Revisiting Monk 15 years after the series finale reveals some interesting truths about the show, from how it handled Sharon’s exit to whether its case-of-the-week formula ever got too repetitive. Monk ran for eight seasons, originally airing from 2002 to 2009. Tony Shahub and the cast of Monk Recently reprized their roles for Mr. Monk’s Last Case: A Monk MovieA Peacock original film that revisits the beloved detective 14 years after the events of the show. Monk is one of the greatest detective TV shows of all time and has aged surprisingly well.
Crime shows where the detective has a knack or a gimmick are nothing new and continue to be part of the television landscape. however, Monk took things to the next level by making his titular character completely relatable despite his Sherlock Holmes-like deducing abilities. Monk It was also a very funny series, with Shahub’s performance stealing the show every time. Monk is as good as ever in 2024But some aspects of the show stand out on a rewatch.
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Monk was a formulaic show with very repetitive episodes
Almost every episode of Monk was the same
Monk Never tried to be more than just a detective procedural, which has positives and negatives. On the one hand, mystery lovers and fans of the likes of Arthur Conan Doyle or Agatha Christie may enjoy Adrian solving one creative case each week. Monk It rarely has two-part episodes or overarching storylines, meaning that Adrian and his friends deal with new characters and hang out in a different location each episode. This approach was the basis for the show, but it was very repetitive at times. As fascinating as Adrian was, watching the same episode every week could get boring.
From the cold, the crime committed against them is revealed “Here’s what happened…” wait, Almost every episode of Monk Followed a very well-defined whodunit formula. After the cold open, Adrian would arrive at the scene of the crime, be briefed about the case by Leland or Randy, and start talking with the suspects. Monk would then put things together and realize who did it, which was usually followed by a confrontation with the killer in which they would tell the detective he had no evidence to support his claims.
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Sharona’s departure is still frustrating 20 years later
Sharona was one of the pillars of the show
Bitty Schram is gone Monk in season 3 due to a contract dispute. The show wrote off Sharona, saying that Adrian’s assistant would return to New Jersey and remarry her ex-husband. Sharona’s departure from the story is very sudden and marks the end of an era for the show, although Natalya was a great replacement. Monk Was never the same without SharonaA character whose dynamic with Adrian was almost impossible to replicate. After years of working with Adrian, Sharona has no problem calling him or telling him what to do.
Leland respected Monk too much to ever talk to him like that, even though Natalie was a more traditional assistant who treated Adrian as her boss first and foremost. There was a sibling energy between Sharona and Monk that made their relationship hilariousWhich was completely lost when Schram left the show. For those who fell in love with Monk During the first three seasons, watching the show after season 4 is certainly difficult. After that, the series got back on its feet and continued for five more great seasons without Sharona.
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Despite some flaws, Monk spotlights the importance of mental health
Adrian Monk was a layered, human character
While Monks depiction of OCD has flaws, especially with how it was sometimes written as a gag and part of the detective’s gimmick, the show did a fairly good job of spotlighting mental health on television more than 20 years ago. Monk Never looked down on Adrian due to his OCD or traumaInstead focusing on how the character moved on with his life and found a new way to do his job despite no longer being a police detective.
Monks therapists – Doctor Kroger and Doctor Bell – are recurring figures on the show and have helped Adrian every step of the way. Episodes like “Mr. Monk is Underwater” highlighted how important therapy was for AdrianTo the point he was able to make it through one of the most terrifying experiences of his life because of what he learned from Doctor Bell. The Monk The movie also explores the character’s mental health, even touching how Adrian, after relapsing on his OCD after the COVID-19 pandemic, entered a stage of severe depression.
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Natalie was a surprisingly great replacement for Sharona
Replacing Sharona was not easy, but Natalie did it
Television shows that replace beloved characters often find themselves struggling to introduce a new name to audiences. From recasts to new characters, it’s no exaggeration to say that most times important characters are written out of a show, the replacement just doesn’t work as well. This is usually not because of the new character or actor, but because the audience is already used to the previous one. That’s why MonkSharona’s replacement working so well is fascinating in hindsight.
