Alan Haber: Monk, Son of Alias. buhdge

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"Someone should translate the idea of 15 minutes of fame into a reality show. Now, that kind of thing I would watch, as long as the briefly-famous person went right back into obscurity immediately after his or her segment."-Alan Haber

**Monk: Son of Alias?** Three cheers for the rebirth of a modern-day classic, proclaims Alan Haber They've done the impossible. Monk's 2005 opener, in which Traylor Howard was introduced as the Defective Detective's new assistant, was a slam-bang success any way you look at it. Bravo, cheers and phobia-drenched kisses to creator Andy Breckman for his deft script, a virtual re-imagining of the show, which rights just about every wrong taken by the writing staff last season. Like J.J. Abrams' Alias, and sort of like Dallas, Monk has been brought back to square one. It's too bad it had to happen in conjunction with the unnecessary departure of Bitty Schram, whose Sharona Fleming was an integral part of the show, the yang to Adrian Monk's yin, but the loss of a major character is the best time for a show to make changes, the best time to get the monkey off a show's back (and I'm only sort of referring to the monkey that Captain Stottlemeyer played gun roulette with last year). When word snuck out that Schram was leaving and being replaced by a single mother who worked in a bar, visions of a a compound character fracture swirled around fans' heads, and for good reason. How could a woman who worked in a bar work with Monk? What kind of expertise could she possibly have? Was she a Long Island Ice Tea nurse? Does she even know what a wipe is? And, most importantly, how could the show's producers think that fans would accept this new character as a replacement for Sharona? We've come a long way from switching Darrens on Bewitched, These days, fans care about characters and treat them like family, which is why Schram's exit created such animosity. Truth is, the problems that were plaguing the show last year, chiefly the mostly sub-par writing and out-of-character behavior that turned Stottlemeyer and Disher into idiots, could have been fixed without Schram leaving. Although it still hasn't been made crystal clear why Schram left, and she will be missed forever, I do believe that the addition of Howard's Natalie Teeger, a seemingly headstrong, intelligent woman, is just what the show doctor ordered. I miss Sharona, but in hindsight, she may have become a bit too broadly drawn as the series progressed. Teeger seems to be a bit more of a centered soul, with perhaps a bit more sophistication in her bag of character traits. Is she a better match for Monk? Time will tell. The mystery in Mr. Monk and the Red Herring, Howard's first episode, was the best in a long while, involving Teeger's daughter Julie's fish that may or may not have been the target of a thief who met his demise at the hands of a pair of scissors. Why would anyone want to steal a fish? In case you haven't seen this episode, I won't reveal the 411, but suffice it to say, it's a pretty clever denouement, and there are various touches sprinkled throughout the episode that show a great deal of care and attention to character development. For example, Julie thinks her fish is six years old (it was given to her by her father, who passed away). It turns out that Teeger had been replacing the fish every year and letting Julie hang on to the obviously precious memory of the fish being given to her by her dad. Although this was a great episode, and a most welcome return to form, a few nitpicky things didn't ring true. For one, it is said that Sharona remarried her ex-husband and moved back to New Jersey. Is this the same ex-husband who she had nothing but run-ins with during her tenure on the show? And Disher is still an idiot, although perhaps a little bit less of an idiot than he was last season. All in all, however, things are really looking up, and Howard, a veteran of lousy sitcoms, the most well known of which is ABC's Two Guys and a Girl, turns out to be a great choice for Monk's new assistant. By the way, kudos to Breckman for not prolonging the assistant search with too many tired "She's not right for me" gags, especially in light of Monk's response to one of the candidates who asks what her hours would be. Nine a.m. to one, says Monk. One? Till one of us dies. Funny in a dark way, and sad, and a reflection of Monk's need for time to reverse so that Trudy's death never occurs. I look forward to next week's episode, Mr. Monk vs. the Cobra, which puts the Defective Detective squarely in the world of...ninjas? The trailer, which can be seen at the USA Network Monk site, points to humor that amplifies Monk's character traits, rather than humor offered at his expense. When a mysterious figure says that "A great sorrow has entered this room," Monk points out the obvious: "That would be me." And, when it is pointed out to him that he needs to remove his shoes, Monks asks "Has the master heard of athlete's foot?" Good stuff. Here at buhdge, we'll be keeping a close eye on Monk as the show closes out its third season (the fourth begins with nine episodes this summer). The Monk, it seems, is back, and what could be wrong with that? January 23, 2005
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Monk: Son of Alias?
Three cheers for the rebirth of a modern-day classic, proclaims Alan Haber

They've done the impossible. Monk's 2005 opener, in which Traylor Howard was introduced as the Defective Detective's new assistant, was a slam-bang success any way you look at it. Bravo, cheers and phobia-drenched kisses to creator Andy Breckman for his deft script, a virtual re-imagining of the show, which rights just about every wrong taken by the writing staff last season.

