Monk: Season Seven Review

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(More customer reviews)Quirky detective Adrian Monk has only one more season of obsessive-compulsive detection left. Start mourning now, because it's still one of the best shows on TV.
In the meantime, the seventh season of his dramedy/mystery series holds up well and shows little signs of its age. It's got everything you'd expect of "Monk" -- new phobias, personal crises (shot in the leg!), lots of hilarious writing, bizarre mysteries, and the celebration of Mr. Monk's one-hundredth case.
Monk is having more trouble than ever after Dr. Kroger unexpectedly dies, and the neighbor girl starts playing the piano. So he decides to buy the house of an old man who recently fell down the stairs. Unfortunately, some creepy people want to get their greedy hands on whatever is hidden in that house -- and they'll destroy his dream-house to do it.
Unfortunately (for Monk) it's the least weird case he encounters this season. He has to deal with (in no particular order): a murdered homeless man, miraculous fountains, lottery murders, a stolen bike at a biotech lab, submarine "suicides," exploding grills, protecting a boxer, the impossible murder of Monk's annoying neighbor, and a manly-bonding football game with Stottlemeyer.
And Monk struggles with his own problems, with the help of his new therapist Dr. Bell (Hector Elizondo) and his assistant Natalie (Traylor Howard: bad hypnosis, a kindly old lady, a crush, a looming physical, and a half-brother escaped from prison. And Monk tries to stop the parking lot where Trudy died from being demolished, only for the council-woman involved to be found murdered in the bay...
Most quirky TV series don't survive past the first few episodes, or the first season at most. So while the seventh season of "Monk" has a few bumps in the road (such as "Mr Monk and the Bully," where he comes across as rather too vindictive), it still has the right balance of humor, poignancy and brain-twisters.
The whole season is pretty much a solid string of enjoyably complex murder mysteries -- baffling crimes, obscure clues, and a few new eccentricities for Monk. Despite all the murder and bittersweet moments, the episodes are peppered with some comedy as well (Randy watching the football game upside-down in the stairwell) and plenty of solid dialogue ("It's a square tomato. You're doing the Lord's work!").
This season Monk's biggest problem is his biggest phobia of all -- his fear of being left by everyone, whether it's a mother substitute or his beloved shrink. Fortunately Shalhoub has the skill to keep his tragicomic character from seeming cartoonish -- good-hearted, socially clueless (see "guy banter") and trapped in the cage of his own fears and sorrow. The only flaw is that for some reason, Monk tends to be a wee bit more mean-spirited here.
Traylor Howard does a solid job as Monk's assistant Elizondo is quite good as the replacement for Dr. Kroger, and Jason Gray-Stanford continues to be hilarious as Randy ("Ergo the killer. Is that Hungarian?"). Ted Levine gets to show different side to Stottlemeyer, when the longtime cop becomes a monk (yes, the religious kind) and goofs off at tailgate parties. Not in the same episode, of course.
There's only one more season of "Monk" to go, but the seventh is a heckuva penultimate chapter, with plenty of befuddling mysteries and strange problems.

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Tony Shalhoub returns to his acclaimed three-time Primetime Emmy® Award and Golden Globe®-winning role for a stellar seventh season in the quirky and irreverent detective show, Monk. Join him and phenomenal guest stars Brad Garrett, David Strathairn, Eric McCormack, Sarah Silverman, Hector Elizando, John Turturro and more in 16 hilarious, unforgettable episodes – including the all-star 100th episode, “Mr. Monk’s 100th Case!" Despite his overwhelming fear of germs, crowds, small places and almost everything else, Monk proves once again why he’s the only man for the case and why mystery lovers "...can't deny how amusihg it all still is..." (Entertainment Weekly).

