Whatcha Watchin’? Wednesday – Monk: Season 7

Whatcha Watchin’? Wednesday is a weekly feature in which I talk about the TV we’re watching, either on DVD or on cable. Feel free to grab the graphic, join in, and play along – just leave a link to your post in the comments.

Monk was the first USA Network series to hook us. I’ve loved Tony Shalhoub since he was on Wings, and he’s done some movie roles that were terrific, too – but Adrian Monk is the character he will be remembered for. He embodies the obsessive-compulsive detective, a sad but funny man who hasn’t been the same since his wife Trudy was killed.

I remember when Bitty Schram, who played Monk’s first assistant, Sharona, left the show in season 3. I thought it wouldn’t be the same, but I now love Natalie Teeger (played by Traylor Howard) even more. I like the fact that Natalie pushes Monk more than Sharona did – and helps him to step outside of himself and his fears, even if only just a little bit.

The late Stanley Kamel played Dr. Kroger, Monk’s ever-patient and long-suffering shrink. When Kamel died of a heart attack before season 7, I was curious to see how they could replace him. They couldn’t, of course, but Hector Elizondo, as Dr. Bell, comes pretty close.

Monk is a widower; he doesn’t have a family – and yet he does. He has Natalie. He also has his good friends, Captain Leland Stottlemeyer (Ted Levine) and Lieutenant Randy Disher (Jason Gray-Stanford) of the San Francisco Police Department. While Monk’s eccentricities often drive Stottlemeyer absolutely nuts, there have been many episodes where the depth of the friendship between the two men is explored. The two cops are brilliantly cast and have terrific chemistry, with Stottlemeyer playing straight man to naive Disher.

Another thing the producers of Monk do well is to cast the guest stars for each episode, everyone from Brad Garrett to Tim Curry to Sarah Silverman.

Kevin and I are spending our TV time these days watching Monk: Season 7. We are one season behind the one currently playing on television. I’m glad that there is one more season waiting for us before we have to say goodbye to these characters.