SuperSciFan | Bloggerspective on Superhero, Sci Fi & Fantasy Entertainment: "Monk"

REMINDER: 'Monk' season seven finale might finally address concrete details about Trudy's murder

Feb 20, 2009

Tony Shalhoub's Adrian Monk's strange nostalgia for the parking garage where his wife Trudy was killed might lead him to details about her murder.

Overviews from the official "Monk" Web site and TV.com for "Mr. Monk Fights City Hall," the Feb. 20 season seven finale, indicate that in the episode Monk chains himself up to stop its scheduled demolition.

But a case develops for Monk to solve that disrupts everything when a city official sympathetic to his cause goes missing, and finding out what happened might very well lead him to a clue with which to deduce who ordered Trudy's murder, the overviews hint at as well.

One sneak peek shows that Harold Krenshaw (Tim Bagley), who is apparently on the city council, votes to prevent postponing the site's demolition seemingly out of his long-standing hatred for Monk, and that he might only vote in favor of it if the defective detective reveals the name of his therapist, Dr. Neven Bell (Hector Elizondo).

Maybe Harold just misses their verbal sparing in Dr. Kroger's waiting room.

A compelling reason to watch the episode is that it will likely not lead viewers down another dead-end concerning Trudy's homicide in that the series will conclude next season, and sparing information has thus far been revealed about her bombing.

If anything, this episode might very well serve as a sort of story launching point for some episodes, if not all, in season eight.

Longtime fans might get a piece of what they have been very patient to see for the last seven seasons of few great murder cases for Monk to solve intertwined with many frivolous themes.

Monk confronting his fear of confinement means "Mr. Monk Fights City Hall" is more than just a run-of-the-mill episode. Another sneak peek that can be watched below indicates it is enough to get Monk to care about something other than what he does best, that is, solving murders.

REVIEW: Mr. Monk and the nerdy neighbor whom the series' writers make disappear for no practical reason

Feb 13, 2009

"Monk" is known for having its share of theme episodes, but "Mr. Monk and the Magician" is one creative rabbit that was needlessly pulled from wherever the idea for the 15th, season seven episode originated.

Too much is required to accept in order to enjoy the mediocre story.

Essential is the first scene in which a magician known as The Great Torini (Steve Valentine) makes a deal with heroine dealers because it establishes a strong homicide motive and that he likes to play around with danger. It could have done without the continuous magic puns that are probably left in to serve as winks to families watching that the episode is more frivolous than serious, though.

Particularly entertaining about this more than 40-minute-long episode is the clumsily neurotic Kevin Dorfman (Jarrad Paul), Tony Shalhoub's Monk's recurring friend who hilariously tries his hand at magic until he metaphorically dies on stage and then literally in a backstage dressing room. His horrible act only serves to make Torini's later magic tricks all the more amazingly bedeviling.

Any charlatan can pull a rabbit out of a hat, after all, and even the slightly compassionate nature of Torini's female assistant Tanya (Peyton List) is developed to make him seem more licentious.

What is less engaging is how callously the writers have begun taking creative liberties with the series' hallmarks for no apparent reason other than that "Monk" will soon be over and no longer need the Kevin Dorfman character.

This is really a needless death that they would be hard-pressed to justify making into another random case for Monk to solve.

At least Kevin, who was always portrayed as a lonely person without many friends, is shown to have made many while alive with his sweet, albeit eccentric, personality at the wake. In the end, this painstakingly charming attribute is the cleverly ironic reason why he is murdered.

Torini, who was never truly Kevin's friend, is a great villain for Monk on paper, but ends up being no more formidable than his ability to misdirect viewers from the more simple circumstances of the homicide he commits. He is simply a convenient storytelling tool with which to keep anyone from guessing how the magician did it before Monk solves the case.

Therein lies one of the magic-themed episode's saving graces in that nothing is at first as it appears, particularly the custodian in the hallway.

Then again, it diminishes the importance of Kevin's death in that more time is not invested in developing the Torini character for viewers to care that he is meant to be one of Monk's greatest adversaries.

Monk, who seemingly disliked Kevin before his untimely death, shows his true colors in confronting claustrophobia to learn how Torini was able to murder his friend from 300 miles away. But even this exploration of the character comes about in a breezy manner.

Not helping the episode's fast pace is the questionable and not so obvious reason why Monk does not want kiss the noticeably attractive Tanya when she tries to help him escape from Torini's clutches. One can only assume it is out his loyalty to Trudy, some phobia, or his utter dislike for her as a human being.

Investing too much into what could have been a great case, "Mr. Monk and the Magician" is at best worth watching because it features an entertaining magical theme that astounds the eyes, but ultimately falls short to amaze viewers' sense of a worthwhile story.

WATCH "MR. MONK FIGHTS CITY HALL" PROMO!

Popcorn rating:

(3 out of 5 pieces)

REVIEW: Mr. Monk becomes a forgivably charming bully in his 14th, season seven murder case

Feb 6, 2009

"Mr. Monk and the Bully" cleverly uses the childhood trauma of Tony Shalhoub's obsessive compulsive character to briefly explore his more sinisterly giddy side without jeopardizing any moral integrity.