Like J.J. Abrams' Alias, and sort of like Dallas, Monk has been brought back to square one. It's too bad it had to happen in conjunction with the unnecessary departure of Bitty Schram, whose Sharona Fleming was an integral part of the show, the yang to Adrian Monk's yin, but the loss of a major character is the best time for a show to make changes, the best time to get the monkey off a show's back (and I'm only sort of referring to the monkey that Captain Stottlemeyer played gun roulette with last year).

When word snuck out that Schram was leaving and being replaced by a single mother who worked in a bar, visions of a a compound character fracture swirled around fans' heads, and for good reason. How could a woman who worked in a bar work with Monk? What kind of expertise could she possibly have? Was she a Long Island Ice Tea nurse? Does she even know what a wipe is? And, most importantly, how could the show's producers think that fans would accept this new character as a replacement for Sharona?

We've come a long way from switching Darrens on Bewitched, These days, fans care about characters and treat them like family, which is why Schram's exit created such animosity. Truth is, the problems that were plaguing the show last year, chiefly the mostly sub-par writing and out-of-character behavior that turned Stottlemeyer and Disher into idiots, could have been fixed without Schram leaving. Although it still hasn't been made crystal clear why Schram left, and she will be missed forever, I do believe that the addition of Howard's Natalie Teeger, a seemingly headstrong, intelligent woman, is just what the show doctor ordered. I miss Sharona, but in hindsight, she may have become a bit too broadly drawn as the series progressed. Teeger seems to be a bit more of a centered soul, with perhaps a bit more sophistication in her bag of character traits. Is she a better match for Monk? Time will tell.

The mystery in Mr. Monk and the Red Herring, Howard's first episode, was the best in a long while, involving Teeger's daughter Julie's fish that may or may not have been the target of a thief who met his demise at the hands of a pair of scissors. Why would anyone want to steal a fish? In case you haven't seen this episode, I won't reveal the 411, but suffice it to say, it's a pretty clever denouement, and there are various touches sprinkled throughout the episode that show a great deal of care and attention to character development. For example, Julie thinks her fish is six years old (it was given to her by her father, who passed away). It turns out that Teeger had been replacing the fish every year and letting Julie hang on to the obviously precious memory of the fish being given to her by her dad.

Although this was a great episode, and a most welcome return to form, a few nitpicky things didn't ring true. For one, it is said that Sharona remarried her ex-husband and moved back to New Jersey. Is this the same ex-husband who she had nothing but run-ins with during her tenure on the show? And Disher is still an idiot, although perhaps a little bit less of an idiot than he was last season.

All in all, however, things are really looking up, and Howard, a veteran of lousy sitcoms, the most well known of which is ABC's Two Guys and a Girl, turns out to be a great choice for Monk's new assistant. By the way, kudos to Breckman for not prolonging the assistant search with too many tired "She's not right for me" gags, especially in light of Monk's response to one of the candidates who asks what her hours would be. Nine a.m. to one, says Monk. One? Till one of us dies. Funny in a dark way, and sad, and a reflection of Monk's need for time to reverse so that Trudy's death never occurs.

I look forward to next week's episode, Mr. Monk vs. the Cobra, which puts the Defective Detective squarely in the world of...ninjas? The trailer, which can be seen at the USA Network Monk site, points to humor that amplifies Monk's character traits, rather than humor offered at his expense. When a mysterious figure says that "A great sorrow has entered this room," Monk points out the obvious: "That would be me." And, when it is pointed out to him that he needs to remove his shoes, Monks asks "Has the master heard of athlete's foot?" Good stuff.

Here at buhdge, we'll be keeping a close eye on Monk as the show closes out its third season (the fourth begins with nine episodes this summer). The Monk, it seems, is back, and what could be wrong with that?

January 23, 2005