Natalie was Monks assistant from seasons 4 to 8 and became an essential part of the legacy of the show. It is impossible to talk about Monk Without bringing up Natalie, which is a testament to how well her character works. Natalie was cleverly written to be the opposite of Sharona Instead a new version of Adrian’s previous assistant. It took a while for Natalie and Adrian to become family rather than just coworkers, which made their relationship excitingly different from what Monk And Sharona had.
Monk Never really replaced Sharona, as disappointed fans of the show were that Adrian’s original assistant did not show up in Mr. Monk’s Last Case: A Monk Movie. But, look back Monk After season 4, it’s safe to say Natalie’s introduction helped the show find a new identity after Sharona left. Did Natalie’s character not work? MonkThe future last season 3 could have been very different and perhaps not have lasted so long.
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Some of Monk’s cases were too easy or no twists at all
Monk is not a traditional whodunit
MonkThe premise was that Adrian could solve the cases that no one else could, which is why it can be frustrating when the case of the week isn’t that interesting. The show took a risky approach by showing the crime committed at the beginning of most episodes, meaning that Monk Was often not a whodunit but rather a “how did they do it?” Show. There were plenty of Monk Episodes in which we, the audience, knew who did it But followed Adrian as he tried to demonstrate how it was done.
While this was a clever take on the crime procedural genre, it led to a few anticlimactic episodes in which there wasn’t much to discover. Some episodes even show or at least tease at the beginning how the crime was committed, leaving nothing for us to figure out. Watching Adrian come up with his theories was fun, but so was solving the case alongside Tony Shalhoub’s character. The best Monk Episodes were the ones that found the balance between teasing what happened and letting us figure out the rest.
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The most important case in Adrian Monk’s life was very anticlimactic
Monk didn’t actually solve Trudy’s case
The most frustrating aspect of rewatching Monk is aware that Adrian never actually solves Trudy’s case on his own. Answered, “Mr. Monk And the End” ends with Adrian finally bringing justice to the man who killed Trudy and finding the closure he needs. But, upon closer look, Adrian didn’t solve the case. He simply found a tape in which Trudy explained everything. , including her history with Judge Recovery. MonkHis most important case was not solved by him But through an external factor, in a very anticlimactic way.
MonkThe last episode went for a more surprising twist, revealing that the key to solving the case was in Adrian’s house the whole time.
The fact that there wasn’t a proper “here’s what happened” moment in the series finale is very frustrating, even though the solving of Trudy’s murder was never going to be treated as just another case. yet, I would like Adrian to find out the truth himself and only then discover the tape Which can be used as evidence against recovery. MonkThe last episode was for a more surprising twist, revealing that the key to solving the case was in Adrian’s house the whole time – he just wasn’t ready to face it yet.
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The Monk movie wasn’t very different from most of the show’s episodes
Mr. Monk’s latest case felt like an extended Monk episode
While I loved Mr. Monk’s Last Case: A Monk Movie And would love to see a sequel, the film isn’t too different from most of the episodes of the show. Once again, we saw pieces of how the crime was committed at the beginning of the story and we knew without a doubt who the murderer was. The Monk Reunion felt like a great extended episode of the showOnly with a wider scope and more locations. That said, the most interesting difference between the movie and the show is how the former incorporated COVID-19.
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every one Monk Fans who watched the show when it originally aired in the early 2000s or reruns wondered how Adrian would have dealt with the pandemic and the quarantine. The Monk The Castle even made an online, scripted reunion in which Adrian’s friends check in on him in 2020. The movie builds on this and shows how the quarantine affected Adrian’s mental health. This is arguably the best thing about the movie and made for a not-so-very-special case that was solved relatively easily by Adrian.