I Heart July 4th Marathons: Monk

USA aired a fantastic selection of "Monk" episodes this past July 4th. While I did not have a tape long enough to catch the entire day's worth, I did manage to watch all the episodes from this past season that I had not yet seen. I am now missing only one episode from last season (Mr. Monk and the Really, Really Dead Guy). I am happy to report that this truly is a great show, and I am disappointed that it missed out on the top 10 finalists for the Best Comedy Series nominees at the Emmy Awards. Shalhoub is fantastic, as are supporting players Traylor Howard (Natalie), Ted Levine (Captain Stottlemeyer), and Jason Gray-Stanford (Randy Disher). Probably the most fun episode from this particular marathon is the season premiere, "Mr. Monk and the Actor", which features a production crew working on a film version of one of Monk's cases, an illicit relationship between the on-screen female version of Randy and the Captain, and a stellar performance from Stanley Tucci as an actor playing Monk who gets way into his role (he is a certain finalist for my Best Guest Actor in a Comedy Series nominees, and may find himself on a revised list soon). The greatest thing about "Monk" is the incorporation of the antics of Monk himself, the other characters, and a nice mystery which is sometimes easily solvable by the viewer, but it a lot of fun to see Monk piece it all together. Additionally, it deserves credit for excellent use of guest stars. This marathon features Tucci, Dan Hedaya, and Gordon Clapp, just to name a few. Unlike "Will & Grace", which was essentially whoring out its celebrity guest stars in its later seasons for no reason other than to use them in inane roles and plotlines (with several exceptions, but that is a conversation for another time), "Monk" deftly weaves them into the plot and gives them some great material.

"Monk", along with the highly enjoyable "Psych", premieres its sixth season this Friday night, July 13th at 9pm on USA. I recommend tuning in. It is not for everyone, but I suggest giving it a chance.