Breaking from TV writers' tendency to portray bullies as eventual career failures in life, Monk's childhood bully Roderick Brody (Noah Emmerich) is presented as having ended up becoming quite a financial success. If anything, his unapologetic self-confidence and bullying appears to have contributed to his high status.

Roderick's abrasive personality is exemplified by trying to shake Monk's hand when he clearly does not stop to wash his hands after using the restroom and in the strong tone of the conversation he has on his cell phone that clearly involves a business matter.

Aside from showing how the character has not changed since childhood, Roderick is shown to be an unsavory person so as to establish him as a possible suspect once a murder is committed for Monk to solve. Strangely enough, the introduction of a revolver pistol in his car's glove compartment serves to debunk, not back up, the likeliness of his involvement.

Usually only working on homicides, Monk only becomes interested in helping Roderick professionally when realizing the case he is being offered involves finding proof that this former childhood bully's wife might be having an extramarital affair. Possible revenge sweetens accepting what would normally be an unsuitable job.

Monk's apropos General Washington joke in the episode is a rare moment that shows the defective detective is both cheap and not as uptight as usual. Nicely contrasting to this scene in the bar is how Monk later temporarily abandons his frugal nature in order to buy a digital camera that will help him get revenge against Roderick, who has since paid him a fee.

Meant to be a comedy, these subtle deviations in Monk's true character also serve to make him so different that he instantly becomes recognizable again when snapping out of his childhood trauma-inspired revenge craze.

Such moments overall make Monk flawed and thus more interesting to watch when his conscience forces him to grow up.

Refreshing about the episode is that it does not start with a murder and continues to show Monk happier, albeit temporarily, than the writers have been prone to make him throughout the TV series.

Not to mention the continuing belief in karma held by Natalie Teeger (Traylor Howard) that might be foreshadowing to something great happening for her boss sometime soon.

News of "Monk" coming to an end next season should allow them to take more creative liberties in upcoming episodes.

As novel as Monk's joy might be, the elaborate murder case falls short in that the details are overshadowed by his transformation into a quasi sadist and are hastily revealed by the perpetrator later in the episode.

Once Monk stifles his enjoyment to try and solve the case, he figures out what happened with the use of two obsessive compulsive observations alone. Solving this crime comes too easy for him.

"Mr. Monk and the Bully" is a well-executed experiment in character exploration that causes everything else to take a seat way to the back of the story.

WATCH "MR. MONK AND THE MAGICIAN" PROMO!

Popcorn rating:

(4 out of 5 pieces)

REVIEW: Mr. Monk learns to have tailgate fun in the series' not so unnecessary SuperBowl 43 plug

Jan 30, 2009

Though it fumbles a couple of story details, the 13th, season seven episode of "Monk" written to fit into the SuperBowl weekend atmosphere actually serves to make the obsessive compulsive detective less of a stiff.

Likable about this episode is that it places Tony Shalhoub's Monk outside of his element and into one more suitable for Captain Leland Stottlemeyer (Ted Levine), whose thick moustache always hinted that he was a real man's man who might be a hardcore football fan outside of police work. Monk and Stottlemeyer are thus able to play well off each other to show that the former exhibits the characteristics of a humorously uptight mother's boy who would be more willing to watch the game with Natalie (Traylor Howard).

Given that Monk's father was absent during his childhood, it makes sense that the defective detective never learned to appreciate sports, only really embracing the compassionate influence Trudy must have provided in his life. Natalie, it could be argued, is another version of Trudy.

"Mr. Monk Makes the Playoffs" allows Stottlemeyer to provide him with a sort of father-son relationship that the character desperately needs in order to learn how to flip his off switch. They even get to throw around a type of skin, but not a ball.

Not losing sight of what makes Monk a tragically compelling character is the interim reminder that he is not happy unless living his life the only way he knows how, that is, by solving a murder.

A bit too out of character is the passing joke that Monk considers everything better than sex, which makes his relationship with Trudy and one grade school crush unfeasible if girls presumably have cooties in his eyes.

Novel about this episode is that the writers took the time to explore a character other than Monk for a change.

Stottlemeyer, although strongly wanting to abandon his friend in misery to watch the big game in a press box, eventually shows his true colors to help Monk solve a murder.

Making a lot of sense about the rough-around-the-edges police captain is the revelation that he lived in Los Angeles for 30 years before coming to the relatively tranquil San Francisco.

Completely pointless is Bob Costas' obsession with demented cats that is probably meant to be awkwardly humorous but to which too much time is devoted. Costas' story is hopefully not meant to be a highfalutin analogy about Monk because it simply does not work and is out of place in a comedy-drama.

Playful comedy complements the overall character-driven drama in "Mr. Monk Makes the Playoffs," with the murder case being watered down to something anyone would be able to deduce in an obvious plug by its parent company NBC for SuperBowl 43. But it is all in good fun.

