'Monk' has always been one of my most watched shows when needing comfort, to relax after a hard day, a good laugh or a way to spend a lazy weekend.
There may be better episodes in Season 1 than "Mr Monk Takes a Vacation", such as "Mr Monk and the Candidate", "Mr Monk Goes to the Asylum", "Mr Monk and the Psychic", "Mr Monk and the Other Woman" and "Mr Monk Meets Dale the Whale", if we're talking about just the previous episodes and this for a minute. But even when Season 1 was not quite at its best it was still solid and even very good, "Mr Monk Takes a Vacation" is not excepted from that.
It is agreed that the crime/story is a bit silly (although the summation wraps up things neatly), even for early Monk, this time round, with the hunt for the body being a little on the repetitious side and taking a little too much episode time. Also, kind of missed Stottlemeyer here, can understand why he was not there but while Randy is likeably earnest enough and Jason Gray-Stanford is growing in confidence Stottlemeyer has always been funnier and more interesting.
"Mr Monk Takes a Vacation" has so many great things though. One of the best things about 'Monk' has always been the acting of Tony Shalhoub in the title role, it was essential for him to work and be the glue of the show, and Shalhoub not only is that but also at his very best he IS the show. Have always loved the balance of the humour, which is often hilarious, and pathos, which is sincere and touching. It is remarkable here that right from the first episode to when the show ended that one likes him straight away, even with his quirks and deficiencies that could easily have been overplayed, and also that he is better developed than most titular characters of other shows at this particular stage. Who can't help love Monk's brilliant mind too?
He is very well supported by a sharp and no-nonsense but also sympathetic Bitty Schram, whose Sharona makes for a worthy and entertaining partner for Monk's sleuthing and somebody with a maternal side. There is always a debate at who's better between Sharona and Natalie, personally like both in their own way and consider them both attractive though as of now leaning towards Natalie as the better acted and more attentive of the two. Max Morrow is cute as Benjy and the supporting cast do well.
As said many times before with Monk, it's not just the cast. Another star is the writing, which is also essential to whether the show would be successful or not and succeed it does here. The mix of hilarious wry humour, lovable quirkiness and tender easy-to-relate-to drama is delicately done but extremely deft.
It's the character moments that make "Mr Monk Takes a Vacation" a better episode than it could have been. Not just the chemistry between Monk and Sharona, but particularly the amusing one between Monk and the security chief and the parts dealing with the germ-phobia are pretty hilarious. Can also identify with Monk with his struggles with relaxing.
Visually, the episode is shot in a slick and stylish way, and the music is both understated and quirky. Much prefer the jazzy Season 1 theme tune to the later "It's a Jungle Out There", which always struck me before as one of my least favourite assets of 'Monk' but has since grown on me, which should have been kept. It's all very capably directed.
Overall, very good. 8/10 Bethany Cox
There may be better episodes in Season 1 than "Mr Monk Takes a Vacation", such as "Mr Monk and the Candidate", "Mr Monk Goes to the Asylum", "Mr Monk and the Psychic", "Mr Monk and the Other Woman" and "Mr Monk Meets Dale the Whale", if we're talking about just the previous episodes and this for a minute. But even when Season 1 was not quite at its best it was still solid and even very good, "Mr Monk Takes a Vacation" is not excepted from that.
It is agreed that the crime/story is a bit silly (although the summation wraps up things neatly), even for early Monk, this time round, with the hunt for the body being a little on the repetitious side and taking a little too much episode time. Also, kind of missed Stottlemeyer here, can understand why he was not there but while Randy is likeably earnest enough and Jason Gray-Stanford is growing in confidence Stottlemeyer has always been funnier and more interesting.
"Mr Monk Takes a Vacation" has so many great things though. One of the best things about 'Monk' has always been the acting of Tony Shalhoub in the title role, it was essential for him to work and be the glue of the show, and Shalhoub not only is that but also at his very best he IS the show. Have always loved the balance of the humour, which is often hilarious, and pathos, which is sincere and touching. It is remarkable here that right from the first episode to when the show ended that one likes him straight away, even with his quirks and deficiencies that could easily have been overplayed, and also that he is better developed than most titular characters of other shows at this particular stage. Who can't help love Monk's brilliant mind too?
He is very well supported by a sharp and no-nonsense but also sympathetic Bitty Schram, whose Sharona makes for a worthy and entertaining partner for Monk's sleuthing and somebody with a maternal side. There is always a debate at who's better between Sharona and Natalie, personally like both in their own way and consider them both attractive though as of now leaning towards Natalie as the better acted and more attentive of the two. Max Morrow is cute as Benjy and the supporting cast do well.
As said many times before with Monk, it's not just the cast. Another star is the writing, which is also essential to whether the show would be successful or not and succeed it does here. The mix of hilarious wry humour, lovable quirkiness and tender easy-to-relate-to drama is delicately done but extremely deft.
It's the character moments that make "Mr Monk Takes a Vacation" a better episode than it could have been. Not just the chemistry between Monk and Sharona, but particularly the amusing one between Monk and the security chief and the parts dealing with the germ-phobia are pretty hilarious. Can also identify with Monk with his struggles with relaxing.
Visually, the episode is shot in a slick and stylish way, and the music is both understated and quirky. Much prefer the jazzy Season 1 theme tune to the later "It's a Jungle Out There", which always struck me before as one of my least favourite assets of 'Monk' but has since grown on me, which should have been kept. It's all very capably directed.
Overall, very good. 8/10 Bethany Cox