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Monk - Season Six Review

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(More customer reviews)It must be admitted that the fifth season of "Monk" had some rough patches, where Monk's OCD was overwritten and the plots got a bit limp.
But the obsessive compulsive detective is still going, and fortunately "Monk" is still one of the best shows on television. And the sixth season continues "Monk's" grand tradition -- solidly-written mystifying stories, quirky detecting, and some excellent acting from Tony Shalhoub. Even better, the two-part finale really shows "Monk" off at its absolute best.
As the season opens, Monk (Tony Shalhoub) finds that his obsessed groupie Marcy Maven (Sarah Silverman) needs to hire him, despite a restraining order. So she "buys" him at a bachelor auction and makes him work on a bizarre case -- her dog is being accused of killing someone, but the dog died before the murder took place. Needless to say, there's more than meets the eye.
Among the other cases the OCD detective has to deal with: a framed rapper, murder on a nudist beach, an investigation overlapping with Julie's love life, stolen safety-deposit boxes, treasure maps, a daredevil who might be his archnemesis, insomnia, going undercover in a cult, a newfound painting hobby, and a shot Santa. He even has to investigate Stottlemeyer's (Ted Levine) girlfriend.
But the story takes a darker turn toward the end of the season. Monk finds a lead for the "six-fingered man" who killed Trudy, and confronts him... and after a struggle, the six-fingered man is dead. A rural sheriff arrests Monk, but Monk insists that he's innocent -- and he's determined to find out who is framing him. But with the police after him and a conspiracy in motion, can he solve the murder before he's caught?
"Monk" had a bit of a rough patch in the fifth season -- some of the episodes simply didn't gel, and Monk's OCD was written strangely. Fortunately "Monk - Season Six" goes back to what makes the series more enjoyable -- a couple of episodes don't work, like the rapper and the creepy little cult, but these are overshadowed by the better mysteries.
Nope, most of the sixth season is a string of solid murder mysteries -- lots of baffling crimes, obscure clues, and new eccentricities for Monk. Despite all the murder and bittersweet moments, the episodes are peppered with some comedy as well, such as the slow demolition of Stottlemeyer's brand-new car. And there's still plenty of bittersweet ("I'm going to be buried next to Trudy. I can't wait") and/or hilarious dialogue ("She had the oldest profession." "Stonemason, huh?").
And the last two episodes of the sixth season are among the best the series has ever produced. A seemingly straightforward crime story blossoms into a heartrending, suspenseful, dramatic, and genuinely unpredictable story, and gives us a few more clues about Trudy's death.
Tony Shalhoub is lovably oddballish as Adrian Monk, never turning his tragicomic character into a cartoon -- you just want to hug Monk and give him some perfectly symmetrical cookies. Traylor Howard does a solid job as Monk's assistant, and Levine gets to show Stottlemeyer's warmer, laid-back sides, while Jason Gray-Stanford is consistently fun as the puppy-eager Randy Disher -- even getting to sing a Johnny-Cash-style song about Monk's apparent demise.
The sixth season of "Monk" has a couple rough patches, but soars up to brilliant heights near the end. And the obsessive-compulsive detective still seems to have quite a bit of work ahead...

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Get even more obsessed with TV's funniest and quirkiest detective series, Monk, as every episode from the smash-hit sixth season comes to DVD on 4 discs! Tony Shalhoub reprises his 3-time Primetime Emmy® Award and Golden Globe-winning role as the brilliant but phobia-laden detective Adrian Monk, who never lets his obsessive-compulsive disorder stop him from solving a crime in the most ingenious way imaginable! Dropping the clues this season are a roster of red-hot guest stars including Alfred Molina, David Koechner, Sarah Silverman, Snoop Dogg, Angela Kinsey and Vincent Ventresca. Take a tip from an insider: you'll be "committed" to the best detective series now on TV!

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Monk - Season One (2002) Review

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(More customer reviews)I blew it. I didn't start watching this show until it's second season. Little did I know what I was missing.
Tony Shalhoub stars as Adrian Monk, a former police detective no longer on the force because of his obsessive-compulsive disorder and his phobias. He does still consult on some of their most bizarre cases, however. For example, how could an 800-lb. man commit murder? Why was a billionaire killed while mugging a man on a date? Did a fellow airline passenger really kill his wife? How could a man commit murder and run a marathon at the same time?
This series falls into the classic puzzle mystery genre, my personal favorite. Sometimes I have an idea why or how, but it takes the ending for me to know for sure. More often then not, I'm stumped. Along the way, we get plenty of laughs at the various situations we find Mr. Monk in. The obsessive-compulsive disorder and his fears are handled just right. They provide the clues needed and humor without being over the top or annoying.
Of course, the series is helped by its actors. Tony Shalhoub is excellent as Monk with a performance just slightly understated. He deserved his Emmy win for this season. Just as praise worthy is Bitty Schram as Monk's nurse Sharona. She mixes exasperated and compassionate while providing a strong sidekick character that doesn't get lost behind the lead. Ted Levine and Jason Gray-Stanford as the police Monk helps and Stanley Kamel as Monk's shrink are equally excellent.
The writing is sharp and manages to find humor without mocking Monk, a subtle but clear distinction.
This DVD set is great for old and new fans alike. All twelve first season episodes are present, including the previously released two-hour pilot. They're presented in widescreen and look sharp. The sound, while presented in 5.1 surround, is nothing spectacular. Still, it gets the job done. Disc four has some short extras discussing the creation of the show, obsessive-compulsive disorder, the cast and crew's obsessions, the Emmy win, and the casting of Bitty Schram and Ted Levine. I would have loved a commentary track or two and some outtakes, but they aren't to be found here.
While the extras could have been just a tad better, this set is a must have for those who love light mystery. It was nice to catch the cases I'd missed. This is one mystery show you can watch time and time again for the humor and character even if you remember how it ends.

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He’s ingenious, he’s phobic, he’s obsessive-compulsive.Emmy and Golden Globe Award winner "Tony Shalhoub is a riot" (TV Guide) in Monk, the show that critics are praising as "fresh, exciting and utterly original." (Chicago Tribune)Monk’s hilarious, offbeat antics have made him unfit for duty but he’s back as a police consultant to help out on their most baffling cases.The brilliant but neurotic Monk is now fighting crime as well as his abnormal fears of germs, cars, heights, crowds and virtually everything else known to man in "the best detective show to come along in decades." (NY Post) "Nothing on TV generated more fun than this" (LA Times) and now you can enjoy the entire first season of Monk on DVD.

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