WATCH "MR. MONK AND THE BULLY" PROMO!

Popcorn rating:

(4 out 5 pieces)

REVIEW: Mr. Monk and a new friend take a short, touching break from theme-heavy episodes

Jan 23, 2009

Sweet and beneficial for its central character's emotional needs, "Mr. Monk and the Lady Next Door" is a well-crafted, appropriately silly story about Tony Shalhoub's Adrian Monk making an old friend that might actually like him.

Apropos about the episode is that it exploits the fact that Monk never had a normal mother in order to allow the detective to get close to Marge Johnson (Gena Rowlands), a friendly old lady he meets at a sidewalk, and that a lot of people who have tried to befriend him outside of the main cast of characters had an agenda behind their friendliness.

Marge as a character could only work if she had lost a significant other, to which Monk could relate because of Trudy, and a son, the place of which he could take. Otherwise, Monk and Marge becoming close could have been mistaken for something more inappropriately intimate with her hanging out at his apartment and cooking him meals.

Their relationship allows Monk to take pride in his work, stop compulsively obsessing about things being evenly spaced, albeit temporarily, and hopefully not be so mistrustful of people in the future.

That Marge needs Monk as much as he needs her removes viewers' doubt that their friendship is not genuine. Then, the writers wisely play with this established story element to raise their suspicions once Marge is involved when the neighbor she complains a lot about commits a crime.

All the setup makes for progressively heartbreaking scenes in a pawn shop and then in a police interrogation room when Monk slowly but surely turns on her.

Particularly novel is how one of Monk's at times far-fetched theories about the motives of homicides is completely wrong this this time around and not in line with his oftentimes distrustful nature.

Most humorous about the episode is the sinister curator (Marc Vann) of the Guinness World Records museum, Leland Stottlemeyer (Ted Levine) having fun with the professional egg eater, Jason Gray-Stanford's Randy Disher's Terminator-like homicide motive, which he is later lead to think could be possible.

But what is possible, and too convenient, is how the garage door at the house of John Keyes (Marcus Giamatti) is open toward the episode's end so that Monk and Stottlemeyer can walk in without waiting to get a warrant to enter the premises to solve the murder case, the frivolousness of which is made up for by not being the central crime in the episode.

"Mr. Monk and the Lady Next Door" finds a proper balance, telling a story driven by the sweet mother-son interaction between its two central characters while at the same time retaining the carnival appeal of past theme episodes that have become a series hallmark.

WATCH "MR. MONK MAKES THE PLAYOFFS" PROMO!

Popcorn rating:

(4 1/2 out of 5 pieces)

WATCH ON USA NETWORK WEB SITE!

REVIEW: Mr. Monk novelly uses his detective skills to help solve the curious case of world hunger

Jan 16, 2009

Greatly refreshing about the 11th, season seven episode of "Monk" is that it has the defective detective solve a crime that involves unusual circumstances, but that bares enough character-developing and comedic fruit to make it work.

Risky is setting up Monk to become extremely happy when he visits a laboratory that grows symmetrically square tomatoes and unrealistically fast-growing other vegetables only to knock him down when he is shot in one leg, causing his two legs to not match. But having the murder motive tie into the super vegetable lab ultimately justifies why the crime later goes down.

Paying off about having Monk shot is how funny Monk can be when he justifiably complains about his leg, forcing the guilt-ridden Natalie to cater to his needs even more than she already does, and how he hops around on one leg when Stottlemeyer forces him out of a car without a crutch, just to name a few scenes that benefit from his pain.

Also in pain in the episode is Natalie, who becomes frustrated with Monk taking advantage of his limited physical condition to act like a pampered brat king. Making Natalie go through this experience is meant both to show how naively nice she is and eventually force her boss to finally appreciate all her tiresome efforts.

A nice touch is the steep hill Natalie has to ascend while at the same time pushing Monk in his umbrella-covered wheelchair that goes with the characteristic no-so-flat landscape of San Francisco.

Worth considerable praise is the creatively novel murder case, which is not as simple to solve as past cases, that starts with Monk trying to find a stolen bicycle, involves a miracle invention and utilizes clues such as recycled shoes with one unique characteristic.

"Nice bolt cutters" is a needless line of dialogue for Natalie, though, unless she is flirting with the bike thief.

As much as the premise of the episode pays off, it also has problems such as that it requires needlessly introducing a garbage man, who is also an amateur detective, and that a person is killed for no apparent other than that his murder scene produces one essential clue. Not to mention the amazing invention of fast-growing vegetables.

One simply has to try very hard to forget that Monk lives in a world in which world hunger will soon be over in order to accept the premise.

Not as easy to accept is what unnecessarily happens to Monk again in the end simply to provide the episode with a sense of everything having come full-circle.

Despite these few quips, "Mr. Monk on Wheels" is a creative risk that ultimately breaks even given the "karma chips" its writers try to cash in with loyal viewers.

WATCH "MR. MONK AND THE LADY NEXT DOOR" PROMO!

Popcorn rating:

(4 out of 5 pieces)