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Monk - Season One
: i loved watching this show, and i was beginning to thing that this dvd would never come out. iit pretty much about a detective who has ocd in the worst way and it very funny. Buy this DVD
Sure, I'll want to watch a stupid reality show every now and then...and, sure, I can stomach some of the violence and such that we see on tv... But at long last, here's a tv show that I can watch that puts a genuine smile on my face and that I would never be embarassed to watch with my family. Good clean fun and humor with great acting and characters. And you can watch the shows over and over again without tiring of them. Enjoy it!
I was wondering when they were going to be smart enough to create a box set of this wonderful show and now, they finally have. I was really happy to find this out. Monk is a great show and Tony Shalhoub is excellent. There couldn't be any better casting than him. I don't have any bad things to say about the show, I would recommend this. Buy it, watch it..love it.
For years, I had believed that television was dead: Aside from occasionally watching the one sitcom left that was intelligently written, "Frasier," I sadly witnessed that most sitcoms -- such as "Friends" and "Will and Grace" -- were "dumbed down," filmed in 10-to-15 second segments, in order to cater to the ADHD, MTV generation. Even the so-called "serious" dramas, such as "The West Wing" and "ER" are basically a clumsy piling on of stale platitudes and disease and/or crisis of the week ephemeral plotting. As for "reality" shows, I have nothing to say about that sorry genre save that, strangely, I have never been plucked out of my boring life, put on a deserted isle, surrounded by a dozen hot babes while eating worms and maggots, in hopes of working for Donald Trump, should I emerge victorious.
Then, all of the sudden, in the Summer of 2002, my wife and I stumbled across this show, "Monk." What can I say? "Monk" is one of those programs that only comes along every generation or so. It is so gratifying to finally watch a program that mixes light comedy, captivating mystery, taut suspense and intelligent dialogue. Bravo!
"Monk" revolves around its central character, the eccentric savant and super-sleuth, Adrian Monk, played with understated erudition by Tony Shalhoub. Monk, who's been felled by the tragic murder of his beautiful wife, Trudy, has a tough time being reinstated to the San Francisco Police Department because of his Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. Half Perry Mason and half Felix Unger, he is a walking library of esoteric information hindered by a thousand phobias.
His nurse, gal-Friday and sidekick is the streetwise and sexy Sharona Fleming, who's on hand to help Adrian overcome his OCD and to dispense antibacterial wipes to protect him from viral infection and dangerous human elements after shaking hands. Monk's OCD provides a lot of comedic moments and plot points, but without ever becoming preachy or belittling.
Monk and Sharona are definitely television's best couple, even though their relationship is platonic. While he exists almost exclusively in his own cerebral and abstract world, world-wise Sharona provides the intuition to navigate him through the world populated by the rest of humanity. She's also the perfect foil for his awkward personality quirks. Without Sharona, Monk would literally be incomplete.
Ted Levine plays Monk's former boss, Captain Stottlemeyer, with gruff aplomb. Reluctantly, he hires Monk free lance as a consultant when the SFPD can't crack the case. Jason Gray-Stanford gives more comic relief as the boyish Disher, an earnest yet somewhat slow-witted detective on the force who would never solve one of Monk's mysteries, even if given 1000 years.
In this boxed set are 12 episodes from the first season, including the pilot, "Mr. Monk and the Candidate," so buyers, please, you don't need to buy the pilot episode separately, unless you are a completist with OCD, like Adrian Monk. The best episodes are: "Mr. Monk Goes to the Asylum," which features an offbeat guest appearance by Kevin Nealon; "Mr. Monk and the Billionaire Mugger,"; "Mr. Monk Takes a Vacation; and, most hilariously, "Mr. Monk and the Airplane," in which our hero manages to annoy all the plane's passengers with his finicky behavior while solving a murder.
"Monk" is superbly cast and brilliantly executed. The photography is gorgeous, the filmstock ripe with rich hues and deep shadows. I disagree with one previous reviewer who implied that the sound "suffices," because it is merely in Dolby 5.1 stereo. I say the sound is perfect: Though in stereo surround, it is never overbearing, never dominating the picture with "whoosh and clang" foley effects.
One little imperfection: "Monk" is supposed to be set in San Francisco, so one would think that our protagonist would take note of the Bell Canada service trucks and phone booths that inexplicably pop up in its episodes. Uncanny.
Unfortunately, USA Network will not be bringing back Bitty Schram as Sharona next season. Monk needs his better half. Save Sharona! Visit the petition to keep her on the show:
http://www.petitionspot.com/petitions/sbackmonk
Now this is one of those shows that is just so hard to turn away and not watch. It's just plain genius. I also can relate to his Obsessive Compulsive but, just a little. MONK is just a wonderful show to watch and I am glad that it will be released on dvd. (Tony Shalhoub) who plays the so... misunderstood MONK is just great. And I also think Ted Levine (Stottlemyer)is wonderful in the role that he playswhich is allot different from his famous role for the (Silence of the lamb). I think this is a must have dvd in your collection.
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