. Mr Monk & The 3 pies
3. Mr Monk & The kid
4. Mr Monk goes to the dentist
5. Mr Monk & The garbage strike
6. Mr Monk & The birds and the bees
7. Mr Monk buys a house
8. Mr Monk & Sharona
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‘Monk’
Aug 11, 2018 19:53:24 GMT
Post by Nalkarj on Aug 11, 2018 19:53:24 GMT
Monk also gives us some interesting plot lines, and I always appreciated how it splits the difference between a good mystery and, in its first few seasons, good comedy. (My preference is for Season 2, which I still think is its best.) “Mr. Monk and the Billionaire Mugger” (S1:E7) is super. I watched “Mr. Monk and the Very, Very Old Man” (S2:E5) last night for the first time and was struck by something: Monk plots tend to turn on a similar plot gambit in which the murderer kills the victim because he [the murderer] needs the object (or fact) the victim has (or knows) and can’t get it without killing him [the victim]. Crucially, the victim usually does not know his killer and, therefore, does not know that he has that needed object. Episodes I know offhand that fit the pattern: “Mr. Monk Goes to the Ballgame” (S2:E3), “Mr. Monk and the Very, Very Old Man,” “Mr. Monk and the Paperboy” (S2:E10), “Mr. Monk and the Three Pies” (S2:E11), “Mr. Monk and the Red Herring” (S3:E10), and probably many more. “Mr. Monk and the 12th Man” (S2:E9) is also similar, though it’s a more complex (if, halfway through, quite guessable) version of this gambit, very close to Ellery Queen’s Cat of Many Tails. “Too diverse” is a delightful clue, but “they all lived in the same county” gives the game away too soon. I’m somewhat amused by the plotting similarities among these episodes because they were all done by different writers. Was there a Monk plotting house-style? I love Monk, but after watching the millionth episode (“Mr. Monk Gets a New Shrink”) with this exact same plot paradigm, it’s becoming way too obvious and repetitive. Has anyone else ever seen this? Call it the “Six Napoleons” gambit (after the Sherlock Holmes story that came up with it). |
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Post by Primemovermithrax Pejorative on Aug 11, 2018 20:08:43 GMT
I can see him playing a Columbo-type detective well, but I am most curious about it because I have OCD so I wonder how they incorporate it and whether Shalhoub would convince me that he has it.
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‘Monk’
Aug 14, 2018 17:47:15 GMT
via mobile
Post by Nalkarj on Aug 14, 2018 17:47:15 GMT
I can see him playing a Columbo-type detective well, but I am most curious about it because I have OCD so I wonder how they incorporate it and whether Shalhoub would convince me that he has it. I’m not sure if it would convince you—it’s rather overdone, and he has a boatload of other problems—but it is a sympathetic portrayal. |
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Post by Primemovermithrax Pejorative on Aug 14, 2018 18:02:21 GMT
I’m not sure if it would convince you—it’s rather overdone, and he has a boatload of other problems—but it is a sympathetic portrayal. I did smile when I read up on the list of his various anxieties
Monk's numerous compulsive habits and a number of phobias compound his situation, such as his fear of germs. Monk is afraid of 312 things, including milk, ladybugs, harmonicas, heights, asymmetry, enclosed spaces, food touching on his plates, messes, and risk. (He has a breakthrough from claustrophobia later in the series.) The OCD and phobias cause problems for Monk and anyone around him as he investigates cases. These same personal struggles, particularly the OCD, are what aid him in solving cases: his sharp memory, specific mindset, and attention to detail. In one episode, "Mr. Monk and His Biggest Fan", Marci Maven has compiled a list of all of Adrian's fears. In another episode, he tries to conquer his fears by doing various activities which involve his phobias. For example, he tries drinking milk, climbing a ladder, and putting a ladybug on his hand, but when things are scattered unorganized across a table, he cannot resist the compulsion to arrange them neatly.
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‘Monk’
Aug 14, 2018 18:44:48 GMT
Post by Deleted on Aug 14, 2018 18:44:48 GMT
I liked season 1 and 2 but i lost interest during season 3.
