Monk Season 4 thread (1 Viewer)

Anyone have any thoughts on the new season thus far?

I had high hopes that the series would rebound after what in my opinion was a lackluster season 3. The season opener with Jason Alexander left me cold if only because it was too much Alexander and Monk had nothing to do.

The second episode with John Turturro was much better. The mystery was cleverly written and some really good dry humor was evident. If the next few episodes continue this trend I'll be a happy camper.

I loved both episodes equally.

I watched S3 before s4 started , and i still love s3. I dont know why people said it was weak. First episode of S4 i didnt like, however last night was very good

capt

In my case, it's a comparative thing. I thought S1 and S2 of Monk were brilliant. Clever writing, subtle humor, and Shaloub's wonderful characterization made those episodes a joy to watch.

In S3 I thought the writers were starting to dip into self parody. Too much emphasis was placed on Monk's affliction and not enough on the story which made for some very weak mysteries. At its best, Monk is a light drama with well timed comic relief. It's at its worst when it trys for all out comedy.

Some people point to Sharona's departure as a weak point of the show. I actually take the opposite view. I really like the Natalie character because I think she has some humanity and depth that Sharona didn't. This is not a criticism of the actress who portrayed Sharona; she played the part as written.

Steve

I like Natalie a lot more then Sharona.

So does Ambrose.

Yeah except he wont go outside

I was waiting for a thread to pop up for the new season, cool.

I'm a big fan of season 3, especially the final episode with Adrian and the little boy, very emotional and my favorite of last season, possibly of the series thus far. I just love episodes that show Adrian improving his situation in some way and he made many brave choices last year.

I'm also a big supporter of Natalie and her daughter Julie. After being very skeptical when I heard they were bringing in someone new to replace Sherona, it took all of one or two episodes for Natalie to endear herself to me which I was very surprised by.

She's warm, feisty, freindly and she's just what Adrian needs in his life right now, someone to gently, and sometimes not so gently, push and encourage him in the right direction when the need arises. IMO, she has done more to help him in a single season than Sherona did in two.

Also, Traylor Howard is a real cutie I think. :b

This season has been great so far IMO, I liked the Jason Alexander charactor and of course John Turturo can do no wrong for me, he steals every scene he's in. Much like Adrian, Ambrose is both tragically sheltered (in his case literally, in Adrian's case, emotionally) and funny and you just can't help but love him.

Also, I didn't think he had it in him to ask Natalie out. Well, maybe not OUT, but you know what I mean, in any case, way to go Ambrose!

All in all, a great start to the new season, I can't wait to see where it takes us.

Yeah thats my favorite episode of the series so far. I also really liked the Season Premiere in NY , and the first episode Natalie was in

capt

Both episodes were fine by me. In the first one the Jason Alexander character was a "one trick pony" that was enjoyable for 60 minutes but someone I wouldn't want to see regularly. I love Jason Alexander in Seinfeld, but he's become typecast so I can't see him in other sitcoms. Too bad since he's actually an above average Broadway performer.

And the John Tuturro brother character was a welcome return. I noticed that this time he was almost a Monk clone (right down to the hair cut) and he's doing an excellent Adrian sibling. This I'd like more of (from time to time.)

I hope that the Monk Father role develops into an actual (sometimes) character and we get someone like Judd Hirsch to play the part (if he can be borrowed from Numbers). Any thoughts on other actors who would be ideal Old Mr. Monk characters? Too bad Andy Kaufman's no longer with us.

I'm still waiting for them to explore Trudy's death a bit more. I mean, we got the whole "man with six fingers on one hand" clue forever ago and it hasn't even been mentioned since. Just seems to not jive, to me. Wouldn't you think Monk would be kinda running with something like that? I mean, how many people can there be with 6 fingers?

Well, at least two. But that Count Rugen guy has been dead for centuries, so I guess he doesn't count.

Regards,

Joe

That's exactly what I thought when I just watched that Monk episode recently - I yelled out, "it's Count Rugen!"

It would be cool if they'd get Christopher Guest to play the part of the six-fingered man, with the same mannerisms, if they ever get to that. Nice inside joke for Princess Bride fans.

Interestingly, I recall from my High School Biology class (almost 50 years ago!) that six fingers is a dominant trait so that if both parents possess it you have a very good chance of also being six fingered. I also recall that just because a trait is dominant doesn't mean that it will predominate because of other factors. For example a lot of genetic mutations are dominant but are also destructive so the selective process weeds this out. I'm not quite sure what aspect of 6 finger dominance causes it not to be more common.

Just another piece of trivia bouncing around in my head, bobbing to the surface from time to time. Other than playing an instrument or giving someone the finger without using your regular digit complement, or having a nickname like "Six Finger Brown" (or being a plot twist on MONK) I don't see any major advantage.

I thought last season was great, because we got away from just solving mysteries (kind of a grown up Encyclopedia Brown), and more about the character of Monk. When he talked with Trudy in the coffin, or we saw flashbacks during the game show episode, it was really fun.

I like the new season, and hope for more great fun.

Any episode where Traylor hardly says a thing is fine by me.

Episode 3 - Mr. Monk Stays in Bed

Pretty good episode. Tony Shaloub gets his 3rd straight week in the background but I didn't mind it so much because I enjoyed seeing Natalie get to be in the spotlight. Monk's hypochondriac reactions to being sick were quite funny as was the scene were Stottlemeyer asked the suspect if he liked "Tie Food"

I am ready for Monk to take center stage though. At the rate this season is going, Shaloub's next Emmy nomination will be for Best Supporting Actor.

Funny episode last night, excpecially the musical card

I loved the variation they did on the "Mr. Monk recaps what really happened" scene. I like dramatic irony. It is always exciting and/or funny (depending on the context) when the audience knows something the characters don't.



Regards,

Joe

As usual, I loved last nights ep!

I'm starting to get the feeling that this show could do no wrong with me, it's just so pure and innocent and most of all it's just plain fun to watch....and figure out.

Joseph,
I agree with you whole heartedly about Natalie and Julie, it's amazing how quickly, and easily, they stole the limelight from Sharona, I don't even miss Sharona to be pefectly honest with you.

Natalie is just such a nice person, and Julie is a little sweetheart who obviously cares about Adrian as much as her mother does. The introduction of these two into Adrian's world is ENORMOUSLY significant for Adrian, not just for the job, but for the void that exists within him. Something great is happening here, even though it may not be apparent to either Natalie, Julie, or Adrian, it is very apparent to me.

Having Adrian out of commision last night was great, it gave us a chance to see Natalie go for it and flex her moxie in a very charming and funny way, and agreed, the reveal was handled beautifully and was very original.

How about when Adrian jumped the killer and wrestled with him in that pile of shredded paper!


It's becoming very clear, to me anyway, that Adrian is slowly learning how to become a confident and competant cop again and that's very rewarding to see as a viewer.

Monk is my favorite show on tv right now, and it is constantly providing new and intriguing ways to entertain me.