Mr. Monk, Private Eye (4 Aug. 2006)

With work scarce from the police department, Natalie manipulates Monk into opening his own agency, but his first case may be deadly.

Director:

Peter Weller

Writers:

Andy Breckman (creator), Tom Scharpling,

Stars:

Tony Shalhoub, Traylor Howard, Jason Gray-Stanford

Cast

Episode cast overview:
Tony Shalhoub	...	Adrian Monk
Traylor Howard	...	Natalie Teeger
Jason Gray-Stanford	...	Lt. Randall Disher
Ted Levine	...	Captain Leland Stottlemeyer
Sharon Lawrence	...	Linda Fusco
Frederick Weller	...	Jay Bennett
Graham Beckel	...	Capt. Bill Gibbard
Francesca Vannucci	...	Anna Pollard
Jay Bingham	...	Coast Guard Officer (as Jay Bigham)
Mark Teich	...	Manager
Odette Annable	...	Courtney (as Odette Yustman)

Storyline

Natalie decides that the time has come for Monk to branch out and become a full-fledged private investigator. He's not keen on the idea and is quite happy with what he does. She doesn't give him much choice however as she's already gone ahead and rented office space. She's even had business cards printed for him. His first case isn't to his liking either. Local real estate agent Linda Fusco hires him to who clipped her car in the marina parking lot causing $900 damage. He quickly figures out who caused the crash but more interestingly, there's a direct link to a murder.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Mystery | Crime

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Certificate:

TV-PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

4 August 2006 (USA)

Filming Locations:

The Prince - 3198 W. Seventh Street, Koreatown, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Kaledo Dritte Productions, Mandeville Films, Touchstone Television

Technical Specs

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

First appearance of Sharon Lawrence as Linda Fusco, Captain Stottlemeyer's girlfriend.

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Goofs

Obvious stunt double in the long shots of Monk in the water. Double has curly hair while Monk's is flattened from the water.

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Quotes

[Monk gets so bored with waiting for a case that he calls Natalie's desk phone from his desk phone about ten feet away]
Natalie Teeger: Adrian Monk Investigation. What is the nature of your problem?
Adrian Monk: I'm been kept in a room against my will.
Natalie Teeger: You were kidnapped... uh, do you know who did it ?
Adrian Monk: Yes. It's my personal assistant, her name is Natalie... Teeger.
[as he says that, the camera pans around Natalie to reveal Monk talking on his desk phone]

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Connections

References The Maltese Falcon (1941)

User Reviews

Back To Basics

Well, at least I got my wish for one week as this series went back to what it used to do: concentrate both on the crime and Monk's quirks. They had totally gotten away from the crime angle with a lot of silliness but this episode is more like the older ones in which the crime is the story and Tony Shaloub's comedic talents are mixed in.

Actually, Traylor Howard as Natalie takes center stage here, pushing Monk into going into the private detective business. That part gets a little carried away and she's already gone ahead and rented an office, bought all the furniture, etc., without him knowing.

After a few days of no clients, he finally gets a "fender bender" case, which winds up leading to two things: 1 - catching a murderer, and 2 - Capt. Stottlemeyer finding a girlfriend, real estate agent "Linda Fusco" (Sharon Lawrence), who is the one whose car was dented and says "son-of-a-bitch four times in about a minute in here. Was that necessary? That's the kind of woman the captain thinks is cool.

Overall, it wasn't a great episode but it good enough and a pleasant break from all the goofiness of the first few episodes of this fifth season.