Monk - Season Two
by Craig Zisk, Daniel Dratch, Jerry Levine, Lawrence Trilling, Michael Fresco
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DVD details
Actor: Jason Gray-Stanford, Stanley Kamel, Ted Levine, Tony Shalhoub, Traylor HowardDirector: Craig Zisk, Daniel Dratch, Jerry Levine, Lawrence Trilling, Michael Fresco
Brand: Universal Studios
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown), Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround; Spanish (Subtitled); French (Subtitled); English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround
Format: Box set, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.78:1
Running Time: 671 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2005-01-11
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Universal Studios
DVD Reviews of Monk - Season Two
DVD Review: Is it a jungle out there?
Summary: 4 Stars
They changed the theme song.
Without sounding like Sarah Silverman's character from the second season of "Monk", I was initially surprised when I began this second season with Randy Newman doing what he does best - sign about anything and everything. Alright, so maybe I am jumping the gun here on this review, but seriously folks, they changed the theme song. What television program in their right mind changes the theme song midstream? I could keep going, but I am going to stop...
The theme song - they changed it.
Monk, our happy-go-lucky, obsessive, compulsive detective is back again, fresh off the doldrums of the first season, we get to see more of Monk, more of his life, and more of those surrounding him. What makes this show stand out in my eyes is the fact that these are individual stories living in a television syndicate world that focuses on story arcs that at times seem more complex than a donut. How bizarre is it to find individual stories with each episode. There is a murder, there is a need for some complex thought processes, the local police are consistently clueless, so Monk steps in, systematically solves the crime, remains the hero, while struggling with his phobias. That is your episode in a nutshell. For this "Lost" viewer, it was difficult to get used to at first. It reminded me of older television, but over time, it grew with me. These stand-alone episodes continue to bring us familiar faces, similar situations with happy endings to give the "in-the-box" audiences a hero they can count on. "Monk" may be structural, but it gets better with each viewing. This second season demonstrates a bigger budget with better audience input. There were elements from the original series that I liked and disliked and with this new season, the creators seemed to have read my mind and followed through with the changes. Like most second outings, they begin to grow their characters, surrounding and otherwise - yet, they didn't grow the surroundings. To better demonstrate this point, I have compiled a list of pros and cons from this second season. Take it as you may, this was a better season than the first, but still not quite to the level of perfection:
Pros:
- the continual story arc centered around Monk's late wife. This is a big bowl of something that has yet to be opened, but when it does Monk's world is going to shatter.
- the development of our characters around Monk. Is it immature to say that I love the chemistry between Sharona and Randy Disher, or that between Monk and Stottlemeyer? For me, it is the way these characters interact that really develop the unlooped stories and provide the intermittent chuckles through the episodes.
- This is going to be in both categories, but the introduction of genuine actors sprinkled through the stories. Those like Sarah Silverman and Tim Curry bring something new to the table, but it also brings a bit of unwanted commercialism to the series.
- Thank you producers of "Monk" for revolving back to the original concept of not revealing the villain until the final act of the episode. This forces me to think, instead of sit in the back seat while the actors attempt to discover what I already know.
Cons:
- Can I state this again? Why did they change the theme song? Horrible idea, and possibly the worst downfall of this second season. Randy Newman's voice just doesn't quite match the sharpness of the non-vocal opening of first season's episodes.
- Adrian Monk's issues seemed to be an excuse instead of a hindrance in this season. There were some episodes that I felt Monk was just pushing an extreme instead of actually having a medial/psychological illness. There were even episodes where I felt Monk was using his sickness to be "mean" to others, like Sharona (and her elephant fear) or his neighbor nerd with the money-grubbing seductress.
- Theme song ... I promise, it is the final time I bring this up.
- The special guest stars at times distracted from the overall picture of the show. I hated the fact that Dale the Whale was played by Tim Curry (albeit a better actor than the previous actor) because it distracted from the "Twin Peak"-sy nature of the character. How can this man see everything? What are his ties with Monk? Why do I still find Sarah Silverman annoying? While she did provide the best evidence that the theme song was atrocious - you cannot dismiss the fact that she just isn't funny. My opinion only.
- The final episodes of this season seemed rash and insufficiently put together. The beginning episodes start with so much strength and desire, but as we close, outside of the last episode, it just seems like they are trying to make the fantastic out of nothing. I think Monk is smarter than this season gives him credit for.
Overall, I am still working my way through this series. I think as we go further the episodes will sharpen and the story arcs will complete themselves. This is far from perfection, but it does allow for more development in the future. I look forward to keep going with Monk, Sharona, and Stottlemeyer. It impresses me that a non-consecutive series can compete in this syndicated world, but I have been proven wrong before. This series works because you can jump in at any time and still enjoy a good detective story.
I would suggest for anyone, but as of yet, don't have an expectation to be blown away.
Grade: **** out of *****
Description of Monk - Season Two
A quirky obsessive-compulsive detective with unconventional investigative methods solves some of San Francisco's most puzzling and unusual cases.Genre: Television
Rating: NR
Release Date: 11-JAN-2005
Media Type: DVD
Monk: Season Two finds the popular cable dramedy all the more satisfying and fun in its second year. Relationships between the series' core characters have (against all odds) actually deepened and sweetened, while the new whodunit storylines challenge obsessive-compulsive investigator hero Adrian Monk (Tony Shalhoub) in fresh and novel ways. There are no big changes, but there is more compassion, even friendship, exchanged between Monk and his former boss, Captain Leland Stottlemeyer (Ted Levine), and grudging admiration for the difficult private sleuth from Stottlemeyer's second-in-command, Lieutenant Disher (Jason Gray-Stanford). As for Monk's crucial bond with his long-suffering assistant, Sharona (Bitty Schram), well, nothing comes easier than before. On the other hand, Sharona continues to draw Monk out of his self-obsession by giving him someone to care about.
Highlights include the strong season opener, "Mr. Monk Goes Back to School," starring Andrew McCarthy as a science teacher whom Monk instantly suspects of killing a colleague. (The latter's death was disguised as a suicide.) Monk's investigation leads him to take, with many pitfalls and funny moments, a post at the school as a substitute teacher. But the episode also demonstrates the series' increasing preference for mysteries that concern how a crime was committed rather than who did it. Also good is "Mr. Monk Goes to Mexico," in which Monk finds himself in a panic without bottled water while working alongside two south-of-the-border equivalents (in looks and personality) of Stottlemeyer and Disher. "Mr. Monk Meets the Playboy" stars Gary Cole as a girlie-mag publisher who blackmails the chivalrous Monk by acquiring, and threatening to print, old topless photos of Sharona. One of the season's best shows, "Mr. Monk and the Paperboy," finds the fastidious, orderly detective in a major freakout when his own home becomes a crime scene. Still a comic joy and still stimulating for mystery buffs, Monk: Season Two is highly recommended. Among appealing guest stars are Rachel Dratch, Glenne Headley, Tim Curry, and John Turturro as Monk's Mycroft-like brother. --Tom Keogh
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