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"Monk" (2002) More at IMDbPro »

3 out of 5 people found the following comment useful :-
It's not the mystery that matters, 24 June 2003
Author: DrCarol from Tucson

I agree that the mysteries are generally easy to solve (quite often we know who did it from the opening scene and can figure out how it was done without much difficulty), but it's not the mysteries that make this show worth watching. The majority of fans watch it for Tony Shalhoub's masterful performance--he manages to be simultaneously annoying and sympathetic, funny and sad. But Shalhoub is not the only attraction: the other stars deserve more credit than they generally receive, particularly Ted Levine, who is so often overlooked by the critics yet has gained a large personal following from this performance alone. As he noted in a recent interview, Captain Stottlemeyer represents "common sense," the perspective of a successful but ordinary detective, in contrast to Monk's "uncommon sense." He and the other regulars balance the eccentricity of Monk through their more normal but distinctly individual perspectives, and, though they are not as skilled at crime solving as Monk, they are not wholly incompetent. Sharona (Bitty Schram), Stottlemeyer, and Lt. Disher (Jason Stanford-Gray) all occasionally provide Monk with a clue he needs to put everything together--or, more frequently, rescue him from situations in which he'd be helpless if he were alone. The series is funny, touching, and intriguing despite the transparency of some of the mysteries, but it isn't perfect. What we need from the writers in the second season (which began June 20, 2003, in the U.S.) is more consistency in depicting the characters and more development for Stottlemeyer, Sharona, and Disher. Ted Levine in particular needs more onscreen time to use his many talents to best advantage.

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