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‘Monk’
Aug 14, 2018 18:45:40 GMT
Post by President Ackbar™ on Aug 14, 2018 18:45:40 GMT
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‘Monk’
Aug 23, 2022 16:54:40 GMT
Post by Nalkarj on Aug 23, 2022 16:54:40 GMT
I recently went through another Monk-watching stage: I still haven’t seen every episode, but I’ve seen most of them. New top 10 below—I tried to do a blend of comedy, mystery, and drama (“Mr. Monk and the Garbage Strike,” for example, is a mediocre mystery but probably the show’s funniest episode):
1. “Mr. Monk and the Sleeping Suspect” (S2:E7)
2. “… and the Naked Man” (S6:E3)
3. “… and the Garbage Strike” (S5:E2)
4. “… and the Billionaire Mugger” (S1:E7)
5. “… Goes to the Hospital” (S5:E16)
6. “… Is Up All Night” (S6:E9)
7. “… Goes to the Ballgame” (S2:E3)
8. “… and the Three Pies” (S2:E11)
9. “… and Little Monk” (S4:E8)
10. “… and the Voodoo Curse” (S8:E7)
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Post by iamnotarobot on Aug 27, 2022 21:46:21 GMT
I recently went through another Monk-watching stage: I still haven’t seen every episode, but I’ve seen most of them. New top 10 below—I tried to do a blend of comedy, mystery, and drama (“Mr. Monk and the Garbage Strike,” for example, is a mediocre mystery but probably the show’s funniest episode): 1. “Mr. Monk and the Sleeping Suspect” (S2:E7) 2. “… and the Naked Man” (S6:E3) 3. “… and the Garbage Strike” (S5:E2) 4. “… and the Billionaire Mugger” (S1:E7) 5. “… Goes to the Hospital” (S5:E16) 6. “… Is Up All Night” (S6:E9) 7. “… Goes to the Ballgame” (S2:E3) 8. “… and the Three Pies” (S2:E11) 9. “… and Little Monk” (S4:E8) 10. “… and the Voodoo Curse” (S8:E7) I'm sure you know that the role of Monk was written specifically for Michael Richards but he, for some reason, turned it down. Maybe he wanted to focus on his stand-up comedy career. (lol)
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‘Monk’
Aug 28, 2022 15:28:58 GMT
Post by Nalkarj on Aug 28, 2022 15:28:58 GMT
I recently went through another Monk-watching stage: I still haven’t seen every episode, but I’ve seen most of them. New top 10 below—I tried to do a blend of comedy, mystery, and drama (“Mr. Monk and the Garbage Strike,” for example, is a mediocre mystery but probably the show’s funniest episode): 1. “Mr. Monk and the Sleeping Suspect” (S2:E7) 2. “… and the Naked Man” (S6:E3) 3. “… and the Garbage Strike” (S5:E2) 4. “… and the Billionaire Mugger” (S1:E7) 5. “… Goes to the Hospital” (S5:E16) 6. “… Is Up All Night” (S6:E9) 7. “… Goes to the Ballgame” (S2:E3) 8. “… and the Three Pies” (S2:E11) 9. “… and Little Monk” (S4:E8) 10. “… and the Voodoo Curse” (S8:E7) I'm sure you know that the role of Monk was written specifically for Michael Richards but he, for some reason, turned it down. Maybe he wanted to focus on his stand-up comedy career. (lol) Yeah, I know. I love Richards on Seinfeld, of course, and liked his work in Trial and Error—but nothing I’ve seen from him makes me think he could pull off the genuine sadness of the Adrian Monk character. The writers, admittedly, don’t always live up to Shalhoub’s acting in this regard; sometimes it seems like Monk has made an emotional breakthrough, and then that breakthrough never gets mentioned again. But the effort is there, and I don’t think Richards could have pulled it off, at least based on what I’ve seen of his work.
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Post by novastar6 on Aug 29, 2022 5:17:27 GMT
The Halloween episode is my favorite, but it bugged me there was no motive for why Gilstrap wanted to murder his wife |
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‘Monk’
Aug 30, 2022 3:22:09 GMT
Post by iamnotarobot on Aug 30, 2022 3:22:09 GMT
I'm sure you know that the role of Monk was written specifically for Michael Richards but he, for some reason, turned it down. Maybe he wanted to focus on his stand-up comedy career. (lol) Yeah, I know. I love Richards on Seinfeld, of course, and liked his work in Trial and Error—but nothing I’ve seen from him makes me think he could pull off the genuine sadness of the Adrian Monk character. The writers, admittedly, don’t always live up to Shalhoub’s acting in this regard; sometimes it seems like Monk has made an emotional breakthrough, and then that breakthrough never gets mentioned again. But the effort is there, and I don’t think Richards could have pulled it off, at least based on what I’ve seen of his work. I wonder if anyone undergoing psychotherapy has ever had a " breakthrough" hold. The idea that one can be talked out of neurosis seems farfetched to me. Psychotherapy is probably as big (or bigger) a scam as psychoanalysis. Imho.
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